Textron firms up potential bid for US Navy Undergraduate trainer contract
The Beechcraft M-346N aircraft is a twin-engine, tandem-seat aircraft. (Photo: Textron Aviation Defence)
The company has said it would assemble its Beechcraft M-346N aircraft at its east Wichita campus with significant investment placed to modernise the hub if it wins the contract.
Textron Aviation Defense has announced plans for the assembly of its M-346N aircraft to be the company’s east Wichita campus, if selected for the US Navy (USN) Undergraduate Jet Training contract.
The company anticipates investing more than US$38 million to modernise the 50,000ft2 manufacturing space of its east Wichita campus.
The training contract for the USN is set to replace its ageing T-45C fleet with a Request for Proposal (RfP) estimated to be published by the end of 2025. In March, the USN removed the landing requirement for the new jet trainer to perform carrier landings.
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