Cessna Sees Future Growth in the European Business Jet Market

Scott Ernest, president and CEO of Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, spoke today of Cessna playing a key role in the continuing future growth of the business jet industry in Europe.

Speaking at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva, Switzerland, Ernest said: “We are seeing high levels of interest in our aircraft throughout Europe and we expect this trend to continue.

“Europe is perhaps the most diverse region in the world for business aviation, combining established major markets, like Germany and the UK, with the emerging markets of Eastern Europe. We are seeing encouraging Citation interest across the region. There’s also an increasing demand for Grand Caravans across the CIS and enquiries are picking up on a more regular basis.

“The significant advantages that stem from business aviation are important and appealing factors in the European market. We expect the European Union to remain our single largest market outside the U.S. for the foreseeable future.

“At Cessna we offer an ideal suite of Citation jets for all business aviation needs in Europe. European customers are balancing the desire for the time-saving advantages of business aviation with the need to control costs. The Citation Mustang, Citation XLS+, CJ2+, CJ3 and CJ4, in particular, do well here. We expect the Citation M2 will be popular too, as operator feedback in Europe has indicated a desire for a Citation of its size, speed and range. And we’re excited about the game-changing Citation Latitude entering the market in 2015; the aircraft will offer current Citation owners and operators an opportunity to upgrade and we expect that it will play a significant role in the growth of the European mid-size business jet market.

”Cessna is exhibiting at Booth #7081, Hall 7, of the Geneva Palexpo at EBACE. The company’s static display at the event includes the Citation X, Citation Sovereign, Citation XLS+, Citation CJ4, Citation CJ3, Citation CJ2+, Citation Mustang, Grand Caravan and Turbo Skylane.