Eclipse Aviation to revive as Eclipse Aerospace
19 Aug 2009
Eclipse Aviation Corp., which filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last March, will come alive once again under a new name, Eclipse Aerospace. The new company emerged as the sole bidder on Eclipse's assets.
The deadline for bids was fixed for Friday, 4 August. The new company is headed by Mason Holland Jr., chairman of insurance benefits software company Benefitfocus of Charleston, S.C.
Eclipse Aerospace, which includes three other investors in addition to Holland, will pay $40 million for the former Eclipse Aviation assets.
The old company filed for Chapter 11 protection with the US Bankruptcy Court in Delaware last November. In March, however, the Court granted a motion to convert the proceedings to Chapter 7 liquidation.
More than half a dozen potential bidders surfaced in the last few months, but only Eclipse Aerospace actually submitted a bid to acquire the old company. This came about as other bidders felt it was better for a new owner that a sole bid was allowed to be made.
Eclipse, a pioneering company, made very light jets at a factory at the Albuquerque International Sunport.
