A hot new slate of jets and cockpits on tap to hit the tarmac
or crank through certification appears to be a positive sign that
the business aviation community will be held back by neither gravity
nor a grave economy. From the CJ3 light jet to the VVIP BBJ2,
the fall flightline is alight with exquisite new equipment with
real live customers.
z On the light
side, Cessna expects to obtain type certification for its 6- to
8-passenger CJ3 in the first quarter next year, with deliveries
starting in the second quarter. With 160 orders on the books,
Cessna says the $6 million, Williams International FJ44-3A-powered
twinjet is the company's second most successful product launch
after the Mustang, which had 300 orders at the start. The company
currently has the CJ3 production line cranked up and has three
certification aircraft in the air for more than 200 hours. The
first CJ3 prototype completed its maiden flight on April 17 and
the first production model is here at NBAA.
Designed for single-pilot operation, the CJ3 comes with Collins
Pro Line 21 avionics and has a maximum takeoff weight of 13,870
pounds and a maximum cruise speed of 413 kt at 35,000 feet. With
two pilots, full fuel and four passengers, the Part 23 aircraft
has an IFR range of 1,660 nmi and a VFR range of 1,900 nmi. Time
to climb directly to 37,000 feet at gross is 16 minutes; service
ceiling is 45,000 feet. The aircraft's dual-channel FADEC-controlled
FJ44-3A engines provide 2,780 pounds of thrust, resulting in 14%
more takeoff thrust and 12% more cruise thrust than the CJ2's
FJ44-2C engines.
Cessna has also taken more than 100 orders for its $13.5 million
midsize Sovereign business jet, the last to be built of four new
aircraft the company first announced at the 1998 NBAA show. Cessna
expects to complete certification tests of the 9-12-passenger
aircraft later this year, after nearly two years and 1,900 hours
of flight testing with three prototypes. The assembly line in
Wichita is up and running, with the first production aircraft
completed last month and joining the test program with its first
flight just two weeks later. Customer deliveries begin early next
year.
Cessna likes to say that customers are "shocked," in
a positive way, by the Sovereign's performance numbers: it has
a service ceiling of 47,000 feet and maximum cruise of 437 kt.
At a maximum takeoff weight of 34,524 pounds, its two Pratt &
Whitney PW306C engines power the Sovereign to 37,000 feet in 14
minutes. With four passengers and full fuel, it has an IFR range
of 2,587 nmi at an average speed of 401 kt. Cessna says the jet
is "truly a midsize business jet" as it can go coast-to-coast
with full passengers and baggage.
z Bombardier has
a wide range of new aircraft in the air, with its Learjet 40 light
jet, super-midsize Challenger 300 and the super-large Global 5000.
The $7.7 million Learjet 40 is a 6- to 7-passenger light jet capable
of cruising at up to 457 kt with four passengers, two crew and
IFR reserves over a maximum range of 1,618 nmi. The TFE731-20AR-powered
twinjet can climb to 37,000 feet in 15 minutes and will be certified
for operations at altitudes of up to 51,000 feet.
The company received its first certificate of airworthiness on
s/n 45-2001 in July. That aircraft is currently being outfitted
at company's completion center in Tucson and should be delivered
to the customer by year's end. David Schenck, vp of development
programs for Bombardier, says he's "satisfied" with
the market interest and that there are a "sufficient"
number of firm orders to go forward with the program. Schenck
says the recent problems on the Learjet 45, now corrected, have
not had an impact on the sales of any Learjets, including the
45.
Speaking of the 45, Bombardier says first deliveries of its $10.8
million Learjet 45XR are imminent. The XR features a 1,000-pound
increase in maximum takeoff weight and enhanced engine performance
with a Honeywell TFE731-20BR turbofan upgrade.
Bombardier's entry into the super-midsize market will take in
December with the first delivery of the $17.4 million Challenger
300. Developed following a 24-month market research program targeting
U.S.-based CEOs, Bombardier says the Challenger 300, referred
to as the Continental until a year ago, provides a cost-effective
step-up for current light jet operators as well as for operators
constrained by their current midsize aircraft.
The 8- to16-passenger aircraft has a maximum takeoff weight of
38,500 pounds and can climb to 37,000 feet in 17 minutes under
the power of twin Honeywell AS907 engines. Maximum cruise speed
is 470 kt and IFR trip length with four passengers and full fuel
is 3,143 nmi, allowing for nonstop trips between city pairs such
as New York and London or Los Angeles.
Schenck says Bombardier has 125 firm orders for the aircraft,
including 25 that will go to Flexjet, including the first production
model, s/n 20006, currently in Tucson for interior installation.
Challenger 300 s/n 20005, with its full production interior, is
on static display at NBAA this week.
Making its North American debut this week is a mockup of the Bombardier
Global 5000, the company's high-speed derivative of the Global
Express, designed to whisk eight passengers on a non-stop 4,800
nmi trip at M0.85 with NBAA IFR reserves. For transcontinental
trips, Bombardier says the cruise speed can be bumped up to M0.89
-- faster, it claims, than any competing jet. Powered by twin
Rolls-Royce Deutschland BR710 engines, the $33.5 million aircraft
has a maximum takeoff weight of 87,700 pounds and can climb to
37,000 feet in 18 minutes. Maximum cruise speed is 499 kt and
maximum certificated ceiling is 51,000 feet.
Schenck says one of two Global 5000 certification program aircraft
has so far accumulated about 100 hours of flight testing, while
the second aircraft, which will be used for cabin testing next
summer, is set to go to the completion center in January. Interior
completions for the 5000 are simpler than for the Global Express,
Schenck says, as the 5000 uses the Rockwell Collins AirShow 21
integrated cabin management and entertainment system, which is
partially installed at the factory. AirShow 21 features a "self-healing"
Ethernet backbone (bus) with high speed data through the Swift64
service, Live TV, on-demand news, weather, sports and other options.
Bombardier hopes to certify the Global 5000's interior in the
fourth quarter of 2004 and make the first delivery early in 2005.
z Raytheon's entry
into the super-midsize business jet arena, the 8- to14-passenger
Hawker Horizon, remains on schedule to complete certification
and first deliveries next year. One-third larger than the Hawker
800XP, the $18 million Horizon is powered by two Pratt & Whitney
Canada PW308A turbofan engines and has an all-composite fuselage
and aluminum wing. Time to climb to 37,000 feet is an impressive
13 minutes; maximum takeoff weight is 37,500 pounds, and maximum
cruise speed is 470 kt. IFR range with crew, full fuel and four-passengers
is 3,400 miles at an average speed of 423 kt.
The Horizon flight deck is equipped the Honeywell Primus Epic
avionics suite, with five 8 x10-inch color liquid crystal displays.
The LCDs provide two PFDs, two MFDs and an EICAS. The Horizon
fuselage uses construction techniques similar to the Premier I,
including graphite/epoxy laminated material and honeycomb composites.
The wings are manufactured by Fuji Heavy Industries in Japan and
transported to Raytheon's manufacturing facility in Wichita for
assembly. The company reports that it has more than 30 firm orders
for the aircraft despite NetJets' withdrawal of its intent to
buy 50 aircraft and hold options for another 50.
z Dassault's latest
enhancements to the bizjet market are most visible to pilots.
Starting next month, the company is on track to begin delivering
its production 900EX tri-jets with Honeywell's Primus Epic-based
EASy cockpit (Enhanced Avionics System). The EASy avionics will
replace the aircraft's Honeywell Primus 2000 avionics.
The EASy cockpit is set to receive certification in mid-November
after which the company says "at least" six 900EXs with
the upgraded cockpit will be delivered before year's end. EASy
features four 14.1-inch LCD flat-panel displays arranged in a
"T" configuration, two multifunction keyboard units
in the pedestal and a cursor control device for each pilot. The
system offers pilots flight planning using a conventional keyboard
or a graphic user interface and point-and-click cursor control
device (CCD), integrated terrain display and "intelligent"
menu management.
Similarly, the Falcon 2000EX, first delivered to customers in
May, is set for an avionics change starting with s/n 33 when the
Honeywell EASy cockpit will replace the Pro Line IV suite. Dassault
says there are currently about 12 2000EXs in service. The $23.8
million, 8-19-seat twinjet features more powerful engines, a 600-pound
increase in payload and roughly 1,000 nmi additional range over
the 2000. Dassault has both the Falcon 2000EX and Falcon 900EX
EASy on static display here this week.
z Gulfstream's
newest super-large business jet, first delivered last month, is
also equipped with cockpit avionics based on Honeywell's Primus
Epic suite. The $45.7 million G550, which achieved its type and
production certifications in August, comes standard with the PlaneView
avionics suite composed of four-in-line 14-inch flat panels and
a Gulfstream-designed cursor control device. Another extraordinary
piece of standard equipment integrated into PlaneView is the G550's
enhanced vision system. The 16-19-passenger, BR710-powered aircraft
has a maximum takeoff weight of 91,000 pounds,18 minute climb
to 37,000 feet, maximum cruise speed of 488 kt and certificated
ceiling of 51,000 feet.
Next on the agenda for Gulfstream is to complete the certification
of the G500, slated for some time next year. The $37.5 million
Rolls-Royce BR710-powered G500 is has nearly identical stats as
the G550, but offers a slight performance increase as it carries
5,000 pounds less fuel, with a corresponding cut in range by roughly
1,000 nmi.
z The most expensive,
but possibly the most plush new business jet to come out of late
is Boeing's $65 million BBJ2. The eight- to 189-passenger aircraft,
which starts life as a production 737-800, is 20 feet longer than
the BBJ. As a result of the extra fuselage length, the BBJ2 has
25% more cabin space and 100% more baggage volume. The avionics
and wings are identical between the two, which paved the way for
identical type ratings. Boeing reports 83 orders for both models
as of August, with 74 delivered as of September.
Lee Monson, president of Boeing Business Jets, says there currently
are 67 BBJs in service with 50 operators, up from 61 aircraft
and 43 operators in May. Six are BBJ2s. Monson says approval of
an STC to decrease the cruise cabin altitude from 8,000 to 6,500
feet has been delayed until the first quarter of 2004 due to "some
issues with the FAA." Monson says the work involved in the
STC would have been "dramatically less" had he started
with a "green" airplane. Yet to be sold are three BBJs
that were completed for NetJets, before the fractional cancelled
the order, with one BBJ2 unspoken for. Monson expects to sell
all of the excess aircraft by year's end.
Longer-term projects in the business jet arena include Embraer's
plans for a Legacy II and Dassault's Falcon 7X, an aircraft designed
for the same market niche as the Global 5000.
z With 35 "firm"
orders on the books, Dassault's $35 million Falcon 7X, which is
not slated to fly until 2005, is already sold out of production
until mid-2008, according to the company. The 7X will be powered
by Pratt & Whitney Canada PW307A engines and is being designed
to carry three crewmembers and eight-passengers for 5,700 nmi
at M0.80. Target for maximum cruise speed is M0.90.
Dassault says the 7X's cabin will be "substantially"
longer than the 900EX's, with a 6,000-foot cabin altitude at cruise.
The cockpit will feature EASy avionics. Dassault has a 7X simulator
at NBAA this week. The company says the simulator looks similar
to last year's EASy flight deck exhibit, but with sidestick controllers
and a moving map image in front of the crew.
z For Embraer, with more than
20 of its $20.8 million 10-18-passenger Legacy large cabin executive
jets already delivered and firm orders for 57 more, the future will
likely hold an executive version of the Embraer 170 or 190, colloquially
known as the "Legacy II". Fred Curado, Embraer's vp of
commercial operations, tells Show News that the company may be ready
to launch the larger bizjet in about three years. "This is
the platform where we're going to build our name," says Curado."
