Editing Textron (section)

==History==
===Early history===
[[File:Charlotte J Sternberg - Textron advertising - Ladies' Home Journal, 1948.jpg|thumb|Textron fabrics ad from 1948]]
Textron started as a textile company in 1923, when 27-year-old [[Royal Little]] founded the '''Special Yarns Corporation''' in [[Boston, Massachusetts]]. The company manufactured synthetic [[yarn]]s, a niche product at the time. By the start of [[World War II]], the company was known as '''Atlantic Rayon Corporation''' and manufactured [[parachute]]s. As war production wound down, the company started making civilian products as well and was renamed '''Textron''': "Tex" for "textiles" and "tron" from synthetics such as "Lustron". The company was listed on the [[New York Stock Exchange|NYSE]] in 1947.<ref name="textron.com1">{{cite web|url=http://www.textron.com/About/Company/History|title=History - Textron|work=textron.com|access-date=August 10, 2016}}</ref>

Royal Little began the process of turning Textron into a conglomerate in 1953, with the purchase of Burkart Manufacturing Company (upholstery filling for the automotive industry) in September 1953, followed by the purchase of Dalmo-Victor (airborne Radar Antennae)<ref>{{cite news |title=TEXTRON ACQUIRES UNIT; Gets All Stock of Dalmo Victor, Maker of Radar Antenna |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1954/01/12/archives/textron-acquires-unit-gets-all-stock-of-dalmo-victor-maker-of-radar.html |access-date=16 June 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=12 January 1954}}</ref> and MB Manufacturing Company in early 1954.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://nyti.ms/2OdeolR|title=Textron Expands Into Non-Textiles; Buys MB Manufacturing Co., Aircraft Parts Maker, as 'Hedge on Depression' |work=The New York Times |access-date=August 5, 2018}}</ref> The push for diversification would see Textron purchase various other manufacturing companies. In 1960, the company also bought Bell Aerospace and E-Z-Go.<ref name="textron.com1" /> The textile division was sold to [[Milliken & Company|Deering Milliken]] in 1963.<ref>{{Cite news |issn=0362-4331 |last=Vartan |first=Vartanig G. |title=TEXTRON LEAVES TEXTILE BUSINESS; Sells Its Ameroton Division to Deering Milliken, Inc. Stock Eases by 1955 Mergers Recalled |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=September 8, 2016 |date=April 17, 1963 |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9E03E4DC1F31E63ABC4F52DFB2668388679EDE&legacy=true }}</ref>

Later CEOs included [[G. William Miller]] (1968–1977), Joseph Collinson (1977–1979) and Robert P. Straetz (1979–1986). In 1984, Textron took on more debt and bought [[Avco]], a conglomerate almost as big as itself. Later on, James Hardymon took over as CEO.<ref name="textron.com1" /> This $1.4 billion acquisition included the parent of [[Unum|Paul Revere Insurance Company]]<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[New York Times]]
   |title=Paul Revere Insurance Gets a New President
   |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/12/27/business/business-people-paul-revere-insurance-gets-a-new-president.html
   |date=December 27, 1990 |access-date=January 22, 2023}}</ref> (through 1996, when they sold it).<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[New York Times]]
|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/07/business/textron-to-invest-in-paul-revere-unit-before-sale.html
|title=Textron to invest in Paul Revere Unit before sale
|date=November 7, 1996
|quote=selling its 83 percent stake to Provident Companies
}}</ref>

===Campbell era===
James Hardymon brought in [[Lewis B. Campbell]], who became CEO in 1998.{{Citation needed|date=June 2015}} Starting in 2000, Campbell led a company-wide restructuring program. The share price fell to as low as $13/share in March&nbsp;2003 after the economic downturn following the collapse of Internet companies and the [[September 11 attacks|terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center]]. Diminished demand for helicopters and airplanes led to layoffs at [[Cessna]] and [[Bell Textron]].{{Citation needed|date=June 2015}}

In 2007, the ''[[Wall Street Journal]]'' reported that Campbell had received $494,700 in compensation in the form of his use of a corporate jet to travel between his home and office, which made him the most expensive CEO in the country in terms of use of jet travel. Some shareholders have questioned whether it is a good use of shareholder dollars to pay for the personal lifestyle choice of the CEO to live in one state and work in another.<ref>Michael Brush, "The Sky's No Limit for CEO Perks," MSN Money (moneycentral.msn.com), October 17, 2007, citing Paul Hodgson, Up, Up, and Away: Personal Use of the Corporate Jet, The Corporate Library, September 4, 2007.</ref> Shares in Textron plummeted to as low as $10.09 per share in the aftermath of the [[Great Recession|2008 economic downturn]], driving its market capitalization down to just $3.17&nbsp;billion.{{Citation needed|date=June 2015}} While the company lost 75% of its value in the first ten years of Campbell's leadership, he managed to take home over $120&nbsp;million in compensation. His salary in 2008 was $25&nbsp;million, making him the highest-paid executive of a conglomerate. Campbell managed to sell over $40&nbsp;million in Textron stock in April and May&nbsp;2008, at prices over $60 per share.

===After Campbell===
[[Scott C. Donnelly]] became CEO in December 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.textron.com/about/leadership/corp-management/bios/donnelly-scott.php |title=About Textron: Leadership: Biography |publisher=Textron.com |access-date=January 7, 2014}}</ref> Textron acquired Mechtronix in [[Montreal|Montreal, Quebec]], and OPINICUS in [[Tampa, Florida]], in 2013. Donnelly combined these flight simulation companies, along with Textron's AAI Logistics & Technical Services, to form TRU Simulation & Training in 2014.<ref name="textron.com1" />

On December 26, 2013, Textron agreed to purchase [[Beechcraft]], including the discontinued Hawker jet line, for $1.4 billion. The sale closed in March 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kansas.com/2013/12/26/3197897/textron-buys-beechcraft-in-14.html|title=Textron buys Beechcraft in $1.4 billion deal|work=kansas.com|access-date=April 28, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131227172111/http://www.kansas.com/2013/12/26/3197897/textron-buys-beechcraft-in-14.html|archive-date=December 27, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/textron-to-buy-beechcraft-parent-for-1.4bn-394431/|title=Textron to buy Beechcraft parent for $1.4bn|work=FlightGlobal|access-date=April 28, 2017}}</ref><ref name="avweb1">{{cite web |url=http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/Textron-Confirms-Beech-Acquisition-Updated221180-1.html |title=Textron Confirms Beech Acquisition |publisher=Avweb |date=December 26, 2013 |access-date=December 27, 2013}}</ref><ref name="Niles30Dec13">{{cite news|url = http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/Textron-Fleshes-Out-Beech-Deal221194-1.html|title = Textron Fleshes Out Beech Deal|access-date = December 30, 2013|last = Niles|first = Russ|date = December 30, 2013| work = AVweb}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Textron Completes Acquisition of Beechcraft |url=https://investor.textron.com/news/news-releases/press-release-details/2014/Textron-Completes-Acquisition-of-Beechcraft/default.aspx |access-date=April 7, 2022 |website=investor.textron.com }}</ref> The company formed a new company called [[Textron Aviation]] to market the products of Beechcraft, [[Cessna]] and Hawker as individual [[brand]]s.<ref name="textron.com1" />

From 2013 to 2016, [[R&D]] investments were 4.3%, 4.0%, 4.6%, and 4.2% of its revenues ($13.78 billion in 2016) and totaled more than $2.2 billion as it developed seven aircraft: the [[Bell 525 Relentless]], [[Bell V-280 Valor]] tiltrotor, [[Cessna Citation Longitude]], [[Cessna Citation Hemisphere]], [[Beechcraft Denali]] single-engine turboprop, the [[Cessna SkyCourier]] twin cargo hauler and the [[Textron Scorpion]] close support jet after the certification of the [[Bell 505 Jet Ranger X]].<ref>{{cite news |url= http://aviationweek.com/business-aviation/textron-set-busy-new-year |title=Textron Set For Busy New Year |date=December 15, 2017 |first=William |last=Garvey |work= Aviation Week & Space Technology |url-access= subscription}}</ref>

In March 2022, Textron agreed to acquire [[Pipistrel]], an electrically powered aircraft manufacturer based in Italy and Slovenia.<ref>{{Cite press release |title=Textron to Acquire Electric Aircraft Pioneer Pipistrel |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/textron-acquire-electric-aircraft-pioneer-110000277.html |access-date=April 7, 2022 |publisher=[[BusinessWire]]|via=finance.yahoo.com }}</ref>

On April 5, 2022, U.S. authorities announced criminal as well as civil charges in a Manhattan federal court against the former head of a now-defunct London-based company, Xcalibur Aerospace Ltd., for making a fraudulent bid to buy Textron for $13.8 billion. The Department of Justice and the SEC claimed that Xcalibur Aerospace was never in a position to complete a tender offer for Textron and lacked the finances to do so.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Stempel |first=Jonathan |date=April 5, 2022 |title=U.S. charges fraud over bogus $13.8 bln Textron takeover bid |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/us-sec-sues-over-bogus-138-bln-textron-takeover-bid-2022-04-05/ |access-date=April 7, 2022}}</ref>