Manufacturer reveals details of initial trials as orderbook approaches 2,200 aircraft
Eclipse Aviation has resumed flight tests of the Eclipse 500 very light jet (VLJ) after a hiatus of almost two years for the development of new Pratt & Whitney Canada engines.
The aircraft, N503EA, was flown for 2h 23min during two flights on 31 December, and achieved a maximum altitude of 16,800ft (5,125m) and a speed of 200kt (370km/h) during the sorties, the first of which lasted 1h 29min.
Full envelope expansion will take place over the next few flights, according to Eclipse president and chief executive Vern Raburn, who says the first "cautious" flights were conducted with flaps up and landing gear locked down. The second flight of the day, lasting 54min, was "more for speed calibration" says Raburn, adding that N503EA is not equipped with an air data boom. This will be fitted to the second aircraft, N502EA.
Minor problems with the radio, intercom and climate control system were encountered during the flights. Further test flights have been suspended because of continuing rain and low cloud at the company's New Mexico base, but were last week expected to resume shortly.
The performance of the aircraft's P&WC PW610F engines was "phenomenal", adds Raburn. The powerplants replace the original Williams International EJ22 turbofans that suffered development problems up to and beyond the first flight of the prototype aircraft in mid-2002.
The subsequent delay set back deliveries from the original target date of September 2003 to around April or May 2006, pending certification in March 2006. The setback caused "a lot of angst" to customers and investors, says Raburn, but he says "there is no question we have a better aircraft than we would if Williams had not failed". Eclipse has continued to refine the aircraft and plans to mass-produce the aircraft in the interim "so this is not going to the typical build-up in the schedule that you normally see", he adds.
As a result Eclipse expects to encounter "challenges" as its suppliers ramp-up to meet an acceleration to between two and four aircraft a day in three years' time.
"The challenges will be in the early to mid-2007 time when we hit the high numbers," says Raburn, who warns that some suppliers will "require some pretty big investments to keep up with us". Orders for the aircraft now lie at "just under" 2,200.
GUY NORRIS / LOS ANGELES
Source: Flight International
