Textron, the parent company of Cessna and Bell Helicopter, has confirmed it will purchase Beechcraft Corp. for approximately $1.4 billion in cash, in a press release issued late on Thursday.I wonder if the DoJ will have a problem with that for monopolistic reasons. On the other hand, Cessna doesn't make a retractable single, a piston twin or a twin turboprop, all of which Beech does.
Guess we'll see. Hopefully it won't be like Boeing, which couldn't shut down the DC-9/MD-80/MD-90/MD-95/B-717 production line fast enough.
I see a number of nice fits...and killing the King Airs would be a suicidal move after paying for the company.
ReplyDeleteNow, the other thought is what are the various lines worth to a Chinese company?
I have a sneaky feeling that Cessna won't really want a retractable single. The fixed gear units they have work quite well and are easier to insure. Whats the Bonanza worth as a stand alone, probably not as much as a Bonanza/Baron combination. There you suddenly have a more interesting pitch to some overseas companies.
Maybe a Chinese company looking to cut their teeth on some (somewhat) simplier models that would stimulate sector growth before they launch into single and twin turboprops? That might result in Cessna cutting their own throats down the road unless they figure the timeframe for combustion engine flight is limited...and even then the airframes have value for installing the next generation powerplant.
I was wondering how small plane company could be worth a billion dollars and then I went to their webiste and see that they sell to the military. Well, that explains that.
ReplyDeleteDoubt that Beech makes an inordinate profit on the T-6 JPATS contract, they have to deal with the Air Force program office, or the various King Airs they sell to the military. Bet the big profit is in the King Airs to civil customers worldwide.
ReplyDeleteIf Cessna and Beechcraft get together and are then folded in with the part of Boeing called Stearman you can call the whole thing Travel