Cessna Sees Strong Demand in Australia for New Citation Mustang

AVALON AIRPORT, Australia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, has seen an increase in sales activity for the Citation Mustang in the past few months following its certification, according to Todd Duhnke, Cessna director of International Sales.

“Performance, price and reliability are all meeting our original projections, and sales have really accelerated since gaining full type certificate in September.”

“The Mustang makes perfect sense for businesses across Australia, and in New Zealand,” Duhnke said. “Performance, price and reliability are all meeting our original projections, and sales have really accelerated since gaining full type certificate in September.”

Duhnke said the first Citation Mustang will arrive in Australia in August and will be used as a demonstrator. The aircraft was ordered by Aeromil Pacific, Cessna’s authorized sales and service representative at Bankstown Airport in Sydney. The second Mustang for Australia was ordered by a Queensland businessman who plans to fly the aircraft himself.

Cessna, through Aeromil, recently made its first Citation Mustang sale to a customer in New Zealand, Duhnke added.

The Citation Mustang gained certifications for single-pilot operations as part of its overall U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification last September. The Mustang gained full production certification in November. Cessna will deliver 40 Citation Mustangs in 2007, and ramp up to 100 aircraft in 2008.

Based on unit sales, Cessna Aircraft Company is the world's largest manufacturer of general aviation airplanes. In 2006, Cessna delivered 1,239 aircraft, including 307 Citation business jets, and reported revenues of about $4.2 billion and a backlog of $8.5 billion. Since the company was originally established in 1927, more than 189,000 Cessna airplanes have been delivered to nearly every country in the world. The global fleet of almost 5,000 Citations is the largest fleet of business jets in the world. More information about Cessna Aircraft Company is available at www.cessna.com.

Textron Inc. is an $11 billion multi-industry company operating in 32 countries with approximately 40,000 employees. The company leverages its global network of aircraft, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovative solutions and services. Textron is known around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell Helicopter, Cessna Aircraft Company, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Greenlee, Fluid & Power, Textron Systems and Textron Financial Corporation. More information is available at www.textron.com.

Forward-looking Information: Certain statements in this report are forward-looking statements and speak only as of the date on which they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the statements, including but not limited to the following: [a] changes in worldwide economic and political conditions that impact demand for our products, interest rates and foreign exchange rates; [b] the interruption of production at Textron facilities or Textron’s customers or suppliers; [c] the occurrence of slowdowns or downturns in customer markets in which Textron products are sold or supplied or where Textron Financial offers financing; and [d] changes in aircraft delivery schedules or cancellation of orders.