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Cessna Debuts Sovereign at NBAA,
and Shows Mock-Up of the New CJ3xzxzxzxxz
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| Cessna CJ3 x |
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| Citation Sovereign |
Showing that it's not long in the tooth on its 75th anniversary,
Cessna is expected to have two firsts at this year's Orlando show.
The initial first is the definite debut of the midsize Sovereign
business jet. The second first is the expected unveiling of a new
member of the Citation family of jets, the CJ3.
The entire Citation line will be on static display at NBAA-from
the Excel, Encore and Bravo to the CJ1 and CJ2, plus the Citation
X. On the show floor will be the Sovereign, an Encore, and "a
mock-up of the new product," Citation X marketing manager Joe
Hepburn told Show News.
Regarding the Sovereign, "the program is moving along ahead
of schedule," said Hepburn, who added that sales are north
of 100 at this point. "The two planes flying in the certification
test program have accumulated 220 flight hours, and we estimate
the program will be 2,000-flight-hours long."
The testing has so far centered on stability and control, and
the test articles have climbed to 43,000 feet and sped beyond 0.80
Mach. In the couple of weeks before NBAA, the aircraft completed
max dive testing and center-of-gravity envelope testing.
It is the second flying airplane, with complete interior, that
Cessna will bring to Orlando. There are also two full-size static
test articles of the Sovereign.
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Cessna Sets Wichita Completions Center
To handle the additional completions that will be necessary
for the Sovereign, the X and others like the CJ2-which tallied
its 100th delivery last week-Cessna is adding completions
capacity. The company is building a new Citation service center-the
Citation Sovereign Completion and Delivery Center-on the east
side of Mid-Continent airport in Wichita, and it should be
open for business fourth quarter 2004.
With Sovereign deliveries expected to begin before that
center is operational, Cessna will have to finish the first
25 Sovereigns in its existing completion centers, said Hepburn.
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The Sovereign will compete with midsize jets like the Hawker 800XP,
Lear 60 and Continental. Regarding those competitors, Hepburn said,
"the advantages of the Sovereign over the primary competition
are field performance, technical edge over older designs, and cost
of operation and reliability."
First customer delivery of the Sovereign is planned for January
2004, with FAA/JAA certification expected fourth quarter 2003.
Moving on, very quickly, is the new derivative of the high-speed
Citation X, which will be available at the beginning of the year
with Serial Number 173.
The Citation X's maximum takeoff weight will be increased by 400
pounds, from 35,700 pounds to 36,100 pounds. The gross weight change
delivers an increase in passenger capacity at full fuel payload.
Citation X operators will be able to carry up to seven passengers
with full fuel in a typically equipped airplane.
The company will also introduce a 5% increase in the Roll-Royce
AE 3007C-1 engines, which will reduce required takeoff field lengths,
thereby opening up additional airports to Citation X operators.
Takeoff thrust on the engines will go from 6,442-pounds-thrust per
side to 6,764-pounds-thrust.
By Barry Rosenberg
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