Image: Sonex
Along with announcing his retirement last Friday, John Monnett, founder and president of Sonex Aircraft, is also inviting offers from individuals and companies interested in purchasing the company. According to Sonex, Monnett is looking for a buyer who is “interested in continuing the successful heritage of Sonex Aircraft into the next generation, or in assisting Sonex Aircraft with transition to an employee-ownership succession plan.” Sonex General Manager Mark Schaible added that “Sonex Aircraft is still going strong” and that the company is “in the midst of its most successful period in recent years.”
Monnett’s retirement comes after nearly 50 years in the kit aircraft industry. He is an inductee into the EAA Homebuilders Hall of Fame and two-time winner of the Dr. August Raspet Memorial Award, and has received the EAA Freedom of Flight Award and the Society of Experimental Test Pilots Spirit of Flight Award, among others. “I am retiring from Sonex Aircraft but not forsaking my passion for aviation,” Monnett said. “I will continue to contribute where I can into the future but will be leaving day-to-day operations in the very capable hands of my staff.”
Founded by Monnett in 1998, Sonex Aircraft is a kit aircraft company based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The company produces kits for several aircraft models, including the Sonex-B LSA, SubSonex jet and Xenos-B motorglider.
