General Aviation Gulfstream expands G700 test aircraft fleet

U.S.-American business jet manufacturer Gulfstream has announced, that two testbed aircraft have joined the G700 flight proving fleet. Aircraft number four was added at the beginning of October, while the fifth has been added just recently.

The introduction of the new airframes underlines the manufacturer´s ambition to gain the aircraft´s type certificate by important aviation authorities like the FAA or EASA as soon as possible. Gulfstream is already said to be in the advanced flight proving phase and the new testbeds will just accelerate this process.

Mark Burns, president, Gulfstream confirmed: “The G700 flight-test program is progressing exceptionally well [...] Every day, we come closer to our goal of delivering this revolutionary aircraft to our customers. We are steadily increasing flights, flight hours and the completion of numerous company tests, further raising the bar for business aviation around the world.”

Three weeks before, the fourth G700 took to the skies for the first time and performed a nearly 2 hours long test flight, reaching heights of 41,000 feet with a speed of Mach 0.89. Its testing regimen includes avionics, environmental control systems, mechanical systems and electrical power and hydraulics.

Aircraft five flew for over 3 hours on its maiden flight, reaching an altitude of 48,000 feet with a speed o Mach 0.935, topping the maximum operating speed on its first flight. The main focus of this aircraft will be on testing avionics.

Regarding the certification process, Gulfstream wrote: "Since the first G700 flight on Feb. 14, Gulfstream has made significant progress in company flight-testing including cold-weather at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida; flutter; aerodynamic stalls; and envelope expansion. The aircraft has also flown beyond its maximum operating speed and cruise altitude, reaching Mach 0.99 and an altitude of 54,000 ft/16,459 m. In typical operations, the G700 has a maximum operating speed of Mach 0.925 and a maximum cruise altitude of 51,000 ft/15,545 m."

The G700 is the new flag-ship business jet of Gulfstream and will have a range of 6,400 nautical miles at Mach 0.9 or 7,500 nautical miles when cruising at long-range speed of Mach 0.85.