Independence, Kansas Airplane Plant To Build Planes For Russian Firm

Cessna announced Friday an order for 79 Cessna 172 Skyhawk aircraft, which it says is one of the largest orders on record for the plane, at Moscow's JetExpo 2013.

The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is manufactured at its Independence, Kansas facility.

The aircraft company stated in a news release, Moscow-based ViraZH, plans to use the Skyhawks for training purposes at various flight schools throughout western Russia.

The order is part of a multi-year agreement between Cessna and ViraZH, with all 79 aircraft set to be delivered by the third quarter of 2014.

"We are delighted to have a strong relationship with ViraZH and are proud they have selected the Cessna 172 Skyhawk to be their training platform. This order augments an additional 11 Skyhawks purchased by ViraZH in 2011, highlighting their confidence in our product. It is encouraging to see an increase in both our global customer base and flight training accessibility in Russia," said Kriya Shortt, Cessna senior vice president of Sales.

Cessna says the 172 Skyhawk is one of the best-selling, most-flown single-engine aircraft in the world.