Friday, May 18, 2018

Pilatus Launches Its ‘Super-Versatile Jet’






The Swiss-made Pilatus PC-24 twinjet—which began deliveries earlier this year and is priced at $8.9 million— combines the best attributes of a sports utility vehicle with a private jet.
Pilatus, a company long-renowned for its line of turboprops, calls the PC-24 a SVJ—a Super-Versatile Jet.
It can land on unpaved runways—including grass—shorter than 3,000 feet. That opens up 20,000 more airports to users worldwide, according to Pilatus. The PC-24 allows for nonstop 2,035 nautical miles at speeds up to 440 knots at a maximum altitude of 45,000 feet, where the smooth air is. The twinjet can climb to this altitude in fewer than 30 minutes. The PC-24’s advanced avionics system also allows it to be flown single-pilot.
The jet offers a much larger cabin than its like-priced competitors, such as the Embraer Phenom 300 or Cessna Citation CJ4.


It’s fast. At 440 knots, the PC24 is the fastest in the segment.
It’s Swiss. Why does that matter? Well, ask people who buy Swiss watches, famous for their craftsmanship and reliability. The PC12 would not be the big seller it has been without it being a great product. The fact that it’s a status symbol too, doesn’t hurt a bit.
It’s rugged. The reason that Pilatus calls the PC24 the Super Versatile Jet is because it can take off and land on non-paved surfaces. With beefy trailing link landing gear and high, rear-fuselage-mounted engines, the plane is ready to take on some gravel. Plus, it’s got that famous giant cargo loading door, just like the PC24.
It’s slow. I know we said that it’s fast, and it is, but it’s also slow, with a stall speed of just 81 knots at max landing weight. Along with its high-lift flap system, the PC24 has a balanced field length of 3,130 feet, giving it the capability of utilizing many airports that previously were suitable only for some turboprops.
It’s got range. With a maximum range of 2,035 nm, the PC24 can stretch it out. And with its spacious cabin, it won’t seem like a hardship to the passengers.

Although he will also face competition from the Cessna Citation M2 and even a smaller aircraft like HondaJet, according to business aviation analyst Rolland Vincent believes that the PC-24 will be a great success. "Pilatus seems to have found a secret sauce that incorporates smart design, precision engineering and a philosophy of doing one thing at a time and doing it exceptionally well," he says. "As an OEM and relatively small private company, they are able to channel their available resources to take advantage of the market opportunities they seem to be best placed to seize."

Pilatus' product strategy has been wise, says Vincent. "They have seen an opportunity to provide an accelerated path for delighted PC-12 customers and broaden the brand's appeal to a broader base of prospects by embracing those with different requirements, such as longer or more demanding. or a larger budget, "he says. "It has been more than 20 years since the PC-12 was certified, and the aircraft has been continuously improved in a cautious manner without doubt, without being bothered by the PC-24, which occupies a different market place. "

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