Tucks Up Its Gear, Climbs To 11K On First Test Flight

Diamond Aircraft tells ANN that on Friday, D-Jet S/N002 made its first flight from Diamond's London facility. The flight was conducted by Daniel Ribeiro, Chief Test Pilot. Chase was flown by Giorgio Clementi, Manager Flight Test, in D-Jet S/N001.

"We had a safe and smooth first flight with S/N002," Ribeiro said after the flight. "During 43 minutes of flight, we checked systems and handling. Airplane handling was as anticipated, with the expected improvements based on the experience with S/N 001 being evident. Flight controls were smooth, with good harmony and light forces. Engine behavior was as expected, with stable performance during accelerations and decelerations.

"All installed systems worked as planned, and landing gear was retracted during climb out to the test area," Ribeiro added. "Maximum altitude achieved during the flight was 11,000 ft."

As ANN reported, Diamond rolled out S/N 002 in July. Changes between the first and second D-Jets include the lack of winglets on S/N002, as well as deicing surfaces on the leading edges of the wing, and horizontal and vertical stabilizers. The production-spec aircraft also incorporates a pair of small stablizers on the underside of the empennage, added to the prototype during flight testing, as well as a larger forward windscreen.

"Congratulations to the Diamond D-Jet team for the hard and good work making this airplane safe and pleasant to fly," he added. "We will now continue the flight test program with progressive expansion of the envelope." "This flight is a very significant milestone for Diamond and the D-Jet Program," said Peter Maurer, President of Diamond Aircraft and of Diamond D-Jet Corporation.

"S/N 002 represents the production configuration aerodynamically and in structural design. With the extensive experience we have with S/N 001, we expect a short development test program, and then the beginning of actual certification flight tests. In parallel, we are currently building the next three aircraft which will all participate in the certification test program."

The D-Jet is a five-place luxury personal Jet aircraft, powered by the FADEC controlled Williams FJ33 turbine and equipped with Garmin all glass flight deck and autopilot.

FMI: www.diamondair.com