Textron to cut jobs, stop making flight simulators at Montreal plant

(Reuters) - Textron Inc <TXT.N> said on Thursday it would suspend the production of flight simulators at its plant in Montreal, Canada, and cut up to 1,950 jobs across several business units as the coronavirus crisis hurts demand for air travel.

The company also said it expects to see lower sales volumes for its Cessna business jets and airport ground support equipment over the next few months.

"There has been a substantial decline in demand and order cancellations for flight simulators in light of the expected long-term impact of the pandemic on the commercial air transportation business," the company said in a filing.

Textron also said it would record pre-tax charges of $110 million to $130 million in the second quarter related to the restructuring.

The company will continue to produce flight simulators for other fixed-wing aircraft and rotorcraft at its Tampa, Florida factory. (https://bit.ly/3dbUsMj)

Textron, which also makes Bell helicopters, anticipates 2020 cash outflow in the range of $80 million to $95 million.

The job cuts represent about 6% of Textron's employees. The company had furloughed some 7,000 U.S.-based workers in March.

(Reporting by Ankit Ajmera in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)