After much trumpeting of how "we aren't really buiding this airplane for any other reason except to test our neat little engine" the Japanese air charter zealots at Honda may be coming out of the closet as their very own air charter come air taxi afficianados. At RSVPair HQ, we were at first quite smitten with the design and even fell for the cute engine story. But at the end of the day, we saw the invasion coming. Not because we had all out money tied up in Gulfstream, Raytheon or Cessna stock, but simply because we know enough about history to know that the automobile and motorcylce market was effectively reset by Mr. Honda "back in the day."

This news from AvWeb just reinforces what we already sense might be occuring - these guys want to develop a commercial aircraft that is small and inexpensive. The drooped cockpick and pylon mounted engines will probably be the hallmark of this craft. If Honda is successful in marketing and stamping these things out like the first Model Ts, then the landscape, in manufacturing at least, should begin to change. For those that have been accustomed to the high margin world of business aircraft manufacturing, it is time to plan on how and when that margin will be eroded by the same people who brought us the Civic and the CB 500.