WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Cessna Aircraft parent company TextronInc. said Thursday it will buy
Beechcraft Corp. for approximately $1.4billion, a deal that would combine two mainstays of Wichita’s
generalaviation industry.The announcement by Providence, R.I.-basedTextron caps a year that saw Beechcraft
emerge from bankruptcy largelyfreed from debt and its unprofitable Hawker business jet operations,which it
stopped making to focus on turboprop and piston aircraft aswell as trainers and light attack planes for the
military.Textron said it expects to complete the acquisition early next year."Theacquisition of
Beechcraft is a tremendous opportunity to extend ourgeneral aviation business," Textron chairman and
CEO Scott C. Donnellysaid. "From our customers’ perspective, this creates a broader selectionof
aircraft and a larger service footprint — all sharing the same highstandards of quality and
innovation."Donnelly said Beechcraft’s line of King Air turboprop planes "perfectly
complements" Cessna’s Caravan and Citation jet lineup.BeechcraftCEO Bill Boisture called the sale
"an important step forward in theevolution of Beechcraft’s business." He had said in recent months
heexpected the company would sell at least its idled business jet assetsby the end of 2013."Textron’s
experience in the industry and itswillingness to invest in and maintain the iconic Beechcraft brand makeit
an ideal parent company, one that will help us continue to satisfyour customers and meet our business
objectives at a faster pace," hesaid.In August, Beechcraft announced a nearly $1.4 billion orderfrom
Wheels Up, a New York-based private aviation membership company, tobuild up to 105 King Air 350i aircraft
and to serve as Wheels Up’sNorth American maintenance provider. An industry expert called it thelargest
propeller aircraft order by value in general aviation history.Beechcraftexited bankruptcy with roughly 5,400
employees worldwide, includingabout 3,300 at its headquarters. Boisture said in February that heanticipated
those employment levels to remain stable.Beechcrafthas more than 36,000 aircraft in service and continues to
support itsHawker business jets, according to the Textron news release.Foundedin Kansas in the 1930s,
Beechcraft was bought by Canadian investmentfirm Onex Partners and Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s private equity
arm in2007. The company struggled in the sluggish business jet market duringthe economic downturn that
followed its purchase and filed in May 2012for bankruptcy reorganization, from which it emerged Feb.
19.CessnaAircraft was founded in Wichita in 1927 and has built and deliverednearly 200,000 airplanes
worldwide since then, including 6,500 Citationbusiness jets, according to Textron. It also makes Caravan
single-engineutility turboprops and single-engine piston aircraft, and providesaftermarket services
including include parts, maintenance, inspectionand repairs.Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All
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