SHANGHAI - April 15, 2013 -Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, today announced that it is making excellent progress toward beginning operations in China through joint ventures to be formed with China Aviation Industry General Aircraft Company (CAIGA) in Shijiazhuang and Zhuhai.
In November 2012, Cessna and CAIGA signed agreements to form joint ventures to assemble Citation XLS+ business jets through CESSNA-AVIC Aircraft (Zhuhai) Co., Ltd and Cessna Caravan utility turboprops through CESSNA-AVIC Aircraft (Shijiazhuang) Co., Ltd. The aircraft from both operations are intended to be sold in the Chinese market.
Speaking today at the Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (ABACE), William Schultz, Cessna's senior vice president – business development, China, said: "Together with CAIGA, we are making swift progress toward establishing the joint venture operations. The construction of facilities is complete and we expect tooling and equipment to be in place in Shijiazhuang by June and in Zhuhai before the end of the year." Formation of the joint ventures and the beginning of operations remain subject to various government approvals.
In addition, Cessna and CAIGA today announced key senior management appointments for both joint ventures.
Trey Wade, formerly with Cessna's sister company Bell Helicopter, has been appointed general manager for the Zhuhai operation. With 12 years experience at Bell Helicopter, Wade was most recently director of the Bell Helicopter Training Academy. Li Yanbei, previously vice general manager of CAIGA South China Aircraft Industry Co., Ltd., has been named as the deputy general manager of the Zhuhai joint venture.
David Howard has been promoted to general manager of the Shijiazhuang joint venture. Howard was previously responsible for overseeing operations of the Cessna Skycatcher 162 program in Shenyang, China. Jing Weiliang, previously Manager of Human Resource with CAIGA North China Aircraft Industry Co., Ltd., has been appointed to be the deputy general manager of the Shijiazhuang joint venture.
Schultz said: "We have worked hard to identify suitably skilled leaders for both joint ventures. The operations will benefit immensely from the experience and insights of both management teams."
In addition to conducting aircraft assembly and sales, the joint ventures are also expected to develop customer support capabilities to meet aftermarket needs in China. These services are intended to complement the activities of Cessna's existing service network in the country: Beijing DINGSHI GA Tech Service Center (CFIC) was appointed a Citation authorized service facility in March 2012, and Cessna is working towards awarding the same status to Shanghai Hawker Pacific Business Aviation Service Centre.
About Cessna
Cessna is the world's leading general aviation company. Since its inception in 1927, Cessna has designed, produced and delivered nearly 200,000 airplanes around the globe. This includes 6,500 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 2012, Cessna delivered 571 aircraft, including 181 Citation business jets, and reported revenues of $3.111 billion. More information about Cessna Aircraft Company is available at cessna.com.
About Textron
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, the risk that the parties will not reach agreement on the specific terms of new joint ventures or that the timing of establishing the new business ventures is delayed; risks and uncertainties related to the launching of new products or programs which could result in unanticipated delays or expenses; performance issues with key suppliers, subcontractors or business partners; changes in worldwide economic and political conditions that impact demand for our products, interest rates and foreign exchange rates; risks and uncertainties related to establishing new facilities; and risks related to doing business internationally.
Contact
Marc Cornelius
Phone: +44 (0)7876 500260
mcornelius@8020comms.com
Stephanie Harder
Phone: +1 316 517 6488
sharder@cessna.com