Page 6 - Volume 15 Number 9

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by Tim Kern
Photos by Honda Aircraft Company & Tim Kern
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Honda Aircraft Company has been flying its proof-of-concept (POC) machine since late 2003, and the company has learned a lot, as it has gone from this first machine to its second, which is an FAA-conforming prototype, a machine which flew seven years (plus one week) after the first.
N420HJ, the conforming prototype, is putting good ole N420HA out to pasture, after the POC has flown more than 500 flights. The POC proved three key concepts: that an over-the-wing engine mount design could work better than traditional placements; that a natural laminar flow (NLF) airfoil, invented by Honda, could
4 • TWIN & TURBINE
have enough volume for reasonable fuel capacity while also maintaining good high and low-speed characteristics; and that a large cabin could fit in a small airplane.
The HondaJet seats 2+5 with a fully private lav (or 2+6 in “livery” configuration); Hotel Juliet has a Vmo of 420 knots (and has demonstrated 425); it has flown to its design ceiling of 43,000 feet, now has a 4,000 fpm rate of climb at MTOW, and, according to the company, it is quieter and more fuel-efficient than anything in its class. It has a composite fuselage, with metal in wings and empennage. The top wing surface is machined from a single block of aluminum to maintain the laminar flow.
SEPTEMBER 2011