First GIV Flew Three Months Ahead Of Schedule
Gulfstream Aerospace recognized the 25th anniversary of the
first flight of the Gulfstream IV on Sunday. "The GIV was the
aircraft that launched a thousand Gulfstream aircraft," said Joe
Lombardo, president, Gulfstream. "It formed the foundation for
designing and building the G300, G400, G350 and G450. The
aircraft's first flight was a milestone and turning point for the
company."
Longtime Gulfstream employee Jim Gallagher, an acoustics
engineer for the GIV program, said the aircraft revolutionized the
industry. More than 520 of the 536 jets produced in the GIV series
are still in operation.
"The GIV set a new standard for technology and, as it evolved,
did the same for reliability," said Gallagher, now director, Large
and Mid-Cabin Sustaining program. "I believe it became very popular
because it was on the leading edge of globalization. Halfway
through its production run, the GIV became the preferred tool of
global business-jet travelers because of its speed and range. There
was no other aircraft that came close. Companies relied on it to
travel worldwide; it helped push global commerce."
GIV On Display At NBAA Convention 1985
On September 19, 1985, three months ahead of schedule, the
aircraft took off from Savannah International Airport, just eight
days after it was rolled out at the business-jet manufacturer's
headquarters in Savannah. Lee Johnson and Ted Mendenhall were the
pilot and copilot, respectively, for the one-hour flight. The
maiden flight was part of a race against time aimed at preparing
the aircraft for the annual National Business Aviation Association
(NBAA) convention in New Orleans, where it was one of the main
attractions.
The GIV was popular with customers well before its first flight.
More than 80 orders were taken while the aircraft was in
development. At the time, the backlog of nearly $1.3 billion in
orders was the biggest for a single aircraft in business-aviation
history. The first production GIV entered service June 8, 1987,
after being certified by the FAA on April 22, 1987. The GIV was
designed to provide cost-effective, long-range transportation. For
nearly two decades, the workhorse GIV was the long-range aircraft
of choice for business-jet customers, including heads of state,
private individuals, special missions and air charter companies
worldwide. It was the first business jet built with an all-glass
cockpit, including state-of-the-art auto throttles, and offered a
new concept at the time, a Flight Management System (FMS). Powered
by two Rolls-Royce Tay 611-8 engines, the GIV's top speed is Mach
0.88 with a maximum takeoff weight of 73,200 pounds. It can reach
an altitude of 45,000 feet.
The GIV, which featured the company's trademark winglets
established on the GIII, set numerous records for circumnavigating
the globe, both east and west, including a January 1988 eastbound
around-the-world trip in just under 37 hours.
As of today, the GIV series in-service fleet has accumulated
more than 3.4 million hours of flight time and boasts a dispatch
reliability rate of 99.93 percent. The other aircraft in the series
are the GIV-SP (Special Performance), which features an updated
landing package and range/payload improvements, and the C-20F/G/H/J
military variants.