WICHITA, Kan., 24 March 2006. Cessna Aircraft Company, a subsidiary of Textron Inc., has successfully completed the first flight of the Citation Encore+. The first production unit Encore+ took off from Rockwell Collins' facility in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Wednesday the 22nd of March.
The one-hour and nine-minute test flight included an agressive flight profile to test basic stability, flap and landing gear extension and retraction, controllability, trim actuation, engine operating characteristics, and basic autopilot operation, according to Cessna executives.
The new airplane is equipped with new dual-channel FADEC engines and the Pro Line 21 avionics suite. Propulsion for the Encore+ is generated by twin Pratt & Whitney Canada PW535B engines equipped with dual-channel Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC).
"We've set an ambitious certification schedule since we announced the Encore+ only five months ago at the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) convention," says Lynn Young, Citation Encore+ program manager. "We are pleased this first flight adheres to our schedule, marking a major milestone that moves us toward on-time customer deliveries in the first quarter of 2007."
The company anticipates the aircraft will become certified in the early fourth quarter of this year.
