Tag: Gulfstream

GAMA Report Says General Aviation Recovery Sluggish but Positive

AirInsight reports that GAMA “released its shipments and billings report for the second quarter of 2023, and the results are mildly positive for the general aviation market.” The recovery “is slow but positive through the second quarter.” Year over year “through Q2, business jet deliveries are up 2.4%, and the total value of shipments is up 1.5%.” However, as compared with 2019, the industry “remains behind pre-pandemic levels in 2019 in business jet deliveries.” By contrast, the helicopter market “has rebounded significantly, with turbine helicopters now exceeding pre-pandemic 2019 levels by 13.4% and 23.4% higher billings.” Business jets “have the highest prices and drive revenues for the industry.”
Full Story (Airinsight)

Honeywell Debuts Avionics Upgrades for Gulfstream

Aviation International News reports that an upgrade to Honeywell’s Primus Epic avionics “is now available for the Gulfstream G650/650ER.” Gulfstream says the Block 3 avionics update “enhances pilot situational awareness.” As standard features, the Block 3 update “comes with new graphics modules that provide higher terrain resolution.” It also “has additional synthetic vision display options with better graphics, improvements to the communications and alerting systems, and new software for the next-generation flight management system.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)

Gulfstream Finalizes G700 Testing, Puts G800 on Deck

Aviation Week reports that Gulfstream’s five G700 test flight aircraft are winding down from certification test flight, with FAA approval anticipated sometime this fall. The G700 is experiencing strong sales, with deliveries rolling out into late 2026. But Gulfstream is still looking to the future with the G800 ultra-long range business jet, seeking to replace the current G650 model. Gulfstream’s test plan for the G800 will be less intensive than the G700, due to the G700’s test flights doing much of the “heavy lifting” for flight testing. Gulfstream CEO Mark Burns said, “Things like flights into unknown icing and flammable fuel drainage, and all the difficult things you have to get through for testing an airplane, do not have to be repeated on the 800.” Gulfstream estimates it “will take 6-9 months after G700 certification is complete to finish G800 certification.” The company is targeting early 2024 for FAA certification of the G800.
Full Story (Aviation Week)

GAMA Reveals Aviation Sector Full-Year Numbers for Deliveries and Billings

FlightGlobal reports that the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) “revealed the sector’s full-year figures for unit deliveries and billings.” The major airframers “boosted their aircraft output in 2022, revenue increases tended to be even greater, indicating some impact from inflation perhaps, but also that manufacturers are better able to maintain their prices.” For example, business jet deliveries increased in number by only two aircraft, but total value of the jets went up 4.5%. The top five manufacturers – Bombardier, Dassault, Embraer, Gulfstream and Textron Aviation – “all saw their unit deliveries and billings rise in 2022.”
Full Story (FlightGlobal – Subscription Publication)

Gulfstream Wins USAF Contract Modifications

Aviation International News reports that the US Air Force “plans to fly its Gulfstreams for a while longer.” On January 27, the Air Force “announced that Gulfstream Aerospace had been awarded a variety of contract modifications to support the service’s fleet of C-20 and C-37 (Gulfstream III, IV, V, and 550) models.” The modifications “have a combined value of $124 million.” The awards include an $87 million modification “for contract logistics support services, bringing the cumulative value of the contract to $594 million, and $37 million for C-20 and C-37 engineering support contract services, bringing the cumulative value of that contract to $612 million.” The work will be “performed in Savannah, Georgia; at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland; Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii; and Ramstein Air Base in Germany.” The work is being “contracted by the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma.” The comparatively newer C-37As (GV) and C-37Bs (G550) “are based at the 89th Airlift Wing, 99th Airlift Squadron, at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland; the 15th Airlift Wing, 65th Airlift Squadron at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii; and the 86th Airlift Wing, 76th Airlift Squadron at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)

Gulfstream Notifies FAA of Soot at Rear of G500 and G600 Jets

Reuters reports that Gulfstream Aerospace “has notified owners of its G500 and G600 jets and the Federal Aviation Administration that it has discovered soot at the rear of some of those business jets, possibly because of the way a small engine vents gas in flight.” The FAA and Gulfstream both “said they did not consider the issue to be a safety risk.” The FAA told Reuters, “While it is not a safety-of-flight issue, we are working with Gulfstream to ensure the company addresses it.”
Full Story (Reuters)

Business Aircraft Activity Continues to Grow at Record Pace

Aviation International News reports that European and North American “business aircraft activity continued on a record-setting pace in the first half of the year, with Part 135 flights reaching a new high in March and Part 91 rebounding from Covid lows, according to the Argus International mid-year review.” Yearly gains have averaged “24 percent per month. In fact, each month in 2022 has posted a year-over-year increase over 2021.
Full Story (Aviation International News)

Gulfstream G800 Completes First Flight

Aviation International News reports that the first “Gulfstream G800 – registered as N800G – completed its inaugural flight this morning, officially launching the flight-test program for the 8,000-nm twinjet.” N800G “lifted off from Gulfstream Aerospace’s headquarters at Georgia’s Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport (KSAV) at 9 a.m. and landed back at the field two hours later. It made the flight using a blend of sustainable aviation fuel.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)