In 1959, Swearingen Aircraft was formed by Ed Swearingen. The company initially performed contract work for other manufacturers, until 1964 when they designed the SA-26 Merlin 1. That aircraft was a piston-powered twin similar to the Beech Queen Air and Twin Bonanza. In 1965, turboprops were added and the aircraft became the SA-26T Merlin II, followed by the Merlin IIA a year later. In 1968, Swearingen and Fairchild-Hiller cooperated on a 19- to 22-seat commuter airliner and called it the Metro.
In early 1970, Fairchild Industries acquired Swearingen and developed the A-10 Thunderbolt II (Warthog) for the U.S. Air Force. In 1996, the company took over Dornier assets and was renamed Fairchild Dornier. In 1999, the company was acquired by Allianz A.G. and a U.S. investment group, before M7 Aerospace acquired the Type Certificate in April 2003.
The company relocated to San Antonio, Texas, before being purchased at the end of 2010 by defense contractor, Elbit Systems.
