FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1995
1995 - 2920.PDF
CORPORATE AVIATION offered by its design. Gulfstream, meanwhile, made die most of the 22 September roll-out of me first GV, comparing die "reality" of its air craft widi die "concept" of die Global Express. While Bombardier is working to convince customers of the superiority of die Global Express, Gulfstream has been publicly ques tioning die Canadian company's ability to deliv er what it is promising. In a Wall Street Journal advertisement, Gulfstream accused Canadair of not delivering the range it promised for the Challenger. While it has not yet disputed the figures used in die advertisement, Bombardier notes that, since its acquisition of Canadair in 1986, both die Challenger-based Regional Jet and the new Challenger 604 have been delivered on sched ule and with better-than-predicted perfor mance. Gulfstream plans to fly die GV in November. Bombardier says diat it is on schedule to fly die Global Express in September 1996. US certifi cation of die GV is scheduled for October 1996, followed by European certification in December 1996. Simultaneous Canadian/- European/US certification of die Global Express is scheduled for March 1998. Bombardier says diat die first Global Express for a customer will be delivered to die comple tion centre in December 1997, three months ahead of certification and just one year behind die first GV delivery. While the battle for die long-range market continues, significant changes are taking place in the large-jet arena. Bombardier certificated the 7,500km (4,060nm)-range Challenger 604 in September, narrowing the GIV-SP's lead to just 300km, while Dassault demonstrated die Falcon 900EX's increased range widi an 8,700km non-stop flight from Luton,'UK, to Las Vegas to display die prototype at NBAA. Deliveries begin in 1996, and the 8,300km- range 900EX tri-jet will be the longest-range business aircraft in sendee, until die 12,000km- range GV comes on stream in 1997. Dassault advertises the 900EX as having a "one-stop 16,650km range" in a bid to appeal to those cus tomers interested in a long-range aircraft. The improved Falcon 50EX, meanwhile, is sched uled to enter service in early 1997, offering a 6,500km range at Mach 0.8. DIVERSE MID-JET MARKET The mid-jet market has become increasingly diverse in recent years, widi the introduction of "medium-large" types such as die Citation X and Falcon 2000. Bodi types were represented at die NBAA, die Citation X by die second pro duction aircraft, and the Falcon 2000 by the French and US demonstrator aircraft. Certification of die Mach 0.92 Citation X is expected by die end of 1995, and die first cus tomer delivery will be in April 1996. Dassault has delivered four Falcon 2000s to customers since February, three of them in the USA, and die 17di aircraft is undergoing completion in die USA. Cessna is guaranteeing diat die Citation X's direct operating costs per kilometre will not exceed diose of die smaller, slower Hawker 800. Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI), meanwhile, is promoting die M0.82 Astra SPX as a lower-cost alternative to die Citation X, and as a higher- speed alternative to die Hawker 800. The SPX has received provisional Israeli cer tification, and US approval is expected in Oc tober. First deliveries will be to operators in Canada and Germany before the end of 1995. IAI has restated its commitment to the wide- body Astra Galaxy, and has decided to build die first four flight-test aircraft in Israel to protect a schedule which now calls for a first flight in die fourdi quarter of 1996, and certification a year later. IAI president Moshe Keret says that negotia tions are under way widi several European and Far Eastern companies which have offered to build die Galaxy fuselage, originally to be pro duced by Yakoviev. Known bidders include Spain's Gamesa and Romania's Romaero. Bids received indicate that the $13.88 million cost target can be met, says IAI, ensuring that die Galaxy will be competitive with die Citation X and Falcon 2000. Raytheon has now transferred die type cer tificate for die Hawker series to die USA as part of its plan to move design and final assembly from the UK to the USA by 1997. The first improved Hawker 800XP was delivered at the NBAA, and the company has acknowledged plans to further improve die 800 and die 1000. A substantially revamped Hawker 1000 is expected to be unveiled at die 1996 NBAA. Cessna is studying improvement or replace ment of die mid-sized Citation VII, and may also unveil something at 1996's NBAA. The company has also packaged die most commonly ordered customer options into the "attractively priced" Citation VII Magnum Edition. LIGHT-JET ACTIVITY By far the most activity at die NBAA was at the light end of the market, with Learjet rolling out the Model 45 on die eve of die show, Raydieon unveiling die Premier I, and Sino Swearingen launching a higher-performance version of its SJ30. There was even news of a new single- turbofan light jet, the VisionAire Vantage, designed widi the assistance of Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites. Raytheon has aimed its composite-fuselage, swept-wing, Premier I between the Citationjet and Citation Bravo, promising to beat both air craft in almost every respect. Later, stretched, Premier II and III versions promised by Raytheon are likely to compete with the Citation Ultra and Excel. Learjet is already tar geting die widebody Excel with its Model 45, offering higher performance at a lower price. Cessna's reaction echoes that of Gulfstream: the company points out that, the Excel apart, all of its present range of Citations is already flying, whereas the Premier I will not be flown • Signature Flight Support's GA terminal at Las Vegas was host to NBAA static display FBOS expand presence SIGNATURE FLIGHT Support's new Las Vegas general-aviation terminal, at McCarran Airport, was host to the 130- aircraft NBAA static display. The flight- support organisation (FSO) opened for business in early August and is the sec ond of Signature's "new-generation" FSOs, modelled on the two-story termi nal at Bradley International Airport in Hartford, Connecticut. Signature has embarked on the reno vation and expansion of its 40-site FSO network. At NBAA, other aviation ser vices announced similar moves to im prove and expand their operations. AMR Combs plans to add two to three US fixed-based operations (FBOs) to its network over the next two years, says president Bob Anderson. The company will begin operations at its 11th US loca tion, San Francisco International Air port, in January 1996, initially at a temporary site until the new FBO is completed in the fourth quarter of 1996. Co-operation with Mexico's SACSA, under which AMR Combs provides FBO services at two locations, may be expand ed to other sites, Anderson says. AMOR is also planning FBOs in South America and, later, Europe and the Far East, he reveals. SACSA, meanwhile, has teamed with Garrett Aviation Services to provide aircraft maintenance at Mexico City's Toluca Airport. Raytheon Aircraft Services is the new name for the 18-location network of United Beechcraft and United Hawker FBOs. The company says that the new name demonstrates that Raytheon FBOs can handle all business-aircraft types. • Alliance Engines, a Nashville, Tennessee-based joint-venture between K-C Aviation and Duncan Aviation, has begun operations. Repair and overhaul of AlliedSignal TPE331 turboprops and auxiliary power units is expected to begin in October when the test-cells become operational. FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 11 - 17 October 1995 27
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
