KUDOS:Local Ownership Group Purchases General Dynamics' Calspan Corporation; Saves Jobs and Preserves an Important Piece of Buffalo's Technology History

BUFFALO, N.Y.--Feb. 1, 20058, 2005--One of Western New York's most-storied companies - Calspan Corporation - has returned to local ownership as the result of a buyout by a local management/investment group.

Louis Knotts and Thomas Pleban, two long-time Buffalo-based Calspan company executives, and John R. Yurtchuk, President of Matrix Development Corporation in Amherst, today announced they have purchased the Buffalo-based Aeronautics and Transportation Testing groups from a subsidiary of General Dynamics, Advanced Information Systems of Arlington, Va., a business unit of General Dynamics Corporation .

The acquisition helps ensure the continued success of the highly regarded company in Western New York. Calspan has a rich history of innovation and cutting-edge scientific achievements that traces its roots to 1940 and its original founding as part of the Curtiss-Wright Aircraft Company and later the Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory, Inc.

Approximately 380 local employees are affected by the change in ownership; 230 workers will be employed by Calspan and the remaining 150 employees will be retained by General Dynamics.

Knotts will serve as President of the new company, Pleban as Executive Vice President and Yurtchuk as Senior Vice President.

"Today's announcement is great news for the local economy and the entire Western New York community because it guarantees that Calspan will again operate as a 'home town' company under local management providing well-paid, highly skilled jobs for our region," Knotts said. "The equity arrangements among the Calspan management/investment group also included a stock ownership plan that calls for Calspan executives to reinvest in the company, providing needed capital for further growth and expansion."

KeyBank and Key Real Estate Capital provided a major portion of the acquisition financing, advisory services, and other financial solutions.

Still commonly referred to as Calspan after the first in a series of previous corporate owners, the company is internationally recognized for its flight research, automobile crash-test facilities, transonic wind tunnel, and affiliation with the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo.

General Dynamics acquired the Calspan operation in August 2003 as part of the acquisition of the former Veridian Corporation.

Calspan's new corporate structure will include five operating units: flight research, transonic wind tunnel, transportation science center, crash data research center, and systems integration and design.

Calspan's main complex is located on a 69-acre site at 4455 Genesee St. in Cheektowaga, N.Y., opposite the Buffalo Niagara International Airport, with the company occupying a significant portion of its 400,000 square feet of space. The company will also be operating a new $12 million flight research center currently being completed by Matrix at the Niagara Falls Airport, Niagara Falls, N.Y., and a chemical research laboratory in Ashford, N.Y.

Calspan also maintains a flight research operation at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., a flight training facility in Roswell, N.M., and performs on-site accident investigations throughout the eastern half of the U.S.

"Calspan built its reputation on ingenuity - smart people doing smart things to help solve complex problems and provide its customers with cost-effective solutions," Knotts said. "Drawing on the knowledge of our people and our unique test facilities, our organization has a rich heritage of technical achievement and exceptional customer service that will serve us well going forward."

Knotts said Calspan's customer list includes the U.S. Department of Defense, NASA, foreign governments, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and numerous commercial customers.

He said Calspan has also served as an incubator for numerous Western New York companies throughout its history, including such influential technology companies as Moog, Servotronics, Barrister Information Systems, Astronics, Ecology & Environment, and Great Lakes Science.

In addition to its new corporate structure and five operating units, Pleban said Calspan will continue to work closely with the Research Foundation of the University of Buffalo, operating the Calspan-University of Buffalo Research Center (CUBRC) out of its Genesee Street location. CUBRC was incorporated in 1983 as an independent, not-for-profit, multidisciplinary research center.

"By availing the combined resources of Calspan Corporation and the Research Foundation of SUNY at Buffalo, CUBRC will continue to compete for research funds and programs that might not be available to the University or our company separately," Pleban said.

For more information about Calspan Corporation visit www.calspan.com.