Textron Aviation delivered 31 jets in the first quarter, down from 36 in the same period last year, as the manufacturer continues to recover from production disruptions caused by a labor strike in late 2024. Meanwhile, civil turboprop deliveries increased to 30 from 20 year over year, demonstrating strength in that segment despite ongoing challenges, the company reported.

The Textron division posted revenues of $1.2 billion, up $24 million from the first quarter of 2024, “largely reflecting higher aftermarket revenue of $27 million,” according to Textron Inc. CFO David Rosenberg, speaking during this morning’s earnings call. However, segment profit declined to $127 million, down $16 million from the prior year, “primarily reflecting the mix of aircraft sold, partially offset by higher aftermarket volume.”

Textron Inc. chairman and CEO Scott Donnelly noted, “Aviation operations continue to improve as the factory progresses toward pre-strike performance levels while ramping production. Textron Aviation’s fleet utilization remains strong in the quarter, contributing to aftermarket revenue growth of 6% as compared to last year’s first quarter.”

The company’s first-quarter jet deliveries included five M2 Gen2s, five Citation CJ3+s, five CJ4 Gen2s, two XLS+ Gen2s, 11 Latitudes, and three Longitudes. By comparison, the first quarter of 2024 saw Textron Aviation deliver four M2 Gen2s, six CJ3+s, six CJ4 Gen2s, two XLS+s, 13 Latitudes, and five Longitudes.

Civil turboprop deliveries showed significant improvement, with 23 Caravans delivered in the first quarter versus 12 in the same period last year. The company also handed over one SkyCourier (unchanged from first-quarter 2024) and six King Airs, including four King Air 260s and two King Air 360s, down from seven King Airs in the same period last year.

Textron Aviation’s backlog remains robust at $7.9 billion. In his opening remarks, Donnelly highlighted a significant order from the quarter: “Aviation announced the sale of seven King Air 260 training aircraft that will be used to train pilots for the Royal Canadian Air Force.”

Post-strike Recovery Continues

When asked about production and delivery growth for the remainder of the year, Donnelly expressed confidence in the company’s recovery trajectory: “I think we will see the ramp continue as we guided originally. We expected the first half to be a little bit lighter, and to be a little bit lighter on the margin rate because you had a lot of that disruption still working its way through, and aircraft that were in part built last year and still getting delivered through the first half of this year.”

He added that the metrics tracked by the company show encouraging signs: “As we leave the quarter, the metrics that our teams track around productivity and attrition and earned hours and all those sorts of metrics [...], we’re getting back to where we were pre-strike.”

The improved supply chain situation is contributing to the recovery, according to Donnelly. “Parts are there, so the flow is much cleaner; that clearly helps to drive the productivity side,” he said. “Our attrition rates are also down, so in terms of training and disruption, new people coming in, we’re at about the level of employment that we need to execute on the plan.”

Denali Program

A significant milestone for Textron Aviation’s product development came in February with the FAA certification of the GE Aerospace Catalyst turboprop engine for the Beechcraft Denali program. Donnelly commented, “The milestone of getting the engine certified is hugely important to us, as you guys know; we saw delays on that side of the program.”

The aircraft’s performance in testing has been promising. “We’ve always continued the flight test program,” he said, adding that “the good news is this issue around the engine with the certification was challenging, but the performance has been very, very good. The aircraft is flying really well. We’re thrilled with it, and we’re sort of back in the queue now with the FAA, and we’ll be working through the aircraft level certification.”

The Denali program has accumulated “more than 2,700 flight hours across 1,000 flights with three test articles,” according to Donnelly.

Electric Aviation 

The company’s eAviation segment reported revenues of $7 million in the first quarter, with a segment loss of $17 million compared with a segment loss of $18 million in the same quarter last year.

Donnelly highlighted a milestone in this division: “eAviation successfully completed the first hover flight of the Nuuva V300, a long-range, large-capacity hybrid-electric VTOL unmanned aircraft. This milestone marks an advancement in the development of sustainable and personal unmanned aero systems.”

Market Outlook

When asked about the demand environment, Donnelly indicated that despite some uncertainty in the market, the business jet segment remains resilient. “There’s still order activity and flow that’s happening, which I think is encouraging,” he said. "Unlike the last decade or so, when you have uncertainty or a ripple in the system, it’s easy for people to say, ‘I’ll wait till next quarter.’ I think the backlog situation helps people say, ‘Look, I’m talking about an aircraft that’s going to deliver 18 months from now.’”

While acknowledging that some customers are pausing their purchase decisions amid economic uncertainty, Donnelly maintained that “a lot of other customers are continuing with their activity, and I think we still feel like the demand environment is solid and we continue to press on.”

For the full year 2025, Textron reaffirmed its expected adjusted earnings per share to range from $6 to $6.20. Overall Textron revenues reached $3.3 billion, up $171 million from the prior year.