Gulfstream has slashed the number of G700s it expects to deliver this year on the back of continued supply chain issues.
Previously the US airframer had forecast shipping 50-52 examples of its flagship business jet this year, following its March certification, but worse-than-expected performance over the last two quarters has seen the annual total cut to 42.
In the three months ended 30 September, Gulfstream handed over just four G700s, against a target of 15-16, while in the preceding quarter 11 were delivered rather than the 15 forecast.
Presenting parent company General Dynamics’ third-quarter earnings on 23 October, chief executive Phebe Novakovic said multiple supply chain issues caused the G700 shortfall.
This included the late arrival of the jet’s Rolls-Royce Pearl 700 engines – requiring repainting of already built and liveried aircraft.
In addition, the “intricacies” of the “highly customised interiors” of several of the G700s due for delivery in the quarter led to a longer than planned supplemental type certification process and “the size and complexity of the G700 cabins has also elongated the customer reviews during final delivery of these planes,” says Novakovic.
However, she is confident that issue will not recur in subsequent quarters.
Lastly, a quality escape from an undisclosed supplier “late in the quarter” meant that up to 16 parts on each delivery-ready aircraft needed to be replaced
“The supplier is fully co-operative and is providing components for all our needs, but this rework has increased the number of test flights necessary to obtain the final certificate of airworthiness for each aircraft,” she adds.
On top of these issues, the arrival of Hurricane Helene in late September caused four days of production to be lost, plus “several customers” in Savanah working through the acceptance process “left and went home to avoid the storm”.
Over the remainder of the year, Gulfstream plans to deliver 27 G700s: five in October, nine in November, and 13 in December.
Novakovic says supply chain challenges remain, including late deliveries and quality issues necessitating rework.
“The supply chain has got much better, as evidenced by our ability to ramp-up production, but it still has a way to go,” she adds.
Despite the issues with the G700, total deliveries this year are still running ahead of 2023: Gulfstream shipped 89 aircraft across the first nine months of 2024, against 72 for the same period last year.
For the full year, a total of 150 deliveries are now expected, against the 160 units previously forecast, with 10 shipments sliding into 2025.
Revenue in General Dynamics’ aerospace business unit – which also includes completions house Jet Aviation – stood at $2.48 billion, a 22% increase year on year, while operating earnings were at $305 million.
For the nine-month period, revenue was $7.5 billion, an increase of 27.7%, while operating earnings rose by around 20% to $879 million.
Backlog in the aerospace unit stood at $19.8 billion at 30 September, down marginally on the $20 billion recorded a year earlier.
