THE LONG RANGER : GULFSTREAM JET DESIGNED FOR NONSTOP LONDON HOP.Byline: Gregory J. Wilcox Daily News Staff Writer Barring any complications, by the time you read this, a gleaming white Gulfstream V The Gulfstream V and G-V SP are business jet aircraft produced by Gulfstream Aerospace. They are also used by the US military under the designation C-37A.[1] The G500 and G550 are improved versions. jet will have flown nonstop from the Valley to London, ushering in Noun 1. ushering in - the introduction of something new; "it signalled the ushering in of a new era" first appearance, introduction, debut, entry, launching, unveiling - the act of beginning something new; "they looked forward to the debut of their new product line" a new era in corporate travel. The long-range era. Assuming it was successful, last night was the first time a business aircraft made the 4,718 nautical-mile flight between Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. and London without stopping for fuel. OK, the jet actually took off from Van Nuys Airport Van Nuys Airport (IATA: VNY, ICAO: KVNY, FAA LID: VNY) is a public airport located in Van Nuys, California in the San Fernando Valley, within the Los Angeles city limits. , but as Gulfstream Aircraft Inc. executives pointed out Monday before the afternoon takeoff, part of the beauty of the new ultra-long-range jet is it spares passengers the aggravation of busy airports like Los Angeles International. It was scheduled to land at Van Nuys' counterpart in London, Stansted Airport. At facilities like Van Nuys and Stansted around the world, there are no traffic jams or check-in lines, and it's easier for planes to take off and land. That means more time for busy executives to stay busy. The Gulfstream comes equipped with a television, fax machine, telephone and a tail-mounted satellite antenna so passengers can connect to the Internet. Bryan T. Moss, vice chairman of Savannah Savannah, city, United States Savannah, city (1990 pop. 137,560), seat of Chatham co., SE Ga., a port of entry on the Savannah River near its mouth; inc. 1789. , Ga.-based Gulfstream, was a passenger on Monday night's 9-1/2-hour trip. He called the new jet an office in the sky. ``This is a working trip. I have satellite television meetings and phone calls scheduled,'' he said. ``That's one of the things that not everyone reads about. It's a 24-hour day when it comes to competition, so you simply cannot afford to be out of touch.'' The jet's range with eight people aboard is 6,500 nautical miles. (A nautical mile, used in air and sea navigation, equals 6,076 feet, or one minute of arc of a great circle of the Earth.) That's a comparable range to a Boeing 747-400, long enough to fly deep into Europe and let local companies tap the emerging markets of the former Soviet Union. ``This airplane is a reflection of the globalization globalization Process by which the experience of everyday life, marked by the diffusion of commodities and ideas, is becoming standardized around the world. Factors that have contributed to globalization include increasingly sophisticated communications and transportation of business,'' said company spokesman David E. Henderson. ``There is a greater demand on company leaders to expand their (sales) horizons.'' The Gulfstream's departure from the Valley is the first leg of a world tour designed to showcase the jet's ability. By the time the tour ends Saturday, the plane will have set several records never before possible in noncommercial aviation, including trips of 5,170 nautical miles from London to Hong Kong Hong Kong (hŏng kŏng), Mandarin Xianggang, special administrative region of China, formerly a British crown colony (2005 est. pop. 6,899,000), land area 422 sq mi (1,092 sq km), adjacent to Guangdong prov. and 5,826 nautical miles from Tokyo to New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . Strictly speaking Adv. 1. strictly speaking - in actual fact; "properly speaking, they are not husband and wife" properly speaking, to be precise , this kind of travel is not inexpensive, though it can make high-salaried executives more productive and let them set their own schedules rather than depend on airlines. The new Gulfstream V costs $37.5 million to own and about $2,500 an hour to operate. Henderson says that the plane will only depreciate depreciate v. in accounting, to reduce the value of an asset each year theoretically on the basis that the assets (such as equipment, vehicles or structures) will eventually become obsolete, worn out and of little value. (See: depreciation) about 10 percent over 10 years and should last about 40 years. So far, business has been brisk. Moss said there are 70 planes on order, giving the company a backlog through late 1999 or early 2000. ``In our gut, we knew that the market was there, but it is reassuring that in a very short time you are able to establish a backlog,'' he said. Gulfstream has slightly more than $1 billion in annual revenue, and adding the Gulfstream V to its product line should double that figure over the next several years. David Almy, spokesman for the National Business Aircraft Association, said companies get a good value for the money spent on corporate jets. About 7,500 businesses across the country operate about 11,000 aircraft. ``Do you think that 7,500 CEOs are going to make dumb decisions investing in travel? I would suggest to you that there are pretty sharp people and are making pretty sharp decisions,'' he said. HIGH FLIER Here are some specifications on the the new Gulfstream V long-range business jet. Maximum cruising altitude A level determined by vertical measurement from mean sea level, maintained during a flight or portion thereof. of 51,000 feet, well above other commercial traffic and adverse weather. Headwinds are also diminished at this height, meaning more direct routing between destinations. Long-range cruising speed cruising speed n → velocidad f de crucero cruising speed n → vitesse f de croisière cruising speed cruise n of Mach 0.80, or 851 kilometers per hour. Maximum cruise speed of Mach 0.87, or 925 kilometers per hour. Powered by two BMW/Rolls Royce BR710 fan-jet engines, each developing 14,750 pounds of thrust. Wing span is 14 feet longer than Gulfstream IV
The Gulfstream IV (or G-IV) and derivatives are a family of private jet aircraft produced by Gulfstream Aerospace, a General Dynamics company based in Savannah, Georgia, United . Maximum capacity of 18 passengers, which cuts into the range. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos, Box Photo: (1--Color) Flight engineer Rhett Lawson stretches out in the Gulfstream V, which can fly nonstop from Los Angeles to London. (2) The Gulfstream V makes a stop at Van Nuys Airport for a promotional tour of the new corporate jet. Michael Owen Baker/Daily News Box: HIGH FLIER (See text) |
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