Touts New Products, Continuing Innovation, Improved Bottom Line

Cirrus president and CEO Brent Wouters gave an upbeat assessment of the company to the Cirrus Owners and Pilots Association (COPA) Annual Migration Friday. Wouters said the jet program is progressing, and that the company appears to have weathered the recession in good shape with a marked improvement in the bottom line over 2009.

Wouters said that general aviation is powerful. "Everyone has a dream of flying, or going places" he said, but for business people "It's not about just the airplane, it's about what the airplane allows me to do."

Wouters said that while Cirrus continues to be focused on great product, the overall strategy is "customer first, airplane second." He said that the company continues to expand its markets, and is doing a better job in the markets it already has. The reliability of the airplane has improved 15% overall in the past three years, and that a global parts provider has improved the dispatch reliability by 70 percent. The company has added 15 flight training centers, and that while it is not moving as quickly as they would like, the jet program is making progress.

Wouters said that 50 percent of Cirrus' current volume is coming from outside the U.S., most notably Latin America, Australia, and China. He said that is particularly encouraging because in many places, particularly in China, it is far more difficult to fly than it is in the U.S. And, as is evidenced by the new SR22T, fuel flexibility will be key to allowing Cirrus to enter those markets.

The company is also beginning to penetrate the institutional and fleet markets, Wouters said. He pointed to the recent purchase by Purdue University of a fleet of Cirrus aircraft for training as an example of that market penetration.

On the bottom line, Wouters said the financial foundation of the company is strong. "In 2010, we're on a pace to deliver about the same number of airplanes as 2009," he said. "But the net income result ... the bottom line ... is $40 million better. We will have half the deliveries of 2008, and we will be $80 million better on the bottom line."

Wouters told the group no matter how the company is measured ... "customer first, airplane second", innovation, penetration into new markets ... that the financial support of the people buying the airplanes make it all possible. And he reiterated that "It's not just about the airplane, it's about what the airplane allows me to do, and you to do. If we are here, and we are stable, and we have great performance, we can continue to provide that for you over the long haul."

ANN provided a live webcast of the speech, and you can see it in its entirety here.

FMI: www.cirrusaircraft.com