The US Aircraft Manufacturer That's Owned By China
Relations between the U.S. and China are complicated, especially in 2026. American tariffs on Chinese goods have caused retaliatory tariffs (despite China having a trade surplus at the end of 2025). Meanwhile, members of Congress have urged the Trump administration to keep the market closed to Chinese automobiles. So, it may come as a surprise that a prominent U.S. aircraft company – Cirrus Design Corporation — actually has Chinese ownership.
Just like a popular American food company that's owned by China – and how a U.S. electronics manufacturer is owned by China – Cirrus has facilities across the U.S. Despite technically being headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota, the civilian aircraft manufacturer is wholly owned by China Aviation Industry General Aircraft (CAIGA), a subsidiary of state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC).
To make matters even more complicated, as a state-owned aerospace and defense conglomerate, AVIC has actually been sanctioned and debarred by the U.S. In June 2026, Cirrus Design Corporation, which generally does business as Cirrus Aircraft, was added to the Department of Defense's Section 1260H List identifying Chinese military companies operating in the U.S. Despite this, Cirrus Aircraft is still very much manufacturing and selling aircraft domestically, even enjoying a backlog of over 1,000 airplanes, per AV Web, in August 2026.
Cirrus was not always foreign-owned
Cirrus got its start when brothers Dale and Alan Klapmeier took over their family's barn in 1984 to work on small aircraft. They sold their first kits in 1988 and expanded with new facilities and aircraft models throughout the 1990s. Cirrus has since become a leading small aircraft brand, with General Aviation News reporting that three of the top 10 best-selling single piston aircraft in 2026 were Cirrus planes. According to a March 2026 press release from Cirrus itself, the company's SR series has been the top-selling high performance single-engine piston aircraft for 24 years straight.
As for how Cirrus came under the AVIC umbrella, the company hit some snags in the early 200s, and after dealing with a round of layoffs and business disagreements, Alan Klapmeier departed in 2009. Cirrus was then sold to CAIGA in 2011, following 20 months of negotiations. Although the exact terms were not made public, estimates from the time pegged the sale at over $200 million. While Dale Klapmeier initially remained as CEO, he eventually left in 2018. Cirrus is currently listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and, according to Pitchbook, has a U.S. stock price is $4.94 and a market cap of $1.81 billion, as of October 15. 2026.