Hawker Beechcraft announced the long-awaited upgrade of the Premier light jet yesterday evening, highlighting improvements in range, time to climb, maximum altitude, payload and top speed. The company will continue producing the Premier IA after the Premier II is certified in the first quarter of 2010 and begins deliveries in the second quarter.
“This is an exciting time for general aviation,” said chairman and CEO Jim Schuster, “and an extra exciting time for Hawker Beechcraft.” Since March 2007, when Raytheon sold Hawker Beechcraft to private equity firms Goldman Sachs and Onex Partners, the company’s backlog has grown to more than $7 billion from less than $3 billion, Schuster said. And international orders now account for more than 60 percent of the total backlog. “That’s an incredible shift for Hawker Beechcraft,” he said. The long-delayed Hawker 4000 has finished all testing and is “in the final report process,” he said. Deliveries of the 4000 should begin later this month or in early June.
More In Aircraft
