Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co. is an American producer of

aircraft part An aircraft part is an article or component approved for installation on a type-certificated aircraft. Approval for these parts is derived from the jurisdictions of the countries that an aircraft is based. In the United States, the Federal Aviatio ...

s and services including plans for

homebuilt aircraft Homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch", from plans, or from assembly kits.Armstrong, Kenn ...

History

Aircraft Spruce Co. was founded in 1965 by Bob and Flo Irwin as a follow-on to founding Fullerton Air Parts. Initially the company sold only one product: aircraft grade spruce lumber for aircraft construction and restoration. Aircraft Spruce Co. added more products and adopted the name Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co. Jim Irwin, Bob and Flo's older son, managed kit programs such as the Vari-Eze in 1975 while still in college. In 1978 Jim acquired the company, and he became president in 1980. Aircraft Spruce was housed in Fullerton, California, from 1965 until 1997 in a historic Fullerton former citrus packing house. It then moved to a facility in Corona, California. Aircraft Spruce East moved to a new facility in

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, in 2004. Aircraft Spruce Canada was opened in

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in 2006, and moved to the

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Airport in 2008 with a new facility coming online in 2016. In 2019, Aircraft Spruce opened two new facilities with Aircraft Spruce Midwest operating in a facility in

West Chicago, Illinois West Chicago is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 27,086 at the 2010 census. It was formerly named Junction and later Turner, after its founder, John B. Turner, president of the Galena and Chicago Union Railro ...

, and Aircraft Spruce Alaska in a building in

Wasilla, Alaska Wasilla ( Dena'ina: ''Benteh'') is a city in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, United States and the fourth-largest city in Alaska. It is located on the northern point of Cook Inlet in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley of the southcentral part of the ...

. Ron Alexander's Alexander Aeroplane Company was purchased and integrated into the company. The Aviation Book Company was purchased in late 2014. Founder Bob Irwin died on 26 June 2015 at his home in

Lake Havasu City, Arizona Lake Havasu City (, ) is a city in Mohave County, Arizona, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 57,144, up from 52,527 in 2010. It is served by Lake Havasu City Airport. History The community first started as a ...

Aircraft kits and plans

Aircraft Spruce has the rights to sell kits and plans for a large selection of homebuilt aircraft.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aircraft Spruce and Specialty Co Homebuilt aircraft Aircraft manufacturers of the United States Manufacturing companies based in Greater Los Angeles Manufacturing in Riverside County, California Manufacturing companies established in 1965 1965 establishments in California