Aerion has recruited several industry professionals as the company prepares to introduce its first supersonic aircraft to the market.
Aerion and Boeing entered into a partnership, in February 2019, to develop the AS2 supersonic aircraft.
Tom Vice, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Aerion, said: “We are absolutely dedicated to be a magnet for the world’s greatest talent. We’re attracting amazing people to join our team—people passionate about working together to revolutionize the future of global mobility.”
Cathy Rice has been appointed as vice president of Aerion’s business management to lead contracts, pricing, cost schedule management, and to facilitate the business and program management processes.
Scott Kalister has been appointed vice president of worldwide support and logistics to establish a global support network for the AS2. Mr Kalister established the Embraer Executive Jets customer support organization in 2001 and led it to top-ranked status.
Gene Holloway has been appointed vice president of Boomless CruiseTM system and environmental responsibility to develop and certify the world’s first Boomless system, allowing the Aerion AS2 to cruise at speeds up to Mach 1.2, without a sonic boom reaching the ground.
Mr Holloway also leads efforts to explore and incorporate into Aerion aircraft advanced technologies for improved fuel efficiency and reduced emissions.
Andrew Hellen has been promoted from director to vice president of cockpit and subsystems. He has authored more than a dozen white papers that have helped mature the Aerion AS2 design. Mr Hellen will now lead an expanded team.
The Mach 1.4 AS2 business jet is scheduled to begin flight testing in 2023.