Mistral Engines
Mistral Engines SA was a Swiss developer and manufacturer of wankel rotary aviation light aircraft, helicopter and unmanned military vehicle engines.[1] Its headquarters was in Geneva, Switzerland[2] and was majority owned by DEA General Aviation, a Chinese company based in Guangdong.[3][1] A wholly owned subsidiary company was headquartered in DeLand, Florida.[4]
History
[edit]Mistral Engines formed in 2001 in Switzerland with the purpose of developing engines for light aircraft and helicopters.[5]
The CEO of Mistral Engines was Phillippe Durr,[2] and in March 2010, Ana Fontes became the company’s Marketing and Americas Sales Director.[6]
In March 2010, Mistral announced that it had made significant progress toward the FAA certification of its new 300 horsepower, G-300 engine, but on 9 June, due to lack of financial support from investors, Mistral had to cease the development and certification of its G-300 engine.[7][2]
Heli Air Design, a helicopter manufacturer from France, used the Mistral G200 rotary engine for its two seat ultralight helicopter Helineo, which was launched in 2012.[8][9]
In 2014, Mistral Engines was acquired by Chinese company Elecpro for €2,5 million. In 2015 Elecpro changed its name to DEA General Aviation. The acquisition was originally intended to exclude drone dual-use technology, meaning military and civilian use, but was eventually included. According to the Dutch OSINT platform Datenna, DEA General Aviation has no government related shareholders.[1]
Mistral Engines went into bankruptcy, but it was revoked in 2019 by the President of the Court of the District of La Côte and the company was reinstated.[10] The company once again filed for bankruptcy and was liquidated in 2022 and terminated in 2024.[5][11]
Product line
[edit]- Mistral G-190
- Mistral G-230-TS
- Mistral G-360-TS
- Mistral G-300 - a three-rotor wankel engine rated at 300 hp (224 kW) in normally aspirated configuration and at 360 hp (269 kW) with optional turbocharging
- Mistral K-300 - similar to the G-300 but configured to use kerosene (jet fuel) instead of gasoline
- Mistral G-200 - a two-rotor wankel engine rated at 200 hp (149 kW) in normally aspirated configuration and at 230 hp (172 kW) with optional turbocharging
- Mistral K-200 - similar to the G-200 but configured to use kerosene (jet fuel) instead of gasoline
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Strategic Chinese acquisition in European dual-use aviation technology: the case of Mistral Engines". Datenna. Retrieved 2024-07-19.
- ^ a b c Sarsfield, Kate. "Mistral suspends G-300 engine development". Flight Global. Retrieved 2024-07-18.
- ^ "The acquisition of MESA and SkyTrac". Datenna. Archived from the original on 18 January 2021. Retrieved 2020-10-10.
- ^ "Mistral Moves Toward Certification Of 300HP Multi-Fuel Rotary Engine | Aero-News Network". www.aero-news.net. Retrieved 2024-07-19.
- ^ a b "MISTRAL ENGINES SA, GLAND, SWITZERLAND". Northdata. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
- ^ "MISTRAL Engines Strengthens its Management Team with Ana Fontes as its New Corporate Marketing and Americas Sales Director". Aviation Pros. 2010-04-02. Retrieved 2024-07-19.
- ^ "Mistral Engines suspends development". www.aopa.org. 2010-09-06. Retrieved 2024-07-19.
- ^ "Heli Air Design choses Mistral G200 rotary engine for Helineo". HeliHub.com. 2012-09-05. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
- ^ Roy, Gil (2012-09-04). "Heli Air Design choisit le moteur rotatif Mistral pour l'Helineo". Aerobuzz (in French). Retrieved 2024-07-25.
- ^ "Notifications Mistral Engines SA en liquidation - Gland". Moneyhouse. Retrieved 2024-07-18.
- ^ "Mistral Engines SA en liquidation". Moneyhouse. Retrieved 2024-07-18.