Largest, Most Advanced Aircraft In Gulfstream Fleet
Following weeks of
anticipation, on Thursday Gulfstream Aerospace announced the
introduction of its all-new the Gulfstream G650 ultra-large cabin
business jet.
The G650 offers the longest range, fastest speed, largest cabin
and the most-advanced cockpit in the Gulfstream fleet. It is
capable of traveling 7,000 nautical miles at 0.85 Mach... or 5,000
nautical miles at 0.90 Mach. Using an advanced aerodynamic design,
the G650 has a maximum operating speed of 0.925 Mach, which will
make it the fastest civil aircraft flying.
The G650 will also climb to a maximum altitude of 51,000 feet,
allowing it to avoid airline-traffic congestion and adverse
weather.
"This is an exciting time in Gulfstream’s history," said
Joe Lombardo, president, Gulfstream Aerospace. "For 50 years, our
company has been on the forefront of business-jet aviation. I can
think of no better way to celebrate our golden anniversary than to
introduce the Gulfstream G650. Created with significant input from
customers who participate in our Advanced Technology Customer
Advisory Team, a subset of our Customer Advisory Board, the G650
offers the most advanced flight deck and the widest array of cabin
comforts. Its performance and aesthetics are unprecedented."
Gulfstream expects to begin G650 customer deliveries in 2012,
following the projected receipt of Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) Type Certification and validation by the European Aviation
Safety Authority (EASA) in 2011. First flight of the aircraft is
scheduled for the second half of 2009.
The unfinished aircraft cabin measures 102 inches wide and 77
inches high, making it the largest business-jet cabin. The extra
space allows for a longer living area, more seat recline, expanded
leg room and increased stateroom capabilities as well as larger
galleys, lavatories, storage and crew rest areas. An 84-inch-wide
floor provides for larger seats, wider aisles and the ability to
seat three across.
The G650 will offer a cabin altitude of 4,850 feet at FL510, and
2,800 feet at FL410 -- which reduces fatigue, increases mental
alertness and enhances productivity, while a quieter cabin provides
a more comfortable environment for conversation or relaxation. The
aircraft’s advanced environmental control system features
quieter air distribution and independently vented lavatories.
The G650’s new 16 cabin windows, measuring 28 inches by
20.5 inches, are the largest in the industry. All major cabin
systems will be designed with redundant systems.
The G650 features the most technologically advanced PlaneView II
cockpit with a number of enhancements including: four 14-inch,
adaptive, liquid-crystal displays; three standard PlaneBook
computer tablets; a smaller pedestal; a standby multifunction
controller that combines current display controller functionality
with standby flight instruments; and a fully automatic,
three-dimensional scanning weather radar with an integral terrain
database for efficient ground-clutter elimination.
In addition, the G650 uses state-of-the-art vision systems to
improve both pilot situational awareness and flight safety. These
standard systems include the Gulfstream Enhanced Vision System (EVS
II), the Synthetic Vision-Primary Flight Display (SV-PFD) system
and Head-Up Display (HUD II). Gulfstream is the first Part 25
Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to provide its customers with
both enhanced and synthetic vision systems. Kollsman (EVS II),
Honeywell (SV-PFD) and Rockwell Collins (HUD II) are major
suppliers to Gulfstream on these three systems.
Working in concert, the EVS II and SV-PFD provide pilots with a
superior view of the terrain, obstacles and approaches, regardless
of the weather conditions outside the cockpit. EVS uses a
forward-looking infrared (FLIR) camera to capture real-world images
and project them on the pilot’s all-digital HUD II, while the
SV-PFD uses three-dimensional, color terrain images that are
derived from data stored in the Honeywell Enhanced Ground Proximity
Warning System (EGPWS).
"The Gulfstream G650 uses state-of-the-art avionics to give
operators a visual edge," said Pres Henne, senior vice president,
Programs, Engineering and Test, Gulfstream. "But the G650’s
advances extend beyond the cockpit. Every element of this aircraft
was designed with safety, reliability, comfort, productivity and
performance in mind."
Because the G650 flight deck has the same basic layout as the
G550, the pilot type rating for the G650 is expected to be the same
as the GV and the other in-production, large-cabin Gulfstream
business jets, with minimal differences training.
The G650 is powered by the new Rolls-Royce BR725 engine, which
produces 16,100 pounds of thrust at take-off. Manufactured by
Rolls-Royce in Germany, the BR725 engine features a 50-inch swept
fan with 24 blades for improved flow, increased efficiency, reduced
noise and lower emissions. The G650 has fuel-burn levels comparable
to those of smaller aircraft.
The BR725, in combination with the new, high-efficiency
thrust-reverser system and an all-new aerodynamically optimized
wing, means the G650 can meet the latest take-off certification
requirements, has excellent "hot and high" performance and offers
outstanding intercontinental range. For example, the G650 can
travel the 6,370 nautical miles from Dubai to Chicago 88 minutes
faster than existing long-range jets. It shaves 31 minutes off the
4,788-nautical-mile trip from Los Angeles to London and 50 minutes
off the 5,932-mile trip from New York to Tokyo.
The G650 offers a full
three-axis fly-by-wire system that delivers a number of benefits to
the user, including flight-envelope protection, increased
redundancy and reduced maintenance. The system is the result of
extensive testing in Gulfstream’s Advanced Flight Controls
program, where designers and engineers have been flight-testing
advanced signaling and actuation on a GV aircraft. Those efforts
led to a redundant fly-by-wire system that exceeds certification
requirements. The system features a quadruple-redundant
flight-control computer system for commanding all flight-control
surfaces. In addition, the system has a separate and dedicated
back-up flight-control computer that provides an additional level
of safety.
The G650 fuel system stores 100 percent of the aircraft’s
44,200 pounds of fuel in the wings. The G650 retains the G550
heated fuel return system but adds a new Fuel Quantity Monitoring
System (FQMS). This system uses a new distributed architecture with
redundancy to maintain fuel-quantity indication in the event of any
single sensor failure.
Additionally, the electronically controlled refueling feature
automatically adjusts to provide accurate refueling under varying
fuel temperature conditions.
The Gulfstream G650 uses Gulfstream’s PlaneConnect
program, a maintenance link that automatically transmits aircraft
maintenance information to the customer’s operations
department with an optional copy to Gulfstream Technical
Operations. This data can then be analyzed to identify
systems’ condition status, and allows for exceptionally fast
maintenance turnaround times.
With overall system reliability improvements and with 600 hours
between major inspections, the G650 is projected to have unmatched
availability and dispatch reliability. The G650 fuselage employs
bonded skin panels, machined frames and precision assembly.
These new methods not only improve aircraft quality, fit and
finish, they also reduce assembly time and the need for an
extensive parts supply. For example, the G650’s new window
design is 16 percent larger but uses 78 percent fewer parts,
thereby reducing assembly time 57 percent. This streamlined
manufacturing cycle also consumes less energy.
The G650 will be produced in the recently completed
308,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at Gulfstream in
Savannah.
"It’s thrilling to see how far we’ve come since that
day 50 years ago when the first Gulfstream I prototype took to the
skies. We were the first then and we’re still the first now.
And with the help of our customers, the support of our communities
and the ingenuity of our employees, we’ll continue to make
aviation history with cutting-edge advances that revolutionize the
business-jet industry," said Lombardo.