Gulfstream Marks Major Milestones: 100th G-V and 400th G-IV

With Gulfstream cranking out aircraft like clockwork-it recently built its 400th G-IV and 100th G-V -- the Savannah, GA-based company is emphasizing its capabilities in offering operators the latest avionics, communications and entertainment systems.

One such product is a wireless local area network (LAN) that will let passengers link their laptop computers with others in the aircraft cabin via a LAN server, mail server and printer/fax -- all without wiring.

"The LAN positions Gulfstream owners to take full advantage of proposed satellite-based, high-speed data solutions to further enhance communications and entertainment options from direct broadcast satellites," said Gulfstream senior VP of worldwide sales Joe Walker.

Gulfstream is also the first business aircraft manufacturer to integrate and certify the Northstar system into the flight deck. The Northstar Technologies CT-1000 Flight Deck Organization system combines a complete approach plate database with a moving-map display. The system replaces approach plate binders with two CD-ROMs, and will be available later this year as certified for use in Gulfstreams.

Interested parties in New Orleans will also be able to check out Gulfstream's newly developed Enhanced Vision System (EVS) for the G-V, which is an infrared thermal imaging processing system that improves visual cues to the pilot at night and in low visibility. The imagery is provided through a Kollsman camera equipped with an Indium Antimonide sensor that can see runway lights through poor weather at the minimum approach altitude of 60 meters, which is then displayed on a Honeywell head-up display. Gulfstream has invested about $12.5 million in EVS research and development.

Gulfstream's increased emphasis on improving operator safety and efficiency is part of the company's new customer-facing strategy.

"We want to make communications as easy as possible for our customers," said Gulfstream vice chairman Bryan Moss. "(Customer program) managers become the single point of contact for each new aircraft from purchase through zero-squawk entry into service. It is a 24-hours-a-day personal service designed to satisfy the customer's expectation. Every aspect of their contact with Gulfstream, be it verbal, electronic or the coordination of personal visits, flows through the customer program managers."

That commitment to the customer will be enhanced by the company's new e-commerce activity called e.Gulfstream. The initiative will give each new Gulfstream customer his own customized website, which will provide real-time data about their individual aircraft that includes digital images during the build and completion process.

"e.Gulfstream will improve the flow of information to people considering a Gulfstream and those who already own one," said Gulfstream president and COO Bill Boisture. "It will expand our ability to build, manage and maintain customer relationships and consolidate data specifically for each customer. e.Gulfstream defines our move toward becoming an e-business."

Even though Gulfstream has been emphasizing its value-added customer benefits, that doesn't mean it hasn't been making news on the hardware side.

Besides the aforementioned rollouts of the 400th G-IV and 100th G-V, Gulfstream has a backlog of about 110 airplanes for the two large-cabin models, worth about $3.5 billion.

Gulfstream clearly dominates the ultra-long-range aircraft market with more than 170 G-Vs on order and more than 90 in service. Likewise, the G-V's stablemate, the GIV-SP, is the world's best-selling large-cabin business jet, with about 60 percent of the market, according to Gulfstream. The G-IV/GIV-SP fleet has accumulated more than 1.2 million hours of flight time, and boasts a reliability rate of 99.6 percent.

On the maintenance side, Gulfstream MRO facilities managed 2,500 service visits in the past year, including 1,500 Gulfstreams, plus an additional 1,000 Hawkers, Falcons and Challengers.

By Barry Rosenberg