CESSNA, BYE ENERGY TO PROVIDE UPDATE ON ELECTRIC CESSNA 172 AT AOPA AVIATION SUMMIT

DENVER, Colorado – November 8, 2010 – Bye Energy, Inc. and Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, will release details of their effort to develop an electric propulsion system for a Cessna 172 Skyhawk during the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Aviation Summit Nov. 11-13 in Long Beach, Calif.

Bye Energy announced The Green Flight Project (www.TheGreenFlightProject.aero) earlier this year, and is developing, with support from Cessna, electric and electric-hybrid propulsion systems for light general aviation aircraft. The company is planning to fly an electric-powered Cessna 172 Skyhawk proof of concept aircraft in the spring of 2011.

George Bye, CEO of Bye Energy, said integrated ground testing began within the past week on the various hardware components of the initial electric propulsion system. “Early test results are confirming that our assumptions of the benefit of electric propulsion are positive,” he said. “I would like to once again thank everyone at Cessna for their outstanding support and collaboration on this ambitious effort.”

Cessna Chairman, President and CEO Jack J. Pelton said: “Cessna is enthusiastic about the concept of integrating electric propulsion into mainstream general aviation, and we are actively engaged in Bye Energy’s development efforts with the electric Cessna 172 proof of concept aircraft.”

Cessna and Bye Energy will hold a press briefing on Thursday, Nov. 11, from 11:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. in Room 201B of the Long Beach Convention Center. Bye and Charlie Johnson, COO of Bye Energy and former president of Cessna, will be at the Cessna booth (#313) inside the convention center during the AOPA Aviation Summit. For more information about the AOPA Aviation Summit, go to www.aopa.org.


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