For 2003 Cirrus Design is upgrading its SR20 to an all-electric airplane. According to Alan Klapmeier, president of Cirrus, the change will eliminate the vacuum pump and put the airplane in a better position to take advantage of advanced avionics. The electrical system is a single alternator (dual alternators are optional), dual battery/dual bus fault-tolerant system, like the one in the company's SR22 higher-performance model. All SR20 Version 2.0 airplanes will have Avidyne's 10-inch FlightMax multifunction display as well as an avionics package similar to that of the current SR20. The new version of the airplane will carry a slightly higher price tag but when delivered as a fully equipped airplane will actually cost less than the current model, Klapmeier said.
Also, by the end of April, Cirrus Design had increased the production rate of its 200-horsepower SR20 and 310-horsepower SR22 to two aircraft per business day. By early April, the company had produced 343 airplanes and had a backlog in excess of 500 airplanes. The production mix of SR22s to SR20s is running about two to one, Klapmeier reported. He acknowledged that the ratio "irritates some of our SR20 owners, but we're not enjoying a positive cash flow yet. If we went out of business that wouldn't make people happy, either." Despite the lack of positive cash flow, Klapmeier said, "We're no longer worrying about meeting the payroll on Fridays and I'm confident that we'll develop another airplane."
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