Swiss firm plans aircraft engine facilities at Daytona airport
    Mistral to invest $2 million over five years.
    Orlando Business Journal - by Chris Kauffmann Staff Writer


    DAYTONA BEACH -- A Swiss startup firm has big plans for a small
    parcel of land at
    Daytona Beach International Airport.

    Geneva-based Mistral Engines SA recently signed a five-year lease with
    two five-year options for a parcel of land to be used as the site
    for a 1,800-square-foot building to develop and test rotary
    engines for use in general aviation aircraft.

    Eventually, the plan is to get the engines certified by the
    Federal Aviation Administration, and then to build or lease
    a larger building at the airport or somewhere else in Volusia
    County to assemble the engines.

    At least two dozen jobs could be created as a result, says
    the 6-year-old company.

    "The aerospace and aviation industries are important to our
    economy, and this will bring new products and jobs to our area,"
    says Phil Ehlinger, business manager for Volusia County's
    department of economic development.

    Mistral will invest about $2 million in the entire project,
    including the buildings and payroll during the next five years.

    Mistral already has $14 million of the $18 million in private
    equity money it plans to raise for operations in Daytona Beach
    and Switzerland, says CEO Francois Badoux.

    The first phase of the project, the testing facility, should
    be operating by late March. Sometime next summer, the company
    will set up offices to work on developing a customer base and
    other commercial activities.

    A date for opening the assembly plant has not been determined,
    but it will be after the FAA certifies the engines -- possibly
    in 2009, Badoux says.

    Mistral essentially is adapting the rotary engine technology
    used in the Mazda RX7 and RX8 automobiles for small aircraft use.


Idle curiosity: Does anyone know if Mistral is buying any parts from
Mazda.  Or are they building (or contracting-out) everything?  If they
aren't buying any Mazda parts, I am surprised that they wouldn't go with
peripheral ports on their engines.  Their intake manifold is beautiful,
but P-ports would be simpler, smaller, and lighter..  Maybe they would
disagree?

We may have talked about this before (when Mr. Badoux was still
participating)..


Matt-

They buy some parts from Mazda but they don't go into certified
engines. I think they use the Mazda parts for R&D and testing
that does not involve the certified program. They have their own
patterns for most if not all casting that are slightly modified
from the Mazda parts. They started making patterns for core engine
parts about 2004. Of course they had gear box and front cover
castings before that. The last couple of years at OSH they
have only shown complete engines so it is hard to tell what
is theirs and what is Mazda's.

I've discussed p-ports with Francois many times. I think he feels
they are not needed for the HP levels they are looking for.
He probably also feels it would cost a lot to start over with
P-ports in the R&D  and certification programs and there may
be unforeseen problems with P-ports. From a business point of view
I agree. You sell what you have first.

From a technical point of view I don't happen to agree but they are
very successfully so far marketing their side port rotary engines
to Russian helicopter makers.

I think once they get engines certified and manufactured in
quantity there may be some money and time for P-port  or turbo compound
R&D.


Here are some shots of their own castings.

BTW I uploaded some videos of the Mistral test Piper to Youtube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLY139b65a0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JQVeMoKBT0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo1TqhQqOkg