Very Light Jet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A Very Light Jet (VLJ) is a small jet aircraft approved for single-pilot operation. With a maximum take-off weight of under 10,000 lb (4,540 kg), they are lighter than business jets and seat between three and nine passengers plus one crew member.
A number of designs are currently in development, and will feature advanced avionics with glass cockpit technology. VLJs are intended to have lower operating costs than conventional jets, and will be able to operate from runways as short as 3,000 feet (900 m). NASA and the FAA encourage the development of these light jets and foresee their widespread use in point-to-point air taxi service. The Small Aircraft Transportation System would provide air service to areas ignored by airlines.
These "on-demand" air taxi services depend on low cost projections and high demand to become a reality. The viability of these services is the subject of much debate among industry experts.
In total, over 3,000 VLJs have been ordered from three manufacturers. Cessna Aircraft Company, based in Wichita, Kansas, delivered the first ever production VLJ to Mustang Management Group of Fresno, California on November 23, 2006.[1] Eclipse Aviation says it expects to deliver 10 aircraft to customers in 2006.
Cessna has 250 orders for their six-seater VLJ offering, the Citation Mustang. Cessna received full certification for the Mustang on September 8, 2006.[2] Cessna received FAA certification to fly into "known icing conditions" on November 9, 2006.[3] Cessna received its FAA Production Certificate for the Mustang on November 23, 2006.
Eclipse Aviation, based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, has 2,500 of its Eclipse 500 aircraft on back order.[4] Eclipse received their full certification for their Eclipse 500 three weeks after Cessna's Mustang on September 30, 2006. Eclipse expects to receive certification for flight into known icing conditions in December of 2006. Eclipse has announced that they intend to deliver 515 airplanes in 2007 and eventually plan to have a production capacity of 4 airplanes per day. In a letter to customers and investors, Eclipse Aviation CEO Vern Raburn on Monday November 26, 2006 addressed concerns that the company has not yet delivered its first aircraft. Raburn explained that the delay was caused because the FAA was concerned about the Eclipse not meeting conformity requirements, but he wrote that he still expected Eclipse to deliver the planned 10 aircraft in 2006.[5]
Adam Aircraft announced that they have an order backlog of 282 of its Adam A700 VLJ offering.[6] Adam Aircraft is located in a suburb of Denver, Colorado. The Company has over 80,000 square feet of office and manufacturing space in Englewood, Colorado, 22,000 square feet of manufacturing and testing space in Pueblo, Colorado and 22,000 square feet of assembly space in Ogden, Utah. Adam has a prototype plane flying now, with full certification expected in 2007. 101 copies of the Adam A700 were ordered by future air taxi provider, Magnum Jet.[6]
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[edit] Interior amenities
A New York Times article from August 29, 2006 posed the question, "Will having a lavatory on board be the key factor in short flight success?"[7] A July, 2006 NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams broadcast also discussed the issue of the Eclipse 500's lack of a toilet.[8] Passengers needing to relieve themselves on the Eclipse 500 will be required to bring along a portable container. Eclipse Aviation's CEO Vern Raburn suggests that most of his company's customers will be using the VLJ for short flights from 300-500 miles in length in 40-80 minutes and that the lavatory issue is not going to be a problem for VLJ customers.[7]
Rick Adam, CEO of Adam Aviation, disagrees and says, "people are not going to get on a plane without a bathroom, at least they are not going to do it more than once". The Adam A700 has a 7 seater configuration with rear lavatory with a privacy curtain. The Cessna Mustang also has an emergency toilet, but it is located between the cockpit and cabin. The Embraer Phenom 100 offers a fully enclosed lavatory with a solid door. These toilet-equipped planes are considerably more expensive than the Eclipse, but they may be preferable for owners, especially those planning on using their jet's full range. The new air taxi service companies, which make up the bulk of the Eclipse orders, have done surveys that show that having a toilet is not a concern for most of their passengers. The CEO of DayJet says that even if his company outgrows the Eclipse 500 in the future, he will also have his company's larger planes configured without a toilet.[8]
[edit] Aircraft
| Design | Manufacturer | Seats | Engines | Max. Cruise | Max. Range | Cost | Orders | Certification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delivered production aircraft to first customer | ||||||||
| Citation Mustang | Cessna | 6 | 2× PW615F | 340 knots (630 km/h) | 1,300 nm | $2.62m | 250 | September 8, 2006 |
| Prototypes built and undergoing flight testing | ||||||||
| Eclipse 500 | Eclipse Aviation | 6 | 2× PW610F | 370 knots (695 km/h)[9] | 1,125 nm [9] | $1.52m | 2,500[4] | September 30, 2006 |
| Adam A700 AdamJet | Adam Aircraft Industries | 7 | 2× Williams FJ33 | 340 knots (630 km/h) | 1,200 nm | $2.28m | 282[6] | late 2006 |
| Diamond D-Jet | Diamond Aircraft | 5 | 1× Williams FJ33-4 | 315 knots (583 km/h) | 1,350 nm | $1.38m | 125 | early 2008 |
| ATG Javelin | ATG & IAI | 2 | 2× Williams FJ33 | 530 knots (982 km/h) | 1,200 nm | $2.80m | 100+[citation needed] | early 2008 |
| Spectrum Aero Model 33 | Spectrum Aeronautical [1] | 9 | 2× Williams FJ33-4 | 415 knots (770 km/h) | 2,000 nm | $3.65m | early 2008 | |
| Excel-Jet Sport-Jet | Excel-Jet [2] | 5 | 1× Williams FJ33-4 | 340 knots (630 km/h) | 1,000 nm | $1.00m | early 2008 | |
| Honda HA-420 HondaJet | Honda | 6-8 | 2× GE Honda HF118 | 420 knots (778 km/h) | 1,100 nm | $3.65m | 130+[10] | 2009 |
| Currently under development | ||||||||
| EV-20 Vantage Jet | Eviation Jets [3] | 10 | 2× Williams FJ44-1 | 424 knots (785 km/h) | 1,300 nm | $3.00m | mid 2007 | |
| Epic Jet | Epic Aircraft [4] | 7 | 2× Williams FJ33-4 | 390 knots (722 km/h) | 1,600 nm | $2.10m | early 2008 | |
| Embraer Phenom 100 | Embraer | 6-8 | 2× PW617F | 380 knots (704 km/h) | 1,320 nm | $2.85m | 50+ | mid 2008 |
| PiperJet | Piper Aircraft | 6 | 1× light turbofan | 360 knots (667 km/h) | 1,300 nm | $2.199m | ? | early 2010? |
| Cirrus jet | Cirrus Design | 4 | 1× Williams FJ33-4 | ? | ? | ? | ? | 2010 |
| Homebuilt designs | ||||||||
| Aerocomp Comp Air Jet | Aerocomp | 8 | 1× Ivchenko AI-25TL | 320 knots (593 km/h) | 1,250 nm | < $0.87m | ||
| Viper Jet | Viper Aircraft [5] | 2 | 1× GE CJ-610 | 460 knots (852 km/h) | 750 nm | |||
| Maverick Leader III | Maverick Jets [6] | 4 | 2× Williams FJ33-4 | 472 knots (875 km/h) | 1,450 nm | |||
| Dormant or cancelled projects | ||||||||
| Avocet ProJet | Avocet Aircraft [7] | 6 | 2× unknown | 365 knots (676 km/h) | 1,200 nm | $2.00m | cancelled 2006 | |
| Safire Jet | Safire Aircraft | 6 | 2× Williams FJ33-4 | 380 knots (704 km/h) | 1,300 nm | $1.40m | canceled 2006 | |
| Century Jet | Century Aerospace [8] | 6 | 2× Williams FJ33-1 | 370 knots (685 km/h) | 1,500 nm | $2.70m | dormant 2001 | |
[edit] References
- ^ Trautvetter, Chad. "Cessna Beats Out Eclipse In First VLJ Delivery", AVweb, 2006-11-23. Retrieved on 2006-11-29.
- ^ "Smaller, faster, cheaper new jets may transform flying", Associated Press via USA Today, 2006-01-19. Retrieved on 2006-09-26.
- ^ Cessna Aircraft Company (2006-11-09). Cessna Citation Mustang Cleared for Flight Into Known Icing Conditions. Press release. Retrieved on 2006-11-29.
- ^ a b Huber, Mark. "Eclipse targets hefty initial production run", Aviation International News, 2006-10-17. Retrieved on 2006-12-12.
- ^ Raburn, Vern. "Eclipse Aviation Customer/Investor Update 11-27-06", AVweb, 2006-11-27. Retrieved on 2006-11-29.
- ^ a b c Adam Aircraft Industries (2006-10-16). A700 Adam Jet Chosen by Magnum Jet. Press release. Retrieved on 2006-12-12.
- ^ a b Sharkey, Joe. "Big Battle in Small-Jet Skies" (PDF), The New York Times, 2006-08-29. Retrieved on 2006-12-12.
- ^ a b Di Piazza, Karen. "No Throne Room on Eclipse VLJ: Real Issue or Media Hype?", CharterX. Retrieved on 2006-11-29.
- ^ a b Pew, Glen. "Eclipse Addresses Delays And Performance Guarantees", AVweb, 2006-12-06. Retrieved on 2006-12-12.
- ^ Filipponio, Frank. "Honda sells 100 jets in 3 days", Autoblog, 2006-10-20. Retrieved on 2006-12-12.
[edit] External links
- EBACE 2006 Show preview (Series of Articles), Flight International, April/May 2006
- TIME FOR AN ECLIPSE?, Aviation Week, April 2006
- VLJs fly in the face of critics, Aviation International News, March 2006
- Flight Interview: Vision of Eclipse Aviation's Vern silences the sceptics, Flight International, March 2006
- Dawn of the VLJ, Flight International, May 2005
