Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation G550

Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, markets, services and supports the world’s most technologically advanced business jet aircraft.  Gulfstream has produced 1,600 aircraft for customers around the world since 1958.
Gulfstream G550.

Just one week after entering service in September 2003, the G550 completed a 20,000-mile flight around the world – setting four city-pair speed records in the process. And that tradition has continued with the re-vamped G-V-SP clocking up records between cities and continents across the globe.

The aircraft was the 2004 winner of the famous Collier trophy and recognized for its ability to outreach any other business-jet aircraft in its class. The G550 can accommodate up to 19 passengers, fly at a maximum speed of 0.885 Mach and cruise at a maximum altitude of 51,000 feet. With a 100 percent fresh air system, maximum cabin altitude of 6,000 feet and 14 signature oval windows that allow for ample natural lighting, the G550 cabin maximizes passenger comfort while decreasing the effects of travel fatigue and jet lag.

The Gulfstream G550 also features the PlaneView™ cockpit and the Gulfstream Enhanced Vision System (EVS) as standard. (This system enables flight crews to see runway markings, taxiways, adjacent roads and surrounding areas in conditions of limited visibility. The system also helps crews avoid runway incursion and hazards that would otherwise not be easily visible.)
Powered by two Rolls-Royce BR710 engines, each producing more than 15,000 pounds of thrust, the G550 can fly eight passengers and four crewmembers 6,750 nautical miles - it will fly non-stop from New York to Tokyo in 14 and one-half hours at altitudes up to 51,000 feet (15,545 meters), high above commercial air traffic, weather and adverse winds and permitting even more direct air traffic routing.

The first production Gulfstream G550 was originally known as the SP (Special Performance) version of the Gulfstream G-V offering enhanced performance and greater cabin space than the G-V-SP. It rolled out in June, 2002 and received FAA certification on Aug. 14, 2003.

This aircraft differs externally from the legacy Gulfstream V by a seventh passenger window on the left side of the aircraft (as opposed to six on the left and either six or seven on the right). It features a low swept wing with winglets, twin Rolls-Royce Deutschland BR710 turbofan engines mounted on the fuselage ahead of a swept T tail and swept tailplane.

For more information within a handy book why not buy Flight's 2008 Pocket Guide to Business Aircraft.