Wichita, KS – July 12, 2010 – Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced today the International Learn to Fly Day scholarships winners. Cessna's global network of Cessna Pilot Centers (CPC) supported EAA's International Learn to Fly Day by offering drawings for two flight training scholarships. Also, participating CPCs around the U.S. held local drawings for a free Cessna Sport/Private kit and their first flight lesson.
First prize winner, Salvador Valdes of Los Angeles, Calif., was awarded a $10,000 flight training credit, which she plans to use at Vista Air, a CPC located in Pacoima, Calif. Valdes, an aerospace engineering student at UCLA, has already begun flight training. "I wanted to see the practical side of what I was learning in school," said Valdes.
Second prize winner, Valeri Simmons of Olathe, Kan., was awarded a $5,000 training credit, which she plans to use at Air Associates of Kansas, a CPC located in Olathe, Kan. Simmons had flow with her father as a young girl—and her son is learning to fly as well—but now she has the passion to learn to fly for herself.
Anyone who visited and registered with a domestic CPC during the International Learn to Fly Day activities was eligible for the drawing. Winners were chosen by random drawing on June 30.
For more than 80 years, Cessna has been the leader in teaching the world to fly through its global CPC network of more than 280 flight schools.
To find the CPC nearest you or for more information about Cessna's Learn to Fly program, visit our Web site at www.cessnaflighttraining.com or follow Cessna Pilot Centers on Facebook or on Twitter at GetInTheAir.
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.