IAM Press Release

Hawker Beechcraft Plans Mexican Assembly Plant

Wichita, KS, June 24, 2008 - In a move that will send economic shock waves across Kansas for generations, Hawker Beechcraft is planning to build a tip-to-tail aircraft assembly plant in Chihuahua, Mexico. The company plans to move from manufacturing small parts to full aircraft assembly after.

The five-year plan, code named Project Pelican, is outlined in documents containing detailed instructions on how the company planned to conceal the scope of the plan from the public, the press and employees at Hawker Beechcraft's Wichita assembly plant.

“Never mention the potential of full aircraft assembly,” is among the covert marching orders for Hawker Beechcraft managers tasked with purchasing land, negotiating tax breaks with the Mexican government and hiring a workforce for as little as $3 an hour.

Instead, managers are instructed to frequently cite global competition and the need for “additional capacity other than Wichita.”

“Hawker Beechcraft shows no recognition of the damage they do to our economy, our industrial base or our national security when they transfer sophisticated technology and production to countries that turn around and compete with U.S.-based companies,” said IAM President Tom Buffenbarger. “Thanks to NAFTA and other job-killing trade deals, we’re encountering this phenomenon at every bargaining table in the aerospace industry.”

“The real story is what’s going on in Wichita,” said Hawker Beechcraft spokesperson Andrew Broom, in an article published in the Wichita Eagle. Broom did not deny the company’s outsourcing plans.

“Never before did Hawker Beechcraft disclose their intent to build a final assembly line in Mexico,” said IAM Aerospace Coordinator Ron Eldridge, who is engaged in contract negotiations for 4,300 IAM members at Hawker Beechcraft. “This is deceit on a grand scale and will be a huge issue in the workplace and at the bargaining table.”

The IAM represents nearly 20,000 workers at Kansas aerospace and aircraft companies, including Hawker Beechcraft, Cessna, Bombardier, Spirit AeroSystems and Boeing. For more information about the IAM, visit www.goiam.org. For additional information about Project Pelican, visit projectpelican.blogspot.com.