GENEVA, Switzerland, May 19, 2014 – The strong brands of the Textron Aviation segment of Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) – Beechcraft, Cessna and Hawker – will be unified for the first time publicly with a display of nine aircraft at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) from May 20-22 at the Geneva International Airport.
The companies’ strength in region is reflected in analysis of JetNet data that shows in the past decade, Beechcraft, Cessna and Hawker have delivered more than 1,400 new business aircraft in Europe, Middle East and Africa.
“EBACE is the perfect venue for us to debut our strength as a unified company. Beechcraft, Cessna and Hawker products have done very well individually in the EMEA marketplaces, and we have high expectations for our united efforts,” said Kriya Shortt, senior vice president, Sales and Marketing. “Combined, our products make up the region’s largest business aviation fleet and we offer the largest service center network across the world.”
The Citation M2 light jet and Citation Sovereign+ midsize jet are making their EBACE debuts after entering service in late 2013. Both aircraft achieved Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification and began customer deliveries in December. Cessna has sold both models to customers in Europe and is currently working with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on certification.
Additional aircraft on display at the company’s EBACE exhibit include Cessna’s Grand Caravan EX, Citation CJ4 and Citation XLS+ and Beechcraft’s Baron G58, King Air C90GTx, King Air 250 and Special Mission King Air 350ER.