When Charles Hoefer purchased an abandoned factory in Dunseith, North Dakota, in 2022, he expected to spend the coming years building recreational vehicles, or RVs. Instead, he found himself at the center of an aerospace controversy that continues to raise concerns throughout the aviation industry.

Hoefer was born and raised in Indiana, what’s referred to as the RV capital of the world. Coming from a family with a long history in RV manufacturing, he followed a similar path. He spent years overseas doing research and development, ultimately returning to the United States with plans to establish a facility to produce high-tech, high-end RVs.

Hoefer was recruited by the North Dakota governor’s commerce team to redevelop a large vacant industrial site in the small town of Dunseith, North Dakota. The building itself was far from move-in ready. Quite frankly, it was deteriorating. The 100,000-square-foot building had been abandoned for years. Mold, trash, deteriorating infrastructure, and unusable equipment filled the factory. Extensive renovations would be required before any RV production could begin.

Despite its condition, the property offered exactly what Hoefer needed: a large industrial footprint at an affordable price. This carried with it the potential to be a highly productive facility. So, in April 2022, Hoefer Group purchased the vacant facility and began the process of clearing out and renovating the building. But within only a few months, issues began to surface. What he and his team discovered during the process would dramatically alter the trajectory of the plan Hoefer had.

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The Former Facility

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Before its closure, the Dunseith facility had been operated by Benchmark Electronics, an electronics subcontractor that supplied products to Honeywell International. Honeywell, in turn, serves major aerospace customers including Boeing, Airbus, and Lockheed Martin, making the Dunseith facility a part of a broader aerospace manufacturing supply chain. The factory was also home to Chiptronics, Benchmark’s sales arm.

The factory had historically specialized in work related to Honeywell’s GG1320 Digital Ring Laser Gyroscope, a highly sophisticated component used in both commercial and military aviation.

The site ultimately ceased operations in 2015 and was intentionally dismantled in a manner designed to prevent it from ever becoming a competitor. Humidity-control systems were stripped out, decontamination wash stations were rendered unusable, and critical machinery and workstations were removed. Virtually everything necessary to operate and work on the electronics once produced there had been cleared from the facility.

Benchmark relocated its manufacturing operations to Minnesota, while Chiptronics was officially legally dissolved in 2022. As a result, until Hoefer purchased the property, the building stood as an unusable wreck. The prior operation had ended– at least on paper.

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Discoveries Begin

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As the Hoefer Group began gutting the facility, workers started encountering materials that appeared inconsistent with an abandoned factory. The discoveries became more concerning after an employee recommended by public officials was fired. According to Hoefer, paperwork found on the individual’s desk had the factory’s address, but referenced Chiptronics, Benchmark’s sales arm, despite the company having been legally dissolved.

The documents included recent checks written by Chiptronics. Memo lines referenced items such as “cover repair” and “cover inspection,” while invoices referenced quantities including “288 units” and “500 units”. None of this was related to RV manufacturing. On top of that, the paperwork was dated years after the factory was supposedly closed.

The paperwork appeared to reference Honeywell's GG1320 Digital Ring Laser Gyroscope program.

As the factory clear-out continued, more and more items surfaced. Workers found nuclear files, technical missile specifications, even actual componentry for the GG1320s. Hoefer also has photographs of parcels shown to him by courier drivers addressed to his factory that contained secondary labels directing shipments to local taverns and residences.

In a Foundation for Aviation Safety podcast episode (Episode 30: A Small Town, Global Aviation Risk), Hoefer described the volume of material discovered: “By the time we were done renovating and gutting the facility over about a nine month period, we could have filled an office room to your knees with all the parts, documentation, paperwork and hard drives and other electronic media that we found, much of which relates to the GG1320 gyros.”

The discoveries led Hoefer to believe that aerospace-related work was still continuing at and connected to the factory long after official operations had ceased.

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What is the GG1320?

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The GG1320 is one of the most critical electronics in commercial aviation. It is the brains behind many critical automated aviation controls. It measures small variances to provide extremely accurate readings for things like positioning and navigation.

Though roughly the size of a hockey puck, each unit is an extraordinarily sophisticated piece of avionics equipment. Valued at approximately $15,000 a piece, these devices are used extensively throughout both commercial aviation and military defense.

The GG1320 demands an exceptional degree of precision. At Honeywell's final testing facility in Minnesota, workers must even account for the Earth's curvature, with the testing floor designed accordingly to ensure accuracy.

The complexity of the device demands strict manufacturing standards, specialized licenses and permits, and rigorous quality-control procedures. These safeguards were designed to help ensure that each GG1320 is properly built, maintained, and introduced into the supply chain with integrity. Any compromise in these standards could have significant consequences, affecting not only the reliability of the system, but of the aircraft that depends on it. If the device malfunctions or provides inaccurate information, the plane can lose its orientation which can have devastating impacts.

Hoefer came to believe that, despite his purchase of the facility, it continued to be used by Chiptronics. The site seemed to be operating as an off-the-books factory where GG1320s were being worked on in a largely unregulated environment. What he had been led to believe was a viable manufacturing facility instead appeared to be at the center of an illicit production scheme. Hoefer contends that the deteriorating facility, and even local taverns, were being used in connection with one of aviation’s most sensitive avionics components. He had been misled about the true nature of the Dunseith factory.

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Escalating the Findings

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By the fall of 2022, Hoefer had begun contacting authorities seeking guidance on how to handle the materials and documentation being uncovered.

He was referred to a state agent who came to the site and instructed him to hold onto everything they have found and continued to find. Weeks later, additional personnel came and examined the facility. During these interactions, Hoefer was advised it was likely the site contained sensitive materials and had not been properly scrubbed.

One of the individuals who later visited the facility was Homeland Security Agent Daniel Brejo. Brejo told Hoefer that to prevent issues, he should dispose of materials found at the site.  When Hoefer did not do that, Brejo became increasingly aggressive and threatening. Brejo is currently sitting in jail for murdering a federal law enforcement officer, so it’s safe to say these were not empty threats.

Meanwhile, Hoefer experienced a range of retaliation after reporting of his discoveries including the freezing of his finances, and disruptions of his communications and business operations. Ultimately, he got a hold of an official within the Department of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) who advised Hoefer he was probably being subjected to a political and military coverup. The DDTC told Hoefer to continue preserving evidence and report to them.

At one point, Hoefer Group retained an attorney in an effort to clean up the situation. The attorney recommended a strategy known as tightened disclosure. Under this approach, Hoefer would notify the government that the company intended to dispose of the materials after a specific period if no response was received. According to the attorney, providing advanced notice would help limit potential criminal liability should the government fail to respond before the materials were discarded. That way, Hoefer could continue RV production.

Fortunately, Hoefer did not follow through on that recommendation. The materials had been preserved rather than destroyed. It was later discovered that the attorney advising Hoefer Group was also serving as counsel for Honeywell. The attorney was not acting as an independent advisor focused solely on Hoefer’s interests. Honeywell’s name appeared throughout repeated reports to the DDTC, yet the attorney never disclosed his relationship with the company nor the conflict of interest.

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Further Attention

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Eventually, an FAA National Security Team agent came out to the site to review the situation. According to Hoefer, the agent initially believed he was associated with Honeywell due to documentation indicating he was an authorized aerospace supplier. Once it became clear that Hoefer operated an RV manufacturing company and had no aerospace background, additional federal agencies became involved.

By summer of 2023, action was being taken. Federal officials had collected evidence from the facility, and Hoefer had been interviewed as a witness in multiple investigations.

Over time, additional individuals came forward with information regarding the site. This included former workers in past programs and individuals who alleged observing actual work on GG1320 parts. One whistleblower even gave Hoefer a 150-page document of emails and records including top state officials regarding the scheme.

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Aviation Safety Concerns

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The significance of the Dunseith Debacle extends beyond questions of misconduct or compliance. At its core, the controversy raises broader questions about aviation safety and the integrity of the aerospace supply chain.

The GG1320 is a critical avionics device used throughout the aviation world. These devices require extremely precise manufacturing, strict environmental controls, and extensive quality assurance to ensure their reliability. Because aircraft systems depend on highly accurate navigational and positional data, any compromise in the handling of these components could have serious consequences.

These concerns come at a time when the aviation industry has experienced a troubling increase in reports involving sudden uncommanded altitude changes. Some of these events have resulted in serious injuries to passengers and flight crews, and in at least one case, loss of life.

The Foundation for Aviation Safety brought this matter to the attention of the NTSB in 2025, introducing them to Hoefer and urging investigators to look into the allegations and potential connections to broader aviation safety concerns.

When these sudden inflight upsets occur, passengers and crew members can be thrown into the cabin ceiling.

These incidents have been attributed to a variety of causes, most commonly clear air turbulence. And, of course, planes can hit unsuspected turbulence. However, there appears to be too many of these incidents for it all to be chalked up to atmospheric conditions.

It is possible that the recent increase of such events could be in part due to defective system parts, like the GG1320. If a significant number of GG1320s were manufactured, repaired, modified, or handled outside approved systems, it could have set off a disastrous domino effect. Given the widespread use of the GG1320, further investigation is a matter of substantial public interest and must be taken seriously.

Even if no direct connection is ultimately established, the allegations surrounding the Dunseith facility raise important questions that deserve answers. There is an abundance of evidence warranting attention, yet many aspects of the controversy remain not only unresolved, but overlooked. Given the potential implications for aviation safety, greater scrutiny of the debacle is warranted. At a minimum, investigators should interview Hoefer, attempt to track down and replace compromised components, and take appropriate steps to mitigate any identified risks.

During the Foundation’s podcast, Hoefer expressed frustration with what he described as a lack of response from the FAA despite substantial evidence. He stated, “All this is backed by data. The FAA knows everything that’s gone on. They know that there’s probably several tens of thousands affected sensors. They know that they can only trace about five or ten percent of those sensors by serial number, at best.”

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Hoefer further speculated on how regulators are responding to the issue, stating, “These sensors at 20 thousand hours are supposed to be cycled out, and if I were to speculate, either they’re just working a serious investigation or they are just waiting and hoping they can just cycle everything out without too many accidents or fatalities.”

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The Foundation’s Role

Meanwhile, Hoefer has filed a lawsuit against five current and former North Dakota Department of Commerce officials in Federal Court. This marks the largest civil rights action in North Dakota history. The lawsuit alleges the retaliation and coercion he faced connected to his reporting of the materials at the Dunseith facility.

For Hoefer, the entire debacle began with a simple goal: building RVs. Instead, he found himself in the middle of an illicit manufacturing scheme related to one of aerospace’s most sensitive devices.