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Cessna constructs Citation Columbus Facility in Wichita

Yesterday morning, Cessna President Jack J. Pelton was joined by Kansas governor Kathleen Sebelius to publicize the start of Cessna’s new Citation Columbus design and assembly facility in Wichita.  

The statement was attended by local and state legislative and business leaders, including 12,000 Cessna employees from Wichita.

“Being able to call Kansas home for the Citation Columbus is important to Cessna and it wouldn’t be possible without the team effort shown earlier this year,” Pelton stated. “Today is our way of recognizing how big of a victory this is for Cessna, Wichita and Kansas, and to again thank everyone who played a part in making this happen.”

Last April, the airline company announced that they are planning to build a mid-continent facility, pending the approval of the Kansas Legislature. Sebelius signed the bill during her previous visit to Cessna on April 23.

Sebelius is more than happy to accommodate the aircraft manufacturer to the region. “Landing the Citation Columbus sends a strong message that Kansas will compete to keep and grow aviation jobs,” maintained Sebelius. “But this reaches far beyond aviation and the direct jobs created at Cessna. Research shows that each aviation job creates an additional 2.9 jobs, which means a total of nearly 4,000 future new jobs in Kansas as a result of this new plant.”

The facility is located near the intersection of K-42 and Hoover on the Cessna campus beside Wichita Mid-Continent Airport. It spans to 600,000 square feet. The company hired firms McCluggage Van Sickle & Perry and Professional Engineering Consultants, P.A to take care of engineering and architecture.

Textron, the owner of Cessna, is investing $780million to develop the Citation Columbus—the company’s newest and biggest aircraft.