Embraer Gears Up To Begin Legacy 500 Flight Testing

Embraer displayed the midsize Legacy 500 prototype for the first time with a painted finish on Friday to a group of aviation journalists visiting the manufacturer’s headquarters in São José dos Campos, Brazil. Legacy 500 S/N 001, the first of four planned flight-test aircraft, is currently being prepared to fly before year-end.

Embraer launched the Legacy 500 and the mid-light Legacy 450 in March 2008. The manufacturer touts the duo as the first jets in their respective categories with stand-up flat-floor cabins and fly-by-wire (FBW) flight controls.
However, integration problems with the three-axis FBW system provided by Parker Aerospace delayed development of the Legacy 500, which was originally expected to enter service this year. Parker was “not able to keep the milestones, so we brought in the Embraer engineering team and BAE to help,” said Embraer Executive Jets senior vice president of operations and COO Marco Tulio Pellegrini. Embraer Executive Jets president Ernest Edwards called the situation “a bad dream,” adding, “It’s all behind us now, and we’re back on track.”
The flight-test program calls for the four prototypes to fly 1,500 to 2,000 hours. The following Legacy 450 flight-test program will involve two prototypes and fewer flight hours due to its commonality with the Legacy 500, Embraer said.

Phenom 300 production begins in Florida

In late August, the first wing and fuselage of the Phenom 300 arrived in the Melbourne, Florida facility. Embraer Executive Jets have now added the Phenom 300 executive jet to their production line, two-shift assembly operation. Full development of the assembly line, including the addition of the Phenom 300, will be completed in the first quarter 2013.

“We have added the Phenom 300 to bring production closer to our customers,” said Phil Krull, managing director of the facility. “Customers have been benefiting from the delivery of the entry-level Phenom 100 produced in Melbourne since last year and we are now ready to expand these operations.”

Since its recent arrival, the fuselage and wing of the Phenom 300 have been readied for the commencement of assembly.

The addition of the Phenom 300 to the assembly line comes as Embraer is developing the Embraer Engineering and Technology Centre USA at its growing aeronautical complex in Melbourne. Scheduled for completion in 2013.

The Phenom 100 and Phenom 300 assembly line has the ability to ultimately produce eight aircraft per month in a mix of the two aircraft produced on a single assembly line. The first US-assembled Phenom 300 is scheduled for delivery in March 2013, one of more than 12 scheduled for production in Melbourne in 2013. The production certificate recently granted by the Federal Aviation Administration for the Phenom 100 will be expanded to include production of the Phenom 300.