Beechcraft Premier I

The Beechcraft Premier I is a light business jet aircraft manufactured by the Beechcraft division of Hawker Beechcraft. The aircraft was designed to compete with the Cessna CitationJet series of aircraft.[2]

Beechcraft 390 (Premier I/IA)
Role Business Jet
Manufacturer Raytheon/Hawker Beechcraft
First flight December 22, 1998
Status Active
Produced 2001-2012[1]
Number built 292[1]

Development

Design of the Premier I began early in 1994 under the designation PD-374 (PD for Preliminary Design), and development was authorized to continue early the following year. The aircraft was officially launched at the annual National Business Aviation Association Convention in September 1995 and construction of the first prototype commenced late in 1996.[2] In the mid-1990s, the light jet was to be priced at $5 million.[3]

The Premier I prototype was rolled out on 19 August 1998 and its first flight was on 22 December 1998; four prototypes were used in the flight test program.[2] Its FAA Type Certificate was issued on 23 March 2001.[4] After development delays, the aircraft entered service in 2001 but with poor runway performance, erratic lift dump and brakes, a noisy cabin and substandard cockpit. It was upgraded as the Premier IA in 2006 for $7 million with better brakes, avionics and cabin, and 163 were built in five years.[3] It was certified on 22 September 2005.

In 2018, used aircraft from 2003 to 2011 were priced at $1.28 to 2.4 million.[5]

Premier II/Hawker 200

On 19 May 2008, Hawker Beechcraft announced the launch of the Premier II.[6] Developed from the Premier IA, the new aircraft would feature higher cruise speeds, a 20% longer range with four passengers, and increased payload. The aircraft would continue to feature composite materials for the fuselage, and have more powerful engines and new winglets to achieve performance improvements over the previous model. First flight was scheduled for April 2009, with FAA certification planned for the first half of 2010.[6] Hawker Beechcraft claimed to have received orders for several dozen Premier IIs.[7]

On 31 August 2009, the company indicated that it was slowing development of the Premier II, moving its first delivery date into late 2012 or early 2013 due to the poor market for business aircraft. Company Chairman and CEO Bill Boisture stated: "While we remain fully committed to certifying and fielding the class-leading Premier II as designed, we must be prudent in our evaluation of the current and forecasted global economic environment. Based on these conditions, we have made the decision to extend the entry-into-service date to better align with anticipated rebound of the business jet market."[8][9]

In October 2010, Hawker Beechcraft announced that the Premier II had rebranded and upgraded as the Hawker 200.[10][11]

In December 2011 the company announced that it was slowing down development of the Hawker 200 jet due to the uncertain state of the economy. CEO Bill Boisture indicated the program was not canceled, saying that the aircraft program is "well positioned to continue...when the time is right."[12]

After the bankruptcy of Hawker Beechcraft, the production of business jets ceased in 2013.

Design

The Premier I is constructed with a high-strength composite, carbon fiber/epoxy honeycomb structure fuselage. The Premier I and IA can be certified as light aircraft for operation by a single pilot. The powerplants are Williams International FJ44-2A engines.

Its cabin is nearly as wide as a Citation Excel with 3 in (76 mm) less headroom, and seating is 11.2 ft (3.4 m) long, similar to a CJ2, with a four-seat club plus two aft chairs and an enclosed, 2.3 ft (0.70 m) long aft lavatory. BOWs are usually around 8,400 lb (3,800 kg), leaving 570 lb (260 kg) for the payload at full tanks. The Premier 1A has a Mach 0.8 MMo, 451 kn (835 km/h) cruise at FL310 and a 817 lb (371 kg)/h fuel burn at 424 kn (785 km/h) and midweight. It can fly four passengers over 1,105 or 1,365 nmi (2,046 or 2,528 km) with two passengers and can take off within 3,792 ft (1,156 m) at ISA temperatures and sea-level.[3]

Line maintenance comes at 200 h intervals, A checks at 600 h and B checks at 1,200 h, plus calendar inspections, approximating $300 per hour. Engine maintenance is budgeted for $300 per h for both, with 2,500 h hot section inspections and 5,000 h TBOs. Competition used include the CJ2 and the Nextant 400XT, both have tighter cabins but better airfield performance, the CJ2 can fly four passengers over 1,500 nmi (2,800 km) but is 30–40 kn (56–74 km/h) slower and around $1 million more expensive, while the 400XT can fly 1,800 nmi (3,300 km) for the same value but are usually high-time jets.[3]

Variants
  • Premier I - basic version, introduced in 2001.
  • Premier IA - new cabin interior and improved systems.
  • Premier II - new engines and wingtips, range increase achieved with no extra fuel. Rebranded as the Hawker 200 in October 2010, but did not enter production.

Specifications (Premier IA)
Premier IA climbing
Premier IA cockpit

Data from Hawker Beechcraft[13]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 1
  • Capacity: 6 / 7
  • Length: 46 ft 0 in (14.02 m)
  • Wingspan: 44 ft 6 in (13.56 m)
  • Height: 15 ft 4 in (4.67 m)
  • Wing area: 246 sq ft (22.9 m2) [14]
  • Aspect ratio: 8.03
  • Empty weight: 8,600 lb (3,901 kg) Basic Operating
  • Max takeoff weight: 12,500 lb (5,670 kg)
  • Fuel capacity: 3,670 lb / 1,665 kg
  • Max Payload: 1,400 lb / 635 kg
  • Cabin Length × Width × Height: 13 ft 6 in × 5 ft 6 in × 5 ft 5 in (4.11 × 1.68 × 1.65 m)
  • Hold: 76.9 cu. ft / 2.2 cu. m
  • Powerplant: 2 × Williams FJ44-2A Turbofan, 2,300 lbf (10.23 kN) thrust each

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 523 mph (841 km/h, 454 kn) max cruise
  • Range: 950 mi (1,530 km, 830 nmi) Max Payload
  • Ferry range: 1,710 mi (2,750 km, 1,480 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 41,000 ft (12,500 m)
  • Wing loading: 50.6 lb/sq ft (247 kg/m2)
  • Fuel consumption: 1.67[3] lb/mi (0.47 kg/km)
  • Thrust/weight: 0.37
  • Take-off (MTOW): 3,792 ft / 1,156 m
  • Landing (MLW): 3,177 ft / 968 m

Avionics

See also

Related development

  • Hawker 200

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

References
  1. Murdo Morrison (12 Oct 2018). "NBAA: Business jet designs that changed the industry". FlightGlobal.
  2. Airliners.net Premier I page. Retrieved: 23 August 2008.
  3. Kent S. Jackson (Feb 22, 2019). "Hawker Beechcraft Premier 1A: Midsize Cabin On Light-Jet Airframe". Business & Commercial Aviation.
  4. "Type Certificate data sheet No. A00010WI" (PDF). FAA. October 12, 2016.
  5. Mark Huber (December 2018). "For many models, market hitting the apex" (PDF). Aviation International News. pp. 20–21, 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-12-27. Retrieved 2018-12-27.
  6. "Hawker Beechcraft Corporation Goes Higher, Farther and Faster with the New Premier II" Archived 2010-12-31 at the Wayback Machine, Hawker Beechcraft Media Release. Retrieved: 23 August 2008.
  7. "Hawker Beechcraft Receives More Than 70 Commitments for New Premier II" Archived 2011-07-28 at the Wayback Machine, Hawker Beechcraft Media Release. Retrieved: 23 August 2008.
  8. Grady, Mary (September 2009). "Hawker Holding Off On Premier II Debut". Retrieved 2009-09-06.
  9. Alexander, Nicole (August 2009). "Hawker Beechcraft Makes Significant Progress on Premier II Program". Archived from the original on 2011-07-28. Retrieved 2009-09-06.
  10. Hawker Beechcraft Launches Hawker 200 Archived 2011-07-28 at the Wayback Machine
  11. Niles, Russ (October 2010). "Hawker Beechcraft Unveils Hawker 200". AvWeb. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
  12. Grady, Mary (5 December 2011). "Hawker 200 On Hold". AVweb. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  13. "Specifications". Premier IA. Hawker Beechcraft. Archived from the original on 2013-01-03.
  14. "Type certificate data sheet No. EASA.IM.A.073 for Beechcraft 390 (Premier I and IA)" (PDF). EASA. 13 March 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.