Loehle Aircraft

Loehle Aircraft Corporation was a small American aircraft manufacturer based in Wartrace, Tennessee. The company focused on the experimental and homebuilt-aircraft market rather than on certified production aircraft for commercial airlines or general-aviation fleets. Its principal business was the manufacture and sale of aircraft kits, supported by a line of paints and finishing materials intended for metal, composite, and fabric-covered aircraft. The company operated for approximately four decades, from 1977 through 2017. Its products were aimed at builders who assembled aircraft themselves and subsequently operated them under the applicable experimental-aircraft or ultralight rules. According to reference material associated with the company, aircraft based on its kits were built and flown in 26 countries, giving the business an international reach despite its small-scale manufacturing base in Tennessee. Loehle Aircraft's best-known association was with the Easy Riser ultralight. In 1981, founder Michael Loehle, also referred to as Mike Loehle in historical coverage, won the Experimental Aircraft Association's Oshkosh Ultralight Grand Champion Award and an Outstanding Craftsmanship award for his Easy Riser. These recognitions helped establish the company within the early ultralight and homebuilt-aircraft community, where practical kit design, builder support, workmanship, and the ability to complete and fly an aircraft were central purchasing considerations. In addition to aircraft kits, Loehle marketed a complete aircraft-paint range. The paint business broadened the company's offering beyond airframe design and kit fabrication, serving builders and owners working with several major aircraft-construction methods. This combination of kits and finishing products positioned the company as a specialist supplier to the experimental-aircraft community rather than as a mass-market aviation brand. The company appears to have ceased operations around 2017. That timing coincided with the death from cancer of Sandra Loehle, the company's vice president of operations and Michael Loehle's wife. Public reference material does not provide a detailed formal dissolution announcement, successor company, acquisition record, or current product-support structure. Accordingly, Loehle Aircraft is best treated as a defunct or no-longer-operating historical aircraft-kit brand, with its legacy preserved through completed aircraft, archival website material, and historical references to the homebuilt-aircraft movement.

Loehle Aircraft Corporation was established in 1977 in Tennessee as a manufacturer serving the growing experimental and homebuilt-aircraft sector. Rather than producing type-certified aircraft at industrial scale, the company developed and supplied kits that allowed individual builders to assemble aircraft for recreational flying and other permitted experimental uses. This business model required the manufacturer to serve technically capable customers who took responsibility for construction, finishing, inspection, and operation under the relevant aviation rules. The company became particularly associated with ultralight aviation through the Easy Riser. In 1981, founder Michael Loehle won the Experimental Aircraft Association's Oshkosh Ultralight Grand Champion Award and an Outstanding Craftsmanship award with an Easy Riser aircraft. The awards were a significant point in the company's history because the EAA's Oshkosh event was an important gathering for homebuilt, experimental, and ultralight aviation. They provided recognition for both the aircraft's standing in the ultralight field and the quality of its construction. Over the following decades, Loehle Aircraft continued to manufacture aircraft kits. Its products were not limited to one airframe material: the company also produced a complete line of aircraft paints suitable for metal, composite, and fabric-covered aircraft. The paint range complemented the kit business and made the company relevant to a broader group of aircraft builders and owners, including people working on aircraft not manufactured by Loehle. The company remained a relatively specialized manufacturer, but its products reached beyond the United States. Reference material states that aircraft were built and flown in 26 countries. This international presence appears to have resulted from the distribution and construction of kits rather than from a large overseas corporate network. As with many homebuilt-aircraft businesses, the completed aircraft became the most visible long-term expression of the brand, while the manufacturer supplied designs, components, and finishing materials to individual builders. Sandra Loehle served as vice president of operations and was married to founder Michael Loehle. Her death from cancer in 2017 marked an important personal and organizational event. Available reference material suggests that Loehle Aircraft ceased operations at approximately the same time. The public record does not establish a detailed legal closure process, a buyer, a successor brand, or a confirmed date on which every product line ended. The company is therefore generally described as having apparently ceased operations in 2017 rather than as having undergone a documented acquisition or formal reorganization. Today, Loehle Aircraft is best understood as a historical American aircraft-kit brand. Its legacy rests on the Easy Riser and other homebuilt-aircraft products, the aircraft completed by builders in numerous countries, its recognition at Oshkosh, and its aircraft-paint business. The surviving archival material is limited, so detailed information about the full model range, production quantities, distribution arrangements, and post-2017 support is not established in the available sources.

• 2017

  Apparent end of operations

  [1]Loehle Aircraften.wikipedia.org

  The company appears to cease operations after operating as an aircraft-kit manufacturer for about 40 years. The timing followed Sandra Loehle's death from cancer.

• 1981

  Easy Riser receives Oshkosh recognition

  [1]Loehle Aircraften.wikipedia.org

  Founder Michael Loehle wins the EAA Oshkosh Ultralight Grand Champion Award and an Outstanding Craftsmanship award for an Easy Riser ultralight.

• 1977

  Aircraft-kit production begins

  [1]Loehle Aircraften.wikipedia.org

  Loehle Aircraft begins manufacturing aircraft kits for the experimental and homebuilt-aircraft market.

A specialist supplier for experimental-aircraft builders, combining aircraft kits with finishing products for multiple airframe-construction methods.

• Ultralight aircraft

  Easy Riser

  The Easy Riser was Loehle Aircraft's best-known ultralight aircraft association. It was the aircraft with which founder Michael Loehle won the 1981 Experimental Aircraft Association Oshkosh Ultralight Grand Champion Award and an Outstanding Craftsmanship award. The available reference material does not specify the complete technical configuration, production volume, or the full period during which the kit was sold.

• Homebuilt aircraft kits · 1977

  Loehle aircraft kits

  Loehle Aircraft manufactured kits for builders of experimental and homebuilt aircraft. The company operated in this field from 1977 to 2017, and aircraft based on its kits were reportedly built and flown in 26 countries. The available sources do not identify the complete model catalog or provide reliable production totals.

• Aircraft finishing products

  Loehle aircraft paints

  The company produced a complete line of paints for aircraft using metal, composite, and fabric-covered construction. This line extended Loehle's role from aircraft-kit manufacturer to supplier of finishing materials for the wider aircraft-building and restoration community. Current availability and formulation details are not established in the available references.

• 2017

  Loehle Aircraft appears to cease operations[1]Loehle Aircraften.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Reference material indicates that Loehle Aircraft seems to have stopped operating around 2017, following the death of vice president of operations Sandra Loehle.

• 1981

  Michael Loehle wins major Oshkosh ultralight awards[1]Loehle Aircraften.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Michael Loehle received the Experimental Aircraft Association Oshkosh Ultralight Grand Champion Award and an Outstanding Craftsmanship award for his Easy Riser ultralight.

1. 1Loehle Aircraften.wikipedia.org
2. 2Archived official Loehle Aircraft websiteweb.archive.org
3. 3Loehle Aircraft Corporation, City of Tullahoma archive referenceweb.archive.org