Cirrus Aircraft is proud of its history in the U.S. heartland: The private plane-maker¡¯s website includes details such as the company¡¯s 1984 launch in a Wisconsin barn, the opening of a Minnesota research and development center, and a North Dakota factory.
But there¡¯s something missing from the company¡¯s All-American timeline: The firm¡¯s ownership by a sanctioned Chinese military manufacturer.
For more than a decade, Cirrus has been a subsidiary of Aviation Industry Corp. of China, a maker of fighter jets, helicopters and drones for the People¡¯s Liberation Army. AVIC, as the parent company is known, is also one of the world¡¯s largest military contractors and is subject to U.S. sanctions.
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