Textron Systems reports sales increase

By Marjorie Censer / April 19, 2017 at 1:06 PM

Textron Systems reported today that sales increased $92 million in its most recent quarter to reach $416 million.

Parent company Textron attributed the sales boost to "higher volume" in its weapons and sensors and marine and land systems businesses.

However, Textron Systems saw profit decline, "due to unfavorable performance at Marine and Land Systems."

Textron, which includes Textron Systems as well as Bell Helicopter, Textron Aviation and an industrial unit, saw both overall revenue and profit decline in the quarter.

During a call with analysts Wednesday morning, Scott Donnelly, Textron's chief executive, said the company's second production Scorpion aircraft had a successful first flight earlier this week.

He confirmed that the company would submit both the Scorpion and the AT-6 aircraft in the Air Force's OA-X light attack aircraft experimentation program.

"Companies were invited to send in proposals on what they would be able to demonstrate if they were invited to do that. We have done that for both Scorpion and AT-6," Donnelly said.

Both aircraft "fit within the realm of what kinds of capabilities the Air Force is looking to see demonstrated," he added. "We'll know here probably in another month whether we've been invited to participate in that. The expectation right now is that that program -- the actual flying of the aircraft -- would occur in that August-into-September time frame."

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