Oregon Public Broadcasting

Cessna Aircraft Wednesday announced it will shut down its factory in Bend.

The shutdown -- and the 200 layoffs that come with it -- are a further blow to Bend’s reeling economy.

Central Oregon correspondent Ethan Lindsey reports.

Cessna announced that airplane sales across the country have ground almost to a halt.

The company will lay off 2000 workers, including 200 from the company’s piston-driven plane factory in Bend.

A Cessna spokesman says with revenues down, costs must be cut  and it’s  quote “natural to look at facilities and employee consolidation.”

Rich Belzer is a former vice president at Columbia Aircraft, before it was sold to Cessna. He no longer works for the company.

Rich Belzer: “It didn’t come as a big surprise. I had felt for a while, just looking at the numbers, that this plant was a lot of overhead. Plus they were certainly moving pieces of what they were doing here in Bend elsewhere.”

Bend employees received notice this morning they will be laid off in 60 days.

Cessna’s spokesman reiterated that the Bend plant is almost certainly closed for good.