Gulfstream’s new flagship, the ultra-long-range G650ER, made its airshow debut last month at the Africa Aerospace and Defence show, held at Waterkloof Air Force Base close to the South African capital Pretoria. According to the airframer, the new model, which will offer range of up to 7,500 nm, is set to complete certification during the fourth quarter of 2014, with initial deliveries to start early next year.
Launched at EBACE earlier this year, the G650ER is a modification of the existing top-of-the-range G650 to accommodate an additional 4,000 pounds of fuel in the wings. The original design was schemed with sufficient internal space in the structure to allow for extra fuel capacity, negating the need for intrusive auxiliary fuel tanks in the fuselage, while the existing structure has adequate margins to handle the extra weight. Apart from some minor changes to the flight control and fuel management systems, the aircraft is otherwise unchanged, although the extra fuel does incur a penalty in balanced field length of around 500 feet.
Compared with the existing G650, the ER can fly farther at similar cruising speeds, extending the Mach 0.85 cruise figure from 7,000 to 7,500 nautical miles with eight passengers, four crew and NBAA IFR reserves. The high-speed (Mach 0.9) cruise figure rises to 6,400 nautical miles from 6,000. Alternatively, the extra fuel can be used to fly range-critical G650 city-pairs at a higher speed than was previously possible, or to carry greater payloads.
Gulfstream has found Africa a good market over the years, and the G650ER’s 500-nm range extension could be of significant benefit to the continent’s operators. For instance, the extra range from Cape Town brings the eastern seaboard of the U.S., including New York, within reach. Much of Asia, including Seoul, and all but the northeastern tip of China are attainable in a single flight segment. High-speed cruise coverage from Cape Town covers all of Europe, South America and Australia.
The G650ER is available as a new-build aircraft, or as an upgrade to existing G650s, the modification work taking less than a week.
