731 Falcon 20B

It was 10 years ago that the 731 Falcon 20B made its first flight. Since then, AlliedSignal has re-engined 103 Falcon 20-series business jets with its 4750-pound thrust TFE731-5BR turbofans. The popular and handsome Falcon 20 now has a new lease on life in terms of performance and Stage III compliance. Clay Lacy, Pro Pilot’s flightcheck pilot, recently had the opportunity to fly a 731 Falcon 20B. He reports his impressions of the re-engined Falcon’s handling and performance characteristics and offers some insights as to the wisdom of investing millions of dollars in an airframe that may be 10 to 30 years old.

Aircraft of the 21st century — it’s time for really big changes

Hypersonic business jet aircraft, operating between Mach 4 and Mach 10, will one day become a reality. This illustration represents a hypersonic business jet design by Richard Tracy, president of Reno Aeronautical and a leader in supersonic aircraft design.

Aviation Partners Winglets Debut on Hawker 800

Blended winglets show promise of increased range and improved climb performance. I’d never seen a better-looking Hawker than the airplane that was parked outside my window at Clay Lacy Aviation VNY (Van Nuys CA) one Friday morning in late Sep. While it was your basic Hawker 800, this particular aircraft was outfitted with a pair of Aviation Partners blended winglets and the wing fences were removed. Standing 44 in tall, with an elegant wide- sweep transition, these winglets really added to the aesthetic appeal, size and perception of the Hawker 800. And they looked so natural that you’d think they’d always been there.

Bell 609 Civil Tiltrotor

BELL Helicopter Textron took the Bell Boeing tiltrotor program in house earlier this year with two products in the pipeline—the Bell 609 civil tiltrotor and the larger V-22 Osprey military tiltrotor, which is still a Bell Boeing program. The 609, based on the existing XV-15 testbed, holds much promise for corporate, search and rescue, EMS and special mission applications. 

Bombardier Global 5000

Introduced in Feb 2002 and FAA certified this October, Bombardier’s Global 5000 is one of the more interesting business aircraft to enter the market- place in recent years. After removing 32 inches of fuselage, and 7600 lb of fuel, from the standard Global Express, the manufacturer has dropped the price about $10 million