Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DC
Raytheon Aircraft has received US certification for the Premier I entry-level business jet, 28 months behind schedule. Deliveries will begin in May or June after modifications resulting from certification are incorporated into completed aircraft.
The Wichita, Kansas-based company expects remaining certification work to be finished before the first customer delivery. Single-pilot and icing certification remain to be completed. Natural icing tests have been conducted and flight tests with ice shapes are under way. Most options have been certificated, with the exception of some minor items.
The company says 18 aircraft are in the post-certification modification line. Changes to be incorporated include re-routing electric wiring and hydraulic lines in the main wheel wells to protect them from tyre bursts, a requirement that emerged late in the certification flight test programme.
Raytheon has orders for "over 300" aircraft. The company plans to deliver up to 36 this year, reaching full-rate production in the third quarter and delivering 60 aircraft annually from next year. The orderbook includes 71 for the company's fractional ownership subsidiary Raytheon Travel Air, which will receive its first aircraft in October next year.
Development of the Premier I cost over $300 million and analysts believe its certification removes a major obstacle to long-rumoured, but unconfirmed plans to sell Raytheon Aircraft. The company still faces several challenges, including certification of its Hawker Horizon super mid-size business jet, delayed to 2003.
Source: Flight International
