A Premier I has completed a world tour which took in Europe, the Middle East, India, China, Southwest Asia, Australia and Japan. The aircraft took off from Wichita, Kansas, before heading east and visiting 23 countries, flying more than 35,000 miles and amassing more than 144 flight hours in the four-month tour. European stops included Reykjavik, Glasgow, Milan, Paris and Hamburg.

The Premier I also made a stop at the Zhuhai Air Show in China to demonstrate for prospective owners and current order holders. Pilot Trevor Blackmer reported: “We raced a CJ1 from Paris to Madrid and beat them by 20 minutes.”

In Europe – Raytheon’s third largest market for all its aircraft types – the company currently has in excess of 50 orders for the entry-level jet, even though it’s not certified in all countries. Vp international sales, Ted Farid, told EBAN: “We’ve had a lot of success with the Premier I in Europe. With a range of 1,500nm, it allows the operator to pretty much go anywhere.

“Also, I think one of the things that the European community looks at – and people there have a very healthy appreciation of this – is newer technology. The composite nature of the aircraft is now a big seller, particularly when you look at how well built Formula One cars are.

“Its speed and the cabin size are also big plusses. For a light jet, it has a very large cabin and you can only really appreciate that when it’s on the ground in front of you.”

The first certification Raytheon achieved in Europe was in Germany. This was followed by Switzerland, Denmark, Luxembourg, Turkey and Sweden. Notable omissions still are Holland, UK, Italy and France although the company is hoping to get some aircraft into the latter two later this year.

Said Farid: “Certification in Europe is a real challenge because of all the different agencies. At the moment, we’re waiting for EASA (European Aviation Safety Association) to take effect from September 28 this year and reading through the charter of EASA, if an aircraft is certified within one of the EU countries, it should be certified in the rest of the European Union without having to reinvent the wheel.

“We’re hoping this will take place later in the year because we still have to get a lot of aircraft delivered, that have already been sold in various countries in Europe.”

Competition for the Premier I comes from several different quarters although the number one threat is clearly posed by Cessna, with its flotilla of Citation jets. Said Farid: “Historically, the operator base is always comfortable with those it dealt with in the past. Having said that, one of the things that we’ve heard from customers is that they’re really pleased with the ergonomics of the cockpit. The way we’ve designed the aircraft means that the pilot workload is reduced to a bare minimum. The entire cockpit is fully integrated.”

Asked whether Raytheon expects the Premier I to spawn more jets of its kind, Farid said: “We’re always looking for our next product and we’re in the business for the long-term. At the right time, we can talk more about what’s coming next.

“For now, we’ve taken the aircraft around the world and the dispatch reliability was excellent for a new product like this to go to China, India and Australia. It’s already started to come into the Latin American market and it’s also making inroads in the Asia Pacific region with certification in China this year.”

During the world tour, the Premier I crews conducted 54 sales demonstrations and 20 pilot demos before returning to Wichita. A team of eight pilots and two technicians supported the Premier I during its various stages, in addition to a Wichita-based dispatcher. One technician completed the entire trip and assisted in the Premier’s 100 per cent dispatch reliability.