A Gulfstream Exclusive: Mach 0.90 Cruise
Saving time is the essence of business jet travel, and that won’t change anytime soon. Two aircraft in particular, the Gulfstream flagship G650ER and G650, can save operators more time than any other aircraft in service today.
That magic number, computed by our engineers, is 52 hours, a significant amount of time for most. Two more Gulfstream aircraft, the all-new G500 and G600, will be capable of delivering that same gift of time to operators when they enter the marketplace in 2017 and 2018, respectively.
How do these Gulfstream large-cabin aircraft achieve this feat? It’s all about the aircraft’s cruise speed. Cruise is the phase of flight that falls between climb and descent. Typically, the largest percentages of trip time and trip fuel are consumed in this phase. Cruise speed, of course, is how fast an aircraft travels during cruise.
Cruise speed is a differentiator for the G650ER/G650, G500 and G600. Each aircraft is designed to operate at an industry-leading cruise speed of Mach 0.90, which is nearly 600 miles per hour. Feedback from G650ER/G650s operators worldwide indicates the majority of them are regularly flying their aircraft at Mach 0.90. At that speed, a G650ER can fly 6,400 nautical miles/11,853 kilometers, while a G650 can go 6,000 nm/11,112 km. The G500 is capable of traveling 3,800 nm/7,038 km at Mach 0.90, while the G600 can go 4,800 nm/8,890 km.
On a typical mission of 3,000 nm/5,556 km, flying at Mach 0.90 saves an operator up to an hour versus flying at Mach 0.80. If your aircraft flies 500 hours a year at Mach 0.80, you can fly the same distance of 218,500 nm/404,662 km in 448 hours at Mach 0.90. If you do the math, you will end up with the aforementioned 52 hours of annual time savings.
“If your aircraft flies 500 hours a year at Mach 0.80, you can fly the same distance of 218,500 nm/404,662 km in 448 hours at Mach 0.90. If you do the math, you will end up with the aforementioned 52 hours of annual time savings.”
In addition to reducing a passenger’s time on the aircraft, the reduced flight time results in a longer duration between scheduled maintenance visits, higher resale value due to lower accumulated flight hours, and lower yearly costs for parts and service programs. The faster Mach 0.90 cruise speed also helps to reduce the crew duty day, which makes for safer operations.
The G500 and G600 will give operators another benefit: less fuel consumption, which will decrease operating costs even more. For many operators, however, the biggest benefit of all is the commodity of time, which is priceless. You can spend 52 hours of accrued yearly time savings at home with your family, friends, or use the extra hours to be even more productive in the office.
Creating and Delivering the World’s Finest Aviation Experience
Richard Milling
Regional Vice President Sales
Gulfstream Aerospace
562-627-6151 : Office
562-400-7941 : Mobile
912-965-4730 : Assistant, Jennifer Peluso
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