Cessna on 13 June announced activating the electric power system on the first Citation Longitude, completing a key milestone only three weeks after mating the wing and fuselage of the super-midsize twin-jet.
“The power on stage allows our team to begin verifying the aircraft’s electrical power system and paves the way for functional tests and engine runs that will get us to first flight in the coming months,” says Scott Earnest, president and chief executive of Textron Aviation.
Cessna launched the Longitude programme in 2012 alongside the midsize Latitude jet, which is now in production. Last year, Cessna announced a revamp of the Longitude design, reducing the maximum range from 4,000nm to 3,400nm. Meanwhile, the company also introduced the Hemisphere jet with a 4,500nm maximum range.
Until the Hemisphere enters service in five years, the Longitude is the largest aircraft Cessna has designed. It includes Cessna’s first application of fly-by-wire control technology, with an electronically-actuated rudder and spoilers.
“We continue to meet our milestones through an industry-leading development schedule in order to get the Longitude into the hands of our customers,” Ernest says.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
