Germany's EFO Aviation has become the first company in Europe to order the new Citation Latitude midsize jet, for delivery in the summer of 2016. It was attracted by the aircraft's extended range as well as its 72-inch, flat-floor cabin.

The aircraft will be operated by Air Hamburg Private Jets, which will use it for charter and executive transportation. "The Latitude is a new class of Citation and we are very happy to be the first to bring it to Europe," says Floris Helmers, managing director at Air Hamburg. "The 2,300nm range will allow us to meet many different mission demands, including between Germany and Moscow. It will be the perfect complement to the other Citations in our fleet, which include three XLS+ and two CJ3 as well as other Citation aircraft."

Director of marketing and sales Mike Ulka is confident that the Latitude will be a hit with customers. "The target passenger would typically book a Challenger 300 due to its spacious midsize cabin. On a non-stop range below 2,300nm this new Latitude with the widest and highest cabin Cessna has ever built is a smart alternative," he says. "The price per hour will beat any other midsize jet. We expect a lot of flights from Moscow, St Petersburg and Dubai to the Mediterranean sea region. We are planning a sales price per hour below 4.000 Euros net."

Air Hamburg has also signed a contract for a fourth Citation XLS+ which should arrive in March this year, following a second CJ3 in February, and will be present at the EBACE show this year to promote its ever-growing fleet.

Cessna has only recently announced the expected increased range capability of the Latitude. "Our customers asked, we answered," says Trevor Esling, vp sales for Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia. "The increased range will give the aircraft more flexibility to fly a wider variety of missions and meet our customer requirements for comfort and performance. We've made this great aircraft even better."

The Latitude was first announced at the NBAA convention last year, and has been designed with space for a crew of two plus up to eight passengers. It features Garmin G5000 avionics, a six foot (1.83 metre) high passenger cabin from just behind the cockpit through to the rear lavatory area, a flat floor, and Cessna's advanced Clairity cabin technology.

Positioned between the Citation XLS+ and the Sovereign, the Latitude is expected to operate at airports with runways as short as 3,900 feet (1,189 metres), and to climb direct to 43,000 feet in 23 minutes. The latitude will have its own type rating (model C-680A), due to its Garmin 5000 cockpit.

First flight of the Latitude prototype is expected to be mid-year 2014, with FAA certification (Part 25) and entry into service expected in 2015. The aircraft is priced at US$14.9 million in 2012 .