Story ID: 
Epic Doors Closed as Founder Disappears
By: Matt Thurber
Caption: Epic Aircraft’s facility in Bend, Ore., has been locked shut and company founder, chairman and CEO Rick Schrameck seems to have disappeared.
Word Count: 187
Epic Aircraft’s facility in Bend, Ore., has been locked shut and company founder, chairman and CEO Rick Schrameck seems to have disappeared. Epic usually has a large presence at the annual EAA AirVenture show in Oshkosh, Wis., but this year there was just one Epic LT single-engine turboprop on display without any company banners or signs. Rich Lucibella, an Epic LT kit buyer and builder who filed a lawsuit against Epic over failure to deliver the engine for his kit, has been monitoring the situation at Epic. According to Lucibella, “There are roughly 12 aircraft sitting at Epic unfinished. The owners [of those kits] are working with the company to [find] a solution that keeps Epic going, which may include investment from outside sources.” Meanwhile, asked whether the FAA is investigating questions about how much assistance Epic provides to Epic LT builders, an FAA spokesman responded: “All we can say is we are aware of the situation, and we are investigating.” No further details were available. No one is answering the telephone at Epic headquarters, and many employees’ voice mailboxes are full and unable to take messages.