Posted on 10/09/2011 12:28:02 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Hawker Beechcraft Chairman and CEO Bill Boisture said targeting of the private aircraft industry both in terms of user fees and fiscal proposals appears to be intentional, and called fiscal policies such as user fees and depreciation schedules “irresponsible.”
The perceived attacks have damaged customer confidence, and contributed to some, perhaps the last 25 percent, of all employee layoffs and workforce reductions, Boisture said. “To have singled out our industry is irresponsible,” he said. “It must be intended,” he said in later comments.
In other remarks, Boisture said his staff decided long ago to treat the current recession as “the new normal,” and unfortunately that has proven true. “The only consistent thing we see is inconsistency,” he said. He added that, “…2012 looks like 2011, which looks like 2010.” What remains is a smaller, agile, efficient, and flexible company, he said. Nearly one million square feet of factory space has been closed, and 20,000 parts have been transferred to third-party manufacturers or to facilities in Mexico.
He said the new strategy to improve and retrofit existing products is seen in the Hawker 400XPR upgrades. “It is a very significant step in that direction,” he said. The company is testing the T-6 Texan as an attack aircraft that will be offered to the world’s air forces. Many of the countries planning to use the T-6 already have them in use as trainers. Another military push is the King Air, now offered for special missions and medical evacuation. Nearly a third of all special missions aircraft in use are built by Hawker Beechcraft.
The upgrades apply as well to the piston-engine models, the twin-engine Baron, and the Bonanza, which received newly designed interiors and cabin temperature control systems.
Hawker Beechcraft is continuing to expand and improve service centers, with a new one about to open in Wilmington, Del., and another just announced in Mexico.
Asked about a downgrade by Moody’s that indicates Hawker is not expected to return to profitability soon, Boisture said, “We are in good standing with our suppliers, customers, and our people. We have strong ownership. We are in good company [concerning the Moody’s rating]. About half the companies in Europe are on the same list.”
Hawker Executive Vice President Shawn Vick, who noted the King Air 250 is getting good reviews around the world for its short- and high-altitude runway capabilities, also took a swipe at the Obama administration. “Hopefully this nonsense ends soon and we can all get back to work,” he said.
Perhaps that's why he no longer works for Gulfstream?
First NASA, then the Boeing flap, then “corporate jets”, then this. Yeah, Obama does seem to have it in for aviation and aerospace.
“The word is intentional, and it’s a shame these CEO’s are seeing the light now when the writing was on the wall well before the 2008 election....”
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Ditto. It is why half of us were screaming so loud BEFORE the election. Hear-no-evil, speak-no-evil, see-no-evil....the other half of the electorate.
“...Yeah, Obama does seem to have it in for aviation and aerospace....”
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Yeah, Obama does seem to have it in for the United States, its capitalism, its greatness, its freedoms, and its strength and the power of the individual to do great things.
(Minor modification).
Indeed he does. The assault on American dominance in its critical industries continues.
We have traitors in our midst...
Bill better watch out. More anti Regime talk like this and his company will be raided by the Federales, a la Gibson Guitar.
watch out beechcraft...or the gummint(read zer0bama regime) will find exotic woods in your corporate jets that were not brought into the country quite rightly...like Gibson Guitars
Obama has it in for America and it's Christian, non-muslim citizens.
Mexican sand.
The cruelest thing we could do is vote his a$$ out next November. After he’s out, he can spend the rest of his miserable existence thinking about what could have been. Hope he wallows in that dreamworld until he goes mad.
With the way the unions run amok in this country, can you blame him?
Obozo is already psychologically impaired.
Screw him.
Well you saw what happened with Boeing.
S. Carolina is a RTW state, isn’t it?
Actually, I just did a bit of reading, and I think you’ve been reading too much union propaganda and you’re somewhat misinformed. The facility they opened in Mexico is a regional service center, not a factory, and was opened to serve the Latin American market. It’s normal for aviation firms to have global support networks.
Yes, proudly.
NLRB, go screw yourselves.
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