Diamond’s D-JET

First to Be Certified Should Be the Diamond Aircraft D-jet, a Five-seater With Two Pilot Positions and Three Passenger Seats. It is Due to Be Certificated by Easa in the Second Half of This Year at a Premium Price of Us$1. 38m (a$1. 59m). Canadian and Then Faa Certification Will Follow, but Diamond Has Not Yet Communicated a Specific Certification Timeline by Easa.

Other Single Engine Jets Are Making Progress With Eclipse’s ‘concept Jet’ Flying, Cirrus Design Launching Its ‘the-jet’, and Piper, the Piperjet, but None Will Be Certificated Before 2010/11.

The D-jet Program Was Announced in Late 2002, but Surprisingly for Diamond Aircraft, Famed for Quickly Designing and Delivering Its Single and Twin-engined Propeller Aircraft, the Prototype D-jet Didn’t Fly Until April 18 2006 and the Second (S/n 002) Not Until September 14 2007. There Were Many Reasons, but a Major Delay (Six-eight Months) Was Caused by Diamond Deciding That the Whole Aircraft Program Should Be Switched to the Company’s Canadian Facility at London, Ontario, Instead of Its Headquarters at Weiner Neustadt, Austria. Another Four Month Delay Was Caused by the Decision to Build 002 in Production Standard Jigs to Save Time Later.

Diamond Says That the Largely Composite D-jet Will Be Certificated From 2135kg to 2300kg Mtow, Have a Maximum Altitude of 25,000ft, a Pressurised Cabin Altitude of 8000ft and a Maximum Cruise Speed of 315 Ktas. It Has Already Been Determined That the Aircraft is Capable of Operating From 1135-1360m Paved Runways. “the D-jet’s Runway Distance, Approach Speeds, and Other Flight Handling Characteristics, Will Be Similar in Many Respects to Those of High Performance Single-engine Pistons,” Says Diamond.

The D-jet Will Reach Its Service Ceiling of 25,000ft in 15 Minutes, Have a Maximum Range of 1350nm, and a Useful Load of 1016kg (Fuel, Passengers and Baggage).

Diamond Currently Holds More Than 300 D-jet Orders, and Says That the North American Retail Delivery Schedule is Completely Sold Out for the First Year and a Half of Production, With Only a Very Limited Number of Us$10,000 Premium Deposit Slots Available for Late 2009 Delivery.

D-jet Philosophy

“in a Nutshell, the D-jet is the Beech Bonanza of the 21st Century,” Said Ontario Based Peter Maurer, President of Diamond Aircraft Industries and D-jet Corporation. “it is Aimed at, Say, Lancair, Cirrus Sr22, Beech Bonanza and Even Diamond Da42 Pilot Owners, Who Want to Step Into the Jet Age. It is a High Performance, New Technology, Simple to Operate Aircraft, Which Can Be Safely Flown by the Typical Private Pilot.

“current Pilot-owners Want to Move Into the Jet-age and We See the D-jet as the Right Aircraft at the Right Time.

Many Factors Have Coincided to Make This Dream Come True. Reliable Lightweight Composite Structures and Light, Low Burn, New Tech Turbofan Engines With Fadec, Have Combined With the Latestdevelopments in Avionics. ” the D-jet Has a Threescreen Garmin G1000 Flightdeck With Dual 30cm Primary Flight Displays and a Central 38cm Multifunction Display. It Also Has a Centre Console Mounted Fms Controller, Single Lever Dual-channel Fadec Controlled Turbine and Garmin’s Gfc700 Autopilot. Also as Standard for the Current Us$1. 38 Million ‘all-in Inclusive Premium Configuration’ Are Dual Adhars, Dual Magnetometers, Dual Gps, Dual Waas Enabled Nav/ Com/gps, Mode S Transponder, Taws-b and Dual Audio Panels. The Williams Fj33-4a Engine is Flat Rated at 1400lb (6. 3kn) Static Thrust, at 22° C.

“we Have Designed an Aircraft That Suits the Pilot Owner. We Don’t Expect D-jet Pilots to Fly Very Long Distances Regularly, So We Have Compromised Part of the D‑jet’s Performance to Operate at Lower Altitudes. The Aircraft Will Also Be Operating at Lower Mach Numbers, Which Allowed Us to Optimise the Airflow for Excellent Low Speed Handling, Low Stall Speed and Low Approach Speeds. We Have a Very Docile and Comfortable Aircraft Which is Quiet, and Has a Reliable Jet Engine. It Will Also Have Exceptional Cabin Comfort Which is Important for the Owner Pilot,” Explained Maurer.

In the Past Diamond Has Said It Might Fit an Emergency Ballistic Descent Parachute on Production D-jets, but Now Says, “a Ballistic Recovery System is Planned as an Option, and Will Be Made Available After Vendor Brs Has Completed Development of a System Which is Capable of Handling an Aircraft of the D-jet’s Weight and Speed.

The Initial Production Aircraft Will Likely Not Have This Option Available. ”

Flight Test

Prototype S/n 001 C-gvlj Logged Around 11 Hours of Flight Test Time in Just 10 Days After Its First Flight at Diamond’s North American Base at London International Airport, Ontario. It Then Went Back Into the Hangar for Planned Modifications Which Could Not Be Completed Before Its First Flight. Maurer Explains, “we Had Intended to Do Further Modification Work to the Engine Inlet Fairing Before First Flight but This Would Have Delayed It Again. ” the Engine Inlet Size Has Now Been Reduced From the Original Artist’s Impression to Better Suit the Fj33 Engine.

The Engine Intake, Which Was Originally Positioned Just Above the Leading Edge of the Wing at the Root of the Wing/ Fuselage Junction, Was Moved Lower and Built Into the Root.

The Top-of-wing/fuselage Fairing Was Also Significantly Revised.

It Would Also Appear That the Axis of the Engine Has Been Lowered Slightly to Improve Airflow. The Exterior Jet Exhaust Area Appears to Have Been Tidied Up as Well.

Rear Fuselage Tail Strakes Have Been Added, but the Decision on Whether or Not to Continue With the Winglets is Dependent on Further Flight Testing, Says the Company.

A Few Days After Its Maiden Flight S/n 002 (C-fptm) Flew the 570nm to the Nbaa Convention in Atlanta to Make the Type’s Surprise Debut.

It is the First of Four Testaircraft That Conform Structurally and Aerodynamically to the Production Aircraft, and is Being Used Primarily to Explore the Flight Envelope and Validate Performance Goals. The Aircraft’s Horizontal Stabiliser Structural Design Has Been Modified to Save Weight and Has Been Built Using Production Quality Tooling.

This Same Horizontal Stabiliser Has Been Incorporated on S/n 003 and Will Be Used on All Subsequent Aircraft, Say Diamond. In Addition, Nosewheel Steering, the Fuel Level Indication System and Flap Control System Have All Been Further Developed as a Result of the Ground and Flight Tests on S/n 002.

D-jet Chief Test Pilot Daniel Ribeiro Reported: “we Had a Safe and Smooth First Flight With S/n 002. During 43 Minutes of Flight, We Checked Systems and Handling.

Flight Controls Were Smooth, With Good Harmony and Light Forces. Engine Behaviour Was as Expected, With Stable Performance During Accelerations and Decelerations. All Installed Systems Worked as Planned, and Landing Gear Was Retracted During Climb Out to the Test Area. Maximum Altitude Achieved During the Flight Was 11,000ft. We Will Now Continue the Flight Test Program With Progressive Expansion of the Envelope. ” S/n 003 (C-gupj) Was Close to Official Roll-out in Early January, and Was Posed for Some Pr Photography With 001 & 002 Before Christmas ’07. The Company Says That the Use of the Production-quality Tooling is Improving the Bond Tolerances for Better Fit and Finish and is Now Being Used for the Fuselage, Wings, Flaps and Horizontal Stabilisers. Once 003 is Flying Certification Test Flying Can Truly Begin, Says Diamond.

Manufacturing of Components for S/n 004 Has Commenced and Long Lead Time Parts Ordered. This Aircraft Will Be Used for Electrical and Systems Development Certification Work, Including the Autopilot.

S/n 005 Will Be the First Truly Production Standard Aircraft With Environmental Control, Pressurisation, De-icing, Autopilot and Completed Interior.

Production

the D-jet Will Be Produced in North America Because Most of the Vendors Are Based There. “williams Are Only 90 Minutes Down the Road and the Largest Single Sales Market, Estimated at Around 70 Per Cent of the World Market, is Here as Well,” Said Maurer. “our Competitors Are Also Based in North America and We Will Be Buying and Selling in Us Dollars as They Do. ” a Final Decision on the D-jet’s Production Location is Yet to Be Announced.

Pilot Training

There Won’t Be a Single Solution for D-jet Pilot Training Says Maurer. “insurance Companies Will Probably Dictate the Final Outcome, and We Certainly Want to Protect Our Own Exceptional Safety Record Which is Probably the Best in the Ga Industry Over the Last 12-13 Years. ” “there Will Be a World of Difference Between Qualifying a Pilot With 500 Hours Ifr on a Cirrus Sr22 for the D-jet, Than Say a Cessna Mustang.

There is No Reason Why a D-jet Should Be Significantly More Difficult to Fly Than an Sr22 or a Bonanza for Example. In Fact It Should Be Simpler Because of the D-jet’s Power Management Single Lever Fadec Throttle.

Situational Awareness in the D-jet’s Avionics and the Sophistication of the Autopilot is Fantastic and Will Definitely Lighten Pilot Workload,” Explained Maurer.

D-jet Simulator Unveiled

Sister Company Diamond- Elite Simulation Industries, Which Already Produces Flight Simulators for All Other Diamond Aircraft Types, Has Unveiled Its D-jet Simulator in London, Ontario, Where It Will Continue to Undergo Software and Other Updates as the Overall D-jet Program Progresses. It Provides a Highfidelity Flying Experience With Full Flightdeck, Front Seating and Surrounding Interior Panels. The 180 Degree Wraparound Projection Screen Envelopes the Flightdeck With a Very Real Set of Visuals, Says the Company.

The D-jet Simulator Will Eventually Be Available as a Level 6 Flight Training Device, According to Faa Ac 120-45 a, and as Fnpt Ii and Ftd Level Ii According to Jar-std 3a and Jar Std 2a.