97-year-old aerospace manufacturer files Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Despite production rates in the aerospace industry climbing modestly in 2025, according to a Deloitte report, certain manufacturers, such as Magellan Aerospace Middletown, are still struggling and filing for bankruptcy.
Iconic aerospace products manufacturer Magellan Aerospace Middletown Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to stabilize its business, operations, and finances and determine if sufficient changes will allow it to better compete in the market and continue as a stand-alone entity, according to court documents.
Magellan Aerospace Middletown seeks to preserve the business as a going concern, maintain employment, and continue customer relationships, according to a declaration by the company’s sole independent director, Michael Goldberg. The debtor will consider all alternatives, including a potential sale or other value maximizing transactions.
The company manufactures jet engine nacelle, exhaust components, and heat-resistant space products for the commercial, military, and space sectors. Among the products the company has produced were heat shields for NASA’s Apollo and Space Shuttle space programs.
Aerospace company files bankruptcy
The Middletown, Ohio-based debtor filed its petition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Ohio, listing $10 million to $50 million in assets and $50 million to $100 million in debts, on July 22.
Magellan Aerospace Middletown is 100% owned by Magellan Aerospace USA, which has not filed for bankruptcy. Mississauga, Ontario-based Magellan Aerospace Corporation is the parent company of Magellan Aerospace USA,
The debtor has no secured debt and no public debt. All of its obligations are unsecured debt, consisting of over $82 million.
Magellan Aerospace Middletown’s largest unsecured creditors include The Reynolds Group, owed over $170,000; Mound Manufacturing Center inc., owed over $113,000; Fidelity 401K, owed over $87,000; Duke Energy, owed over $53,000; MSC Industrial Direct Co., owed over $49,000; CT Security Services, owed over $49,000; and Trimech Enterprise Solutions Corp., owed over $39,000.
Debtor reports net losses
The debtor, which employs 109 workers, reported a net loss of $8.5 million on about $26.3 million in annual revenue in 2025, and a net loss of $2.8 million on $16.8 million in revenue in 2026 through June 30.
Magellan Aerospace Middletown’s annual revenue has decreased year-on-year as a result of a winddown of contracts, beginning in 2020. The company had secured jet exhaust systems contracts with Airbus on its A340, A318, and A380, as well as the Boeing 747 and 767 aircrafts.
Production of the A340, A380, and 747 ended, which led to the canceling of those contracts.
Company founded in 1928
Magellan Aerospace Middletown was founded as Aeronautical Corporation of America in 1928 by future Ohio senator, Robert Taft, son of former President William Howard Taft. The company evolved over the years as an aircraft manufacturer and acquired Longden Aircraft Company in the late 1950s, which it sold in the early 1990s.
The original company began manufacturing its first product, the single-seat C-2 Scout personal airplane, in 1929, and two years later launched the two-seat version, C-3, in 1931. By the mid-1930s the company led the U.S. in light aircraft production, according to court papers.
In World War II the company produced products for the military, returned to civilian aircraft production after the war until exiting the light aircraft business in 1951 to focus on high-strength engine and airframe structures for the commercial, military, and space sectors.
The company became a subsidiary of Magellan Aerospace Corporation in the mid-1990s.
Aerospace sector growth projected
Research firm Deloitte expects growth in the aerospace production sector in 2026, according to Aerospace Manufacturing and Design.
“The commercial aerospace sector appears poised to continue growth, aided by rising fleet utilization, continued fleet growth, and steady gains in both passenger and cargo demand,” according to Deloitte’s 2026 aerospace and defense outlook.
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