Category Archives: Cessna

Cessna’s Turbo Skylane JT-A, which runs on jet fuel, takes first production flight

May 22, 201310:38 a.m.

Cessna Aircraft announced the first production flight of the Turbo Skylane JT-A took off from Independence on Tuesday.

The single-engine piston-powered plane has a diesel engine that runs on Jet-A fuel.

The four-place plane performed as expected, Dale Bleakney, Cessna senior test pilot, said in a statement.

“The weather conditions were fantastic, and we took the turbo 182 up for what turned out to be a very normal first flight,” Bleakney said.

The flight lasted 2.3 hours, flew at 8,000 feet and reached a true air speed at 182 mph.

The plane is the first aircraft powered by a diesel engine specifically designed for aviation, Cessna said.

The general aviation industry has been facing a looming fuel issue in many parts of the world.

Avgas, typically used to fuel most single-engine aircraft, is becoming scarce, expensive and unavailable in many parts of the world.

The ability for a single-engine plane to run on the more common Jet-A fuel means operators can fly to more parts of the world without worrying about the availability of increasingly scarce avgas, the company said.

The engine is expected to burn about 30 percent to 40 percent less fuel than comparable avgas engines, it said.

By Molly McMillin | Filed under Cessna | Comments

DAC Aviation to take delivery of six Grand Caravans

May 3, 201311:06 a.m.

Courtesy photo

DAC Aviation International, based in Montreal, has taken delivery of the first of six Cessna Grand Caravan Ex aircraft to be delivered over the next six months, the company said.

DAC’s primary base of operations is the Wilson Airport in Nairobi, Kenya.

The new Grand Caravan, which can hold a two-person crew, 10 passengers and cargo, will be based in Nairobi later this month.

The company serves aid and relief agencies in remote and conflict-affected areas.

Including the six Caravans, DAC’s fleet will total 21 aircraft.

The company was founded in 1993 by Emmanuel Anassis, a bush pilot in Africa, who realized that international relief and aid agencies lacked reliable air transportation services.

Its first client was the United Nations Children’s Fund, or UNICEF.

“Our success depends on our highly-trained and experienced pilots, support crews and, of course, the right aircraft,” Anassis said in a statement. “These are important missions. The welfare of many people depends on our clients’ work. Our job is to get them where they need to go safely and reliably. We go where few others dare.”

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, Cessna | Comments

Cessna and the Citation’s link to the Kentucky Derby

May 3, 201310:48 a.m.

Cessna Aircraft explained how its line of Citation jets got its name this week as the Kentucky Derby approaches.

The line was named after the Triple Crown racehorse, “Citation.”

In 1948, Citation won the Kentucky Derby, winning by three and a half lengths at Churchill Downs.

The thoroughbred went on to win the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes to win the Triple Crown in 1948.

Citation was well known for the ease in which he handled, with no complications or handling difficulties, Cessna said.

More than 600 general aviation flights are expected to arrive in Louisville this weekend for the Kentucky Derby.

Cessna plans to have Citation aircraft on display at Atlantic Aviation, a fixed base operator at Louisville International Airport.

It also will have a mobile service unit at the airport to provide service if necessary.

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, Cessna | Comments

Cessna CEO: Despite reducing rates, Cessna light jet production to continue

April 25, 201311:16 a.m.

Cessna Aircraft CEO Scott Ernest reassured 400 Citation owners at a conference this week that, despite speculation, the company is not halting production on its jet products.

“Let me be clear,” Ernest said in a statement reiterating his remarks. “We are not halting production; we are simply reducing our production levels to meet current demand.”

Last week, Scott Donnelly, CEO of Textron, Cessna’s parent company, told analysts that Cessna is cutting production this year because of weak demand in its light jet products despite traditional leading economic indicators, such as corporate profits, looking better.

Cessna expects to deliver fewer jets this year than it did in 2012.

The challenge in reducing production schedules, Donnelly told analysts, is material that is already in-house.

“Clearly, one of the things that we’ll do as we go through the production change, is we’ll build things out to logical points in their build cycle so those aircraft are sort of in an appropriate stage of work-in-progress before we shut down various portions of the production line,” Donnelly said in the conference call with analysts. “That just means we’re going to have inventory, clearly, that’s going to roll over to the end of year as opposed to going out in sold aircraft.”

Cessna remains committed to Citation jet products, especially in the light jet segment, Ernest said in the statement.

“Citations lead the light jet segment and Cessna is fully committed to our current products in that category,” he said. “From the Citation Mustang up through the CJ4 and beyond, customers who turn to Cessna for aircraft solutions will continue to find a trusted partner who is focused on delivering reliable performance day in and day out

The company announced voluntary buyouts of salaried positions earlier this month to reduce costs.

It told employees last week that details about production cuts and workforce adjustments would be forthcoming.

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, aviation industry, Cessna | Comments

Notre Dame coach Lou Holtz keynote speaker at Cessna Citation customer conference

April 23, 201310:42 a.m.

Lou Holtz, motivational speaker and former Notre Dame football coach, will present the keynote address Wednesday at Cessna’s annual Citation customer conference.

Holtz’s speech is entitled “Game Plan for Success.”

The conference, attended by about 400 Cessna Citation owners and operators, began Monday with factory tours and a supplier sponsored reception.

It continues Tuesday and Wednesday at the Hyatt Regency Wichita hotel and Century II.

The conference offers a variety of sessions, including technical reviews and sessions on new products, corrosion control, internal and external revitalizatin, how to increase the resale value of the aircraft and Federal Aviation Administration medical certification policies.

 

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, Cessna | Comments

Cessna CEO Scott Ernest chosen campaign chairman for United Way of the Plains

April 11, 201310:50 a.m.

Cessna Aircraft president and CEO Scott Ernest will serve as campaign chairman for the United Way of the Plains‘ 2013 campaign.

In his role, Ernest will lead the volunteers in the fundraising effort.

Ernest has been a supporter of the United Way as a member of the Tocqueville Society and in promoting the organization within Cessna

That resulted in a 20 percent increase in giving by Cessna employees.

“Being a native of Kansas and a longtime supporter of the United Way, I know the valuable role and impact the agency makes right here at home,” Ernest said in a statement. “I am honored to serve as this year’s campaign chair and know the contributions of each person change lives every day for our neighbors and colleagues.”

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, Cessna | Comments

Cessna’s Citation Latitude mock-up starts 19-city tour

April 5, 20136:38 a.m.

Cessna Aircraft is taking a  mock-up of its new Citation Latitude business jet on a 19-city tour that criss-crosses the country to promote the airplane.

Production of the Latitude, announced in October 2011, is on schedule, the company said.

Cessna is making progress on the completion of full airframes this year,

The first prototype is expected to fly in early 2014.

“We’ve moved from engineering, analysis and modeling to cutting metal and driving rivets,” Terry Shriner, Cessna’s Citation Latitude business leader, said in a statement.

Line production will begin in 2014.

The Latitude will accommodate up to eight passengers with a crew of two, have a maximum range of 2,500 nautical miles and a maximum cruise speed of 506 miles per hour.

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, Cessna | Comments

Cessna: First Corvalis TTx production flight test a success

March 7, 20136:43 a.m.

Cessna Aircraft announced that the company completed the first production flight of its TTx, formerly called the Corvalis TTx, on Saturday.

The company is in the midst of dropping the Corvalis name, a Cessna spokesman said.

The single-engine composite airplane took off from Cessna’s Independence facility.

The pilot took the airplane to 17,000 feet and to a speed of 245 mph.

“The TTx performed exceptionally well,” Brian Steele, Cessna’s business leader for the airplane, said in a statement.”The TTx is a nimble, top of the line airplane. It’s the world’s fastest fixed gear, single engine piston aircraft in production.”

Cessna announced last year that it had begun production of the TTx, an upgraded Corvalis TT.

During its development, test pilots made 275 flights and logged 339 hours in the air, Cessna said.

The plane can reach a top speed of 270 mph and has an operating ceiling of 25,000 feet. It can cross the country with one stop.

Cessna halted production of the carbon-fiber composite Corvalis, formerly called the Columbia, in late 2010 after problems were found at the company’s Chihuahua, Mexico, facility, which builds the fuselage components and wings.

The entire environmental system in Mexico, key to working with composite materials, had to be redone.

Now, the humidity, air pressure and temperature are controlled through use of a continuous monitoring system, company officials have said.

Assembly of the upgraded Corvalis – the $734,000 Corvalis TTx – restarted in October.

 

 

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, aviation industry, Cessna, general aviation | Comments

Wichita aviation on display at Aero India

Feb. 6, 201310:51 a.m.

Wichita planemakers are showcasing aircraft in India this week at the Aero India biennial aerospace show, which runs Wednesday through Sunday.

Hawker Beechcraft is displaying its Beechcraft King Air 350i turboprop, while Cessna Aircraft is showcasing its Caravan turboprop and Citation jets.

“India is expected to be amongst the world’s fastest growing economies in 2013 and stands to benefit hugely from a national expansion of business aviation, both for domestic and international travel,” Bill Harris, Cessna vice president of sales in Asia and the Asia Pacific, said in a statement. “Cessna is optimistic that legislative and regulatory reforms this year will remove several barriers to India’s aircraft market development.”

One of India’s pressing needs is to improve its intra-state air links, Harris said.

Hawker Beechcraft director of sales in India Todd Hattaway said the company sees a growing demand for its aircraft used in special mission applications throughout the country.

More than 20 King Airs are registered to state or federal government organizations in India, the company said. The majority provide VIP transportation for interstate and cross-country travel.

Eighty-two percent of new turboprop business aircraft delivered in India from 2002 to 2011 were King Air products; 83 percent of the total fleet of registered business turboprops in the country are King Airs, the company said.

Bombardier Aerospace is also in India with its Challenger 605 and Global 6000 jets.

 

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, aviation industry, Beechcraft Corp., Bombardier Learjet, Cessna, general aviation | Comments

Cessna’s Grand Caravan EX earns type certification

Jan. 10, 201310:57 a.m.

Cessna Aircraft’s more powerful Grand Caravan EX has earned Federal Aviation Administration type certification and outperformed its initial targets, the company announced Thursday.

The plane will have a 38 percent improvement in the rate of climb over the Grand Caravan, it said. The company originally expected a 20 percent improvement.

Cessna also has said that the version will have a 350-foot reduction in takeoff roll and a 10-to-12 knot cruise speed improvement.

The plane will be powered by Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-140 engines.

Cessna has delivered four Grand Caravan EX airplanes.

 

By Molly McMillin | Filed under aircraft manufacturers, Cessna | Comments Off