Was the Lear Jet the First VLJ?

FLYING Staff

Thursday, August 02, 2007 at 08:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

The article compares the Lear Jet 23 and Eclipse 500 to illustrate 40 years of progress in light business jets, noting their shared origins as ventures by non-aviation entrepreneurs aiming for high-volume, low-cost personal jets.
Both companies faced significant challenges, missing initial delivery dates and substantially increasing price targets, highlighting the inherent difficulty of simultaneously designing an aircraft and establishing a manufacturing company.
While raw speed performance in jets hasn't significantly advanced over 40 years, modern aircraft like the Eclipse 500 offer vastly improved flying qualities, systems complexity, and safety compared to the challenging and less forgiving Lear Jet 23.
Despite inflationary pressures, the Eclipse 500's current price point remains remarkably low relative to its original target and other general aviation aircraft, suggesting unique pricing or manufacturing efficiencies.

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I received a letter from a reader after our story on the Cessna Mustang ran in the May issue asking me to compare the Mustang to the original Lear Jet 23, to measure 40 years of progress in light business jets. Interesting idea, and there is a valid comparison, but it’s not the Lear and and the Mustang. It’s between the Lear 23 and the Eclipse 500.

The reason the Mustang bears no relationship to the first Lear Jet is that the Mustang comes from the leader in business jets, not a start-up company. Cessna will soon deliver its 5,000th Citation, far more than any other business jet maker. The Mustang is an all-new design, but it is the product of the most experienced maker of light and medium-sized business jets in the world.