6 February 2007
Cessna has revealed that it is to deliver 72 new Cessna 172 Skyhawks to the Civil Aviation Flying University of China. The aircraft will be used as primary trainers. The same school also took delivery of 42 172s in 2006.
All the new aircraft will have Garmin G1000 glass cockpits. CAFUC is government-owned, and accounts for around 90 percent of the pilots trained in China. Cessna also points out that the school runs six Citation jets.
The aircraft to China were part of the 1,239 aircraft which Cessna delivered in 2006. 865 of these were piston singles; 67 were turboprops. “With these deliveries, and with our development work for new single-engine products, our leadership and commitment in this market segment are unrivaled,” said CEO and president Jack Pelton.
Cessna’s business jet sector is also very healthy. 307 Citations were delivered in 2006, and the company is expecting the number to grow to 375 this year.
Cessna is celebrating its 80th anniversary in 2007.
