News Release
FUSELAGE SECTIONS JOINED FOR GULFSTREAM G250
Milestone Puts Company’s Newest Aircraft on Track for First Flight
SAVANNAH, Ga., February 27, 2009 – Gulfstream Aerospace, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE:GD), recently celebrated the fuselage joining for the first Gulfstream G250, the company’s newest mid-cabin jet.
The G250 forward, center and aft fuselage sections were joined utilizing the most advanced assembly process, which has proven to reduce the time needed to complete the fuselage. The improvement is the result of the G250’s cutting-edge design, which uses the most advanced engineering and design tools.
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“The fuselage joining is a tremendous step forward for the G250,” said Pres Henne, senior vice president, Programs, Engineering and Test, Gulfstream. “The mechanics have been very pleased with the precision of the assembly process. Everything went smoothly with the fuselage joining, and now we look forward to the next major milestone — the aircraft’s first flight.”
The G250 offers the largest cabin and the longest range at the
fastest speed in the industry’s mid-size class. The aircraft
is capable of traveling 3,400 nautical miles at 0.80 Mach and has
a maximum operating speed of 0.85 Mach. With an initial cruise
altitude of 41,000 feet, the G250
can climb to a maximum altitude of 45,000 feet, where it can avoid
congestion and adverse
weather.
The G250 is powered by twin Honeywell HTF7250G engines, each providing 7,445 pounds of thrust. The engines and nacelle package for the first flight test aircraft have already been delivered.
Gulfstream projects the G250 to be certified in 2011 and expects to begin deliveries of the aircraft the same year. The first flight of the aircraft is scheduled for the second half of this year.
Initial-phase manufacturing for the G250 takes place at Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) headquarters near the Ben Gurion International Airport just outside of Tel Aviv, Israel. Gulfstream maintains an office at IAI to oversee production.
“We are happy to take part in developing and manufacturing one of the world’s most advanced business jets,” said David Dagan, corporate vice president, IAI, and general manager, Commercial Aircraft Group. “This prestigious program is advancing as planned due to the hard work invested by the IAI and Gulfstream crews. We are proud of this achievement.”
Final-phase manufacturing for the G250 will take place at the Gulfstream “Center of Excellence” completion facility for mid-cabin aircraft in Dallas. The G250 Program office is located in Savannah.
NOTE TO EDITORS
Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), designs, develops, manufactures, markets, services and supports the world’s most technologically advanced business-jet aircraft. Gulfstream has produced some 1,800 aircraft for customers around the world since 1958. To meet the diverse transportation needs of the future, Gulfstream offers a comprehensive fleet of aircraft, comprising the wide-cabin, high-speed Gulfstream G150®; the large-cabin, mid-range Gulfstream G200®; the new large-cabin, mid-range Gulfstream G250®; the large-cabin, mid-range Gulfstream G350®; the large-cabin, long-range G450®; the large-cabin, ultra-long-range Gulfstream G500®; the large-cabin, ultra-long-range Gulfstream G550® and the ultra-large-cabin, ultra-long-range G650®. Gulfstream also offers aircraft ownership services via Gulfstream Financial Services Division and Gulfstream Pre-Owned Aircraft Sales®. The company employs more than 9,700 people at seven major locations. We invite you to visit our Web site for more information and photos of Gulfstream aircraft at www.gulfstream.com.
General Dynamics, headquartered in Falls Church, Va., employs approximately 92,300 people worldwide. The company is a market leader in business aviation; land and expeditionary combat systems, armaments and munitions; shipbuilding and marine systems; and information systems and technologies. More information about General Dynamics is available online at www.gd.com.