ATLANTA — Bombardier’s new Global twins aim to eclipse Gulfstream’s G650 by many important metrics, not the least of which is the price tag.
The Global 7000 (PDF factsheet) and 8000 (PDF factsheet) started life more than two years ago as a single codenamed aircraft, the M170, a 7000nm jet, roughly the same size as today’s Global Express XRS.
That first concept later morphed into two aircraft with the help of 150 Bombardier Global customers, which naturally divided themselves into two distinct categories; one group prioritizing range, and the other to cabin space.
The aircraft, says Brad Nolan director of product planning for Bombardier business aircraft, is a response to the rapid economic growth of India, China and Latin America the need to connect points directly was put at the forefront.
“As wealth was spreading across the globe, we saw the need for a longer range airplane,” says Nolan. “We also saw customers who were more centrally located on the globe, but a key group of operators was looking for absolutely the largest cabin in business aviation.”
Bombardier aims to best the high-speed range of the Gulfstream G650, with long legs of 5,650nm and 5,100nm at Mach .90 for the Global 8000 and 7000, and 7,900nm and 7,300nm at Mach .85, respectively. Gulfstream announced Monday that its G650 has validated its 5,000nm range at a M.90 cruising speed.
The Global 7000 and 8000 will also sport price tags of $65 million in 2010 dollars, compared to around $58.5 million for the Gulfstream G650.
The two new jets will take elements from the existing Global Express XRS and Global 5000 for the 7000 and 8000. The 7000 and 8000 will be 135in and 27in longer than the Global Express XRS, respectively. Additionally, the horizontal and vertical tail will be mostly common across the Global family.
The all-new wing, one of two sources for the Global 7000 and 8000’s long legs, is currently in wind tunnel testing says Steve Ridolfi, President, Bombardier Business Aircraft. The thinner high-speed wing will feature four pairs of spoilers, two pairs of flaps and three pairs of slats. Wind tunnel testing is expected to continue for at least six to eight months. Each aircraft will feature a 104ft 4in wingspan.
Bombardier has not yet decided if the new Globals will feature a fly-by-wire flight control system, and a decision is expected shortly.
The other major investment for the new Global 7000 and 8000 will be the General Electric TechX, which Bombardier says will be enable a 14% and 18% improvement in fuel efficiency over other long-range business jets.
On the flight deck, Ridolfi says the Global Vision flight test program for the Global Express XRS and Global 5000 have served as a technological “building block” for the Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion avionics that will be employed on the 7000 and 8000.
The Global 7000 and 800 will enter service in 2016 and 2017, respectively, while Ridolfi says the timing of the new jets was driven by the technological requirements of the engine and wing more than the availability of engineering resources required for the company’s CS100 and CS300 CSeries jetliners which enter service in 2013 and 2014.
The both aircraft exceed the critical 100,000lb maximum takeoff weight mark, which is a critical barrier for gaining access to airports in Teterboro and Aspen. Though the 106,500lb and 105,050lb MTOWs for the 7000 and 8000 will likely be able to backed off to 100,000lbs with a flight manual supplement, sacrificing some range for access to the business jet-frequented airports.
“Given the margin we have,” says Ridolfi. “You can imagine the 8000 still goes an awfully long way at 100,000lbs.”
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This post originally appeared at Flightglobal.com from 2007 to 2012.