Textron Aviation Defense announces Wichita production plans for Beechcraft M-346N if awarded U.S. Navy’s UJTS contract

Textron Aviation Defense LLC, a Textron Inc. company, announced if awarded the Undergraduate Jet Training System (UJTS) program contract by the U.S. Navy, it will assemble the Beechcraft M-346N at its east campus in Wichita, Kansas — the historic home of the Beechcraft brand for nearly a century. The announcement reinforces the company’s commitment to delivering the most advanced jet integrated training system for the U.S. Navy.

Textron Aviation Defense expects to invest more than $38 million to modernize more than 50,000ft² of existing manufacturing space on the company’s east Wichita campus if awarded the contract. The program is expected to create an estimated 100 direct manufacturing jobs in Wichita, along with numerous indirect jobs supporting aircraft production and assembly.

“Wichita has long been the center of innovation for Beechcraft, and we’re proud to continue that tradition as we prepare to support the Navy’s next-generation training needs,” says Travis Tyler, president and CEO, Textron Aviation Defense. “This announcement underscores our 85-year legacy of supporting the U.S. government with training aircraft from the American heartland.”

The Beechcraft M-346N is the centerpiece of a low-risk, operationally proven integrated training system featuring Live-Virtual-Constructive capabilities optimized for advanced naval training. With more than 100 M-346 aircraft produced by Leonardo and a decade of performance training aviators for fourth- and fifth-generation aircraft, the M-346N offers a reliable, high-performance solution for the Navy’s next-generation training needs.

The U.S. Navy has issued several Requests for Information ahead of an anticipated Request for Proposals for the UJTS program. Textron Aviation Defense anticipates the Navy will announce the contract award in January 2027 and believes that it is well-positioned to support the Navy’s objective of accelerating Initial Operational Capability (IOC).