Deal For 97 Planes Worth More Than $1 Billion

Cessna Aircraft Company announced Wednesday at the Paris Air Show that NetJets, already the company's largest Citation customer, has signed a deal to further increase its fleet by another 96 Citation business jets. The order includes 50 Encore+, 37 XLS+ and nine Citation X aircraft... and totals more than $1 billion.

"Cessna's Citation line provides our customers a wide variety of options for fractional ownership," said NetJets Chairman and CEO, Richard Santulli. "The dispatch reliability and quality of service provided by Cessna Citations have helped make our business successful. We currently have 304 Citation business jets under management with NetJets and NetJets Europe.

"We selected Encore+, XLS+ and Citation X for several reasons," Santulli continued. "The Encore and its predecessor -- the Ultra -- have been the main workhorses of our fleet since the mid 1990s and we've been very happy with their customer satisfaction and reliability. The combination of exceptional cabin comfort and low operating cost has made the XLS our most popular aircraft. And the Citation X has a loyal following for those customers for whom speed is of utmost importance."

"During our 21 year business relationship with NetJets, we have delivered 340 Citation business jets for their European and American fractional aircraft operations," added Cessna Chairman, President and CEO Jack Pelton. "Our multifaceted Citation line of business jets provides them with options to satisfy a great range of customers, and our vast support network ensures the high level of service that NetJets has become known to provide."

Based on unit sales, Cessna Aircraft Company is the world's largest manufacturer of general aviation airplanes. In 2006, Cessna delivered 1,239 aircraft, including 307 Citation business jets, and reported revenues of about $4.2 billion and a backlog of $8.5 billion.

FMI: www.cessna.com, www.netjets.com