The ICON team kicked off 2015 with a busy quarter that included the completion of the first customer aircraft, Aircraft Serial Number 1 (ASN-1). The airframe was completed in February, and then the systems were installed including: the interior, propulsion, fuel, electrical, flight control, wingfold, landing gear, and braking systems. Following systems testing, the aircraft will make its first flight in late April.

ICON's team also continued work on the A5's compliance program, which requires our engineers to define methods of compliance and reporting that demonstrates how the company is meeting ASTM standards. Additional technical documentation including the Maintenance Manual and Pilot's Operating Handbook are nearing completion. FAA representatives will come to ICON's facility in June to conduct an audit on both the aircraft and the company's engineering documentation and will ultimately approve ICON to begin customer deliveries.

Last December, ICON celebrated another milestone by breaking ground at the company's new 140,000-square-foot production facility in Vacaville, California. ICON is rehabilitating the existing building on the site, which shortens the build timeline while also reducing the environmental impact of construction. The City of Vacaville has been extremely helpful with ICON's relocation and has even voted to change the name of the street where the facility is situated to ICON Way.

The primary building will house offices and areas for paint, aircraft assembly, a mechanical shop, and inventory storage. The initial focus of the construction has been on utility and structural work, and workers have dug trenches for electrical conduits, drainage, and the footings of the paint and sanding booths, which will be freestanding structures in the factory building. The main electrical room is also under construction. An adjacent building will be used for composite structural bonding. The facilities are scheduled for completion this fall, with A5 production continuing in Tehachapi, California, in the interim.