Hawker Beechcraft Corporation (HBC) announced the launch of its newest business jet, the Hawker 200. An evolution of the company’s Premier II program, HBC suggested that the 200 will be bigger and faster than the Premier II. Maximum cruise speed and altitude for the Hawker 200 is projected at 450 knots and 43,000 feet. “The Hawker 200 is unique because it allows you to fly high and fast, without sacrificing comfort or cost,” an HBC statement read.
The airplane will be powered by Williams FJ44-3AP turbofans, and have winglets and an all-composite fuselage like the Premier I and IA, and will be certified for single-pilot operations. Its interior will feature an expanded four-place club seating arrangement with side-facing seats aft and a lavatory. There will be a larger galley—presumably, larger than that anticipated for the Premier II—a full-height closet, new cabin controls, and new tables. The expansion of the club seating area was determined after market research found that 95 percent of light jet missions consist of three or four passengers. An additional, optional side-facing seat opposite the entry door, plus a belted lavatory seat, can push the Hawker 200’s seating capacity to as many as eight passengers.
Additional details were not available at press time, but HBC says that the Hawker 200 program is “in an advanced state of development and on schedule.” The first prototype flew in March 2010 and the airplane has compiled more than 100 hours in flight test. Certification is set for the third quarter of 2012, with first deliveries to follow in the fourth quarter of 2012.
