On Track For Deliveries In 2012

OK, we'll admit that might be a bit of hyperbole, or a slow bullet, but the Gulfstream G650 did fly at its proposed Mmo of 0.925 for the first time on Sunday, May 2.

File Photo G650 Test Airplane

The flight-test aircraft (S/N 6001) took off from Savannah at 1338 EDT with Gulfstream's Chief Test Pilot John O'Meara and Senior Experimental Test Pilot Tom Horne at the controls. The aircraft reached its top speed of Mach 0.925 while at 42,500 feet. The business jet returned to Savannah at 1512 EDT.

"The G650 excelled at its top speed of Mach 0.925," O'Meara said. "Even at near the speed of sound, the aircraft provides stable and precise handling characteristics. It's very responsive to pilot input with fantastic maneuver capabilities. Turns can be initiated and completed without any onset of buffet. The engine performance is extremely smooth. At the conditions flown today, the entire operation was flawless. The aircraft's capabilities and state-of-the-art technologies make it very easy to fly and will enhance our customers' experience with their G650."

Gulfstream announced the G650 program on March 13, 2008, indicating that the clean-sheet aircraft - Gulfstream's first since the GII - would be capable of flying Mach 0.925, making it the world's fastest transport-category aircraft in the sky.

The G650 rolled out under its own power - another Gulfstream first - on Sept. 30, 2009. Its first flight was on Nov. 25, 2009. The second flight-test aircraft - S/N 6002 - followed on Feb. 25. As of mid-April, the two aircraft have completed nearly 50 flights and approximately 140 flight-test hours.

G650 Roll Out

The five G650 aircraft involved in the flight-test program are expected to perform an estimated 1,800 hours of testing. Each aircraft is used for a specific series of tests with S/N 6001 focused on performance and flight controls, S/N 6002 on systems and S/N 6003 on avionics, including communication and navigation. The two production aircraft in the test program - S/N 6004 and S/N 6005 - will be used to evaluate interior systems and be part of the reduced vertical separation minimum (RVSM) testing.

S/N 6003 has been transferred to the Flight Test department for outfitting in preparation for its first flight, while 6004 and 6005 are in final production and major assembly, respectively.

Meanwhile, the aircraft has also successfully completed all structural limit load testing required by the FAA and EASA.

File Photo First Flight

The G650 passed limit load testing on its primary structural components, including fuselage, wing, vertical and horizontal stabilizers, main landing gear, nose landing gear and all control surfaces. During this phase of the static load testing, the new advanced fly-by-wire flight-control system passed certification tests for proper operation while under the limit load condition. The limit load represents the maximum load the aircraft should experience during its life cycle.  The G650 will be tested to ultimate load, which is 50 percent more than the limit load.

"As the test program continues, so, too, do our accomplishments," said Pres Henne, senior vice president, Programs, Engineering and Test, Gulfstream. "Completing the limit load structural testing is a key milestone that will allow flight testing at the maximum operating speeds of 340 KCAS and Mach 0.925 and to the maximum dive speeds of 385 KCAS and Mach 0.990.  We're excited to reach this stage. On all fronts, the G650 is performing extremely well."

"The state-of-the-art manufacturing processes we developed for this aircraft are making a definite difference in terms of build quality," said Dennis Stuligross, senior vice president, Operations, Gulfstream. "We have already witnessed enhanced quality and precision due in part to automation, modular manufacturing and advanced tooling."

Testing also continues in the G650 Integration Test Facility (ITF) at Gulfstream's Savannah headquarters. Engineers have been using the facility to integrate the software and hardware for the aircraft's systems and to perform the human-factors testing required for certification. In a Gulfstream first, the ITF also includes a full-size mock-up of the G650 cabin systems to support Gulfstream's Cabin Essential design philosophy, which ensures that systems are designed with redundancy to prevent single-point failure.

The aircraft is expected to receive certification from the FAA and the EASA in 2011. It is on schedule to enter service in 2012.

FMI: www.gulfstream.com