BOMBARDIER LEARJET 40 - AvBuyer.com

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BOMBARDIER LEARJET 40 UPDATE 2 that already numbers more than 240 flying. Still, not every jet achieves its maximum potential in its original form; many evolve into one or more larger variants to answer market demand. MOVING UP BY DOWNSIZING: Such an evolution befell the Learjet 45 – but in this case the market wanted something less. To answer market demand for a smaller, lighter, less-expensive Learjet, Bombardier Aerospace approved a different tact in model expansion, opting to grow the product lineup larger by shrinking the Model 45. Yes, that shrinkage is the biggest difference between the Learjet 40 and its progenitor, the Learjet 45. Pretty much everyone with time in business aviation recognizes the benefits of "stretching" one model to make a new one. Shrinking a successful model to make a new one happens less often, but the Learjet 40 is proof positive that it can and does happen – and for good cause: Costs – cost of entry and cost of operation. Furthermore, when a manufacturer leaves well enough alone – or makes changes that keep both models uniform – those changes can also help drive down manufacturing costs. In the case of the Learjet 40, it appears Bombardier Aerospace hit its marks. COMMONALITIES: To make the Learjet 40 out of the Learjet 45, Bombardier’s engineers essentially did nothing more than take out two feet of fuselage and position the wing accordingly. This change gives the Learjet 40 a overall length of 55.6 feet versus 58.4 feet for the Learjet 45. Internally, the Learjet 40 stretches 17.7 feet inside the cabin, two feet shorter than the Learjet 45. But both models’ cabins share their other dimensions, at 4.9 feet tall and 5.1 feet across. Both airplanes otherwise share the same wing, engines, avionics, pretty much the works throughout the airplane. The same Honeywell Primus 1000 integrated flight-display and flight-control hardware fills the cockpits of both aircraft. That sharing also necessarily includes the powerplants, with the Learjet 40 employing a pair of Honeywell TFE731-20AR, each making 3,500 pounds of thrust – the same power output as on the Learjet 45. With both airplanes certified to a maximum altitude of 51,000 feet, both are capable of cruising at Mach 0.81, and the Learjet 40 able to cover more than 1,700 miles non-stop, versus about 1,800 for the Learjet 45. However, the couple of hundred pounds difference in empty and operating weights does take its toll up at the flight levels where these birds perform their best. ECONOMIES OF SCALE: Loaded to the max, the Learjets 40 and 45 tip the scales within 150 pounds of one another – with the Learjet 45 capable of carrying more fuel and/or more people than the Learjet 40. Nevertheless, these differences don’t work to produce any noteworthy differences in the balance between cabin payload and fuel, in cruise, climb or consumption numbers. In fact, so similar are the performance numbers that it’s almost a waste of space to highlight any, as you may have noticed above. 52 WORLD AIRCRAFT SALES MAGAZINE – August 2004 www.AvBuyer.com Aircraft Index see Page 2 ✈
BOMBARDIER LEARJET 40 UPDATE 3 Flying with four passengers, a crew of two and allowable fuel, the Learjet 40 can fly more than 1,600 nautical miles on a bit under 4,100 pounds of fuel. Similarly, the Learjet 45 can, with the same four passengers and bags, cover a couple hundred miles more –due solely to a larger fuel capacity. It takes the Learjet 45 more than 4,600 pounds of fuel to cover those 1,800-plus nautical miles – but the specific fuel consumption numbers are nearly identical, within 0.003 pounds per mile of one another. So, what is the gain of the smaller bird? How about nearly $2.5 million difference: The Learjet 40, comparably equipped, goes for about $7.8 million, compared to just over $10.2 million for the Learjet 45. For a fleet operator flying Learjet 45s, the Learjet 40 offers a smaller, lowercost, just-as-capable alternative for a second plane – and one that shares the same type rating, a boon to training costs. Maintenance issues also cost less when a shop has two jets with identical engines, nacelles, wings, gear, avionics, environmental and auxiliary systems. A company can get in a lot of flying on the price difference alone. As a new option for business jet shoppers, the Learjet 40 fills a gap between the Learjet 45 and contenders made by other planemakers - and buyers seldom complain about excess choices. FURTHER EVOLUTION: With certification of the new Honeywell TFE731-20BR engine secured in late June, Learjet should soon start delivering the second new derivative of the Learjet 45 – the 45 XR. Again sharing practically every system and component – aside from minor differences in the engine – the Learjet 45 XR offers operators longer range, speedier climb and, thanks to the new engines, hot-and-high performance almost 1,000 miles better than the original Learjet 45. The Honeywell TFE731-20BR engine can make its full 3,500 pounds of thrust at ISA+25 degrees Celsius, a full 9 degrees higher than the TFE731-20AR LEARJET 40 LEARJET 45 LEARJET 45 XR DIMENSIONS Length ..........................55.5 ft .......................57.6 ft.....................57.6 ft Height...........................14.1 ft .......................14.1 ft....................14.1 ft Wing Span ..................47.8 ft ........................47.8 ft.....................47.8 ft INTERIOR Length ..........................17.7 ft ........................19.5 ft....................19.5 ft Height...........................4.9 ft..........................4.9 ft ......................4.9 ft Width.............................5.1 ft..........................5.1 ft ......................5.1 ft POWER Engines........................2x Honeywell .........2x Honeywell.......2x Honeywell TFE731-20AR........TFE731-20AR ....TFE731-20BR Thrust ...........................3,500lbs...................3,500lbs ...............3,500lbs AVIONICS ................Honeywell................Honeywell ............Honeywell Primus 1000...........Primus 1000 .......Primus 1000 WEIGHTS MTOW ...........................20,350 lbs...............20,500 lbs...........21,500 lbs Max Landing ..............19,200 lbs...............19,200 lbs ...........19,200 lbs Max Payload ..............2,572 lbs..................2,271 lbs..............2,271 lbs Useful Load................-...................................- ...............................- Max Fuel......................5,375 lbs..................6,062 lbs..............6,062 lbs AIRPORT PERFORMANCE Take-Off.......................-...................................- ...............................- Landing ........................2,660 ft ....................2,660 ft.................2,660 ft CRUISE PERFORMANCE High Speed................0.81 mach ...............0.81 mach............0.81 mach Long Range................0.75 mach ...............0.75 mach............0.75 mach Range ...........................1,700nm...................1,800nm...............2,000nm CAPACITY Flight Crew.................2 .................................2..............................2 Passengers................7 .................................9..............................9 Projected Price .........$7.8m........................$10.2m.................$10.85m Note: These statistics are posted on www.aero.bombardier.com that power the Learjets 45 and 40. The 45 XR boasts a landing-gear improvement to handle a gross take-off weight of 21,500 pounds, exactly 1,000 pounds higher than the Learjet 45. With more than 600 pounds of that higher weight available in fuel – and thanks to the higher elevations at which the engines can make full power – the Learjet 45 XR with eight passengers can fly almost 1,000 miles farther than the Learjet 45 coming out of a high-elevation locale like Aspen, Colorado. With full fuel, the Learjet 45 XR can still carry eight in the cabin and cover more than 2,000 nautical miles, nonstop. So even though the Learjet 45 XR is dimensionally the same as the Learjet 45, even with the same thrust, the XR is arguably an example of getting something more – for practically nothing. In this case, the "nothing" equates to about $600,000, the price difference between the Learjet 45 and the $10.85 million price tag of the Learjet 45 XR. ■ More information from Bombardier Aerospace; Website: www.aero.bombardier.com 54 WORLD AIRCRAFT SALES MAGAZINE – August 2004 www.AvBuyer.com Aircraft Index see Page 2
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BOMBARDIER LEARJET 40 - AvBuyer.com

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