RotorX website is down
 

All,
The RotorX website is down. No surprise really.

Re: RotorX website is down
 

I don't suppose that could be because they are going to post a brand new website. Could it?

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I don't know. I really wish I knew but we don't get told much except to keep waiting. They had a banner on the website that said they would get with buyers and employees in January. I've texted RotorX to see if the site would be back up or if RotorX is dead and gone and I haven't gotten a response. That was a couple days ago. I at least used to get a quick response saying they were getting financing set up. None of the folks/former employees I have talked to knew the site would be going down. If anyone has heard anything from the management at RotorX, I'd sure love it hear it...I want to hold on to some hope but I think its time to be realistic. The total lack of communication tells me what I need to know. I was one of the ardent supporters, hoping it would get turned around. But that was because I had so much invested, I suppose. Now I just need to figure out what I'm going to do.
Best wishes to all

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John, did you get the windscreen you were promised?

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Hi Homer, nope haven't gotten it. Don promised it to me, but I've gotten only one thing after the first Group, and that was the exhaust manifold. That was in October. I went to Chandler in early June (paid in full in January last year) and picked up Group 1 and some body panels. Many parts missing though. You were right, they were high on promise, short on results. But, in all honesty, without the rest of the kit I have no need of any of it anymore. I guess I'm done. I haven't decided what I'll do with the airframe and tail boom, which I assembled and are now just taking up space in my barn. I guess I'll just keep flying the Helicycle. It's a great ship but I wanted to fly with the wife, to go places together. That aint gonna happen now. I'm pretty disgusted with the way this has gone. Maybe I will see about a Talon kit...my problem is I'm not one of the money-laden helicopter types. I saved forever to buy that Phoenix. Eh, but where there's a will there's a way, right? :smile:

Re: RotorX website is down
 

RotorX's website is back up again.

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...aaaaaand, now it's back down again.

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I’m told it’s up now with some news about anew person appointed with something. More news to be announced January 31. ???
But at this point, I would be VERY SKEPTICAL of anything they would say. It’s going to take a long time for them to restore their credibility.

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The announcement from the 31st is pretty much a non-announcement. The Chris Anderson, the "interim CEO" is pretty good at replying to inquiries but they are laden with corporate-speak and not informative. I think they are just stalling to buy Don some time. Time for what? I have no idea.

John, I am in the same boat as you, minus the helicycle. Sell what I have for a quick buck or hang onto it and hope? No idea really. Too bad half of us didn't start with Groups 3 and 4 while the other half, groups 1 and 2! At least then we could team up and build a handful of helicopters.

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They wouldn’t let you do that, the expensive stuff to make is in the last groups. The big profits are in the first groups.

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Hi Eric,
I've heard they intend to start negotiations at some point to see which buyers want refunds and who wants a complete kit. I'm still worried about what engine they would furnish if the company ever does resume operations. Don said the plan is to furnish the 180 hp engine, but I'm not sure if they've gotten with Joe or not (Joe please feel free to comment if you like). To be honest, I'm getting impatient, and sure would like to have a BALLPARK time when parts might start flowing again. At this point, I'd just like to hear the timeline and if that looks realistic, maybe I could feel confident on this whole thing. But the lack of a schedule part is getting long in the tooth. I suppose I have so much in this that I still hope there is a chance. But wow...at some point I will be too old to finish it!

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Yep. I really just meant it as a joke. It would be hard to install an engine without a frame!

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I understand that . What I’m saying is the company got a lot of cash for some inexpensive parts. If they ever intended to deliver the expensive stuff remains to be seen.
There have been so many broken promises and missed deadlines I don’t see how any new leaders can come in take charge with Don still in any kind of position in a new organization. I talked briefly with Don at OK and he was full of BS at that time about how everything was ready to boom. He wanted to know if I would build kits for buyers. He expected sales to soon really go big.
If you remember some of the news releases from him and the outrageous claims he was making with the knowledge and expertise of RotorWay . Speed, range, load capacity, all dreams and wishes. Going to build these soon!!
I’ve seen some outlandish claims in this industry over my 60 years , but ,!those were some real doozies!!

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I agree Homer. Just look at it from a business perspective. It is ALL DEBT. Debt owed to us kit buyers. Debt owed to former employees in unpaid salary. Debt to ACS, building rental and so on. There will be no income. No new customers will touch this mess, especially as you say, with Don in the mix. None of this makes any sense. How is he even getting investors? Investing in what exactly?

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Website is up now and claiming too many orders to fulfill. I have group 1,2 and 3 now for the last 4 years. Waiting 2 years for group 4, without group 4, I have nothing. Don has been BS from the get go. So talk to my accountant if I can write off the whole thing, he said it might be possible. Don kept blaming the internet for his demise, but I thing he priced it too low and of course ran out of money. In a way, I call this a Ponzi scheme, got new buyers to pay for labor to manufacture parts and pay salaries and eventually he ran out of new customers. They had to send me main rotor blades 3 times until the final was packed properly and had no damage. That must cost them a pretty penny. Wonder what my Rotorx is worth without group 4, maybe 25K?

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Honestly I think what killed him, in addition to being a poor manager, was the toy quad. I heard that the R&D and software design was very expensive.

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So what’s the answer, just wait? Listen to more lies or sue?

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It is possible that the answer to all three is “no”. Probably the best answer is what Homer has suggested and what Nick and others are doing, build anyway.

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Love to build, but I was done over an year ago so I can’t do anything unless I get section 4.

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Yep. Same.

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Just curious to hear if anyone here has ever received a response from Chris Anderson, who is listed as “interim CEO” of RotorX. So far I’m zero for four attempts at contacting him at the email address given on the website.

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He wrote me back with basically the statement from the website. Time..investors..yadayadayada.

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Is there anybody left who thinks this dead company will ever send another part out again? I've been a fool hoping they would. The complete silence and total lack of any comms whatsoever from them has finally convinced me there is no hope for this scam called RotorX.

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No one in their right mind would invest in a company with so much debt, outstanding order commitments and bad publicity. When the contents of the factory are finally put up for auction, we need to see what is left and secure those jigs and templates.

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Hello,

How does this impact Advance Tactics (located in Torrance, CA.) plan to build the ATRX-700 under the FAA's MOSAIC rule?

~Mike

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Hi Michael - is that machine built off the Phoenix A-600 platform?

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Although almost certainly the ATRX-700 is vaporware (as has been everything Don has touched). But if I am wrong, they are welcome to my Phoenix frame, body, windscreen, rotorhead and tailrotor, all assembled and ready for their first vict.., err, customer.

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I will throw in mine fully assembled. May be they can build few engines and finish them. Got another email from Don, he says wait! I say B.S. If you look at the web site www.lightsporthelicopters.com, gets rejected by all the browsers. SO Advanced Tactics takes you to www.lightsporthelicopters.com, then broser fails.

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Hi John,
Yes, it is. When I read about it six months ago I thought it would be fantastic to get into a ready to fly helicopter for under 190K, but after everything that has taken place pretty sure that isn't going to happen.

I reached out to Advanced Tactics and inquired if they would be at HAI this year in Anaheim (I live one town over) if so I was going to go check it out. They never got back to me.

If something does ever come about with this I can drive over to Torrance and see about a demo flight. I'm not holding my breath :-)

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Take the test flight in Torrence. But let it be in a R22!

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Eric,
lol...
Speaking of the R-22. When I got my rotary add-on, the flight school required us to take the two day Robinson course at the factory. They have quite an operation. Maybe Advance Tactics will purchase Rotorway at a fire sale price and start with a clean sheet of paper then copy Robinson's manufacturing process.

I used to own and fly a Helicycle. Great ship. Unfortunately, as a single place I got bored flying by myself.

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I was planning to fly by myself anyway. So that would have been fine. I saw on the builder's thread that a helicycle was available in PA. I'd be interested except that I can't do mx on something I didn't build.

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My understanding of this MOSAIC rule is that it might make our ships a light sport aircraft and so we could get a light sport repairman's cert for them. Am I misunderstanding this?

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I dont believe so. NRPM reads: "The FAA proposes to amend part 61, subpart J, to allow sport pilots to operate certain simple-to-fly helicopters. Specifically, the FAA proposes to permit sport pilots to operate new helicopters certificated under the proposed § 21.190 that include the simplified flight control designation. First, the FAA is proposing a limitation in § 61.316(a)(9) that would limit the kinds of helicopters that sport pilots may operate to those helicopters that have been certificated with a simplified flight controls design and designation." Rotorways do not have simplified flight controls.

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RW controls are pretty simple, what does simplified controls really mean? Are they talking gyro copter?

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Fly by wire, I believe. And only an experienced helicopter pilot would say that the controls are simple.:D

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I just tried re-reading the darn thing. The Simplified Flight controls restriction is for existing sport pilots to fly helicopters. Simplified flight controls mean controls that stabilize the aircraft to allow someone to fly it easily.


As far as the maintenance side, I don't read anything that would allow owner inspection of an aircraft they didn't build.


The MOSAIC is huge and not easy to read. I think it is one of those regulations we will find out whats in it once it is published!

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Yeah it’s a government document so no way it could be simple to read! I’m no expert but I thought there were some LSA maintenance tickets one could obtain which would allow maintenance work on light sport aircraft. I’m no expert, but I remember seeing a course out there for that. I’m sure it doesn’t allow much though. I need to check it for the details.