Hawker Beechcraft executives gave an update on the company and unveiled a new look for
its Hawker and Beechcraft lines of products and upgrades to several aircraft at a news conference at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
“The only consistent thing we see in this economy is inconsistency,” Bill Boisture, Hawker Beechcraft chairman and CEO, said to a crowded room of reporters. “We think 2012 will be a lot like 2011, which was a lot like 2010.”
The company will continue to produce airplanes in a cadence appropriate with the market, he said.
It did have a successful order intake during the third quarter.
International business is growing, with 70 percent of its products now being shipped offshore.
The new branding for the products reflects the clear distinctions between the Hawker and Beechcraft brands and their markets, said Hawker Beechcraft’s Shawn Vick.
Hawker’s brand is reflective of the aesthetics and engineering of the products, while Beechcraft’s branding reflects the plane’s ability to be locally responsive and individualized, Vick said.
The company is also marketing its products around the world by working with multiple public relations agencies with specific regional expertise to tailor the marketing to the regions, he said.
The company has received federal certification for improvements to the avionics and various systems for the Hawker 4000 aircraft. They’re being installed in all new Hawker 4000s coming off the production line and on existing planes.
The Hawker 4000 is an extraordinary airplane, Boisture said. The upgrades are a commitment to the airplane itself.
Installing the upgrades on existing airplanes gives customers the Hawker 4000 they wanted.
“I think we’re going to see some very satisfied owners,” Boisture said.
Hawker Beechcraft is opening a new 48,000 square-foot service center in Monterrey, Mexico, in spring 2012.
It will include a 13,400 square-foot paint hangar, a maintenance hangar and office and customer hospitality space. Growth of Hawker Beechcraft’s customer fleet in Mexico and the expansion of opportunies in Central America has created the need for the facility.
