Gulfstream
G650 and G280
In a first for Flying, we award not one but two Editors’ Choice Awards to one company in one year for two groundbreaking products.
The Gulfstream G650 is a seminal airplane, one that takes the concept of bizjet to its ultimate expression. The 19-passenger G650 is big, and at a top speed of Mach .925, it’s the fastest civil jet in the world. With a range of 7,000 nm, it will travel farther than any bizjet, and with a 6,000 nm range at Mach .90, its combination of speed and legs is more impressive than any aircraft, civil or otherwise, that we know of. Certified in September, the G650 was slated to be delivered to the first customer by the end of the year. With hundreds of orders for its $67 million flagship, Gulfstream will keep busy for years to come making the world a much smaller place.
That wasn’t enough for Gulfstream, however, as the company succeeded in certifying a second remarkable airplane in 2012, the super midsize Gulfstream G280. While technically a derivative of the G200, the G280 is as close to a clean sheet airplane as can be for one based on a previous model. The G280 combines an industry-leading glass cockpit, tremendous comfort, enviable speed and a range of 3,600 nm to push the envelope of midsize like we’ve never seen. Like its ultra-long-range stablemate, the G280 earned FAA approval in the fall.
