BREAKING NEWS is that the proud history of Dornier (founded in 1910) could be about to come to an end. Last Tuesday an auction began of what remains of the inventory of the company including the only 728 airframe completed and as ABTN closed for press German insolvency practitioners Pluta had been appointed by the district court at Oberfaffenhofen to look after the affairs of AvCraft Aerospace GmbH, a successor company closely involved with the turboprop and jet versions of the 328 commuter aircraft. Most of the 345 staff have been laid off and Martin Prager of Pluta says he is looking for new investors. Since taking over, Avcraft, which is closely connected with the US company of the same name, has delivered 13 whitetails and built two complete aircraft. Cash flow seems to be the major problem, three aircraft ordered, completed, but not delivered to Chinese airline Hainan, a cause of contention. The 328 has been a success from an operational point of view, the turboprop variant the backbone of Scot Airways in the UK and the jet version also used by Southampton-based Club 328.
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