Light Jets

“And then we’ll drop down to, oh … 15,000 or so and do some stalls if you’re up for it,” Learjet demo pilot Chris Barnett said casually during our preflight briefing. As a jet pilot for many years, I’ve tried to keep the words jet and stalls in separate corners of the universe. “Are we […]

Piper has totally redesigned the PiperJet airframe, and given the single-engine jet a new name — Altaire. The old fuselage on the proof-of-concept PiperJet was the same as the PA-46 Mirage/Meridian — round on top and flat on the bottom. It is now a circular cross-section, making it easier to increase the cabin volume of […]

Daher-Socata has announced it will enter a joint development program with Allied Aviation Technologies, the company that ultimately acquired the assets of Grob’s SPn light jet program. In development since 2002, the all-composite jet had shown promise, but Grob’s timing turned out to be unfortunate and its financial backing melted away in 2009. Allied owns […]

A minor upgrade to the Phenom 100? Not even close. Bigger, faster, stronger and more sophisticated, the 300 is a whole different class of airplane.

June 2010 — Like every other aviation journalist, I’ve been watching the development of the Embraer Phenom 300 for a few years now, and the more I’ve learned about the emerging light jet, the more I’ve come to appreciate just what an innovative airplane it is. It is, in essence, Embraer’s attempt to stretch the […]

The first happy customers will be receiving their Cessna Citation CJ4s later this year, following last week’s announcement that the FAA has granted type certification to the latest light jet from Cessna. The $9 million (2010 dollars) CJ4 shares a type rating (including single-pilot operation) with the rest of Cessna’s CJ series. With an NBAA […]

New wing and engine designs, plus advanced systems and avionics, make Cessna’s newest light jet its best ever.

The controls felt like a Citation CJ, but the numbers on the new Collins Pro Line 21 displays didn’t belong to any CJ I had ever flown. Level at 45,000 feet, the true airspeed was 425 knots. And it had taken only 23 minutes to reach that rarified altitude after a near-maximum weight takeoff. How […]

Following certification in mid-December, Embraer Executive Aircraft delivered the first customer Phenom 300 business jet before year end. The timing enabled Tug Hill, Inc., a Texas-based oil and gas investment firm, to qualify for bonus tax depreciation on aircraft delivered in 2009. The Phenom 300, serial number 5, replaces a Cessna Conquest I twin turboprop […]

The ANAC National Civil Aviation Authority of Brazil approved Embraer’s Phenom 300 light jet for production last week. With the factory in São José dos Campos, Brazil, gearing up to meet orders, FAA certification and first deliveries are expected within the next few weeks. The $8.14 million, Pratt & Whitney Canada PW535-E-powered twinjet has exceeded […]