The GippsAero GA8 airvan is back in production in the Latrobe Valley. (ABC Gippsland: Danielle Pope)
Manufacturers of a new aircraft say it will boost jobs in Victoria's Latrobe Valley after a founding family of the airline business reclaimed it from foreign hands.
GippsAero was established by self-described "air nut" George Morgan and Peter Furlong in Gippsland in 1984.
In the beginning, they altered existing crop-dusting planes to suit customer needs and requests.
Ad
They went on to design, manufacture and sell more than 300 aircraft from their Gippsland base to customers around the world.
A ceremony was held on Thursday to mark a return to local production by laying the keel of the company's new-model plane, a GA8 airvan.
The plane, which is set to take flight in 2026, will be used in tourism, skydiving, surveillance, and humanitarian and freight operations.
"It is a bit emotional, after a lifetime's effort of getting it all back together again after the global financial crisis and COVID, and to be supported as we are by the operators worldwide, it is quite amazing really," GippsAero chief executive George Morgan said.
Australian-made aero