Columbus, GA - September 19, 2007 - Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, today broke ground on what will be its third building in Columbus. The company will invest up to $24 million to expand aircraft subassembly work here, including construction of an $11 million facility at Muscogee Technology Park.

The 100,000-square-foot building is slated to be completed in August 2008. Cessna Columbus started with a 110,000-square-foot building in 1996. The company added a second building – roughly 130,000 square feet – in 2001 to move the newly acquired McCauley Propeller Systems from Dayton, Ohio, and to support increased production rates in Wichita, Kan., and Independence, Kan.

Cessna Columbus employees manufacture detail parts and assemblies for Cessna's line of single engine pistons, Caravans and business jets. Additionally, employees manufacture high quality propellers under the brand McCauley Propeller Systems. Cessna expects to add up to 150 jobs in Columbus over the next five years.

“Our company has enjoyed dramatic growth over the last few years, and as a result we must continue to expand on many fronts, especially manufacturing, to meet the growing demands of our customers,” said Ron Alberti, senior vice president, Integrated Supply Chain. “To that end, we have seen considerable expansion at our various sites around Wichita and in Independence. Today, we're pleased to announce that we will be expanding our Columbus, Ga., facility, where we produce parts that feed our assembly lines in Wichita and Independence.

“When we came to Columbus in 1996, there were about 70 employees here, and now there are almost 600,” he said. “The strength of the workforce and the business climate in Muscogee County provides a terrific environment in which to grow our business, and we expect strong job growth as our business expands. Georgia's Quick Start training program and the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce have been instrumental in allowing us to expand over the past 11 years.”

Cessna's newest building will be on a 40-acre site at Muscogee Technology Park. The company's existing two buildings will continue operation on the 30-acre site they occupy at Columbus East Industrial Park, three miles from the new building.

Cessna plans to spend an additional $13 million over the next two to three years to add machinery for increased capacity and to introduce new technology at all three Columbus buildings.

Columbus Fact Sheet

Cost:  $24 million

• $11 million, 100,000-square-foot facility at Muscogee Technology Park in Columbus, Ga.
• $13 million over the next two to three years to add machinery for increased capacity and to introduce new technology at the three Columbus buildings

Size:  Construction of a 100,000-square-foot manufacturing building

Groundbreaking:  Sept. 19, 2007

Estimated Completion Date:  August 2008

General Contractor:  Batson-Cook Company based in West Point, Ga.

Architect:  CH2M HILL Lockwood Greene of Atlanta

Location:  Cessna's newest building in Columbus will be on a 40-acre site at Muscogee Technology Park. The company's existing two buildings totaling 241,500 square feet will continue operation on the 30-acre site they occupy at Columbus East Industrial Park, three miles from the new building. Columbus is approximately 90 miles southwest of Atlanta in Muscogee County.

Columbus Leadership:  Seerley Lowery has been general manager since 2005

Employment/Jobs:            

• Cessna Columbus employees manufacture detail parts and assemblies for Cessna's line of single engine pistons, Caravans and business jets. Additionally, employees here design and manufacture high quality propellers under the brand McCauley Propeller Systems.
• Employment has increased from 70 in 1996 to approximately 600 today.
• Cessna expects to add up to 150 jobs in Columbus over the next five years.
• Prospective employees are encouraged to apply online at www.cessnajobs.com or by contacting the Georgia Department of Labor's Columbus Career Center, 700 Veterans Parkway, (706) 649-7423.
• The 580 Columbus employees join a worldwide Cessna workforce of more than 14,700.
• Roughly 412 are production workers and approximately 168 are support staff.
• Since 2001, Cessna has paid Columbus employees more than $107 million in salaries.
• Average tenure for employees in Columbus is 5.16 years.
• Since 1998, Cessna has paid more than $125,000 in tuition aid for Columbus employees, predominantly at local institutions.

Miscellaneous Facts:

• Textron Aerospace Products' Columbus facility became a division of Cessna Aircraft Company in 1996.
• Each year, Cessna's Columbus facility produces more than 3,500 propellers, assembles about 11,750 control surfaces, cabins/tail cones and empennages, and fabricates an estimated 1.7 million detail parts for single engines, jets and Caravans.

Based on unit sales, Cessna Aircraft Company is the world's largest manufacturer of general aviation airplanes. In 2006, Cessna delivered 1,239 aircraft, including 307 Citation business jets, and reported revenues of about $4.2 billion and a backlog of $8.5 billion. Since the company was originally established in 1927, more than 189,000 Cessna airplanes have been delivered to nearly every country in the world. The global fleet of more than 5,000 Citations is the largest fleet of business jets in the world. More information about Cessna Aircraft Company is available at www.cessna.com.

Textron Inc. is an $11 billion multi-industry company operating in 32 countries with approximately 40,000 employees.  The company leverages its global network of aircraft, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovative solutions and services. Textron is known around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell Helicopter, Cessna Aircraft Company, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Greenlee, Fluid & Power, Textron Systems and Textron Financial Corporation.  More information is available at www.textron.com.