Charter Operator Has Ordered 40 Of The Remanufactured Jets
Nextant Aerospace delivered the first of 40 new 400XT aircraft
to Flight Options, LLC, on Monday. The delivery took place during a
hand-over ceremony at the 64th NBAA Annual Meeting and Convention.
“Today’s business jet customer demands value,
performance and comfort, and we believe the 400XT delivers all
three in a package well suited for both the fractional and jet card
program market,” said Kenneth C. Ricci, chief executive
officer of Nextant Aerospace.
“The 400XT took the best of the Hawker 400 – a
strong airframe, comfortable cabin and good speed – and
married it with modern engine technology and avionics to deliver a
plane that’s more fuel efficient, faster and even more
comfortable than the original,” added Michael J. Silvestro,
chief executive officer of Flight Options. “Nextant has
delivered the equivalent of a new jet at approximately half the
cost of competing models, a combination that we believe will
resonate with our owners and members.”
The inaugural delivery follows last week’s certification
of the 400XT by the Federal Aviation Administration after a
three-year development and flight testing process. Flight Options
originally placed a $150 million order for 40 Nextant aircraft in
October 2010. Nextant anticipates delivering an additional two
400XTs to Flight Options in 2011 and eight in 2012. Deliveries
under the Flight Options order are scheduled to occur through
2015.
“We believe demand for the 400XT is sustainable, given the
appeal of this aircraft to a wide range of buyers, not just
fractional fleets,” added Ricci. “We are ramping up
capacity to meet our delivery schedule and are excited about the
future of this amazing aircraft.”
The 400XT process employs a remanufactured airframe from the
Beechjet 400A/XP aircraft, enhanced with new, state-of-the-art
technology including the Williams FJ44-3AP turbofan engine, the
Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21™ integrated avionics suite,
advanced electronics and completely rebuilt interiors. The
remanufacturing process takes all life-limited components to
zero-time status, either through replacement or complete overhaul,
which effectively makes the 400XT a new plane in all material
aspects even before the addition of advanced technology. The 400XT
is considered to be a new type in Aircraft Bluebook. Further
options include additional avionics features and cabin
entertainment including high speed wireless Internet.
The resulting aircraft supports a range of 2,005-nautical miles
with four passengers and NBAA IFR Reserves, a 50 percent increase
over the 400XP. Other performance improvements include a cruising
speed of 460 nautical miles per hour; fuel efficiency improvements
of 25-30 percent, depending on the length of the flight segment and
noise compliance that exceeds Stage IV requirements.
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