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On Monday February 26, the Cessna Citation Longitude test aircraft (N707CL) that was at the Singapore Airshow last month routed through Farnborough, UK. The type is now awaiting certification from the FAA “early in 2018” and from EASA some six months later, according to v-p sales Europe for Textron Aviation Tom Perry who was also on a flight that took journalists out over Wales from TAG Farnborough Airport. The first European order came from Travel Service of the Czech Republic, and was announced in May 2017. Certification of the “up to 12”-passenger plus two-crew Longitude, with a list price of $27 million, was originally slated for the end of 2017.
One of the reasons for the flight was to demonstrate to the media that the Longitude, according to Textron Aviation, has “the quietest cabin in the industry,” thanks to features such as damped flooring, isolated interior panels, and acoustic windows, as well as excellent performance credentials.
The flight stepped up gradually to 43,000 feet over Wales but cabin altitude was just 5,500 feet, thanks to the 9.6 psi pressure differential. An uninterrupted time to climb would have been 16 minutes to FL430 (rather than the 23 minutes taken). Takeoff weight was 33,000 pounds, 8,000 of which was fuel.
During the demo flight, the cabin was quiet enough to allow normal conversation.
Perry told journalists, “Textron has painstakingly addressed each individual noise source around the airframe and taken soundproofing measures to counter the exact frequency of them all. This is in addition to overall soundproofing for the entire fuselage and noise-reducing doors at the front and rear of the cabin interior. The noise which you do hear is literally the slight aerodynamic sound from antennas along the fuselage.”
Fuel burn for the first hour of flight (takeoff and climb to cruise) was approximately 2,400 pph (pounds per hour); and for the first couple of cruise hours it was 1,800 pph; and later (now at a lower weight), 1,600 to 1,700 pph. With four passengers, the maximum range for the aircraft would be 3,500 nm, according to Textron Aviation.
The flight departed Farnborough and received radar vectors to Portland Bill, Dorset and then toward Dawlish, Devon. There followed a turn to the north towards the “EXMOR” waypoint (Exmoor) via Brecon, and further toward Liverpool before a right turn passing by Birmingham and Oxford and back to in ILS approach to Runway 06 at Farnborough. Landing weight was 30,300 pounds, showing a fuel burn of 2,700 pounds for the 1-hr 10-min flight.
Inside the cabin, there is a remote control phone or tablet app for opreating IFE and controlling the window shades on the large cabin windows. And there is even a window in the lavatory. The baggage hold is accessible during flight. An optional galley feature is a high-power electrical outlet allowing an ordinary expresso coffee machine or microwave oven to be added.
The soon-to-be-certified Cessna Citation Longitude completed a round-the world trip last month that took it to the Singapore Airshow and on a tour of Asia Pacific countries—and back via Europe. The aircraft left Wichita heading Westbound on January 27 and traveled more than 31,000 miles in 31 days, according to Textron Aviation.
“After successfully circling the globe and showcasing its outstanding performance and reliability throughout diverse regions and a wide array of environmental conditions, the Longitude reinforced its ability to suit the needs of operators worldwide,” said senior v-p sales and marketing Rob Scholl.
The Longitude is powered by Honeywell HTF7700L engines, with fully integrated autothrottles and flight-envelope protection, and has a Garmin G5000 flight deck with new GHD 2100 head-up display offering enhanced vision capability. It also offers an 18-month/800-hour maintenance interval.
After the Singapore airshow in early February, the aircraft undertook a nonstop trip from Singapore to Sydney, Australia. This flight took the aircraft, carrying a crew of two pilots plus five passengers, 3,504 nm from Seletar, Singapore, to Sydney, Australia, in 7 hours, 39 minutes at Mach 0.80, having made a direct climb to 41,000 feet.
Textron Aviation president and CEO Scott Ernest said the flight was “a compelling demonstration of the aircraft’s outstanding long-range performance capability for common mission profiles throughout the Asia-Pacific region [and] signals Textron Aviation’s commitment to investment in the region–in both products and support.”
Following the Asia tour, the Longitude made sales stops in Sweden, France, Italy, and Switzerland before routing through Farnborough, UK, where AIN had a chance to experience a flight out over Wales.
Quiet Cabin Demo
One of the reasons for the flight from TAG Farnborough Airport was to demonstrate what Textron Aviation calls “the quietest cabin in the industry,” thanks to features such as damped flooring, isolated interior panels, and acoustic windows Also on display were the twinjet's performance credentials.
The flight stepped up gradually to 43,000 feet over Wales, but cabin altitude was just 5,500 feet, thanks to the 9.6-psi pressure differential. An uninterrupted time to climb would have been 16 minutes to FL430 (rather than the 23 minutes taken). Takeoff weight was 33,000 pounds, 8,000 of which was fuel.
During the demo flight, the cabin was quiet enough to allow normal conversation.
Tom Perry, v-p sales Europe for Textron Aviation , told journalists, “Textron has painstakingly addressed each individual noise source around the airframe and taken soundproofing measures to counter the exact frequency of them all. This is in addition to overall soundproofing for the entire fuselage and noise-reducing doors at the front and rear of the cabin interior. The noise you do hear is literally the slight aerodynamic sound from antennas along the fuselage.”
Fuel burn for the first hour of flight (takeoff and climb to cruise) was approximately 2,400 pph (pounds per hour); for the first couple of cruise hours it was 1,800 pph; and later (at a lower weight), 1,600 to 1,700 pph. With four passengers, the maximum range for the aircraft would be 3,500 nm, according to Textron Aviation.
The flight departed Farnborough and received radar vectors to Portland Bill, Dorset and then toward Dawlish, Devon. There followed a turn to the north toward the “EXMOR” waypoint (Exmoor) via Brecon, and farther toward Liverpool before a right turn passing by Birmingham and Oxford and back to an ILS approach to Runway 06 at Farnborough. Landing weight was 30,300 pounds, showing a fuel burn of 2,700 pounds for the 1-hour, 10-min flight.
Inside the cabin, there is a remote control phone or tablet app for operating IFE and controlling the window shades on the large cabin windows. And there is even a window in the lavatory. The baggage hold is accessible during flight. An optional galley feature is a high-power electrical outlet allowing an ordinary espresso coffee machine or microwave oven to be added.
After the Farnborough visit, the Longitude flew back to the U.S., heading to White Plains, New York, before returning to its home base in Wichita on February 26.
The type is now awaiting certification from the FAA, which Textron Aviation said is expected in “early in 2018." EASA approval is expected some six months later, according to Perry. Certification of the “up to 12”-passenger plus two-crew Longitude, with a list price of $27 million, was originally slated for the end of 2017.
The first European order, announced in May 2017, came from Travel Service of the Czech Republic.