Textron Aviation (NYSE: TXT) announced Friday that it has received type certification for its Cessna Citation XLS Gen2 business jet from the FAA. This week, it delivered the first of such aircraft to a longtime Citation operator in the Midwest.
In a statement, Lannie O’Bannion, senior vice president, sales, and flight ops for Textron, said, “This fresh approach to our popular 560XL series includes comfort and productivity upgrades requested by our customers yet retains the model’s combination of performance and efficiencies that offers midsize jet features at a smaller jet operating cost.”
Textron Aviation first unveiled plans for the Citation XLS Gen2 during the National Business Aviation Association’s BACE event in Las Vegas in October 2021. This version is the latest in the Citation 560XL midsize business jet series, which began with the introduction of Citation Excel in 1998. Since then, the company has delivered more than 1,000 of the 560XL model series to owners and operators.
The updated model comes with a new lighted airstair door, entry curtain for weather protection, improved cabin acoustics, and other amenities to enhance passenger comfort. According to Textron, the XLS Gen2 can achieve up to 441 knots and has a maximum range of 2,100 nm. Its takeoff distance is 3,600 feet, coupled with the ability to reach 45,000 feet in 30 minutes in that profile.
