Textron Aviation announced three new factory-direct coverage programs this week: Pre-Buy Assurance, Extended Care and King Air Direct. The manufacturer expanded its offerings to help operators reduce costs and increase efficiency for its Citation, King Air and Hawker lines, it said.

Under the Pre-Buy Assurance plan, Textron will inspect an aircraft for the seller before a transaction and give the buyer a six-month, factory-backed protection agreement.

Extended Care lengthens the coverage and protection beyond the standard warranties on new aircraft. Under this program, Cessna Citation and Beechcraft King Air customers receive an additional two years of factory-direct coverage from Textron-owned service centers or mobile service units. Meanwhile, King Air Direct offers King Air operators significant reductions on parts and labor expenses for scheduled and unscheduled maintenance events based on a price-per-flight-hour formula.

Textron Aviation has also upgraded the customer support capability of its main European service center in Düsseldorf, Germany. Among other improvements, the U.S.-based company is increasing the number of parts it holds there by around 25 percent, to 12,500 items.