Gulfstream Formally Replaces G100 With G150

Even as it celebrated CIS certification of is large-cabin bizjets, Gulfstream this month announced it would cease producing one of its “low-end” offerings, the G100 business jet, which began its life as the Israel Aircraft Industries Astra and evolved into the Astra SPX before adopting the Gulfstream model labeling system. The company on Jan. 13 said it is ending the mid-size cabin type’s 22-year production run. In is place will be the company’s newest offering, the G150, a modernized, wide-cabin version of the G100. The last G100 was manufactured by Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) in Tel Aviv and was then flown to Gulfstream’s Appleton, Wis., facility for interior outfitting and paint. The last aircraft is scheduled for customer delivery later this year. There are some 147 G100 or Astra derivative aircraft in service.

The new G150, which was certified by the Civil Aviation Administration of Israel and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on Nov. 7, 2005 — 10 weeks ahead of schedule — also will be manufactured in Tel Aviv. It will then be flown to Gulfstream’s Dallas completion center for interior outfitting and paint. “In developing the G150, we’ve improved both the jet’s comfort and performance,” said Bryan Moss, president, Gulfstream Aerospace. “We increased the width of the fuselage, allowing for a wider center aisle and space for larger seats. As for performance, we set out to match the G100’s speed and maximum range of 2,700 nm. By making external modifications that reduced drag, we were able to increase the range to 2,950 nautical miles at Mach 0.75.” Instead of the panels in larger Gulfstreams, the G150 flight deck features Rockwell Collins Pro-Line 21 avionics, four large displays screens and pilot and co-pilot side-wall-mounted cursor control devices as standard equipment.