TYPE: Light business jet.

PROGRAMME: Development began in 2000; first brief details revealed in mid-2000; HF-118 engine made first flight 10 June 2002 in Cessna CitationJet testbed; wing aerofoil tested 2002 as 'glove' section on T-33 testbed; wind tunnel tests conducted at Greensboro facility, the University of Washington, Boeing's transonic wind tunnel and Japanese National Aeronautics Laboratory's transonic flutter wind tunnel. Static and fatigue testing of prototype (N420HA; c/n P001) under way by mid-2003; first flight undertaken in secrecy at Piedmont Triad Airport, North Carolina, 3 December 2003 and announced on 16 December 2003.

DESIGN FEATURES: Low-mounted, moderately tapered wings of natural laminar flow section, with cabane-mounted engines and small winglets. T tail with sharply swept fin and rudder, plus dorsal fin; tailplane has sweptback leading-edges and elevator cut-outs for rudder movement. Primary design considerations were large cabin size and range/fuel consumption economics. Engine position allows cabin size increase of 30 per cent without penalty. Nose shape optimised for generation of fuselage laminar flow, which also achieved on wings despite their relative thickness.
Laminar flow Honda SMH-1 wing section.

FLYING CONTROLS: Double-slotted, 30 per cent chord flaps with mechanical linkage (settings 15.7° for T-O, 50° for landing). Stall characteristics said to be 'docile' in both cruise and climb.

STRUCTURE: Fuselage of co-cured carbon fibre-reinforced prepreg glass fibre and epoxy, integrally stiffened in main barrel section, with GFRP honeycomb sandwich for nosecone and tailcone. Aluminium alloy for three-spar wings and for tail assembly.

LANDING GEAR: Sumitomo hydraulically retractable tricycle type. Trailing-link main units, retracting into underside of wing centre-section; nosewheel is steer-by-wire (±10° for take-off, ±50° for taxying).

POWER PLANT: Two 7.43 kN (1.670 lb st) Honda HF118 podded turbofans, mounted on sweptback overwing pylons and equipped with Honda-developed FADEC.
Fuel in four tanks (one in each outer wing, one in wing centre-section, and one rear fuselage bladder tank). Single-point refuelling at rear on starboard side.

ACCOMMODATION: Standard seating for two crew and four passengers in pressurised cabin, with lavatory at rear; or six passengers with lavatory omitted. Four cabin windows per side; cabin door on port side immediately aft of flight deck.

SYSTEMS: Cabin pressurised to 0.60 bar (8.7 lb/sq in), giving 2,440 m (8,000 ft) equivalent environment at altitude of 13,400 m (44,000 ft). Wing leading-edge anti-icing by engine bleed air; windscreen electrically heated.

AVIONICS: Garmin 1000 integrated modular suite with three-screen EFIS.
Instrumentation: EFIS, comprising PFD for each crew member and single central MFD.

Preliminary details as follows

DIMENSIONS, EXTERNAL:

• Wing span over winglets: 12.15 m (39 ft 10½ in)
• Length overall: 12.54 m (41 ft 1¾ in)
• Height overall: 4.03 m (13 ft 2½ in)

DIMENSIONS, INTERNAL:

• Cabin: Length: 4.60 m (15 ft 1 in)
• Max height: 4.50 m (4 ft 10¾ in)

WEIGHTS AND LOADINGS:

• Max T-O weight: 4,173 kg (9,200 lb)
• Max power loading: 281 kg/kN (2.75 lb/lb st)

PERFORMANCE (estimated):

• Max level speed at FL300: 420 kt (777 km/h; 483 mph)
• Max cruising speed: 389 kt (720 km/h; 448 mph)
• Optimum cruising altitude: 12,500 m (41,000 ft)
• Max certified altitude: 13,400 m (44,000 ft)
• T-O run: 808 m (2,650 ft)
• Landing run: 695 m (2,280 ft)
• IFR range at FL410: 1,100 n miles (2,037 km; 1,265 miles)

The article appears in the following publication:
Jane's All the World's Aircraft 2004-2005. Jane's Information Group Ltd. 2004. ISBN: 0-7106-2614-2