Airplane

Cirrus Vision SJ50 is the new name Cirrus Design has given to its new single-engine personal jet as of July 9, 2008.

The jet previously was known, quite simply enough, as the-jet.

The first test flight of the Cirrus Vision SJ50 lasted 45 minutes.

You can watch this video of the first test flight.

It was on July 3, 2008, at Duluth International Airport in Minnesota. The pilot was former United States Navy test pilot Tim Berg.

This new airplane is designed to be at the bottom end of the very light jet or VLJ category. The idea is to provide the speed and comfort of a very light jet, but with operating costs closer to those of a dual-engine propeller airplane. Also, the purchase price will be much less than that of a traditional business jet.

Cirrus Design hopes the new jet will be a move up plane for current owners of its SR22 piston aircraft. The SJ50 will compete with the Diamond Aircraft Industries D-JET, which is expected to start deliveries in 2009..

The purchase price of the SJ50 has not been announced. Cirrus Design has been taking refundable $100,000 deposits since 2006. It is being marketed as the slowest, lowest, cheapest jet available. The certification target is 2010, with the first delivery in 2012.

The VLJ category includes the Eclipse 500, the Cessna Citation Mustang and the HondaJet. Many other VLJs are being developed as well.

The key difference between those VLJs and the Cirrus Vision SJ50 is that it has a single jet engine. That is what the SJ in its name represents.

That engine is a Williams International FJ33-4A-19. It has 1,900 pounds of thrust and is mounted on top of the fuselage.

The takeoff distance is 800 to 1,500 feet.

The cruising speed is expected to be about 300 knots. The range will be about 1,000 nautical miles. Your maximum altitude will be 25,000 feet. You can land it with an approach speed of about 80 knots.

The aircraft has a low-wing wingspan of 38.4 feet with wingtip vortices and a V tail. This new jet includes the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System CAPS as standard equipment.

The interior holds up to seven people. The maximum takeoff weight is about 5,000 pounds.

The plane is expected to be easy for owner-pilots to fly. Cirrus co-founder and CEO Alan Klapmeier heralds it as an entirely new transportation option for personal and business travel.

It has a glass cockpit and L-3 SmartDeck avionics.