Honda’s effort to join the business jet market suffered a small setback recently after recent engine testing revealed the need for design changes. Honda Aircraft president Michimasa Fujino first sketched the idea for the unique small jet back in 1997. The company had hoped to offer the airplane for sale in late 2012, but Fujino now says the airplane should be available by mid 2013.
The most recent setback occurred during testing of the airplane’s new engine. The powerplant is joint venture between Honda and GE and is being developed for the HondaJet. Part of the testing for a new engine includes ingesting pieces of ice to simulate what is likely to happen during flight. Ice ingestion testing on the GE Honda engine caused “very minor damage” according to Honda’s Fujino.
The damage to the engine’s fan blades means a redesign will be necessary resulting in the delay to 2013.
The HondaJet features an interesting engine mount design with the engines located on pylons on top of the wings. The patented design reduces drag at high speeds and allows for more space in the fuselage compared to typical small jet designs where the engines are mounted to the fuselage near the tail according to Honda. A similar design has been tried before with the 1960s with the German built VFW-Fokker 614.
The composite fuselage jet made its first flight in 2003. After several years of flying the prototype, Honda Aircraft recently began flight testing production conforming aircraft at its North Carolina headquarters. Earlier this year the company achieved a maximum operating altitude of 43,000 feet and another flight was able to confirm a top speed of 489 miles per hour (425 knots). Both tests back up figures promised by Honda to the more than 100 customers who have placed orders for the jet.
With room for as many as six passengers and two crew members, the HondaJet is at the small end of the business jet market. Expected to sell for $4.5 million, the plane can be flown by a single pilot.
Photo: Honda Aircraft
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