Private company

Sierra Nevada Corporation

Sierra Nevada Corporation (also styled SNC) is an American aerospace, defense, electronics, engineering and manufacturing corporation that specializes in aircraft modification, integration and other.1

Last updated Oct 18, 2026.

Overview

1963Founded1

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Sierra Nevada Corporation (also styled SNC) is an American aerospace, defense, electronics, engineering and manufacturing corporation that specializes in aircraft modification, integration and other space technologies. The corporation contracts with the US Department of Defense, NASA, and private spaceflight companies. The corporation is headquartered in Sparks, Nevada, and has 36 locations in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and Turkey.2

How it started

History

The corporation was founded in 1963 by John Chisholm with a few employees working out of an airplane hangar in the Reno Stead Airport. The corporation was acquired in 1994 by Fatih Özmen and Eren Özmen. Fatih Ozmen was hired in 1981. The corporation has since grown into a multi-billion-dollar corporation with over 4,000 employees. The company's main business is completing US Department of Defense and NASA contracts.

In 2016, the corporation built a 130,000 square feet (12,000 m2) aircraft modification facility in Meridianville, Alabama, alongside Madison County Executive Airport. The facility was expanded with an additional 60,800 square feet (5,650 m2) building, which could hold seven Beechcraft Super King Air/C-12/MC-12S planes. SNC began modifying commercial aircraft into military surveillance aircraft, such as the US Army's EMARSS platform.

On September 18, 2024, the People's Republic of China announced sanctions on nine U.S. military industrial companies, including Sierra Nevada Corporation, for their participation in arms sales to Taiwan.

From Wikipedia’s article on Sierra Nevada Corporation, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2

Timeline

  1. 1963Founded Founded1

Sources

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