News Release
GULFSTREAM G550 BUSINESS JET SETS TWO NEW CITY-PAIR SPEED RECORDS
Ultra-Long-Range G550 Flies 6,473 Nautical Miles with 11 Onboard
SAVANNAH , Ga. , Feb. 26, 2007 – The ultra-long-range Gulfstream G550 business jet recently set two new city-pair speed records. One of the records was established when a G550, with six passengers and five crew members onboard, flew 6,473 nautical miles nonstop from Nagoya, Japan, to Savannah. The other record was established at the completion of a 4,000-nautical mile flight between Geneva , Switzerland , and Minneapolis-St. Paul.
On Feb. 11, the G550 took off from Nagoya Airport at 9:03 a.m. local time, flying 6,473 nautical miles eastbound, at an average cruise speed of 0.83 Mach and with an average tailwind of 38 knots. Because the aircraft crossed the international dateline, it landed in Savannah at 7:23 a.m. EST the same day. The aircraft flew nonstop for 12 hours and 20 minutes, landing with 3,300 pounds of fuel remaining.
Piloting the Savannah-bound G550 were Roc Miles, Gulfstream director of demonstration and corporate flight operations; Hank Gibson, Gulfstream senior international captain; and Ed Faciszewski, Gulfstream international captain. In addition to the six passengers, Sally Greer, Gulfstream chief flight attendant, and Jeanette Brewer, Gulfstream flight attendant, were on board.
Two weeks earlier on Jan. 30, a G550 took off from Geneva Cointrin International Airport at 3:14 p.m. with nine passengers onboard. The plane flew 3,998 nautical miles at an average cruise speed of 0.845 Mach and into headwinds averaging 18-knots. It landed 8 hours and 38 minutes later at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport with 6,000 pounds of fuel remaining.
Piloting the aircraft was Bob McKenney, Gulfstream senior international captain and Bob Heckendorf, international captain. Jeana Wright was the flight attendant.
Gulfstream has submitted applications to the National Aeronautic Association to confirm both of these new city-pair records.
NOTE TO EDITORS
Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), designs, develops, manufactures, markets, services and supports the world’s most technologically advanced business-jet aircraft. Gulfstream has produced some 1,600 aircraft for customers around the world since 1958. To meet the diverse transportation needs of the future, Gulfstream offers a comprehensive fleet of aircraft, comprising the wide-cabin, high-speed Gulfstream G150 ®; the large-cabin, mid-range Gulfstream G200 ®; the large-cabin, mid-range Gulfstream G350 ®; the large-cabin, long-range G450 ®; the large-cabin, ultra-long-range Gulfstream G500 ® and the large-cabin, ultra-long-range Gulfstream G550 ®. Gulfstream also offers aircraft ownership services via Gulfstream Financial Services Division and Gulfstream Pre-Owned Aircraft Sales ®. The company employs more than 7,900 people at seven major locations. We invite you to visit our Web site for more information and photos of Gulfstream aircraft at www.gulfstream.com.
General Dynamics , headquartered in Falls Church, Va., employs approximately 81,000 people worldwide and had 2006 revenues of $24.1 billion. The company is a market leader in mission-critical information systems and technologies; land and expeditionary combat systems, armaments and munitions; shipbuilding and marine systems; and business aviation. More information about the company is available online at www.generaldynamics.com.
