I went on board the Embraer Phenom 300E and saw why this private jet is the most flown aircraft in the US
Last August, the planemaker announced that the Phenom 300 logged over two million flight hours, overtaking the similarly-sized Cessna Citation Excel.
A light jet powered by Pratt & Whitney PW500 engines, it has a range of around 2,300 miles.That's just far enough to cross the US coast-to-coast.
The Phenom 300 has also been the best-selling light jet for the last 12 years.
I had to duck my head to fit inside the cabin, which is 4 feet and 11 inches tall, since it's designed for shorter trips. The inside was indeed snug, but there was still space for a two-person divan in the galley ... ... As well as a small area for refreshments. The cockpit has two seats, but the 300E requires only one pilot. In fact, it's the fastest and longest-range single-pilot jet on the market.Its top speed is Mach 0.80 — equivalent to 534 mph at 35,000 feet. By comparison, an Airbus A320neo usually cruises at Mach 0.78, or 520 mph.
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It also uses fly-by-wire technology, which Embraer initially developed for its military aircraft.Instead of mechanical flight controls, fly-by-wire uses computer-controlled systems to process the pilots' input. That also means better fuel efficiency as there are fewer parts and lighter wires.
Concorde was the first commercial jet to use fly-by-wire until the Airbus A320, which proved to be a pivotal chapter in the competition between Airbus and Boeing
The cabin is configured with six seats.If you look closely you can see me in the mirror, hunched over quite uncomfortably. But again, since it's a light jet, there isn't usually much need to walk around the cabin.
The four seats in the front have tables that pop out from the side, next to the vase of flowers. While the rear seats don't have a table, there's at least a drink holder and good legroom. In the aft, there's a compact bathroom, where the toilet can also be used as a seat. Some of the larger jets I've seen, like the Gulfstream G700, don't have a window in the bathroom, so that's a nice luxury perk.Qatar Airways has received the world's first $81 million Gulfstream G700 private jet as it caters to elite customers — take a look inside
The Phenom 300E might be a smaller jet, but for many customers that's all it needs to be. It's easy to see why it's proved popular thanks to its technical specs. In some ways, that also sums up Embraer's commercial airliners. It's the third main player behind Boeing and Airbus, but doesn't compete directly since its narrowbody jets are smaller.The E175 and E195 are four-abreast regional jets, versus the six-abreast of a Boeing 737 or Airbus A320.
Last month, Embraer denied a report from The Wall Street Journal that it was planning to build a new narrowbody jet to compete directly with the two, amid Boeing's ongoing crisis.
"Embraer certainly has the capability to develop a new narrowbody aircraft. However, we have a young and very successful portfolio of products developed in recent years, and we are really focused on selling those products and making Embraer bigger and stronger," a spokesperson said.
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