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By Jim Douglas |
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April 19, 2010 -
Cessna Chairman, President and CEO Jack Pelton issued a call to action
to the general aviation community to take a leadership role in defining
solutions to environmental issues so that responsible stewardship works
in conjunction with economic considerations required for industry
growth. Cessna Aircraft Company is a Textron Inc.
Pelton made the
remarks in a speech after receiving the 2010 Lindbergh Award, given
annually to individuals whose work over many years has made significant
contributions toward Lindbergh’s concept of balancing technology and
nature. The award was presented here Wednesday at a dinner at the Sun ‘n
Fun fly-in and trade show. |
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“Aviation has established an outstanding track record in reducing its
environmental impact as we grow to meet rising demand for transportation
around the world,” Pelton said. “To further reduce aviation’s impact on
climate change requires partnerships between industry and government,
and a commitment to find realistic solutions . . . technically and
financially viable solutions everyone can live with.”
Pelton said people in the industry must participate in debate on the
issues that should include not only aircraft emissions, but operations,
infrastructure and research and development. He also called on the 1.2
million Americans who earn a living from some aspect of general aviation
to help tell legislators and the public about the positive steps
industry has already taken.
“The market demands efficiency, and business aviation has delivered a 40
percent improvement in fuel efficiency over the past 40 years,” Pelton
said. “Keep in mind that during the same timeframe, passenger and cargo
traffic increased more than six fold, making aviation an extremely
greenhouse gas-efficient economic driver.”
In 2008, Pelton established the Cessna Environmental Strategy Council
which focuses on aircraft emissions, industrial emissions, waste,
recycling, recycling consumables, energy conservation and engaging
employees. Under Pelton, Cessna also launched GreenTrak, a flight
planning program for Cessna Citation business jets that allows pilots to
optimize flights for time, speed and fuel efficiency which reduces
emissions. |
Cessna
is the world’s leading general aviation company, based on unit sales,
with five major lines of business: Citation business jets, Caravan
single-engine turboprops, Cessna single-engine piston aircraft,
aftermarket services and lift solutions by CitationAir.
In 2009, Cessna
delivered 754 aircraft, including 289 Citation business jets, and
reported revenues of about $3.3 billion. Since the company was
originally established in 1927, more than 192,000 Cessna airplanes have
been delivered around the world, including more than 6,000 Citations,
making it the largest fleet of business jets in the world. |
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