Embraer 650 certified
The Embraer 650 executive jet has been certified by the Brazilian and European civil aviation authorities.
The Brazilian Civil Aviation Agency (Agência Nacional de
Aviação Civil – ANAC) and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have granted
certification for the Legacy 650 executive jet. This large extended-range
aircraft is a derivative of the successful Legacy 600 super midsize, which has
nearly 200 units delivered to customers, worldwide.
“We are happy to announce today the ANAC and EASA
certifications of the Legacy 650, just one year after the program launch at the
last NBAA convention. This will allow us to start deliveries of the aircraft in
2010, as planned,” said Luís Carlos
Affonso, Embraer Executive Vice President, Executive Jets. “The
Legacy 650 met all of the original specification targets, particularly the
3,900 nm range, which allows the airplane to connect important city pairs and
open new markets for Embraer.”
The Legacy 650 is Embraer’s offering in the large jet
category. The aircraft associates a stylish and spacious cabin with the range
to carry out transatlantic missions: maximum range of 3,900 nautical miles
(7,223 kilometers) with four passengers, and 3,840 nautical miles (7,112 kilometers)
with eight passengers – NBAA IFR reserves included. This significant range increase
was made possible through extensive modifications, such as reinforced wings and
landing gear, a redesigned fully-automated fuel system with larger tank
capacity, and new highly efficient, more powerful Rolls-Royce AE 3007A2
engines. Important nonstop city pairings include London (UK) to New York (US); Dubai (United Arab Emirates – UAE) to London
or Singapore; São Paulo (Brazil)
to Miami (US); and Singapore
to Sydney (Australia).
The Legacy 650 certification marks the debut of the new
Honeywell Primus EliteTM avionics suite, which will also equip the Legacy 600.
The highly reliable, light-weight Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) units provide
enhanced functions, such as charts and geographical maps with up-linked XM
weather overlay. As a follow-on certification, the coupled VNAV (Vertical Navigation)
will allow the airplane to follow FMS (Flight Management System) vertical paths,
which is particularly beneficial during descents with several altitude and
speed constraints, since it reduces crew workload and optimizes fuel
consumption.
Similarly, the FANS/CPDLC (Future Air Navigation System –
Controller Pilot Datalink Communication) function will provide the aircraft
with air-ground data communications so pilots can respond to ATC (Air Traffic
Control) messages, request clearances and deviations in the flight plan, report
information, etc., thus avoiding voice frequency congestion and possible language
hurdles. With RNP 0.3 (Required Navigation Performance) capability and other functionalities,
such as WAAS/LPV (Wide Area Augmentation System/Localizer Performance with
Vertical Guidance) and the SmartRunwayTM and SmartLandingTM Runway Awareness and Advisory
System, the Legacy 650 and Legacy 600 flight decks will conform to the latest technologies
for enhanced situational awareness, while ensuring outstanding operational flexibility
in congested airspaces, terrain-challenged airports, and adverse weather
conditions. All of this was done while maintaining the same comfortable and
functional interior of the
Legacy 600, with its three distinct cabin zones and
spacious wet galley, as well as the largest in-flight accessible baggage
compartment of its class. Both jets also feature new state-of-theart insulation
materials for improved noise comfort and Inmarsat’s SwiftBroadband system for
high-speed Internet in-flight.
“The Legacy 650 is a very capable product that has had a
seamless, although challenging, development trajectory. Once again, this
demonstrates Embraer’s ability to respond to market demands in a timely
manner,” said Maurício Almeida, Embraer
Vice President, Programs, Executive Jets.
With an increased Maximum Landing Weight (MLW) of 44,902
pounds (20,000 kilograms), the new jet provides additional fuel tankering
capacity, thus contributing to enhanced mission efficiency, in terms of cost and time. The
higher “full fuel” payload capacity is equivalent, in weight, to nine passengers at 91
kilograms (200 pounds) each. The Legacy 650 also presents other performance
improvements, such as an increased maximum operating speed (VMO) below
8,000 feet (2,438 meters) to 300 KIAS (Knots Indicated Air Speed), and an increased
maximum flap-extended (45º) speed (VFE) to 160 KIAS, resulting in
greater operational advantage for today’s busy airspaces.
Similar to the Legacy 600, the Legacy 650 performs
outstandingly in both hot and/or high destinations, such as Dubai (UAE), Aspen and Telluride (US), and Toluca
(Mexico).
La Paz (Bolivia) is also a viable
destination for the Legacy 650, thanks to the High Altitude Landing and Takeoff
(HALTO) capability for operations out of airports at elevations up to 13,800
feet (4,206 meters). It is also one of the largest executive jets able to fly
into and out of the Cannes-Mandelieu (France) and London City (UK)
airports.
The Legacy 600 and Legacy 650 share important qualities
with the ERJ 145 regional jet platform, including low fuel consumption, reduced operating
costs, ease of maintenance, and an outstanding 99.8% dispatch reliability – in
over 16 million hours flown and 13 million cycles -, making them remarkably
efficient. Not only do they cost less to operate than aircraft with similar cabin
sizes, but they actually cost the same as aircraft with only two cabin zones.
The Legacy 600 and Legacy 650 are customized to the needs of the executive
aviation market, with a range of up to 3,900 nautical miles (7,223 kilometers),
top-quality interior finishing, three distinct cabin zones, excellent comfort,
and global assistance at dedicated executive jet service centers.