Eclipse Take Delivery Of Landing Gear For Test Aircraft
Eclipse Aviation says it's received the landing gear assembly
from Mecaer for Aircraft N502EA, Eclipse's first certification
flight test aircraft. Aircraft N502EA, which will feature Pratt
& Whitney Canada (P&WC) PW610F engines, is on schedule to
make its first flight in Q4 2004.
"Mecaer is proud to manufacture the landing gear for the Eclipse
500, an aircraft that is setting a new standard for jet price and
performance," said Pier Ughi, CEO of Mecaer. "We share Eclipse's
belief that this aircraft will forever change the way people
travel, and look forward to working closely with Eclipse to help
make this vision a reality."
Attendees also received an update on the Eclipse 500 development
program, including testing of the next-generation PW610F engine and
the manufacture of the Eclipse 500 jet.
"Our strategy is to seek out the best suppliers worldwide, and
it is exciting to see the components for our seven pre-production
aircraft arriving ahead of schedule from leading manufacturers
throughout the world," said Vern Raburn, president and CEO of
Eclipse Aviation. "We look forward to continuing to collaborate
with this world-class network of international partners as we
advance successfully towards FAA certification in early 2006 and
JAA/EASA certification by the end of 2006."
The worldwide Eclipse 500 supplier team is composed of US and
international aviation leaders. In addition to Mecaer, this growing
group of suppliers includes Hampson Industries, a principal
supplier of airframe components to Airbus and Rolls-Royce; Fuji
Heavy Industries, which manufactures the center-wing section of the
Boeing 777; Pratt & Whitney Canada, a world leader in aviation
engines powering business, general aviation and regional aircraft,
and helicopters; and Enaer, which has more than 70 years of
experience in aviation and is one of the most important aeronautic
centers in Latin America.
PW610F Engine Achieves Testing Milestone
P&WC recently successfully
completed the first run of the PW610F, which achieved its rated
takeoff thrust of 900 pounds. Wright also stated that the PW610F
development engine has run for more than 25 hours in their test
cell. The PW610F is on track to undergo flight trials on P&WC's
flying test bed in August 2004, and deliveries of the first
prototype engines to Eclipse are expected to begin in December.
Most of the cabin panels for N502EA have been assembled using
friction stir welding, and are now being integrated into the full
cabin assembly process. Friction stir welding of the cabin panels
for the next two conforming flight test aircraft, N503EA and
N504EA, has also begun. The Eclipse flight test and certification
program encompasses a total of eight aircraft.