The first customer Gulfstream V has received FAA approval to operate under Reduced Vertical Separation Minima (RVSM) flight rules.
Four other GV operators who completed the required flight monitoring are awaiting formal RVSM approval. Gulfstream V is the world's only ultra-long range business aircraft to receive RVSM approval.
The Gulfstream V normally flies above RVSM altitudes without restrictions. RVSM reduces the vertical separation between aircraft flying in different directions from 2,000 to 1,000ft (300m) within the track system altitudes.
Certificated
"With RVSM approval for the Gulfstream V, operators are now having their individual aircraft and crews certificated to fly these tightly monitored routes," says Pres Henne, Gulfstream's senior vice-president for programmes. "It is a tribute to the accuracy of the Gulfstream V altimetry systems and the high level of operational professionalism that customer approval for RVSM flight has been achieved so quickly."
The north Atlantic corridor was the first airspace to introduce RVSM restrictions at altitudes from 31,000 to 39,000ft and it will eventually include altitudes from 29,000 to 41,000ft. The initial RVSM routes in the Pacific are scheduled to open this month and European airspace is expected to introduce RVSM in January 2002. The Gulfstream V remains the only aircraft in its class that can fly without altitude restrictions in RVSM airspace.
"Gulfstream V operators approved for RVSM flight will have a clear advantage since air traffic controllers will have more flexibility in routing the aircraft, resulting in fewer enroute delays for passengers," says Henne.
Source: Flight Daily News
