Starting next week, Cessna’s Corvalis 350 and 400 (nee Columbia) will share factory space with the Citation Mustang and Cessna’s other single-engine, piston-powered products.
The Corvalis models were acquired by Cessna two years ago, and had been being built in the original Columbia plant in Bend, Oregon. One of Cessna’s moves in response to the economic downturn was to close the Bend plant, and move production of the now-Corvalis models to existing facilities in Independence, Kansas. Work on the composite wings and fuselages will move to Chihuahua, Mexico. According to an article in the Wichita Eagle newspaper, the paint shop area at Cessna’s Independence plant will temporarily serve as the Corvalis production line. More permanent arrangements are scheduled for completion around the end of the year.
