Pacific Aerospace Ltd is an aircraft manufacturing company based in Hamilton, New Zealand

Hamilton, New Zealand

Hamilton is the centre of New Zealand's fourth largest urban area, and Hamilton City is the country's fourth largest territorial authority. Hamilton is in the Waikato Region of the North Island, approximately south of Auckland...

. Along with its predecessors, it has produced around 600 utility, training and agricultural aircraft.

History

Pacific Aerospace was formed from two companies, Air Parts (NZ) Ltd and Aero Engine Services Ltd. Air Parts imported Fletcher FD-25

Fletcher FD-25

|-See also:-External links:* November 1951 Popular Science article on FL-25 -- rest of article and photos on following page...

s in kit form during the mid-1950s and began manufacturing a significantly-modified variant, known as the PAC Fletcher, in 1965. Aero Engine Services Ltd diversified from maintenance work into taking over production of the Victa Airtourer, a light aircraft it developed into a military trainer, the PAC CT/4 in the early 1970s. The two firms joined in 1973 as New Zealand Aerospace Industries, which became Pacific Aerospace in 1982.

Shortly afterward, Pacific Aerospace won contracts to provide components to Boeing

Boeing

The Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...

 and Airbus

Airbus

Airbus SAS is an aircraft manufacturing subsidiary of EADS, a European aerospace company. Based in Blagnac, France, surburb of Toulouse, and with significant activity across Europe, the company produces around half of the world's jet airliners....

. Pacific Aerospace took over NZAI's work on a replacement for the Fletcher, which became the PAC Cresco and has in turn developed this into utility and skydiving variants. A new utility aircraft, the P-750 XSTOL, first flew in 2001. The company has also continued low-level CT4 production for over 30 years.

In September 2005 an American firm's order for 12 PAC 750s was dishonoured, leading to controversy about government assistance to Pacific Aerospace.

List of Aircraft

• PAC CT/4 Airtrainer - (1972) Single-engine two-seat (side-by-side) low-wing monoplane with fixed tricycle undercarriage. Piston-engined military basic trainer

• PAC Fletcher - (1954) Single-engine two-seat (side-by-side) low-wing monoplane with fixed tricycle undercarriage. Piston-engined aerial-application aircraft

• PAC Cresco - (early 1980s) Single-engine low-wing monoplane with fixed tricycle undercarriage. Turboprop-engined aerial application aircraft

• P-750 XSTOL - (2001) Single-engine low-wing monoplane passenger transport with fixed tricycle undercarriage. Turboprop skydive/utility/aerial application aircraft. Formally known as the PAC 750-XL.