Would A Corvalis By Any Other Name Fly Just As Sweet?

Some news is good, and some news is bad. And some news makes you raise an eyebrow and say, "Um, okay...?"

At this week's annual sales meeting in Wichita, Cessna took the wraps off its new 350 Corvalis and 400 Corvalis TT (twin-turbocharged) aircraft... which were formerly known as the Cessna 350 and 400, and before that as the Columbia 350 and 400 (and before that, as the Lancair Columbia 350 and 400.)

Cessna VP of Marketing Tom Aniello explained to dealers the company's reasoning behind the... let's be kind and say unusual... choice.

"Our customers and sales team asked us to name these products like other popular Cessnas such as the Cardinal and Skyhawk," said Aniello. "The name Corvalis, although spelled differently, was inspired from the name of a picturesque Oregon town about 120 miles west of Cessna's Bend, OR manufacturing facility. It is a graceful word befitting the flowing lines of the aircraft and its unique Northwest heritage."

Still... it ain't Shakespeare. Apart from the name, little else has changed on either aircraft since Cessna purchased the assets of the former Columbia Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation in November 2007... though Aniello believes Corvalises (Corvalisi? Crevices?) will nevertheless stand apart from previous iterations of the airframe.

"The logo graphic evokes a stylized depiction of the Three Sisters mountains, part of the Cascade mountain range separating the Eastern and Western halves of Oregon, and clearly visible from Cessna's Bend facility," Aniello explained.

There are days we don't envy a marketing guy's job... though the name does carry a certain cachet, perhaps if you don't think too much about it. To say response to the news from the Columbia and Cessna pilot communities has been rather vocal, however, would probably be an understatement.

"It sounds like a $24,000 Chevy sedan!" posted one participant on the Cessna Advanced Aircraft Club Forums. A second implied Corvalis is something Pfizer would name a pill -- "Should I call my doctor for a prescription?"

A third was very succinct. "Cessna is starting to scare me."

FMI: www.cessna.com