Founded in 1927, Cessna has delivered some 190,000 airplanes to nearly every country in the world.

An airplane is no longer considered a recreational toy or a luxury reserved for super-rich individuals and major companies. Today, owning an aircraft provides a competitive advantage for businesses of all sizes. This has long been the case in the US, but general aviation is being recognised as a vital business tool throughout the world, especially in the fast-developing economies of China and India.

According to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), the industry’s trade group, there are more than 320,000 general aviation aircraft worldwide, ranging from two-seat training airplanes to intercontinental business jets. These aircraft fly in excess of 35 million hours per year.

Cessna Aircraft Company is the world’s largest manufacturer of general aviation airplanes based on unit sales and has the industry’s largest, most comprehensive worldwide customer service network.

Founded in 1927, Cessna has delivered some 190,000 airplanes to nearly every country in the world. The company offers a product range from Citation business jets, to freightand passenger-hauling utility Caravan turboprops, to personal and small-business single-engine pistons.

General aviation products like these are spurring the growth of thousands of cities, businesses, services and manufacturing facilities around the world by offering convenience, flexibility, efficient transportation and accessibility. Corporations that want to extend their reach to smaller cities where commercial airline service does not exist and conduct more intra-regional and international business are choosing to invest in a business tool that allows them to do so.

Deliveries and orders support this trend. GAMA reported deliveries of 1,138 business jets in 2007, an all-time record for the general aviation industry. That number is expected to reach 1,200 by the end of 2008. Manufacturers have already delivered 297 business jets in the first quarter of this year, GAMA said, up 41 percent from 211 in the same period last year. Worldwide orders of business jets are on track to hit an all-time record, too. Honeywell International Inc, a leading maker of avionics, has forecast 1,300 or more orders for business jets this year.