First Gulfstream G500 test airplane lands at NBAA in Las Vegas. (Photos by Pia Bergqvist)
Despite having to fight 75-knot headwinds on its way from Savannah, Georgia to Las Vegas, the G500 completed the 1,630 nm flight in 4 hours and 36 minutes.Pia BergqvistThe G500 is on display this week at NBAA’s static display at the Henderson Executive Airport southeast of the Las Vegas strip.Pia BergqvistT1 has accumulated more than 160 hours of flight test since it first flew in May. The airplane has already reached 50,000 feet and top speeds of Mach 0.995.Pia BergqvistThe G500 flight test crew consisted of (from the top down) flight test engineers Paul Ludlow and Nathaniel Rutland, and test pilots Scott Martin and Scott Evans.Pia BergqvistPowered by Honeywell’s Primus Epic avionics suite, the Symmetry Flight Deck features no less than 10 tough screen interfaces, some of which are located in the overhead panel. The fly by wire system is controlled through active control sidesticks rather than the traditional control columns.Pia BergqvistThere are several flight test engineer stations in what will become the G500 cabin, which will feature a flexible configuration with either three or four dedicated spaces.Pia BergqvistTest equipment fills the spacious cabin. The large cabin windows are the same size as those in the Gulfstream G650.Pia BergqvistThe massive nose boom in T1 provides air data, angle-of-attack and angle-of-sideslip information to the test pilots and engineers.Pia BergqvistFlutter vanes under the G500 winglets on each wingtip provide more data for analysis.Pia BergqvistThe test pilots have described the operation of the Pratt & Whitney PW814GA engines, which produce 15,144 lbs of thrust, as “flawless.” Despite the early stage of the test program, many flights return squawk free, said vice president of advanced aircraft programs Mark Kohler.Pia BergqvistDesign goals for the G500 include a 5,000 nm range at Mach 0.85 and 3,800 nm at Mach 0.90. (Photo courtesy of Gulfstream)GulfstreamTo provide greater dispatchability, touch screen controllers have triple redundancy. In case one fails, the aircraft can be dispatched with two functional units. (Photo courtesy of Gulfstream)GulfstreamThe switch from control columns to active sidestick controllers provides a lot of extra legroom for G500 pilots and enabled more functionality for the pilot’s and copilot’s seats. Read more about the G500 here.(Photo courtesy of Gulfstream)Gulfstream
