Cirrus Aircraft has announced an impressive year of new aircraft deliveries in 2020, with the Vision Jet continuing as the best-selling jet in general aviation for the second year in a row. In addition to delivering 73 Vision Jets in 2020, Cirrus certified and began delivering the Safe Return emergency autoland system on the Vision Jet and introduced the comprehensive VisionAir jet-ownership solution for new entrants into personal aviation.

“This past year has been an extraordinary demonstration of our team's ability to persevere during unprecedented challenges,” says Zean Nielsen, CEO at Cirrus Aircraft. “In addition to executing on our plans, we have continued to introduce new people to aviation around the world as demand grew throughout the year for our products and services. We are committed to continue delivering a world-class aviation experience to our more than 245 Vision Jet operators worldwide.”

The Vision Jet continues to deliver into new global markets and has now surpassed 245 units in service around the world. Over 450 pilots have now earned their FAA type rating in the Vision Jet. Expansion of Cirrus Services has also fuelled enterprise growth, including the introduction of new Cirrus Certified offerings from Cirrus Direct and the expansion of Cirrus Finance into international markets.

The Vision Jet experienced further evolution with FAA certification of Safe Return emergency autoland, a revolutionary system enabled by Garmin's autoland technology, that allows passengers to land the aircraft with just the touch of a button in emergency situations. The Safe Return certification followed significant growth of the Vision Jet, including it becoming the world's best-selling jet in general aviation. With Safe Return and the Collier award-winning Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS), the Vision Jet features the very latest safety solution in general aviation.

The company also announced VisionAir in 2020, a revolutionary ownership programme for the Vision Jet. Designed as a completely turnkey programme, VisionAir includes everything needed to own, operate and manage a Vision Jet, making the reality of owning the world's first Personal Jet more accessible than ever. The new programme is a bold new step following tremendous growth of the Vision Jet.

Additionally, in 2020, charter service operator Verijet began operations with an all-Vision Jet fleet to provide convenient point-to-point short haul flights for customers in the southeastern region of the United States and flies to over 5,400 smaller, less-congested airports. Chosen for its safety, comfort and overall efficiency, the Vision Jet well-suited for Verijet's regional missions.

Cirrus Services continued to grow in 2020, launching new offerings to customers to further enhance the ownership experience. Highlighting these new offerings was the expansion of services for international owners with the availability of international finance options through Cirrus Finance and the launch of an EASA-approved Vision Jet Training programme in Europe. Additionally, Cirrus Direct has expanded offerings of Cirrus Certified parts and upgrades to customers around the world, making owning and maintaining your Cirrus Aircraft more convenient than ever. The company also launched a newly improved website in 2020 to further activate the experience for customers around the world through the ease of additional digital tools and connections.

Recognised as the first recipient of the Joseph T. Nall Safety Award from the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), Cirrus Aircraft continues to transform pilot training and safety with Cirrus Approach. As a comprehensive programme, Cirrus Approach provides ongoing training to new and experienced pilots with their lifestyle in mind through award-winning in-person and online training courses. The company has continued to innovate pilot training in recent years, with the launch of the redesigned cirrusapproach.com and the addition of Flight Fix, a unique monthly video podcast to further support its mission of “training as a lifestyle”. Over 16,000 pilots and owners have joined the programme as of early 2021.

Cirrus Embark, the company's transition training programme designed for new owners of pre-owned Cirrus Aircraft, also continues to expand, exceeding 1,100 training completions awarded since its launch in 2017. This revolutionary programme provides Cirrus-specific, standardised differences and transition training for a licensed pilot who purchased a pre-owned Cirrus Aircraft. Included in the programme is access to the Cirrus Approach Learning Portal, the Cirrus FOM and aircraft POH, access to the iFOM and one-on-one Cirrus Transition Training with an authorised Cirrus training provider.