Supersonic aircraft company, Aerion has appointed several executives as it moves towards establishing its flight testing and manufacturing base.
The company, which is developing the AS2 business jet, recently announced it is moving to larger premises in Melbourne, Florida and has made several key appointments ahead of that move.
Aerion plans to begin flight testing the 12-passenger AS2, which will be the first-ever privately built supersonic commercial aircraft jet, in 2024. The company, which is backed by Boeing, is aiming for the AS2 to be capable of speeds up to Mach 1.4.
The appointments include Alessandro Salvia as Aerion’s controller with lead responsibility for accounting and finance management, who joins from Embraer. Rachelle St Louis-Vincent joins Aerion’s in-house legal and compliance team from Gulfstream.
Robert Lewis joins Aerion as director, system test evaluation and will build and lead the company’s new testing facilities at Aerion Park. Lewis has more than 29 years aerospace leadership experience with the USAF and Northrop Grumman, Bob will play a central role in the AS2 testing program.
Finally, Matthew Clarke joins Aerion as senior vice president of marketing and communications. Clarke brings 20 years of experience with brands including Aston Martin Lagonda, Land Rover and Karma Automotive.
Tom Vice, Aerion’s Chairman, president and CEO said, “I am really excited to have such an incredible group of successful and committed executives join our team. They are each passionate about our purpose to build the next generation of global transportation networks that significantly reduce the time and friction of travel while leaving no carbon footprint behind. They join our team of entrepreneurs, innovators, risk takers and creative people with the courage to disrupt.”
Aerion also has sites in Reno, Nevada and Palo Alto, California. The company plans to break ground on the new facilities in Florida at “Aerion Park” later this year.
