A The Wichita Eagle is reporting that the state of Kansas has agreed to financial incentives that would keep “the vast majority” of Hawker Beechcraft Corp. (HBC) jobs in Wichita. The deal is contingent on the company reaching an agreement with its employees’ union.
Earlier reports indicated HBC was seriously considering moving, along with 6,000 manufacturing jobs, to Baton Rouge, Louisiana. That state had offered some $400 million in financial incentives for the company to relocate there. Ever since Walter Beech set up shop in a hangar in Wichita as Travel Air Corp., his company has called Kansas home. With the ascendancy of Cessna, then Learjet and others, Wichita has long been known as the center of the general aviation universe. Now, with the industry reeling from the recession, Louisiana had expressed interest in hosting HBC.
