On the heels of last week’s European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE 2008) Cessna has confirmed orders for aircraft totaling nearly $750 million. The three-day event held in Geneva won Cessna orders for 70 Citation business jets, 14 Caravans and four single-engine pistons, including at least one Cessna 172 Skyhawk and one 182 Skylane. Success at the show may in part reflect a weak dollar, which some aircraft brokers claim has since 2000 reversed their sales from 95 percent within North America to 90 percent outside of the U.S. Buyers from Austria (JetAlliance) and Russia (air taxi operator Dexter) took 44 business jets, including orders for 24 Citation Mustang very light jets (VLJs), and one of Europe’s most active Caravan sales representatives took six 208B Grand Caravans. Commenting on the sales, Cessna emphasized that “our broad product range allows us to match an aircraft to fit any mission our customers have.”
