Gulfstream G700

Photographs courtesy of Gulfstream Aerospace

Designed to be the world’s fastest business jet, with the longest range and most spacious cabin, the G700 completed its maiden flight on 14 February last year. The aircraft was originally introduced in 2019 as Gulfstream Aerospace’s new industry flagship.

Powered by two Rolls-Royce Pearl 700 engines, the G700 has an incredible maximum operating speed of Mach 0.925, and an equally impressive range of 7,500 nm (13, 890 km). More realistically though, during normal operations, the aircraft has a range of 6,400 nm (11,853 km) when cruising at Mach 0.9, while its aforementioned maximum range can be achieved when cruising at Mach 0.85. In the cockpit, pilots benefit from the Gulfstream Symmetry Flight Deck with electronically linked active control sidesticks, extensive use of touchscreen technology, as well as Gulfstream’s award-winning Gulfstream Predictive Landing Performance System, Enhanced Flight Vision System and Synthetic Vision on dual head-up displays.

Earlier this year, on 15 April, the first fully outfitted G700 took to the sky. During that flight, the aircraft reached an altitude of 48,000 ft and a maximum speed of Mach 0.935. According to Gulfstream, that particular aircraft was equipped with “the industry’s only ultragalley, with more than 10 feet (3 m) of counter space, a dedicated crew space, an entertainment and presentation area, a six-place conference and dining area, and a state room with full-length wardrobe. Interior elements include award-winning seat design, natural stone flooring in the galley and bathrooms, quartz countertops, powered single seats, surround sound, and other bespoke features that come standard on the aircraft.” The test aircraft also included Gulfstream’s ultrahigh-definition circadian lighting system, which simulates the lighting of the next time zone.

More recently, on 1 September, the G700 set its first ever city-pair speed records from Savannah, Georgia, in the USA to Doha, Qatar, and then from Doha to Paris, France. According to the press release, “The fully outfitted G700 production test aircraft connected Savannah to Doha, a distance of 6,711 nm (12,428 km), at an average speed of Mach 0.88 in 13 hours and 16 minutes. The aircraft then set another city-pair record from Doha to Paris, flying 2,953 nm (5,469 km) in 6 hours and 15 minutes at an average speed of Mach 0.90.” Then, on 23 October, “the fully outfitted G700 production test aircraft set a record from Houston, Texas, to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, flying 7,172 nautical miles (13,283 kilometers), its longest-distance flight to date. Using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), the trip was flown at Mach 0.87 in just 13 hours and 40 minutes.” The release continued, “On October 29, the G700 connected Riyadh with Savannah in a record 13 hours and 55 minutes, flying 6,507 nm (12,051 km) at an average speed of Mach 0.875 while operating as high as 51,000 feet at Mach 0.89.”

Meanwhile, also in October, the G600, from which the G700 was developed, also broke city-pair speed records. Since its introduction in 2019, more than fifty G600s have been delivered, with the aircraft type breaking more than twenty speed records. As for Gulfstream’s new flagship, the G700, deliveries are expected to begin next year.