Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, yesterday completed the first Citation XLS+ retail delivery to an undisclosed customer based on the East Coast of the United States. The XLS+ is the latest version of the world's best-selling business jet model.

First announced in October 2006, the Citation XLS+ achieved Federal Aviation Administration certification on May 30; European Aviation Safety Agency certification is in process and expected to be complete in early 2009.

The order book exceeds 200 for the XLS+, an upgrade of the mid-size XLS. The original Citation Excel was delivered in July 1998, followed by the Citation XLS in July 2004. The series has accumulated a global fleet of nearly 680 planes and more than 1.5 million flight hours.

"With the XLS+, Cessna continues the tradition of the Excel and XLS as the most affordable stand-up cabin business jet," said Roger Whyte, senior vice president of Sales & Marketing. "We've incorporated "Voice of The Customer" throughout the design of the XLS+, including increased serviceability. This aircraft has the most advanced diagnostic system on any Cessna Citation to date."

The Citation XLS+ features the fully integrated Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics suite and electronically controlled (FADEC) engines from Pratt & Whitney Canada. Exterior and interior restyling is also integrated into the new model, most prominently the extended contour of the nose and expanded seat widths, both introduced to more closely resemble Cessna's Citation X and Citation Sovereign models.

The Citation XLS+ travels as fast as 441 knots (817 kilometers per hour) with a range of more than 1,858 nautical miles (3,441 kilometers). At maximum takeoff weight it will depart from runways as short as 3,560 feet (1,085 meters) at standard, sea-level conditions. It will land on runways as short as 2,700 feet (823 meters) at its typical landing weight.