Joint Purchase of Epic is Final Ruling

Epic to be built in US and licensed to China

April 13, 2010 —U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Randall Dunn used coaxing and brinkmanship to corral China Aviation Industry General Aircraft Co. Ltd. and the LT Builders Group into a joint purchase agreement of Epic Aircraft for $4.3 million.

The agreement was reached hours before Judge Dunn’s deadline; if not met, he would award the company to a third investor, Harlow Aerostructures, which was also angling for a partnership with the builders group.  That group is comprised of some of the owners of 15 aircraft still locked in the former Epic Aircraft facility in Bend, Oregon.

"We did it!" said pilot and businessman Daryl Ingalsbe, an LT Builders Group manager, flashing thumbs-up as he left the courtroom according to the The Oregonian. "We kept control of this wonderful company in the United States."

As part of the agreement, LT Builders Group will restart manufacturing at the Bend plant once lease negotiations are complete with the current landlord which had locked out the builders when Epic Air filed for bankruptcy last summer. China Aviation Industry General Aircraft Co., a firm owned by the Chinese government, will receive a license to manufacture the aircraft in China.