Swiss airframe manufacturer Pilatus on Tuesday launched its latest flagship aircraft, the PC-24 twin-engine business jet, at the European Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva, Switzerland.
(PC-24 Light Jet. Photo: Pilatus.)
The PC-24 will have a list price of $8.9 million, seats up to ten passengers and features an avionics system developed by Honeywell.
PC-24’s cockpit draws on functionality from Honeywell’s Primus Apex flight deck featured in the Pilatus PC-12NG single-engine turboprop. Pilatus calls it an advanced cockpit environment (ACE), with four 12-inch display screens and Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) II capability, paving the way for future ADS-B applications. The business jet also comes equipped with Required Navigation Performance Authorization Required 0.3 (RNP AR) and Wide Area Augmentation System-Localizer Performance with Vertical Guidance (WAAS-LPV).
“For our first twin jet, we wanted to make sure that the PC-24 had the latest avionics and technology to provide pilots with the safest flying experience possible. Through our work with Honeywell on the PC-12 NG, we know that Honeywell’s integrated flight deck products provide pilots with safety enhancements and technology that greatly increase operational efficiency and the overall flight experience,” said Oscar J. Schwenk, chairman of the board at Pilatus Aircraft.
The PC-24 twin WIlliams International FJ44-4A engines enable a max cruise speed of 425 knots, and a maximum range of 1,948 nautical miles with four passengers, Pilatus said. The airframe is all-metal, designed to operate from short and unimproved runways, as little as 2,690 feet.
The business jet is currently in its prototype stage, and is scheduled to roll out of the Pilatus factory in Stans, Switzerland, during the third quarter of 2014. Pilatus expects FAA and EASA certification in 2017.
Related: Business & GA Avionics News