Lee Aerospace has been reacquired by its founder, Jim Lee, after 14 years as part of the Triumph Group Inc. The Wichita, Kan.-based aircraft window, sheet metal and composite structure operation will again be known as Lee Aerospace Inc. Jim Lee projects a solid 2014 and announced the shipment of the first of its large aircraft assemblies, a fuselage section, to Viking Air Limited for the Viking Twin Otter 400. Lee said, This is an exciting time for us. We anticipate significant growth in employment and strong sales performance as we add new products and begin deliveries of large aircraft assemblies. We are extremely pleased to have been chosen by Viking to supply it with fuselage sections for the Viking 400.
Founded in 1989, Lee Aerospace occupies facilities totaling more than 146,000 square feet. During its 14 years as a Triumph Group company, it increased employment by more than 300 percent and revenue by 350 percent. It supplies components to OEMs both in Wichita (Learjet, Beechcraft, Cessna and Spirit AeroSystems) and across the country (Honda, Cirrus and Gulfstream). With more than 800 built, Twin Otters can be found throughout the world-anywhere ruggedness, reliability and STOL operations are required. It can be fitted with wheels, skis or floats. In 2001, it was deemed the only aircraft capable of performing a South Pole evacuation flight of a critical patient in -60 degree C conditions.
