The HondaJet is the first aircraft developed by the Honda Motor Company that will be made available to the general aviation market. The HondaJet made its maiden flight in December 2003 and was debuted to the public at the EAA AirVenture air show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, in July 2005. On July 25, 2006, Honda returned to Oshkosh to announce it would commercialize the HondaJet, establishing the Honda Aircraft Company to seek both type and production certification of the HondaJet with production to take place in the United States. The company began taking customer orders for HondaJet in the fall of 2006, and estimates deliveries to begin in 2010 at a price of approximately $3.65 million US. The plan is to build 70 jets per year.
In August 2006 Honda and Piper Aircraft announced a partnership to market the HondaJet.
Honda decided to go with an unusual over-the-wing podded engine configuration, a feature developed on the Fokker VFW-614 decades earlier, which allows for more space within the fuselage and reduction of drag at higher speeds. The fuselage itself is made from lightweight composite materials, while the wings are made from structurally reinforced single sheets of aluminum. The use of a single sheet allows for a smoother surface than more conventional methods. Honda claims that the combination of lightweight materials, aerodynamics and the efficient engines gives the HondaJet a 30-35% higher fuel efficiency than similar aircraft.
The aircraft is equipped with a Garmin G1000 glass cockpit system (i.e. most of the cockpit readouts are presented on flat-panel displays).
General characteristics
- Crew: Two
- Capacity: 5 passengers
- Length: 12.7 m (41.7 ft)
- Wingspan: 12.2 m (39.9 ft)
- Height: 4.1 m (13.2 ft)
- Max takeoff weight: 4,173 kg (9,200 lb)
- Powerplant: 2× GE Honda HF120 turbofan engines, 7.43 kN (1,670 lbf) each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 778 km/h / Mach 0.73 (420 kt, 483 mph)
- Range: 2,037 km (1,100 nm, 1,256 mi)
- Service ceiling: 13,107 m (43,000 ft [2])
- Rate of climb: 20.27 m/s (3990 ft/min [3])
Avionics
Garmin G1000 glass cockpit