Story ID: 008
Mooney Intros Maintenance Cost Management Plan
By: James Wynbrandt
Caption: Hight performance piston single manufacturer also announces useful load increase program, says more factory aftermarket upgrade programs coming
Word Count: 225
Mooney Aircraft, manufacturer of the turbocharged Acclaim Ultra high-performance single, announced at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh an engine and airframe maintenance cost management offering; a useful load increase initiative; and the return of the company’s factory service center, heralding additional aftermarket service programs.

Calling the forthcoming maintenance plan “our main announcement," Mooney v-p and CFO Barry Hodkin said the coverage, offered in partnership with Piston Power, will be available for all new and legacy Mooneys, commencing with model-year 2020 deliveries. Its Kerrville, Texas factory service center’s return, meanwhile, will enable the company to proceed with long-spoken plans to provide aftermarket factory upgrades, as well as increase Mooney’s contact parts production for other OEMs, already on the upswing. 

The Mooney’s useful load is a spec “we do need to improve,” Hodkin said in announcing the effort to increase it, which will involve both weight savings and aerodynamic modifications. “A few of those items will get us to a significant increase,” he said, but “it won’t be overnight.” A carbon fiber cowl, representing a potential 17-pound airframe weight reduction, is among the first steps under consideration. Hodkin said the Chinese owned company’s investors remain “very supportive” and added that the company notched orders for two Acclaim Ultras notched by early afternoon of the first day of AirVenture.