Garmin’s G5000 integrated flight deck for Textron Aviation’s Citation Excel and XLS business jets are now certified to provide FANS-1/A+ and ACARS support. (Garmin International)
Business aviation operators and aircraft owners flying the Cessna Citation Excel and XLS models equipped with Garmin’s G5000 integrated flight deck now have access to Future Air Navigation System (FANS-1/A+) and Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) support, according to a March 16 Garmin press release.
Excel and XLS models featuring the upgrade G5000 features will now be equipped to fly the North Atlantic Track System (NATS), which recently had temporary relief from the North Atlantic Datalink Mandate rules—that require FANS-1/A+ avionics to operate between the flight levels FL290 and FL410—removed by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
“In addition, the popular southerly Blue Spruce routes over Greenland between FL290 and FL410 will also require that aircraft meet the NAT DLM requirements to fly within the parameters of this airspace,” Garmin said in the release.
Textron’s Citation XLS is powered by twin Pratt & Whitney Canada PW500 engines and weighs 11,210 lbs with a 506 mph cruise speed and range of 2,138 nm. (Textron Aviation)
Textron first received Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Supplemental Type Certification for G5000 retrofits on the Citation Excel and XLS jets in July 2019. Last year, the company delivered 13 total Citation XLS aircraft, with no new reported Excel model deliveries, according to the latest General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) annual shipments and billings report.
The G5000 integrated flight deck for the Citation Excel and Citation XLS features three landscape-oriented displays with touchscreen controllers and geo-referenced Garmin SafeTaxi airport diagrams. A G5000 emergency descent mode is also enabled by the autopilot in the event of a loss in aircraft pressurization, according to Garmin.
Other new capabilities enabled by the G5000 upgrade for the Citation Excel/XLS include synthetic vision, visual and aural cues designed to help pilots with airport taxiing and an optional FANS-over-Iridium capability through the flight deck’s embedded GSR 56 satellite connectivity system.
“With access to Controller Pilot Data Link Communication-Departure Clearance (CPDLC-DCL), operators can participate in automated DCL operations at over 60 of the busiest airports in the U.S. and receive automatic loading of the departure clearance into the G5000,” according to Garmin.
Other Cessna models that come equipped with the G5000 suite as a line-fit flight deck, including the Citation Sovereign, Latitude, and Longitude, were not announced as featuring the new capability in the Garmin release.