Trevor Milton is promoting the SJ36 light jet as the broadcast examines the program’s long history

Former Nikola chief Trevor Milton leads Cyberjet and is promoting the SJ36 light jet. A statement quoted on the broadcast said the model would be unveiled that evening and was supposed to fly nonstop from New York to Los Angeles faster than competitors in the light-jet category. That is a stated positioning, not a confirmed test or operational result. The hosts noted that Milton was pardoned by Donald Trump in 2025 after being convicted of fraud.

According to the host’s account, the current program draws on the earlier SJ30 aircraft project. Engineer Ed Swearingen developed it from 1986 to 1991; Gulfstream backed the project early on but left in 1989. Investors from Taiwan, including the government, later joined the funding. The aircraft received FAA certification in October 2005; by 2008, cumulative development spending reportedly exceeded $700 million. The first customer aircraft was delivered in 2006, but only about 10 aircraft were built across the program. Production stopped in 2009, and Emmivest went bankrupt in 2010.

A group associated with supplier Metalcraft Technologies acquired the assets in 2011. Despite having manufacturing expertise, tooling, and the type certificate, it did not manage to restart series production. An SJ30i test aircraft flew in 2019, but large-scale commercial deliveries did not follow. An investor group led by Milton acquired SyberJet in 2024; his role as CEO became public in 2025. The host said Milton subsequently promoted a broader aerospace platform, including the SJ34, SJ36, and in-house avionics.

In the interview discussion, a participant argued that buyers of midsize aircraft are discerning customers who care about quality and reliability and are likely to research a company and its CEO before buying. The host also questioned the plan to develop a cockpit in-house rather than use Garmin or Honeywell systems, and asked what would differentiate the aircraft from competitors. These were participants’ assessments; the available excerpt does not include an answer to the differentiation question.