Wichita, KS – September 30, 2010 –Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, today announced it will begin offering its annual Citation maintenance and overhaul (M&O) sessions normally held during the National Business Aviation Association meeting and convention several weeks earlier via global webcast as part of its ongoing thrust to change the way business jet support is offered to operators around the world.
Instead of using the NBAA convention for M&O sessions for the various Citation models, Cessna will conduct its sessions via Internet this year starting next week. The new approach will reach more technicians around the world as well as make NBAA attendance more effective for customers.
"This is going to make the sessions available to a much wider group of technicians around the world and it will greatly enhance peer interaction, and enhance the learning experience for Citation technicians and operators," said Mark Paolucci, senior vice president, Customer Service. "This is part of our ongoing, industry-leading effort called ServiceDirect that is changing how service and support are delivered to aircraft operators. It's all about making sure our customers have the support they need in the most effective way we can deliver it."
Cessna's customer support was recently voted the world's best among business aviation aircraft manufacturers by readers of Professional Pilot magazine in one of the industry's top annual surveys.
Paolucci said additional benefits of this new M&O schedule include allowing customer representatives already planning to attend this year's NBAA to be better prepared for individual meetings, or free them to attend other professional and technical sessions such as the Cessna sponsored NBAA Single-Pilot Safety Standdown.
The sessions are open to all Cessna Citation operators by invitation, but each session is devoted to a specific Citation model. The schedule is:
Tuesday, Oct. 5
11 a.m. - noon: 510
1 - 2 p.m.: 500-Series
3 - 4 p.m.: 525-series
Wednesday, Oct. 6
1 - 2 p.m.: 560XL
3 - 4 p.m.: 650
Thursday, Oct. 7
1 - 2 p.m.: 680
3 - 4 p.m.: 750
For more information, Citation customers, operators and technicians can contact Citation Customer Care at 316-517-5800.
About Cessna Aircraft Company
Cessna is the world's leading general aviation company, based on unit sales, with five major lines of business: Citation business jets, Caravan single-engine turboprops, Cessna single-engine piston aircraft, aftermarket services and lift solutions by CitationAir. In 2009, Cessna delivered 754 aircraft, including 289 Citation business jets, and reported revenues of about $3.3 billion. Since the company was originally established in 1927, more than 192,000 Cessna airplanes have been delivered around the world, including more than 6,000 Citations, making it the largest fleet of business jets in the world. More information about Cessna Aircraft Company is available at www.cessna.com.
About Textron Inc.
Textron Inc. is a multi-industry company that leverages its global network of aircraft, defense, 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, and Textron Systems. More information is available at www.textron.com.