History
Aircraft Spruce Co. was founded in 1965 by Bob and Flo Irwin as a follow-on to founding Fullerton Air Parts. [1] Initially the company sold only one product: aircraft grade spruce lumber for aircraft construction and restoration. Aircraft Spruce Co. added more products and adopted the name Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co.
Jim Irwin, Bob and Flo's older son, managed kit programs such as the Vari-Eze in 1975 while still in college. In 1978 Jim acquired the company, and he became president in 1980.
Aircraft Spruce was housed in Fullerton, California, from 1965 until 1997 in a historic Fullerton former citrus packing house. It then moved to a 62,000-square-foot (5,800 m2) facility in Corona, California. Aircraft Spruce East moved to a new 52,000 sq ft (4,800 m2) facility in Peachtree City, Georgia, in 2004. Aircraft Spruce Canada was opened in Toronto in 2006, and moved to the Brantford, Ontario Airport in 2008 with a new 20,000 sq ft (1,900 m2) facility coming online in 2016. In 2019, Aircraft Spruce opened two new facilities with Aircraft Spruce Midwest operating in a 50,000-square-foot (4,600 m2) facility in West Chicago, Illinois, and Aircraft Spruce Alaska in a 15,000-square-foot (1,400 m2) building in Wasilla, Alaska. [2]
Ron Alexander's Alexander Aeroplane Company was purchased and integrated into the company in January 1996. [3] [4] The Aviation Book Company was purchased in late 2014. [5] [6]
It integrated PilotShop.com into its business in August 2014. [7]
Founder Bob Irwin died on 26 June 2015 at his home in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. [8]
Expansion
The company acquired the estate of Paul Poberezny in 2017. [9]
It acquired A.E.R.O. in Stock in September 2018. [10]
The company opened a new 52,000 sq ft (4,800 m2) midwestern facility in West Chicago, Illinois in September 2019. [11]
A new 35,000 sq ft (3,300 m2) distribution center was opened in Middletown, Pennsylvania in 2023. [12] Eastern Aero Supply was acquired the following year. [13] In July, a 1,900 m2 (20,000 sq ft) branch was announced in Melbourne, Australia. [14] The company acquired Wag-Aero two months later. [15] Aircraft Spruce, along with Aero Performance, opened a sixth location of 38,000 sq ft (3,500 m2) in Roanoke, Texas on 8 March 2025. [16] [17]
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