Aircraft maintenance students at Aims Community College in Colorado will be learning and practicing their craft on a Maverick TwinJet 1500, thanks to a donation by a local pilot.
The Maverick TwinJet 1500 is a kit aircraft and one of only four to ever fly.
The aircraft, donated to the Aims Foundation, was built by Longmont, Colorado, resident and pilot Mike Seavall, who flew the jet to Northern Colorado Regional Airport (KFNL), then taxied directly to the hangar at the Aims Aircraft Maintenance Center (AMTC), where he was greeted by students and faculty.
It took Seavall two years to build the aircraft. It is an all-composite construction and sports two T58 jet engines, each delivering 750 pounds of thrust. The aircraft can reach 31,000 feet at a ground speed of just under 385 mph.
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“It’s rare to get a donation of this magnitude,” said Michael Sasso, AMTC maintenance chief, who leads the training program. “It’s a great opportunity to learn about modern technology, even though the airplane was built back in the early 2000s. It’s built from materials that are being used today, such as carbon fiber.”
The aircraft has a modern avionics package, which Sasso asserts will be helpful for training across all of the program’s classes.
![Aims Community College students in Colorado will benefit from the donation of a rare homebuilt jet for the aviation maintenance program. [Credit: Aims Community College]](https://www.flyingmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/jet-Donation-7.jpg?w=1024)
“It puts us leaps and bounds ahead of many of the A&P [airframe and powerplant] schools in the country to have something like this for our students to learn from,” he said. “Having an airplane fly in, and for the students to see it running and arrive here, was just a great feeling. It is always great to see the students light up like that.”
Seavall decided to donate the aircraft because he wanted to be sure it continued to serve a purpose—namely helping educate future aviation technicians.
“The fact that it’s being used for education is a big plus for me because if I had sold it outright, you don’t know how it’s going to be used,” Seavall said. “And having it go into a maintenance environment…I’m actually helping people. So the plane’s actually teaching them about what goes on in there.”
![Aims Community College in Colorado takes the donation of a rare homebuilt jet for its aviation maintenance program. [Credit: Aims Community College]](https://www.flyingmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/jet-donation-10.jpg?w=1024)
The aircraft will be used by Aims’ aircraft maintenance training program and housed at the AMTC.
College officials noted Seavall’s journey with the Maverick TwinJet is not entirely over. He retains “visitation rights,” allowing him to see the aircraft continue its legacy in the hands of future aviation technicians.
About the College
Aims Community College was founded more than 50 years ago in Greeley. Today it has locations in Fort Lupton, Loveland, and Windsor. With an enrollment of about 8,200, the school offers day, evening, weekend, and online courses supporting more than 200 degree and certificate programs.