When it comes to showing off the prowess and versatility of business aviation, the National Business Aviation Association knows how to pull out all the stops. This year at its annual convention in Las Vegas, Oct. 10 through 12, the association displayed dozens of business aircraft worth hundreds of millions of dollars at Henderson Executive Airport. The display featured the Embraer Legacy 650, Gulfstream G650, Hawker 200 mockup, Lear 85 mockup, a Cessna Mustang, Piaggio Aero, and a Twin Otter Viking.
Photography by Alton K. Marsh
The Gulfstream G650 has completed some 600-plus test flights, totaling 2,077 flight hours. It’s reached 0.995 Mach and has a confirmed range of 5,000 nautical miles at normal cruise power and 7,000 nm at long-range cruise power.
Cessna shows off its patriotic side with a specially designed paint scheme on its Mustang very light jet.
If you were wondering where to push or tug on Hawker Beechcraft’s special mission King Air, the company gives you a clear sign of where not to mess around.
Martial arts movie star Jackie Chan is Embraer’s new brand spokesman. Chan has purchased his own personal Legacy 650, which sports a unique paint scheme with a dragon-themed fuselage paint treatment.
The Challenger 850 is a commanding presence on any ramp.
The red carpet isn’t for John Travolta, it’s for potential and current Bombardier customers. Travolta is Bombardier’s brand ambassador.
Are you an American patriot? Cessna is showing its roots on the Mustang.
Hawker Beechcraft displayed a mockup of the Hawker 200, what the company dubs “the world’s most refined entry-level business jet.” The jet is supposed to reach 0.80 Mach.
Piaggio gets plenty of looks at Henderson Executive Airport in Las Vegas, but the manufacturer’s new building site at Villanova d’Albenga got even more when a World War II bomb was discovered in the ground.
This Twin Otter Viking towered over some other business aircraft in the National Business Aviation Association convention’s static display—thanks to these amphibious floats.
The Learjet 85 is under production now, with 1,700 employees working on the jet.
Tip to tip. The folks moving these high-dollar business tools into place have some courage. No hangar or ramp rash here.
