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The HondaJet Echelon:
A New Era in Aviation
by Rich Pickett
In-flight rendering of the Echelon
In 2019, at the NBAA Business Avia- tion Convention & Exhibition (BACE) in Las Vegas, Honda addressed the
speculations by unveiling a mockup of the HondaJet 2600—a sleek, ambitious aircraft. While specific performance details were initially scarce, Honda revealed an impressive 2,600-nautical- mile range that would surpass the com- petition. The aircraft’s design stayed true to Honda’s innovative over-the- wing engine mount (OTWEM) concept but didn’t disclose the engine manu- facturer at that time. Based on the an- ticipated specifications, the Williams International FJ44-4A series seemed like the logical choice. At that time,
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I opined, the only way to get the pro- posed range was with an operating ceiling of FL470. The Honda Aircraft staff just smiled when I mentioned the ceiling.
Fast forward to last fall’s NBAA BACE in Las Vegas, where Honda confirmed the use of Williams’ FJ44-4AC engines, coupled with a service ceiling of FL470 and a max cruise speed of 450 KTAS (0.77 Mach). The “HondaJet 2600,” named for its projected range, has been rebranded as the HA-480 Echelon. This new jet isn’t simply a stretched Hon- daJet—it represents a clean-sheet de- sign, sharing only a few characteristics like the OTWEM engine configuration,
low-wing profile, Garmin G3000 avion- ics, and lavatory skylights.
At the NBAA Static Display in Hen- derson, Nevada, my son Tigre and I met Ryan Ramos and YiYi Cui from Honda Aircraft’s marketing team to learn more about the Echelon and explore the mockup. They explained that Honda Aircraft had planned its Greensboro, NC facilities for growth, allowing them to develop the Echelon quickly alongside the HondaJet. They also partnered with Spirit AeroSys- tems to help with manufacturing. Certification is planned for 2028, and Honda Aircraft is well on track to meet that goal.