Plane manufacturer eyes Sanford British firm could bring 300 jobs to state with amphibious aircraft plant

SANFORD – A British company has announced it hopes to begin manufacturing a newly designed amphibious aircraft that it says could eventually result in as many as 300 new assembly jobs in Sanford.

An official with Warrior Aero-Marine said if all goes according to plan, the company could hire as many as 31 people to assemble a prototype of the craft in a hangar at Sanford Regional Airport beginning Dec. 1. The first test flights are scheduled to occur sometime next spring.

David Verrill of Scarborough, a vice president of Warrior Aero-Marine, said full production of the six-passenger Centaur should begin in late 2005. The company is incorporated in the United Kingdom, the home of the plane’s designer, James Labouchere, and has an office in Scarborough.

Labouchere previously designed two-hulled racing yachts, and patterned the Centaur’s design using the two-hulled concept, Verrill said.

He said the Centaur will have foldback wings, a single propeller and a water-jet power thruster so it can maneuver up to docks and places where any boat can go.

Verrill said parts for the aircraft are now being manufactured by Maine Composites in Richmond, and are scheduled to be brought to Sanford to be assembled at the airport hangar.

Verrill said he chose Sanford as the manufacturing site because of its airport and its available work force of people experienced in building airplanes. Warrior Aero-Marine would be the town’s second manufacturer of amphibious aircraft.