Deliveries Scheduled For 2012
The Gulfstream G280 has received a provisional type certificate
(PTC) from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). It
obtained a PTC from the Civil Aviation Authority of Israel (CAAI)
on Dec. 29, 2011. The principal remaining item required before full
type certificates are issued by the FAA and CAAI is an update to
the software for the aircraft’s state-of-the-art avionics.
Gulfstream expects to receive full type certification from both
later this year.
“The G280 will be the fastest, largest, most comfortable
aircraft in its class, and we are very pleased with its performance
throughout the flight-test program,” said Larry Flynn,
president, Gulfstream, in a news release Friday. “With these
certificates in hand, we are now able to move forward in
preparation for customer deliveries later this year, as
scheduled.”
When delivered, the G280 will exceed the performance
specifications outlined when the program was publicly announced in
October 2008. The aircraft’s range is 3,600 nautical miles at
Mach 0.80, an increase of 200 nautical miles over original
projections. Its balanced field length is 210 feet less than
originally announced, allowing it to take off from runways of 4,750
feet or less. That’s an improvement of more than 1,300 feet
compared to the aircraft it replaces, the G200.
The three G280 aircraft in the flight-test program have flown
more than 1,845 hours during more than 685 flights, while the
fatigue test article (F1) has completed more than 14,300 of 40,000
cycles. Additional achievements include the successful completion
of wet runway, crosswind and maximum energy brake testing. Serial
Number (S/N) 2003, the third aircraft to join the flight-test
program, has finished the tests required of it for type
certification. That aircraft will now be transitioned to the
testing of optional avionics features, including the Head-Up
Display (HUD II) and Enhanced Vision System (EVS II). S/N 2004, the
first production aircraft, was outfitted and painted last year for
an appearance at the 2011 National Business Aviation Association
Convention & Meeting in Las Vegas. It is undergoing final
upgrades in anticipation of its delivery later this year.
PTCs have been common in general aviation programs over the past
15 years. Both the Gulfstream V and the Gulfstream G550 were issued
PTCs before receiving full certification. The Gulfstream G650
received PTC from the FAA in November 2011. (Photo provided
by Gulfstream)