Peru-based CL Enterprises acquires Carver Aero

Peru’s airport manager hopes a local investor’s purchase of an Iowa-based business might lead to more private air travel opportunities at Illinois Valley Regional Airport.

“It may help our business,” said Chuck Studer, manager of Illinois Valley Regional Airport and owner of Midwest Avtech, when asked about CL Enterprises’ acquisition on Monday of Carver Aero, a Flight Base Operator business that has two locations at airports in Davenport and Muscatine, Iowa.

“We’re hoping they’ll bring some charter business our way. I think any effect it has will be positive. It could be more growth for the airport and they may base a few more here,” Studer said.

CL Enterprises, the investment company of the Carus-Limberger family in Ottawa, announced this week it has acquired Carver Aero, which also operates an aircraft maintenance business, a flight school, and an air charter business with several airplanes, ranging from turboprops to midsize jets.

Carver Aero was founded nearly 30 years ago and has operated under the guidance of entrepreneur and philanthropist Roy Carver, Jr. of the Carver family in Muscatine. The Carver family has operated many companies based in Muscatine through the years, including Carver Pump.

“We are thankful to Roy Carver and his family for choosing our family to take over this business. We plan to grow the business and expand to other small towns in the Midwest, following our belief in the economic potential of rural regions and small towns,” said Peter Limberger, Chairman and CEO of CL Enterprises. “Our investment will provide a solid platform for further growth in the aviation sector with excellent market opportunities, especially in the Midwest.”

Fred Edwards, Carver Aero’s chief operating officer, said, “We at Carver Aero are excited to have CL Enterprises as the new investor in the business. It was clear to us that as a family business, their values are very similar to ours.

“We are especially excited about new opportunities for the company and its employees.”

Studer said it has been 10 years since Illinois Valley Regional Airport has had on-demand charter flights. Midwest Avtech at one time had a Piper Navaho that could accommodate eight passengers including the pilot, and a Cessna 310 that could accommodate six people. Both were twin-engine aircraft.

Studer said there’s not much likelihood of Peru hosting scheduled air service. He arrived at the airport in 1990, and a short-lived air service opened briefly and closed before he got here.

CL Enterprises, founded in 2011, is the Peru-based investment company operated by husband and wife team Peter Limberger and Inga Carus, according to a press release from the company on Tuesday. The company invests primarily in rural areas of the Midwest in the following industries: agriculture, agro-industry, real estate, manufacturing, hospitality, and aviation.

Craig Sterrett can be reached at (815) 220-6935 or csterrett@shawmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @NT_NewsEditor.