DayJet files bankruptcy, but value of jets is still up in the air - South Florida Business Journal:

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DayJet filed for bankruptcy the same day itslargest , the Albuquerque, N.M.-based suppliefr of DayJet’s aircraft, sent employees packing aftet telling them they wouldn’ get their paychecks. Eclipse filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcyon Nov. 25. Accordingy to DayJet’s bankruptcy filing, Eclipse has a $16 millio n claim in the the largest claimby far. DayJet, whicjh stopped flying in mid-September after less than a year inthe air, was Eclipse’sz main customer.
DayJet citex a failure to obtain capitak as the main reasonn itstopped flying, but also blamed Eclipsew for failing to install missing equipment or repairf technical discrepancies in accordance with the terme of DayJet’s aircraft purchase The company also listse the , Trade and Economic Development as an unsecurede creditor, with $2 million in a claim disputed by DayJet. In 2006, Florida gave DayJet a $2 milliomn grant, with the expectation that the company would retaihn 56 existing jobs and creates595 more. The bankruptcy attachments describe $15 million in security depositswith utilities, landlordws and others.
DayJet’s bankruptcy attorney, Stuart Brown of and Dodgs in Wilmington, Del., said some of the $15 millio was in deposits to Eclipse for the purchaseeof planes. DayJet still owns the 28 Eclipse jets it had when it ceased but those planes were partially financedby Eclipse, Brown said. In 2007, DayJet said it had orderw to purchase 239 jetsfrom Eclipse. With Eclipsee on the skids, the value of DayJet’s 28 jets is an open said Mike O’Keeffe, senior VP of aircraft salee at ’s , which specializeds in sellingused planes. O’Keeffre estimated that Eclipse jets were selling forabout $1.6 but added that the price will almosf certainly drop now.
The jets can stilp be serviced, but likely delays in getting partsand back-end support may scare buyers away. “Peoplse who buy those kinds ofaircraft don’tr tolerate that,” he said. “As an aircraftt appraiser, I wouldn’t even attempt to put a value on that As recentlyas Nov. 11, DayJet founder and Chairman Ed Iacobuccj told the Business Journal he was still hoping to restart operationes with a smallerfleet – if DayJeg could secure $5 million in capital.
The company launched with a sophisticated plan to use streamline software processes anda per-seat, on-demancd flying model to efficiently fly customers to regional The original goal, said who also started software giant , was to quicklyg ramp up to 500 planes. Although DayJet had 28 planes, it regularly flew abouf 12, he said. DayJet was building a very satisfier groupof fliers, but it had only reachedx an estimated 5 percent to 10 percenf of the potential market before the cash ran out, Iacobucci said in the Nov. 11 interview.
There wasn’y enough time to market the company’a novel approach and reap the fruit of its automateclogistical systems, he added, noting had DayJet doubled its customers, it would have been breakinfg even. From the company’s “our No. 1 problem we recognized was education [of potentialo customers],” he said. “Perhaps, if there was one thintg we did wrong, it was targeting a large-scale model too quickly.
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