Plane Conversations

As of yesterday afternoon Embraer’s Phenom 300 gained full certification by the United States Federal Aviation Administration. This follows the Brazilian’s counterpart to the FAA – ANAC certification that happened a short two weeks ago.

I posted some of the basic performance numbers on December 8 when I said that I believe this aircraft will be a game changer for the charter industry over the next few years. Excellent performance, low operating costs and hopfefully the reliability that Embraer has been able to achieve in the airline world will make this aircraft an industry work horse for a long time to come.

Two, clean sheet design, new generation jets (Phenom 100 and Phenom 300) certified, in production and being delivered in the past 13 months is a pretty good launch into the world business jet market.

Congratulations to Embraer on US Certification of the Phenom 300!

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Tall and tan and young and lovely

The girl from Ipanema goes walking

And when she passes, each one she passes goes ”a-a-ah!”

She’s not tan and she’s not from Ipanema, but she is lovely and on the evening of October 30, 2009, a group of Corporate Flight Management staffers gathered on our Smyrna (TN) Airport ramp for a first look at this new plane from Brazil, an addition to the company’s charter fleet.  And each one of us went, “a-a-ah.”  She taxied in, bringing with her an exciting new future for CFM and our entire industry.   But, before continuing with this story a brief bit of history is in order.

Over the past decade NASA and corporate aviation trade associations proposed a “clean sheet” design process for business jets.  The VLJ (Very Light Jet) would be both fuel efficient and environmentally “green.”  The quest to establish market dominance in this new technology led to intense competition among the leading designers and builders of executive aircraft.  Additionally, new players like Honda (yes, that Honda) Adam and Eclipse joined the race.  Most of the established manufacturers’ VLJ designs were primarily based on smaller and lighter versions of existing products.  Two of the new entrants proposed radical departures from conventional airframes.

And then there was the Brazilian entry.

If you have flown on commuter airlines over the past 20 years, chances are that you have logged time aboard an Embraer turboprop or regional jet.  When procuring aircraft for their fleets, airlines demand fuel efficiency, dispatch reliability, low maintenance cost and passenger satisfaction.  For decades, Brazil-based Embraer produced a series of turboprops and regional jets that exceeded every airline standard.  Brazil’s entry into the VLJ competition would be built to the same demanding standards as their airliners.  Thus were born the Phenom 100 and 300, which brings us back to CFM’s Smyrna ramp and the exciting future for us and our industry. 

You see, the aircraft that taxied up that evening was a Phenom 100, fresh from the factory and ready to begin its life with a corporate operator in the U.S.  It is one of hundreds that will be going into service in domestic and global markets.   I asked our CEO, Allen Howell, for his impression of the plane from Brazil.  And he said: 

“The Phenom series of executive jets will be real game changers for charter operators and corporate flight departments.  As we grow our charter fleet and aircraft management businesses over the next 5-10 years, Embraer Business jets will be our number one choice.”

With Embraer’s range of business jets in development and production, the story should become very exciting, indeed.  Stay tuned.

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I have been fortunate in my career to get to travel to interesting places that don’t show up in the top ten tourist destinations. Our company sells regional airliners all over the world and often times those aircraft sales result in  deliveries and follow up visits to customers who end up becoming friends. In the past five years, we have sold and delivered aircraft to operators in Europe, South America, Asia, the Middle East, Australia, Caribbean Islands and Africa.  This particular delivery started at the factory in Brazil will end up at the aircraft’s new base in England.

The journey started with an airline flight out of Nashville, a seven-hour layover in Atlanta and a nine-hour connecting flight to Sao Paulo where we were met by a driver who took us to Embraer’s headquarters and airline manufacturing facilities at Sao Jose Dos Campos.  We had 20 hours there before turning right back around and heading to the United States in the new Phenom. In Sao Jose Dos Campos, Bill Minkoff and I met up with Rob Posselt who works and lives in England.  Rob assists European clients with deliveries of Embraer business jet aircraft. Bill, Rob and I were to be the crew for the first stage of the delivery.  

On my last visit to Sao Jose Dos Campos two years ago, I was able to see the first three Phenom 100s going through the flight tests that ultimately led to aircraft certification one year ago. I also saw the fuselage and engines for what would be the first Phenom 300 to be used in certification testing.  That aircraft was certified last week.  This visit, I was impressed to see a hangar full of Phenom 100s and Legacy 600s going through their final, detailed inspections before delivery.

The Phenom 100 has a range of 1,250 nautical miles; so, delivering outside of Brazil includes multiple fuel stops. Our route from Brazil to Tennessee followed this route: San Jose Dos Campos, BR – Brasilia, BR – Belim, BR – Georgetown, Guyana – St. Maarten – Fort Lauderdale – Nashville.

Getting through Brazil requires careful planning and a degree of patience as things don’t happen as quickly as they do in the United States with flight plans and handlers. As you fly north out of Sao Paulo state, you get into less populated areas of the country including the Amazon forest. There are not a lot of airports in this region of the country; so, we planned stops every 800 miles for fuel, leaving enough fuel on board for alternates in the event of weather or maintenance issues.

All of our stops were uneventful with the exception of minor delays.  The handlers were friendly, and weather cooperated along the route of flight and stops.  In the case of this trip, flying the Phenom ended up being the highlight of the trip. We were never in any one location long enough to see the sights.  But we still have a few good ones.

As we were flying over the equator, something I have done a few times now, we were able to capture the position on the display showing the latitude of 00.00.01.  

 The terminal in Georgetown, Guyana, gets the award for the most colorful as they were decorated up for Christmas.

This was my first time to fly a new jet out of the factory and the experience did not let me down. The aircraft performed flawlessly, as have the other Phenom 100s we have delivered.  It is stable in all flight regimes and the technology up front is fantastic. Everything the pilot could possibly want to know is available.   

Although tiring, flying for me isn’t work.  But, after two hard days of flying, I did have to get back to work.  Another CFM pilot, Will Rowell, gets on board with Bill and Rob to complete the next legs of the journey from Tennessee to England.  Out of Nashville the route continues to Bangor, Maine – Goose Bay, Newfoundland – Sondre Stromfjord, Greenland – Reykjavik, Iceland - Wick, Scotland and then to the aircraft’s new home in Leeds, England. The most challenging part of the journey remains as the crew flies over the North Atlantic, dealing with harsh weather and little daylight.  

By journey’s end, the new bird will have flown over 10,000 miles from the Southern Hemisphere through South America  into the Northern Hemisphere through the Caribbean Islands, the United States and Canada, and over the North Atlantic before arriving at its new home in England. The journey started in tropical Brazil, almost touched the Arctic Circle in Greenland where there are only three hours of daylight per day this week, before turning back south to England. Hey, it’s all in a days work (or, is that fun?)

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On December 3rd, Embraer announced the certification of the Phenom 300 by ANAC (Brazil’s version of our FAA). That means only days before our FAA certifies the aircraft as well, since the two agencies work together closely in the process of new aircraft certifications.

Embraer’s website has published the performance numbers for the aircraft and not only are they are impressive, but also have exceeded expectations in all areas.

Here are the basics:

• Maximum cruise speed: 453 knots (521 mph)
• Maximum range with 6 occupants: 1,971 nautical miles (2,265 statute miles)
• Takeoff distance at maximum weight on a standard (59° F) day at sea level: 3,138 feet
• Landing distance at maximum landing weight sea level: 2,621 feet
• Service ceiling: 45,000 feet - and it gets there in 26 minutes!

Over the past three decades as new aircraft have come into the market, those of us in the business have looked at the numbers and compared them against the aircraft we know.

Every aircraft seems to have some compromise in performance.  One aircraft will have good speed and range but needs a longer runway. Another aircraft may be able to takeoff and land on shorter runways but will be slower in speed or have less range. Some aircraft have limited range when you fill every seat. You can’t have it all in one package….or can you?

It appears that Embraer has built a no-compromises aircraft that gives great speed and range with the ability to fly out of almost any public airport in the United States, including those challenging high-altitude airports in the Rocky Mountains, like Telluride, Colorado. In fact, you can take off in a Phenom 300 from Telluride airport at 9,078 feet elevation and go non-stop to any other city in the United States.   

Our business (CFM) has operated the Lear 35 series aircraft for over 15 years, and they are the workhorses of our fleet. Prior to that, the Lear 24/25 series aircraft was the workhorse. When they were produced throughout the 1970s and into the early 1990s, these aircraft were the no-compromise aircraft of their day.  For the most part, you could fill up the tanks with fuel and the cabin with passengers and go. They did like a little more runway than the Cessna Citation series aircraft, but the Lears were faster.

For years, we have wondered when someone was going to make an aircraft that would eventually take the Learjet’s place. I believe Embraer has done it with the Phenom 300. This aircraft provides true jet speed and operating altitudes, excellent range for transcontinental trips, great fuel economy and low maintenance costs of new-generation design all in one package.  The aircraft has a 35,000 hour life limit, which is close to an eternity in the corporate and charter use environment where aircraft average 400-500 hours per year. You can tell the Phenom 300 was built by a company that builds durable and reliable regional airliners.

So, congratulations (or felicitações) to Embraer for bringing another great aircraft  into the market at a time when a lot of manufacturers are wondering how to survive this economy. I have a feeling we will see Phenom 100s and Phenom 300s in a lot of charter fleets over the next few years.

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Today Bill Minkoff, our VP of Marketing / Business Development  is arriving from Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil, flying our new Embraer Phenom 100 – N777JQ.  This is a day that we have anticipated for almost two years, from when Bill came on board with us as a partner in JetQuik and brought an order for the new Embraer Phenom 100 with him.  Our company will be managing this new generation business jet for owners in our hometown and chartering it out to the traveling public.

Besides his role as our VP of Marketing and Business Development and partner in our new venture, Bill is also a highly experienced pilot having started his aviation career as a Naval aviator flying the A7E  fighter off the US Midway aircraft carrier.  He moved on to Delta  Air Lines flying as an international Captain and Line Check Airman, finally retiring on the Boeing 767.  Even having made night landings on aircraft carriers, and flying 767’s internationally, I think Bill is enjoying this flight more than anything he has done in a long time.

For our company, as it is for many other charter operators, owner pilots, and corporate flight departments, the arrival of a new aircraft is an exciting event.  I try to be objective about aircraft and focus on numbers – operating costs, performance, cash flow, etc., but when you see the new bird for the first time you set the objectiveness aside and let the emotions and excitement take over.

This aircraft represents a new generation of business jets and a new era for our company.  Like many aircraft charter companies around the world, we have operated the workhorses of the industry for 27 plus years now – King Airs, Lear 35’s and Cessna Citations, to name a few.  All of these aircraft have been safe and reliable and have delivered day in and day out for our owners and charter customers.

The smell of new leather, the sleek design and a simple looking but sophisticated cockpit make this new aircraft exciting.  For a numbers person like me, what is equally exciting is that the new jet will deliver that same safe and reliable transportation as the older workhorses at a much lower operating cost.  

Lower costs for us means lower pricing to the users, which translates into new customers, who have not previously been able to justify using a business jet for travel - if the formulas of supply / demand / price that I learned in college still hold true, that is.  I feel sure that they do. 

I like to use analogies to make a point.  I tell people this new jet is like the Toyota Prius of the new jets.  It isn’t a hybrid (maybe some day) but its fuel efficiency and cost to operate is unmatched for a jet of its size, speed and performance.

N777JQ will be arriving this afternoon from Fort Lauderdale on the last leg of the journey to its new home in Nashville, TN.  

Estimated flight time is 2:37 at a cruising speed of 378  knots (434mph), a cruising altitude of 40,000 feet and an inflight fuel burn of 88 gallons per hour.  Impressive numbers for such a good looking aircraft.

I can hardly wait to see it! 

Our latest addition N777JQ leaving her birthplace in Brazil enroute to her new home in Smyrna, TN.

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Over the last seven years we have been reading about, watching and waiting for the next generation of efficient private jets to arrive.  Finally, they are here with a promise of more to follow.

There have been many starts and stops and failures along the way.  Names like Eclipse and Adam Aircraft showed great promise but could not deliver or passed out before crossing the finish line of the race.

Innovation comes at a high price in our business and is not for the faint hearted.  Billions of dollars have been invested in the industry and most of it has vanished.

Now to the Good News:

Two industry giants have made it across the finish line.  Cessna with their Mustang and Embraer with the Phenom 100.

The aircraft that is most impressive is the Phenom 100 manufactured by the Brazilian company Embraer, known for its rugged and efficient regional airliners.  It is fascinating to me that, possibly for the first time in our industry, a manufacturer of airliners made the decision to step into the private jet manufacturing business.  Airline manufacturers have to make aircraft that are reliable and efficient.  The airlines who buy their product to put into service have very little tolerance for failure when it comes to durability,  reliability and after market support.  Additionally, they demand an aircraft that is cost-efficient. Airlines live and die on the cost per seat mile and the manufacturers know they have to deliver or else. There is no brand loyalty. Its all about the money.

Take a company like Embraer who has prospered in the airliner environment and transfer the knowledge of design, production and after-market service  into the business jet world, and you get a business jet that looks like a private jet but is built like an airliner.  When I see this aircraft up close the first words that come to mind when comparing to other light jets are rugged, solid and  yes, even good looking.  You don’t have to compromise  an aircraft’s good looks for durability in our business.

The Phenom 100 and subsequent models to follow (Phenom 300) are  designed to last more than a lifetime of average use in the private jet industry.  Starting from a clean sheet of paper and utilizing the best design technology available to only the likes of Boeing and Airbus, the engineers in Brazil have designed an airframe that is sleek, fuel efficient and has safe flight characteristics, making it easy to fly (for those jet owners who fly themselves).  Additionally they listened to the market and employed BMW Design Works to work with them on the interior design of the cabin finishes and ergonomics.  And last but not least, they employed the latest technology available to give the pilot all the tools that a new generation airliner has in a simple and user-friendly presentation.

Be on the look out for the Phenom series of light jet aircraft – these guys are here to stay and they are innovating.  Their aircraft will be a major player in the innovation of our industry to make the private jet more affordable to more travelers.

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