Eclipse Aviation Files Chapter 11

For the last few years, Eclipse Aviation was to seen to be the foundation of a whole new world of air taxis and personal jets with their Eclipse 550 aircraft. Times have changed and this week, Eclipse filed for federal bankruptcy-court protection. The company which is based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, struggled to make payroll earlier this month. The Wall Street Journal reports that ETIRC Aviation, which holds nearly 65% of the company's shares, will endeavor to continue manufacturing operations as it moves to acquire Eclipse's assets.

Eclipse still has a backlog of over 2,000 planes on order. The company may slow down production on order to get solvent as soon as possible. The planes sell for around $1.5 million each. Eclipse joins other companies that are planning layoffs and slowing production in order to cope with the dramatic economic shifts.