SyberJet Aircraft has appointed Trevor Milton as chief executive officer to lead development of the new SJ36 light jet, the company announced Tuesday. According to a video Milton posted to LinkedIn Tuesday, he is also a member of the investment group that purchased the company in 2024.
The company said its anticipated nine-seat, single-pilot aircraft is expected to be the fastest light jet ever certified at Mach 0.88, builds on SyberJet’s SJ30 platform and is targeting certification in 2032.
“Our job now is to take that foundation and push beyond every limit—speed, range, altitude, comfort, and avionics,” Milton said in the announcement.
He added that aerodynamic testing has shown the design could reach Mach 0.95, though certification will target Mach 0.88.
Milton previously served as the founder and former executive chairman of electric truck maker Nikola Corp. In 2022, he was convicted of securities and wire fraud on charges of misleading investors regarding the company’s technology.
Although originally sentenced in 2023 to four years in prison, Milton was pardoned by President Donald Trump in early 2025.
Following the pardon, Milton released a YouTube documentary titled Conviction or Conspiracy – The Trevor Milton Saga, which he said was intended to “set the record straight.”
Just one more scumbag in a long line of money grubbing scumbags that has latched on to our aviation world making huge promises while taking investors money. Why are we targeted so much?
(1) Despite everyone pleading poverty, the reality is that there is a huge ocean of money sloshing around the commercial aviation industry in the west. We have all heard that guy complaining about the servicing costs for his Ferrari. Hell, many of us have done it ourselves. Let’s face it: compared to the proles, we’re stinking rich.
(2) In my experience, some of us in the aviation industry are very good at believing what we are told since working in a safety-first environment brings with it the implicit assumption that everyone is communicating honestly.
(3) Some of us in the aviation industry are very good at “simply” following procedures developed elsewhere, since that is what we were trained to do at some point, and I think that a sub-group of those people are equally good at leaving the critical thinking to others.
My 2¢. Roast me!
Because there’s a sucker born every minute and a lot of them hold certificates.
Well, you could say we’re suckers for loving airplanes, since they are a contemptous transportation device that has exhorbitant costs. But thats ok, on that count I’ll take it.