page_title: History of Eclipse Aviation
section_title: Timeline
hierarchical_section_title: History of Eclipse Aviation / Timeline
caption_attribution_description: English: w:Eclipse Aviation service center. Since Eclipse declared bankruptcy in 2009, this building has remained vacant
context_page_description: The history of Eclipse Aviation is the story of the largest financial failure in the history of general aviation, one that experts have predicted will have a lasting impact on the aerospace industry.
  The Eclipse story runs from the company's start up in 1998, through the design and production of 260 examples of the Eclipse 500 very light jet, development of the Eclipse 400 single-engined jet, to the company's downfall and dissolution in bankruptcy in 2009.
context_section_description: 1998–2002
  Eclipse Aviation Corporation was founded in 1998 by Microsoft employee #18 Vern Raburn. Due to Raburn's relationship with Microsoft, Bill Gates became a major stakeholder early in the Eclipse project. Raburn and his team initially based the company in Scottsdale, Arizona, formed a Board of Directors in 1999 and started design work on the first aircraft. Due to investments made by the State of New Mexico and incentives and concessions from the City of Albuquerque, the company decided to set up its production facilities in Albuquerque, and also moved its headquarters there in 2000.
  In addition to its factory in Albuquerque, Eclipse established three service centers, at Albuquerque, at Gainesville Regional Airport in Florida, and at Albany International Airport in New York.
  Preliminary design work on the Eclipse 500 was completed in 2000. The design was finalized in 2001 and construction of the first prototype commenced that year. The prototype first flew on 26 August 2002, powered by two Williams International EJ22 turbofans.
  November 2002
  The Eclipse 500 had been designed around the Williams International EJ22 turbofan engine and the aircraft's selling price and operating economics hinged on the use of that engine. The prototype Eclipse 500 only flew once with the EJ22s installed. Eclipse CEO Vern Raburn said that the engines never delivered the rated thrust and that the problems were not just developmental in nature. Williams International responded by stating that the engines met all the contractual obligations and that Eclipse simply demanded more thrust than the engine was capable of providing.
  December 2004
  As a replacement powerplant Eclipse selected the Pratt & Whitney Canada PW610F-A turbofan. This change required significant airframe redesign and introduced integration challenges. The prototype equipped with the PW610F engines first flew on 31 December 2004. The engine change caused a thirty-month delay in the Eclipse program and the forecast first customer deliveries.
  February 2006
  In February 2006 the National Aeronautic Association named Eclipse Aviation as the winner of the prestigious Collier Trophy for 2005. Specifically the award  was for:
  ... applying innovations created in the technology industry to drive down cost, increase performance, improve safety, and spur a new type of air travel -- the air taxi.
  ... the selection committee's criteria included recognition of the rich heritage of the Collier Trophy, and 'the spirit of entrepreneurship, technical innovation, and the impact on American aviation,' exemplified by the Eclipse 500. 
  The award was controversial, as the NAA states that the prize is awarded "for the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America, with respect to improving the performance, efficiency, and safety of air or space vehicles, the value of which has been thoroughly demonstrated by actual use during the preceding year." At the time of the award, prototype EA500s were flying but certification by the FAA was still 9 months away. The aircraft was not fully certified until 30 September 2006 and the first customer aircraft was not delivered until 2007. Critics indicated that the EA500 did not meet the stated criteria, although Eclipse Aircraft defended the award as justified. Richard Aboulafia termed it "a highly suspect award decision that managed to demean all the other worthy recipients and the Collier itself."
  September 2006
  The Eclipse 500 was FAA certified on 30 September 2006 under the official designation Eclipse Aviation EA500.
  January 2007
  The first customer EA500 was delivered in early January 2007.
  July 2007
  On 23 July 2007 at AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin Eclipse unveiled the already flying prototype of a second company design initially called the Eclipse Concept Jet. The four-seat aircraft was powered by a single Pratt & Whitney Canada PW610F turbofan and was built in secrecy at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia by Swift Engineering and Basis.
  The ECJ had first flown on 2 July 2007. At the time of its announcement the aircraft was expe
caption: The Eclipse service center at Gainesville Regional Airport
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