Textron Aviation has rolled out the first production unit of the Cessna Citation Longitude, the company’s latest super-midsize business jet design.
Ron Draper, senior vice president for integrated supply chain at Textron Aviation, said, “We’re incorporating a number of new fabrication and assembly techniques that will improve processes, reduce the number of parts and provide quality and precision that will aid in the overall maintainability of the aircraft.”
The Longitude production program takes advantage of new technologies such as monolithic machining, where major assemblies are milled from a single piece of metal rather than assembled from smaller pieces, reducing the number of parts, and resulting in more precise tolerances for easier assembly.
Textron Aviation has also employed and expanded vertical tooling on the assembly line of the Longitude. First utilized on the Citation Latitude midsize jet, the vertical tooling stations provide enhanced ergonomics for employees and make more efficient use of factory space.
Draper added, “Careful attention to detail, combined with advanced manufacturing techniques results in a production process that greatly benefits our customers. We are able to move more quickly from concept to delivery with a high-quality product that we know will exceed the expectations of our customers.”
The aircraft will join the company’s demonstration fleet this summer and will travel the world to showcase its capabilities, with it expected to enter the market by the end of the year.
By Felicity Butcher
