BEIJING — Business jet maker Cessna Aircraft Co. signed agreements Friday with Chinese partners to build business jets in China and explore other aviation opportunities.
The Kansas-based company is joining with state-owned Aviation Industry Corp. of China and the municipal government of Chengdu in western China, where the three plan a joint venture to produce midsize Cessna business jets and possibly new models in the future.
China is seen as the most promising major market for the aviation industry.
The maker of Citation jets and Aviation Industry Corp., China’s biggest aerospace company, also signed a wider agreement to explore other opportunities, including the possible formation of an aircraft service network. The companies expect to form new ventures within the next year, according to the statement.
Scott Donnelly, chief executive officer of Cessna’s owner Textron Inc., said he expected significant growth in China because of its growing economy and diverse geography.
So far, China’s private-jet market has been dominated by Bombardier and Gulfstream, which make larger jets than Cessna’s small and medium-sized aircraft.
Cessna officials Friday said there are about 200 Cessna aircraft in China.
Donnelly declined to comment on Cessna’s projections for the Chinese market, saying only that he expected “very, very robust” growth.
The signing between Aviation Industry Corp. and Cessna comes two days after Bombardier signed an agreement with state-owned Com- mercial Aircraft Corp. of China to collaborate on common parts for their aircraft.
Textron, based in Providence, R.I., joins Embraer SA in working on plans for a Chinese business-jet factory as planemakers look to Asia to offset slowing demand in the U.S. and Europe. China’s business-jet fleet may increase to 2,470 planes by 2030, according to Bombardier Inc., because of more liberalized airspace regulations and increasing numbers of millionaires.
“China’s market potential is tremendous,” said Scott Ernest, Cessna’s president and chief executive officer. The country “represents an exciting opportunity for Cessna,” he said.
Embraer is seeking to build Legacy business jets at a plant in Harbin, China, that used to make commercial planes in a venture with Aviation Industry Corp.
The Brazilian company, which has hired Jackie Chan to promote its business jets, expects to get final approval from authorities for the plan within a month, Chief Executive Officer Frederico Curado said in a March 12 interview.
Information for this article was contributed by Jasmine Wang of Bloomberg News.
Business, Pages 25 on 03/24/2012