When Gulfstream Aerospace announced that it had re-designated its G250 super-midsize jet as the G280, Business Jet Traveler's editors were already well under way with our plans to publish a Chinese version of our award-winning BJT Buyers’ Guide. The first example of this special edition will be distributed at the Asian Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (ABACE) in Shanghai from March 27 to 29, along with daily editions of our sister publication, ABACE Convention News. The Buyers’ Guide in Chinese will also be sent directly to our growing number of readers in China.

All the talk over the past 10-plus years about China being the new bizav frontier is no longer just talk, and nothing made me surer of this than when Gulfstream changed the name of the G250 to G280. When spoken, the numbers 2-5-0 in Mandarin Chinese resemble a slang term that has been variously reported as meaning “easy to go bankrupt,” “imbecile” or “stupid.” Though Gulfstream would not confirm officially that this is the exact reason for the name change, it did state that the move was prompted by the company’s sensitivity to the varied cultures of its growing international customer base.

As you can imagine, we have the same concerns and sensitivities here at BJT, which is why we are taking extraordinary precautions in translating our Buyers’ Guide. We are implementing a double-check policy so that every word is reviewed by two different experts, and we are reaching out to every business aircraft manufacturer included in our aircraft guide that will provide key data about nearly 200 jets, turboprops and helicopters. We will be including information in both English and Chinese, with contact information for all manufacturers (where applicable) listed for both countries.