First Large Fleet Order for Mustang

Capitalizing on the growing business in Europe and the rest of the world, Cessna Aircraft pulled in an order for 30 of its VLJ Citation Mustangs from an undisclosed European air-taxi operator.
"This is a very significant order on a number of fronts," said Trevor Esling, Cessna vice president, International Sales. "Foremost, it is a departure from our usual customer profile and shows the Mustang is very attractive to the large-fleet, air-taxi market. It is telling evidence of the suitability of the Mustang for the European market. It also demonstrates the durability of the airframe for the demands of high-utilization operators."
Until now, most of Cessna's 350-plus orders for the Mustang are from individual owner-operators, corporate flight departments or smaller-fleet charter companies. This order represents Cessna's largest order to-date for the Mustang.
The Citation Mustang became the first of a new category of entry-level jets to achieve full certification from the Federal Aviation Administration in September 2006 and the European Aviation Safety Agency in May. The aircraft is also certified in Australia, Mexico and Venezuela, with certification in Brazil imminent. Twenty-seven have been delivered after assembly at Cessna's facility in Independence, Kan., where a total of 44 Mustangs are scheduled to be delivered by year's end. By 2009, production is expected to reach 150 per year.
The six-place Citation Mustang has a top speed of 340 knots, a range of 1,150 nautical miles (with NBAA IFR Reserves) and a service ceiling of 41,000 feet enabling more efficient operations above most weather and commercial traffic.

University of North Dakota Orders Cessna Citation Mustang
The University of North Dakota ordered a single Cessna Citation Mustang, becoming the first flight school to order a Citation Mustang. The school will use this entry level Citation jet for executive travel as well as flight training for undergraduate and contract students.

Cessna Citation Mustang Gaining Global Momentum
With more than 350 aircraft on order - one-third of which will go to European-based customers - the Citation Mustang continues to gain global momentum. Work has been completed on high-altitude, airport certification that will be incorporated in October's flight manual revisions.
"The aircraft now in the field have accumulated more than 2,100 hours, and we are hearing from many delighted customers," said Cessna Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing Roger Whyte. "The Citation Mustang tops the expectations of the multinational owners/operators for whom high reliability is paramount during their personal and business travel."
The fully functional Garmin G1000 equipped Citation Mustang includes an integrated, dual-channel fail passive digital autopilot. It is the first aircraft certified to take advantage of WAAS navigation features including WAAS LPV approaches, providing both lateral and vertical guidance. The Garmin G1000 avionics suite also includes SafeTaxi, which gives a graphical representation of the aircraft in the airport environment.

Cessna CJ Orders
The company also announced an order for four of its CJ1+ for its new pilot training program, Lufthansa Flight Training. The aircraft are scheduled for delivery between October 2008 and mid-2009. The aircraft will be used for basic jet training at Lufthansa's training center in Bremen.
The CJ1+, first announced at the 2005 NBAA, was certificated less than a year later. It is designed for two crew and five passengers, although it can be operated single-pilot operation. It has a top speed of 389 knots (720 km/h) and a range of 1,297 nautical miles (2402 km). Like the rest of the CJ line, the 1+ features Williams engines (FJ44-1AP for the CJ1+) and Collins Pro Line 21 avionics.
Cessna also received a significant order from Japan Aerospace Corporation, a subsidiary of ITOCHU Corporation. The order includes three CJ2+, one CJ4, one Encore+, one XLS+, three Caravans and three SkyHawks. Based in Tokyo, Japan Aerospace Corporation is the exclusive authorized sales representative for Cessna in Japan. The company's origins date back to Nozaki & Co. Ltd., which pioneered the Japanese aerospace industry in 1952.

CJ4 Progressing Toward Certification
The CJ4 is moving efficiently through the development process toward certification. The CJ4, a larger, longer-range version of the popular CJ line has finished more than 75 percent of the detail design stage.
With detail design nearing completion, more than half of the major assembly tools for the newest member of the CJ series are in place at the company's major manufacturing facility in Wichita, Kan.
The first full wing was recently completed for the fuel test article; by the end of 2008 three test articles will be flying. The new Williams International FJ44-4A electronically controlled (FADEC) engine, which will debut on the CJ4, continues flying on Cessna's test bed airplane. A second engine has accumulated 3,000 equivalent flight cycles in accelerated testing, and a third engine recently passed induction system icing certification tests. The FJ44-4A has achieved thrust-to-weight and fuel economy goals at low temperatures, allowing TBO to be extended to 5,000 hours.
The CJ4 is on schedule for first flight during the first half of 2008, with entry into service planned for the first half of 2010. Cessna already has taken 130 orders for the new $8 million jet.
Rather than a stretched CJ3, the Citation CJ4 is a true upward extension to the single-pilot-certified family of Citation CJ family. Configurable for seven to eight passengers in the main cabin, the CJ4 is expected to have a cruise speed of 435 knots, a full fuel payload of 1,000 pounds and maximum payload of 2,100 pounds, more than 300 additional pounds compared to the typical CJ3.
The CJ4 will use the Collins Pro Line 21 avionics suite with four 8-by-10 inch flat screen displays, as well as the purpose-built Rockwell Collins' next generation cabin management system, Venue. Venue features a digital, high-definition media center that integrates a wide variety of entertainment and mapping capabilities into a light weight, cost-effective system. The software architecture is database driven, enabling quick changes through the use of a new configuration tool and redundant processing to keep the system performing.
The newly engineered wing of the CJ4 is moderately swept. Some features of the wing are similar to the Sovereign, including the three upper speed brake panels on each wing, which allow the airplane to have the short field performance the CJ series is known for. The CJ4 can takeoff from runways as short as 3,300 feet and land on runways as short as 2,665 feet.

Cessna Reports Record Backlog and Orders
Jack J. Pelton, chairman, president and CEO of Cessna Aircraft Company, said that the unprecedented strength of the business aircraft market is creating a firm foundation for the company's rapid growth.
"Last year, we delivered 307 business jets. This year we expect to deliver 380. Next year, we plan to deliver 470," said Pelton, at NBAA. "This extraordinary rate of growth is being driven by strong economies and corporate profits and a rapidly-emerging global marketplace."
Cessna currently produces eight different models of business jets, along with six models of single engine piston aircraft and three versions of the single engine turboprop Caravan. Pelton said the total backlog as of August 31 is the highest in the company's history – more than $11 billion representing roughly 2,700 units, half of which are business jets. During 2007, as of August 31, Cessna booked orders for 525 business jets, compared to 496 business jet orders booked in all of 2006.