Nextant Aerospace Displays Its 400XT Business Jet at the 65th NBAA Annual Meeting in Orlando

CLEVELAND & ORLANDO, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nextant Aerospace, maker of the 400XT, the world’s only remanufactured business jet, today announced that it will display the 400XT at the 65^th National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) Annual Meeting and Convention, taking place October 30 to November 1, 2012, at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. The company’s indoor exhibit will be located at booth number 4423 in the convention center; the aircraft’s static display position at Orlando Executive Airport is #625.

“When we displayed at last year’s NBAA in Las Vegas, the 400XT had just received final FAA certification”

Nextant will hold a press briefing at the Orange County Convention Center:

		Time and location:
		Tuesday, October 30, 2012
		Orange County Convention Center, Room N 220B
		1:00 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, US)

The press conference will be led by Nextant Aerospace founder and chief executive officer Kenneth C. Ricci, and will be followed by an open Q&A session for members of the media.

Nextant’s static display at Orlando Executive Airport will also serve as the setting for a reception to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the plane’s certification by the FAA:

		Time and location:
		Tuesday, October 30, 2012
		The Orlando Executive Airport
		Static #625
		4:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time, US)

“When we displayed at last year’s NBAA in Las Vegas, the 400XT had just received final FAA certification,” said Kenneth C. Ricci, CEO of Nextant Aerospace. “Since then, the market’s reception of the 400XT has been incredible. By the end of this year, we anticipate delivery of 25 aircraft, and will enter next year with a sales backlog valued in excess of $175 million. The current order book includes firm orders from six different countries, with 40 percent of our total sales occurring internationally. We are looking forward to showcasing an even more advanced 400XT at this year’s event.”

Among the developments being showcased at this year’s NBAA will be Nextant’s new raked winglet, which provides improved performance, both while climbing and during high-speed cruising at altitude. The winglets, the first of their kind on a business jet, are expected to be certified by the end of the first quarter of 2013.

The winglets’ unique design and carbon fiber construction minimize additional wing loading, while maximizing the overall aerodynamic efficiency of the aircraft. They also feature all-new, low maintenance LED lighting, replacing a heavier strobe lighting system, which further decreases weight. The winglets will be a standard feature on the 400XT going forward, and all 400XTs that have been delivered to date will be retrofitted.

Due to the ever-building marketplace demand for the 400XT, Nextant has acquired, and just completed its move into, a new 125,000 square foot remanufacturing facility in Cleveland. The facility features a large production hangar which can handle six aircraft lines simultaneously, a second hangar for aircraft delivery and completions and a third which will house the company’s aircraft painting operation. The facility more than doubles the company’s space and will support an increased annual production rate of up to 48 aircraft to meet the higher-than-projected demand. As production continues to grow, the company plans to increase its employee base – which now stands at 160 workers – by roughly 20 percent in the coming months.

About Nextant Aerospace

Nextant Aerospace was founded in 2007 for the primary purpose of developing an aircraft modernization program. The company is credited with being the first to introduce the concept of aircraft remanufacturing to the business jet market. The Nextant 400XT is a remanufactured Beechjet 400A/XP equipped with the Williams FJ44-3AP engines and Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21™ integrated avionics suite. The new aircraft also benefits from significant aerodynamic enhancements including newly designed nacelles, pylons and an improved engine mounting configuration. The 400XT is delivered as a new aircraft with a two-year, full aircraft warranty. Nextant’s design and manufacturing facility is located in Cleveland, Ohio, at the Cuyahoga County Airport. For more information, please visit www.nextantaerospace.com, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @nextantaero or join us on LinkedIn.