WICHITA, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun. 12, 2012-- Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced today that it signed a purchase agreement with NetJets® Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway company, for delivery of up to 150 Citation Latitude business jets, with initial deliveries beginning in 2016.
“We are very excited to enhance our longstanding relationship with NetJets by producing the Citation Latitude for them and their customers,” said Cessna President and CEO Scott Ernest. “The Latitude is a game-changer, not only for the Cessna line of products, but for the industry. It will provide sophistication, modern technology and a whole new level of cabin comfort and style — whether you are in the cockpit with the Garmin G5000 or in the all-new, large cabin with Cessna’s cabin technology solution, ClairityTM, this airplane will prove each and every time why it’s a standout member of the Cessna family and the entire industry.”
Cessna and NetJets have had a more than 20 year history working together to provide high-quality, safe and reliable business travel to NetJets’ customers. Currently, NetJets owns and operates more than 250 Citations including the Citation Encore, Citation XLS+, Citation Sovereign, Citation X — and soon the Citation Latitude.
“This order from NetJets shows confidence in the growing strength and long-term outlook of the global economy and the aviation industry. We’re thrilled that we’ll be able to leverage our Wichita development and manufacturing expertise to build these Citation Latitudes. Beyond that, the planes will also be maintained using the talents of our worldwide network of Citation Service Centers,” Ernest said. “Cessna employees take pride in their work and truly care about the customer — it’s rewarding to know NetJets recognizes this and places their confidence in Cessna.”
“We are delighted to be working with Cessna to acquire aircraft that are ideally suited to our owners’ needs,” said NetJets Chairman and CEO Jordan Hansell. “The Citation Latitudes will enable us to deliver unparalleled safety, service, reliability and efficiency, along with new aircraft features that will differentiate our fleet and build on the NetJets flying experience.”
First announced at the 2011 NBAA Annual Meeting and Convention, the Latitude has been designed with space for a crew of two plus up to eight passengers; features Garmin G5000 avionics; includes an 84-inch (2.13-meter) fuselage; a 6-foot (1.83-meter) high passenger cabin with a flat floor; and Cessna's highly advanced ClairityTM cabin technology solution.
Positioned between the Citation XLS+ and Citation Sovereign in Cessna's product line, the Citation Latitude design, at a current retail price of $14.9 million, offers a full fuel payload of 1,000 pounds (454 kilograms), a maximum cruise speed of 440 knots true airspeed (815 kilometers per hour) and a range of 2,300 nautical miles (4,259.6 kilometers). Preliminary specifications project that the aircraft will operate at airports with runways as short as 3,900 feet (1,189 meters), will have a maximum altitude of 45,000 feet (13,716 meters) and will climb direct to 43,000 feet (13,106 meters) in 26 minutes.
First flight of the Citation Latitude prototype is expected to be mid-year 2014, with FAA certification (Part 25) and entry into service expected in 2015.
More information on the Latitude can be found on the Citation Latitude website. Find images of the Latitude on Cessna's image gallery.
ABOUT CESSNA:
Cessna is the world's leading general aviation company. Since its inception in 1927, Cessna has designed, produced and delivered more than 193,500 airplanes around the globe. This includes more than 6,300 Citation business jets, making it the largest fleet of business jets in the world. Today, Cessna has two principal lines of business: aircraft sales and aftermarket services. Aircraft sales include Citation business jets, Caravan single-engine utility turboprops, single-engine piston aircraft and lift solutions by CitationAir. Aftermarket services include parts, maintenance, inspection and repair services. In 2011, Cessna delivered 689 aircraft, including 183 Citation business jets, and reported revenues of $2.990 billion. More information about Cessna Aircraft Company is available at 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 textron.com.
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements which may project revenues or describe strategies, goals, outlook or other non-historical matters; these statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, changes in aircraft delivery schedules or cancellations or deferrals of orders; unanticipated expenses in connection with the launching of significant new products; the timing of our new product launches or certifications of our new aircraft products; changes in worldwide economic or political conditions that impact demand for our products; legislative or regulatory actions impacting our operations or demand for our products; changes in national or international government policies on the export and import of commercial products; performance issues with key suppliers, subcontractors or business partners; difficult conditions in the financial markets which may adversely impact our customers’ ability to fund or finance purchases of our products; and continued volatility in the economy resulting in a prolonged downturn in the business jet market.
Source: Textron
Textron Inc.
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