Cessna

Cessna Aircraft Company

 Cessna Aircraft Company

 Cessna Aircraft Company

 Cessna Aircraft Company

 Cessna Aircraft Company

The story of Cessna is an exciting one about a company that took root on a prairie pasture and became the worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of airplanes for business, industry, pleasure flying and the military.

Cessna began when a farmer-mechanic cranked life into the engine of a fragile looking wood and fabric airplane and took off on his first successful flight. With this flight, 30 year old Clyde V. Cessna became the first person to build and fly an airplane west of the Mississippi and east of the Rocky Mountains. He set in motion events that created a company of great significance to the area, the nation, and the world. On the last day of the year in 1927, Clyde Cessna formed the Cessna Aircraft Company located in Wichita, Kansas.

Since its founding, Cessna Aircraft Company has delivered more than 177,800 aircraft, including 24,000 twin engine airplanes, 2,000 military jets, and more than 2,100 Citations. Cessna Aircraft Company is the largest, most successful, and most experienced aircraft builder in the world. Cessna\nulls design, manufacturing, and support facilities now cover more than seven million square feet. And Cessna\nulls share of the worldwide business aircraft market continues to expand. Cessna sells more light and midsize business jets annually than all other manufacturers combined.

The Citation fleet of business jet aircraft, based in more than 60 countries, is the largest in the world. The variety of choices in floor plans, cabin amenities, and flight deck options is equally impressive. Each new Citation is a product of talent, technology, and up to 44,000 separate parts. They all come together in the most sophisticated facility of its kind to be found anywhere.

Today, Cessna is not just making history. It is making technology advancements that are reshaping the entire future of aviation. Cessna utilizes state-of-the-art equipment and procedures in every area of the business. From engineering\nulls CATIA design system, to the five-axis milling machine in our tool and die department, to one of the world\nulls few composite pattern cutters, to numerous other tools that represent the highest level of aircraft technology. Sophisticated business management systems also exist in all areas to process and analyze the information for correct business decisions. Overall, Cessna has invested more in aviation research, designed more new aircraft, and amassed more experience than any other manufacturer in the industry and the difference shows in the performance of every aircraft Cessna builds. In 1986, Cessna became the first general aviation manufacturer ever to be awarded the coveted Robert Collier trophy for Aeronautical excellence. This recognition is a logical result of the design and manufacturing philosophy Cessna has followed from the beginning. It was earned by a history of millions of hours of safe flight.

When Cessna introduced the first Citation, it also introduced something else - a group of company owned Citation Service Centers. The industry\nulls only factory direct service network. The network now includes a growing number of Citation Service Centers strategically located all cross the United States, plus more than two dozen authorized service centers around the world. In all, it is the largest service organization of any business jet in the world.

In addition to the citation line, Cessna manufactures a single engine turboprop utility aircraft that can carry large cargo loads or up to 14 people. This plane, known as the Caravan, is in service with Federal Express and is the only single engine aircraft approved by United States Postal Service to carry the United States mail, and recently received Canadian certification to carry passengers during commercial IFR and night operations.

Cessna is the only general aviation company with its own finance subsidiary, Cessna Finance Corporation (CFC). CFC has underwritten financing for more than 140,000 aircraft valued at more than $7 billion. Cessna\nulls newest manufacturing plant opened in Independence, Kansas on July 4, 1996. The facility will be home to the world renowned single engine piston line.

In 1992, Cessna became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Textron, Inc. Textron is a diversified manufacturing and financial services company serving markets all over the world.

Cessna\nulls employment worldwide currently stands at more than 12,000.