Representative Terry Coleman gets a special gleam in his eye when he talks about Aircraft Manufacturing and Development Co., Inc. in Eastman.

"We practically stalked those people to get them to come to Eastman. We knew they were just the kind of company we needed to complement our program at the Heart of Georgia Technical Institute's Eastman Center. It would be a perfect combination of airport, school and business," He recently said.

Lottery money had helped build the Center, purchase the first five airplanes for training and buy the best equipment. But there just weren't enough trained people in airplane technology. So what started out as a sheet metal class in a rented building, hoping to serve the airplanes at Robins Air Force base and others around the state, turned into a much broader program of aviation technology and flight training.

In looking for an airplane manufacturing company to go with the school, Coleman discovered Chris and Mathieu Heintz in Canada.

The Heintz familv was looking at Cape Giradeau, Missouri as a plant site originally, but they changed their minds when they saw the airport and the school together in Eastman. Explains Coleman: "After they saw the school — it was the school and what we were doing there — they dropped their plans to go to Missouri. And, of course, what we told them was, 'If you'll just come, we'll be one of your best customers!' We are ready to grow and he a leader in Georgia's aviation industry," says Coleman.