Aviation News Item: 11219

30th Jul 2010

Source: aviationweek.com

Honda Aircraft Co. has powered up the first conforming flight test HondaJet, making possible first flight in the next few months and FAA type certification by mid-2012, followed by entry into service in the third quarter. Company officials revealed the milestone event, which occurred in May, during a briefing July 29 at the Experimental Aircraft Association AirVenture here. The company claims to have 100-plus orders for the aircraft, a figure that has been cited for well more than a year.

The power-on event paves the way for further systems tests in the next four months, followed by installation of the GE/Honda HF120 turbofan engines in November and first flight by year's end. Initial DC power tests were limited to the aircraft battery, external power and aircraft electrical distribution system. Full electrical system tests will not begin until after the first engine runs aboard the aircraft.

"With this significant milestone achieved, we are now focused on the integration of avionics and electrical systems in anticipation of first flight later this year," said Michimasa Fujino, HACI president and CEO, in a prepared release.

A second flight test article is under construction and slated to be completed in the first half of next year. Company officials declined to set a date for first flight of F/T 2. A third flight test article also will be used in the flight test campaign.

HACI also said it has mated the wing and fuselage assemblies of the first ground test article so that initial static tests may begin in August. More than 1,800 strain gauges have been installed to analyze test loads, and static testing is now well underway. HACI's test facility also has an environmental test chamber capable of subjecting test articles to a wide range of heat and humidity conditions for validation of composite airframe parts.

Construction of a fatigue test article also is underway, enabling HACI to amass test data for initial service life limits.

The firm is not disclosing many details about the structure and systems of the aircraft. But AVIATION WEEK has learned that the pressure vessel and aft fuselage will be constructed of monolithic carbon fiber, or "stiffened panels co-cured with stringers and frames," according to company officials. The nose section, featuring complex loft contours that promote laminar flow, will be the only part of the airframe to use large sections of carbon fiber/honeycomb/carbon fiber sandwich construction.

Honda has procured its own CNC mills to build the all-aluminum wing structure. The firm thus becomes one of the few light jet manufacturers to build virtually all of the wing in-house.

The company is finishing up its 250,000 sq. ft. HondaJet production facility at its Greensboro, N.C., headquarters, due to be operational by early 2011. The facility also will be home to a FlightSafety International training center and Level D simulator.

Photo Credit: Honda Jet

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