Not unexpectedly, just over a month after buying Beech Aircraft, Textron announced 750 job cuts at that company and at its Cessna division, according to the Washington Post. The layoffs will occur over the next 60 days. Both aircraft makers are based in Wichita, Kan., and Textron says about 575 of the affected jobs are based in Kansas. Management and non-management jobs will be eliminated, the company said. Textron Inc., based in Providence, R.I., expects about $4.6 billion in annual revenue from the combination of Cessna and Beechcraft.
Despite industry insider predictions, in December, Textron said it hadnt made a decision about layoffs following the acquisition, but it acknowledged restructuring and other moves were possible. The company said the combination of Beechcraft and Cessna would be good news for Wichita because Beechcraft would have a stronger parent company. Wichita has also endured extensive job cuts after Boeing Co. said it would shut down facilities in the area in response to cuts in defense spending. The move affected more than 2,000 jobs. The company is now in the final stages of closing defense facilities in the area.
