Home is where the heart is. Corporate houses have long understood this and to get the best from their employees are trying to elevate their mood and increase their efficiency by using colours, textures, lighting that gives them the warmth, comfort and contentment of being at their ultimate destination. And when it comes to a corporate head choosing a business jet for his travel needs, he looks for an environ that is an extension of the luxury he enjoys at home, but of course not compromising on higher speed, smoother ride, advanced safety, utmost fuel efficiency and low noise level.

The further you fly and the more you work, comfort becomes a necessity. And hence original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are set on an infinite goal of crafting a corporate jet which delivers comfort, space and freedom of movement. Seats are being redesigned so that passengers do not slip forward when they stretch out, while the carpets can be seen with new designs, and mirrors in the rest room can be tilted for the comfort of every passenger, tall or short. Showers, advanced lighting system and a lot more; business jets today offer more comfort, capacity and capability.

Custom Made Aesthetics

A right mix of intelligent functionality and stylish design, coordinated colours and use of materials that fit the scheme—corporate jet owners are looking at a cabin which would be a workspace as well as a space for relaxation. Hence manufacturers are offering pleasing and aesthetic solutions that are designed keeping the customer’s overall comfort in mind—soothing to the eyes, body and mind. Apart from LED lighting, care is also taken that the cabin has ample natural lighting provided by extra-large windows.

The Gulfstream 650 has a longer, wider and taller cabin than any other in its class and has 16 large panoramic windows. And the OEM is offering 12 select floor plans to configure the G650 to meet the customer’s requirements. The cabins can be configured both for business conference as well for relaxation. Likewise, the interiors of Cessna Citation CJ2 promises a blend of unique palette of rich leathers, finely tailored fabrics and polished wood veneers. Slimline refreshment centre, handcrafted furnishings and advanced soundproofing, further add to the merits.

The Falcon 7X has ergonomically adjustable seats, fulllength wardrobe, stand-up bathroom, full-size galley, advanced pressurisation system with temperature control and large windows for dazzling outside views.

Big or small, all business jets today promise superb interiors. While the Boeing Business Jet (BBJ)-3, showcased for the first time at the European Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition in Switzerland in May this year, has interiors that are finished in a bright, high-gloss sycamore wood with handcrafted work integrated in the entrance panel. The new tiny Beechcraft King Air has unsurpassed interior styling with its revolutionary cabin design having provision for reconfiguration of seats for more passengers or allowing more space for VIPs. If the BBJ-3 features a large main lounge, a dining room, a bedroom suite with a queen-sized bed and bathroom with a shower, the seats in the King Air feature waterfall headrests and can be enhanced with optional aft ottomans and seat warmers.

Technology and Safety

Excellent take-off and landing capability, higher speed and a greater range are a must for customers, but so is safety. Hence manufacturers are also giving increasing importance on installation of sophisticated next-generation technology to improve situational awareness for the pilot and enhance safety. Enhanced vision system (EVS), head-up display (HUD), synthetic vision-primary flight display (SV-PFD) and a lot more. Business jets today meet all the safety needs of the passengers and crew, as also are designed keeping the aerodynamics factor in mind.

The Gulfstream 650’s Planeview II cockpit is equipped with a triplex flight management system, automatic emergency descent mode, 3D weather radar, advanced flight controls, etc. The Falcon 7X digital flight control system helps in more precise handling and reduces workload, thus improving safety. This fly-by-wire system also delivers a quieter, smoother ride, by calming unrest. Dassault has recently received approval from both the US Federal Aviation Administration and the European Aviation Safety Agreement for EASy II on the Falcon 7X. This latest version of EASy includes a host of new features designed to increase safety and situational awareness while taking advantage of nextgeneration technologies within the air traffic management system.

The Airbus Corporate Jet (ACJ) family now comes with more features bringing in efficiency and cost savings. These features include streamlined, aerodynamically efficient designs, pilot-pleasing common cockpits, fly-by-wire controls that save weight and maintenance as well as introduction of greater protection, weight-saving materials such as carbon fibre apart from time and cost-saving centralised maintenance.

Office and Entertainment in the Sky

The best Internet connectivity gives a competitive edge and hence use of higher specification equipment now makes up 50 per cent of all new installations on business jets. Like in offices, cars and homes, newer communications tools are now very much part of a business jet, wherein the traveller onboard can conduct meetings and finalise deals in a comfortable, quiet and totally secure environment. Manufacturers are offering Wi-Fi, iPod/iPhone connections, Blu-Ray players connected to 42-, 46-, 24-inch monitors, and 37-inch monitors placed throughout the cabin.

Be it Bombardier Global 6000, Embraer Legacy 650 or Cessna Citation, thanks to the onboard Wi-Fi, passengers can easily catch up with friends and family by voice, text and e-mail or even watch their favourite movie in 3D on their TV monitors. Quality sound system, cabin noise reduction and cabin connectivity are also being increasingly paid attention.

The Cessna Citation ‘New Sovereign’ has the ‘Clarity’ cabin management system that helps passengers manage their cabin environment and stay connected throughout their flight. Similarly, Dassault’s Falcon 7X flight cabin management system also places control and convenience totally in the hands of the passengers.

The Embraer Legacy 650 with its Honeywell Ovation Select cabin management system, provides full HD video system, high definition media input and two-zone surround system, two iPod/iPhone docking stations, two Blu-Ray players, XM Radio, full HD LCD, up to 32 inches, individual monitors and JetMap high-resolution 3D moving map.

The new Rockwell Collins Venue high-definition cabin management system on the Beechcraft King Air 350i offers high-definition features including entertainment cabinet with 15-inch swing-out LCD HD monitor, the right environment for corporate strategy meetings or relaxing with state-of-theart lighting at each seat, new worktables, electro-chromatic window darkeners, AV and USB hookups; iPod or iPhone dock and much more.

Size Matters

If you are a group of six or less flying for three hours or less, a light jet aircraft is the best for you. Similarly, heavy jets are best suited for larger groups and for intercontinental travel and midsize jets are for groups of up to eight, flying up to five hours per flight segment.

And for passengers looking for more comfort, capacity and capability, manufacturers like Airbus are offering VIP versions of the wide-body aircraft (Airbus ACJ330, ACJ340, ACJ350 and ACJ380) for company executives, high net-worth individuals as well as government leaders.

Airbus has a wide array of jets in varying sizes allowing customers to select the comfort they want. The ACJ318, ACJ319, ACJ320 and ACJ321 are derived from the A320 airliner family and hence designed to fly many times a day. The jets feature robust airframes that have excellent reliability and the cabins of the jets are approximately twice as wide as traditional highend business jets.

Boeing also has a range of VIP versions of its 787, 777, 767 and 747-8 models, along with the Boeing Business Jets that are delivered with no exterior paint or interiors. The interiors are done later at a completion centre crafted according to the customer’s private or business needs. After the finishing work, the business jet is re-delivered to the customer.

Maintenance and Overhaul

While business jet owners are looking at options that can make their travel easier in busier times, aircraft manufacturers are also leaving no stone unturned in not only upgrading their systems with the latest technology, but are also providing customers with technical advice, training and spare parts across the world. Field service, spares distribution centres, component service centres, training centres, Boeing provides worldwide support to its customers and so does Airbus and many other corporate jet manufacturers. Airbus Corporate Jet Centre (ACJC) has recently received Part 145 maintenance organisation approval from the Russian State Centre of Aviation Flight Safety, substantiating its leadership in Eastern Europe as a completion and maintenance, repair and overhaul centre.

Home Away from Home

Biz jets are today a home away from home, where you can also conduct business at your best. Stephen Taylor, President of Boeing Business Jets, rightly states: “Our customer base comprises people who put a high premium on mobility. They don’t want to be immobilised when they travel, but prefer to live as they do on the ground, with access to an office, bedroom, shower, dining facilities, entertainment areas and more.”