Gulfstream’s flagship G700 finally crossed the finish line, the Savannah, Georgia-based company announced this morning. The 7,750-nm twinjet earned its FAA stripes after more than two years of delays largely stemming from stricter certification requirements established in the wake of the Boeing Max debacle. Amstat data shows that Gulfstream has produced 53 G700s, including an anticipated 46 bound for customers that it will soon start delivering.

Besides better range, speed, and cabin altitude figures released in September, FAA certification also confirmed two additional performance improvements: a balanced field length takeoff distance of 5,995 feet (1,827 meters) and a landing distance of 3,150 feet. The G700’s Mmo of Mach 0.935 makes it the fastest in the Gulfstream fleet.

“We have successfully completed the most rigorous certification program in company history with the G700,” said Mark Burns, president, Gulfstream. “I’d like to thank our world-class team of flight test, certification, and engineering professionals, along with the many others at Gulfstream who have contributed to this accomplishment. The G700 brings a new level of performance and cabin comfort to business aviation and is doing so while meeting the highest certification standards our industry has ever seen…I am proud and excited to begin our G700 customer deliveries.”

Certification of the G700’s shorter sibling, the G800, is expected to follow by year-end.

Psychology researchers have found that some of the dumbest criminals and the cockiest pilots may have something in common: a hazardous cognitive bias—the Dunning–Kruger effect—that hinders self-perception, clouds judgment, and leads individuals to overestimate their ability. New psychological discoveries may provide a cure.

For the criminal, an overly optimistic assessment of the skills required to rob a bank may send them directly to jail, whereas a pilot with a false assessment of their abilities may take off into a thunderstorm, continue to fly into degraded visual conditions, or attempt a hazardous circling maneuver could lead to a fatal accident.

Research into the Dunning–Kruger effect began following an attempted bank robbery that involved a unique element—lemon juice. In April 1995, McArthur Wheeler robbed two Pittsburgh banks in broad daylight without a mask. Security cameras provided good images of his five-foot-six, 270-pound body and his face. Within hours of posting images on the local news, the police had a tip and he was taken into custody.

Bank robber Wheeler made an odd confession to detectives, exclaiming, “But I wore the juice.” Confused, the detectives pressed Wheeler on what he meant. The suspect stated that he knew lemon juice was an ingredient in invisible ink—thus, he thought “logically” that, if he covered his face in lemon juice, his face would be invisible to the security cameras.

Hypersonic aircraft developer Hermeus took the wraps off its first flying prototype, Quarterhorse Mk 1, this week as it moves to initial flight testing later this year. Built and integrated over the past seven months, Quarterhorse Mk 1 follows the completion of the ground-test campaign late last year of the initial non-flying, fully integrated prototype, dubbed Quarterhorse Mk 0. Development of Mk 1 keeps Hermeus on pace for developing one aircraft a year, a target the Atlanta-based company has set for itself.

Powered by a GE J85 engine, the uncrewed, remotely piloted Quarterhorse Mk 1 will demonstrate high-speed takeoff and landing, which Hermeus called a “key enabling capability to the future hypersonic aircraft.” Plans call for those trials to take place at Edwards Air Force Base.

Leading up to those trials, Hermeus will conduct tests on a range of things, including subsystems, ground stations, operations, and human factors.

Hermeus noted that each aircraft it is developing in the Quarterhorse program is progressively increasing in complexity and building on lessons learned. Next up is Quarterhorse Mk 2, which will be powered by a Pratt & Whitney F100 engine and will fly at supersonic speeds next year.

Beyond Quarterhorse Mk 2 will be Darkhorse, a multi-mission hypersonic aircraft for defense and national security missions, and ultimately Halcyon, a civil airliner/business jet option.

Gogo Business Aviation has completed end-to-end connectivity with the Eutelsat OneWeb low-earth-orbit (LEO) satellite network with its HDX electronically steered antenna. The HDX antenna is being used for ground-based testing of the Gogo Galileo broadband satcom service, which will begin commercial service later this year. Gogo plans to begin flight testing the HDX system in the third quarter.

Two antenna sizes will be available for the Gogo Galileo service—the smaller HDX for turboprops and lighter jets and the larger FDX for heavier airplanes. The antennas are made by Hughes Network Systems, with Gogo and Hughes collaborating on their design and engineering. 

The FDX measures 24 by 24 by 2 inches and weighs 40 to 45 pounds, while the HDX is 24 by 11.8 by 2 inches and weighs 21.6 pounds. Max power output for the HDX is 110 watts and the FDX is 330 watts.

“This successful test of the Gogo Galileo HDX on the Eutelsat OneWeb network is a meaningful milestone, and extremely timely ahead of our launch of aviation connectivity services later this year,” said Jason Sperry, head of business aviation for Eutelsat OneWeb. “Our LEO constellation is fully deployed, and we are finalizing the ground infrastructure to deliver seamless, low-latency, and high-performance broadband connectivity to business jets no matter where they fly.”

The aviation industry mourns the loss of Franz List, the chairman of the supervisory board for F/List, a high-end business aircraft interiors company. List passed away on March 23 at the age of 76 following a serious illness.

Under List's visionary guidance, F/List evolved from a modest joinery, established by his father in 1950, into a global leader in the design, creation, and production of luxury interiors, particularly for business jets.

Franz List's legacy is marked by his impact on the luxury interiors sector, where he introduced innovative products and achieved several industry milestones. In October 2017, List passed the company's management baton to his daughter, Katharina List-Nagl, who serves as CEO, while he continued to play a pivotal role as the chairman of the supervisory board.

The company, under the leadership of List-Nagl and the current leadership team, has pledged to continue its growth and innovation, honoring Franz List's contributions by furthering the development of interior design solutions. A successor for the position of supervisory board chairman will be named in the near future.

Latvia’s foreign minister, Krišjānis Karinš, is resigning in the wake of criticism of his use of business aircraft for official trips. The Baltic state’s prosecutor general has opened an investigation into the alleged misuse of government funds in response to reports that Karinš spent around €1.3 million ($1.4 million) on more than a dozen private jet charters from the capital, Riga, to various European cities for which airline service is available.

Karinš, who was born in the U.S., was previously Latvia’s prime minister from 2019 to 2023. He will remain in office until April 10 after submitting his resignation to current prime minister Evika Silina.

Earlier this week, UK home secretary James Cleverly drew criticism for spending almost $209,000 to charter a jet for a one-day trip from London to the Rwandan capital Kigali. Along with officials from his department, a photographer and a BBC TV news crew were on the flight to witness Cleverly sign an agreement under which asylum seekers to the UK could be deported to the African country.

Last year, when Cleverly was serving as the UK’s foreign secretary, he chartered an Embraer Lineage 1000E for an eight-day tour of the Caribbean and Latin America. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also has been criticized by opposition politicians for using private helicopters paid for by donors to the ruling Conservative Party.