Hawker Beechcraft Plans to Cut About 410 Jobs

Nov. 8, 2012
The company has begun the process of closing three Hawker Beechcraft Services facilities -- in Little Rock, San Antonio and Mesa, AZ.

Nov. 08--Hawker Beechcraft plans to cut about 410 jobs in four locations, including dozens of jobs in Wichita, the company told employees in a letter Wednesday.

The company has begun the process of closing three Hawker Beechcraft Services facilities -- in Little Rock, San Antonio and Mesa, Ariz. -- as it plans to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy as a smaller, stand-alone company called Beechcraft Corp., the letter said.

The closures will affect about 240 employees at the facilities.

In addition, it will cut about 170 jobs in Wichita and at its Little Rock Completions Center, where the company is completing the final Hawker Beechcraft jets for customer delivery.

More than half of the 170 job cuts will be at the completions center, the company said.

It did not give a specific number for cuts in Wichita.

About 15 or fewer of the layoffs will be in its hourly work force ranks, the letter said.

"The company already has taken a series of steps during 2012 to match its hourly employee levels to adjusted production rates," the letter said.

So far this year, Hawker Beechcraft has issued layoff notices to 1,021 Wichita employees, according to the KansasWorks website.

Those to be laid off in this most recent round in Wichita will be given 60-day notices on Friday, the letter said.

"While extremely difficult decisions, these closures and reductions in force will get the company closer to what we envision for our go-forward plan that focuses on turboprop, piston, special mission and trainer/attack aircraft, as well as parts, maintenance, repairs and refurbishment businesses," the letter said.

It was signed by Steve Miller, CEO of Hawker Beechcraft Inc., and Bill Boisture, chairman of Hawker Beechcraft Corp.

The company, which filed for bankruptcy in May, announced last month that a deal to sell the company to Superior Aircraft Beijing had collapsed and the company would move forward with a plan to shed its business jet business and retain its piston, turboprop and military business in a scaled down company.

Contact Molly McMillin at 316-269-6708 or [email protected].

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