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Press Release
Issued by Daher Aircraft Inc..
July 23, 2019
Quest Aircraft announced today that the Kodiak displayed within the Aerocet booth (#255) at Airventure is a part of a recently completed three-Kodiak fleet deal with Dimor Aerospace, the German-owned company that owns Waco Aircraft. Dimor will be equipping its Kodiaks for humanitarian aid and will be operating throughout Brazil, along the Amazon. Two of its Kodiaks will be outfitted with Aerocet 6650 composite floats. Delivery of all three aircraft is complete, and Dimor is in discussion with Quest about future aircraft.
Sven Lepschy, CEO of Dimor Aerospace, noted, “The Kodiak is a perfect fit for our mission. But ultimately the reason we chose to do business with Quest was due to our comparable business philosophies. At Dimor, excellent customer service that goes above and beyond expectations is paramount. We've experienced exactly that with Quest, and the refreshingly positive attitude in its leadership reflects down to each and every employee we've worked with.”
Similar to new Kodiak customers, Dimor will be enrolled in Quest Aircraft's KodiakCare customer service plan, which Quest quietly launched in 2018. In addition to the standard two-year airframe warranty, KodiakCare provides owners 24/7/365 AOG response teams, as well as 24/7 phone and e-mail technical support and online access to technical publications. Additional KodiakCare features include a POH/AFM revision service, one-year enrollment to CAMP, and two-years/400 hours of enrollment in the ESP Gold Lite programme for engine maintenance.
“The customer experience is the most important area we can invest in, and we're committed to creating support programmes that make our customers feel productive and cared for,” said Rob Wells, CEO of Quest Aircraft Company. “We believe KodiakCare does that, especially for the international market, where we've recently expanded our AOG and technical support hours to 24/7.”
Quest also announced that beginning with the 275th Kodiak, due to be completed in September of this year, Kodiaks will be now equipped with the latest Garmin GMA 1360 audio panel with bluetooth connectivity. Owners and operators will enjoy the ability to connect their personal electronic devices directly to the aircraft audio panel. The pilot and passengers will be able to stream audio infotainment wirelessly with the enhanced audio panel.
Additionally, Quest announced the effective elimination of the Kodiak's Maximum Zero Fuel Weight (MZFW). The removal of the MZFW limitation provides Kodiak operators with increased payload, mission capability, and operator flexibility, especially during shorter flights. This change is fleet-wide, covering all earlier model Kodiaks as well.
In June it was announced that Daher, the French manufacturer of the TBM family of aircraft, intends to acquire Quest Aircraft Company. The acquisition's closing is expected to be completed by the end of 2019, subject to approval by the appropriate authorities in both countries.
German owned Dimor Aerospace and Dimor Group are based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA. Dimor Aerospace leases airplanes to charter operators. It’s current fleet consists of two Embraer Phenom 300s, one Phenom 100, one Pilatus PC-12, one Pilatus PC-6, three Kodiak 100s and one Amphibian Cessna 206.
Recently Dimor Group acquired legacy airplane manufacturer Waco Aircraft Corporation and Centennial Aircraft Services based in Michigan, USA. Waco was established in 1983 to revive the classic 1930s open cockpit biplane design. As of today, Waco has produced around 170 new handcrafted biplanes delivered worldwide. Centennial Aircraft Services is an approved FAA Part 145 repair station, avionics repair and installation facility for all major brands. Centennial's specialties include biplanes, WWI, WWII airplanes, fighters, trainers, seaplanes and transportaAircraft, as well as providing avionics installation such as ADS-B solutions.