https://ngtest.aviationweek.com/themes/custom/particle/dist/app-drupal/assets/awn-logo.svg
Skip to main content
  • Market Sector
    • Aerospace
    • Air Transport
    • MRO
    • Defense and Space
    • Business Aviation
  • Markets
    • Aerospace
      • Aircraft & Propulsion
      • Connected Aerospace
      • Emerging Technologies
      • Manufacturing & Supply Chain
      • Advanced Air Mobility
      • Commercial Space
      • Sustainability
    • Air Transport
      • Aircraft & Propulsion
      • Interiors & Connectivity
      • Airports & Networks
      • Airlines & Lessors
      • Safety, Ops & Regulation
      • Maintenance & Training
      • Sustainability
    • MRO
      • Aircraft & Propulsion
      • Interiors & Connectivity
      • Emerging Technologies
      • Supply Chain
      • Safety, Ops & Regulation
      • Workforce & Training
      • Sustainability
    • Defense and Space
      • Aircraft & Propulsion
      • Sensors & Electronic Warfare
      • Missile Defense & Weapons
      • Supply Chain
      • Budget, Policy & Operations
      • Space
      • Sustainability
    • Business Aviation
      • Aircraft & Propulsion
      • Interiors & Connectivity
      • Airports, FBOs & Suppliers
      • Flight Deck
      • Safety, Ops & Regulation
      • Maintenance & Training
      • Sustainability
  • Marketplace
  • Services
    • Services
      • Advertising
      • Marketing Services
      • Fleet, Data & APIs
      • Research & Consulting
      • Network and Route Planning
      • Marketplace
  • Store
    • Market Sector

      • Aerospace
      • Air Transport
      • MRO
      • Defense and Space
      • Business Aviation
    • Type View All Products
      • Intelligence Bundles
        • AWIN - Premium
        • AWIN - Aerospace and Defense
        • AWIN - Business Aviation
        • AWIN - Commercial Aviation
      • Market Briefings
        • Advanced Air Mobility Report - NEW!
        • Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
        • Aviation Daily
        • SpeedNews
        • The Weekly of Business Aviation
      • Directories
        • Air Charter Guide
        • Aviation Week Marketplace
        • Route Exchange
        • The Engine Yearbook
      • Data Services
        • AC-U-KWIK
        • Aircraft Bluebook
        • Airportdata.com
        • Airport Strategy and Marketing (ASM)
        • CAPA – Centre for Aviation
        • Fleet Discovery Civil
        • Fleet Discovery Military
        • Fleet & MRO Forecast
        • MRO Prospector
      • Publications
        • Air Transport World
        • Aviation Week & Space Technology
        • Aviation Week & Space Technology - Inside MRO
        • Business & Commercial Aviation
        • CAPA - Airline Leader
        • Routes magazine
        • ShowNews
      • Resources
        • Downloadable Reports
  • Events
    • Recent webinars
    • Events View All Events
      • MRO
        • MRO Americas
        • MRO Asia
        • MRO Australasia
        • MRO Baltics & Eastern Europe Region
        • MRO Europe
        • MRO Latin America
        • MRO Middle East
        • Military Aviation Logistics and Maintenance Symposium (MALMS)
        • Asia Aerospace Leadership Forum & MRO Asia-Pacific Awards
      • Commercial Aviation/A&D
        • A&D Mergers and Acquisitions
        • A&D Programs
        • A&D Manufacturing
        • A&D Raw Materials
        • A&D SupplyChain
        • A&D SupplyChain Europe
        • Advanced Air Mobility
        • Aero-Engines Americas
        • Aero-Engines Europe
        • Aero-Engines Asia-Pacific
        • Digital Transformation Summit
        • Engine Leasing Trading & Finance Europe
        • Engine Leasing, Trading & Finance Americas
      • Air Transport
        • Routes Americas
        • Routes Europe
        • Routes World
        • ATW Airline Awards
        • CAPA Airline Leader Summit
        • CAPA Americas Aviation Summit
        • CAPA Latin America Aviation Summit
        • CAPA Australia Pacific Aviation Summit
        • CAPA Asia Aviation Summit & Sustainability Awards
        • CAPA World Aviation Outlook Summit
        • GAD Americas
        • GAD World
      • Aerospace and Defense
        • A&D Mergers and Acquisitions Conference (ADMA)
        • A&D Manufacturing Conference
        • Aerospace Raw Materials & Manufacturers Supply Chain Conference (RMC)
        • A&D Programs
      • Awards
        • Aviation Week 20 Twenties
        • Aviation Week Laureate Awards
        • Program Excellence Awards and Banquet
        • CAPA Asia Aviation Summit & Awards for Excellence
  • About
    • About Aviation Week Network
      • Our Story
      • Content and Data Team
      • Aviation Week & Space Technology 100-Year
    • Contact Us
      • Subscriber Services
      • Advertising, Marketing Services & List Rentals
      • Content Sales
      • Events
      • PR & Communications
      • Content Licensing and Reprints
      • FAQ
  • Log In
  • Register
  • My Account
    • Profile
    • Sign Out
  • AWIN Access
  • My cart
    Back to
  1. Business Aviation
  2. Aircraft & Propulsion

Share

Business Aviation Highlights Of 2021

Graham Warwick December 16, 2021
Dassault’s ultra-widebody Falcon 6X

Ultra-Widebody Falcon Flies

Credit: Dassault Aviation

Dassault’s ultra-widebody Falcon 6X made its 2-hr. 30-min. first flight from Bordeaux-Merignac Airport, France, on March 10. The aircraft has the tallest and widest cabin of any purpose-designed business jet and an intercontinental range of 5,500 nm. Three test aircraft are now flying and certification is anticipated in 2022.

Bye’s Electric Twin

Bye’s Electric Twin Takes on King Air

Credit: Bye Aerospace concept

Bye Aerospace in April launched the eFlyer 800, an eight-seat, all-electric competitor to Textron Aviation’s Beechcraft King Air 260 turboprop twin. Performance targets include a 500-nm range with a 320-kt. cruise speed and 35,000-ft. ceiling. Certification is expected by early 2026.

Falcon 10X

Dassault’s Biggest Falcon Unveiled

Credit: Dassault concept

Dassault unveiled the Falcon 10X in May, a clean-sheet, four-zone, ultra-long-range aircraft and its largest business jet to date. Powered by two Rolls-Royce Pearl 10X engines, the aircraft has a range of 7,500 nm and maximum speed of Mach 0.925. Certification is planned for late 2025.

Aerion AS2

Supersonic Startup Aerion Shutdown

Credit: Aerion concept

Supersonic business-jet developer Aerion ceased operations in May after failing to raise the funding required to continue development of its Mach 1.4 aircraft, AS2. Work had been underway for a decade and first flight was planned for 2024. GE also ceased development of its Affinity supersonic engine.

Challenger 3500

Challenger 3500 Revamps Bestseller

Credit: Bombardier concept

For its first product launch since becoming a pure-play business aircraft manufacturer, Bombardier in September unveiled the Challenger 3500, a revamp of its bestselling Challenger 350 super midsize business jet with a new cabin interior and reduced cabin altitude. Certification is planned for 2022.

Gulfstream concept

Gulfstream Completes Large-Cabin Strategy

Credit: Credit. Gulfstream concept

Gulfstream filled out its long-range, large-cabin business jet lineup in October when it unveiled the 4,200-nm G400 and 8,000-nm G800. Based on the G700, the G800 is planned for certification in 2023 and will succeed the G650. Based on the G500/G600, the G400 is scheduled for certification in 2025.

Transcontinental HondaJet

Transcontinental HondaJet Showcased

Credit: Honda Aircraft concept

Honda aircraft in October revealed the HondaJet 2600 concept for a long-range light jet with transcontinental capability, designed to fly up to 2,625 nm with as many as 10 passengers and a single pilot. Derived from the HA-420 HondaJet light jet, the aircraft has a stretched fuselage and longer-span wing.

Textron Aircraft

Textron Refreshes Its Lineup

Credit: Textron Aviation

Textron Aircraft revamped its product line in 2021, ending production of the midsize Cessna Citation Sovereign and smaller Beechcraft King Air C90GTx, but certifying the upgraded King Air 260, and in October introducing the Citation M2 Gen 2 and Citation XLS Gen 2 jets with improved cabins.

Denali

Denali Takes to the Air as a Beechcraft

Credit: Textron Aviation

Textron Aviation single-turboprop Beechcraft (formerly Cessna) Denali made its long-awaited 2-hr. 50-min. first flight from Wichita on Nov. 23. The aircraft is powered by GE Aviation’s new Catalyst turboprop. Two more flight-test aircraft are planned and certification is now scheduled for 2023.

Airbus ACJ TwoTwenty

From Airliner to Business Liner

Credit: Airbus

The Airbus ACJ TwoTwenty long-range business jet—a reconfigured A220-100 narrowbody airliner—completed its first flight Dec. 14 from Mirabel, Quebec. The aircraft has a range of 5,650 nm. Airbus launched the TwoTwenty program in 2020 and anticipates entry into service in 2023.

Previous
Next

Business aviation’s recovery proved rapid and robust through 2021, and industry’s response was to revamp its product offerings with a host of upgrades and a handful of key new designs. Here are some of the major milestones of the year.

Graham Warwick

Graham leads Aviation Week's coverage of technology, focusing on engineering and technology across the aerospace industry, with a special focus on identifying technologies of strategic importance to aviation, aerospace and defense.

Related Content

Commercial Aviation Highlights Of 2021

Follow us on

Markets

  • Aerospace
  • Air Transport
  • MRO
  • Defense and Space
  • Business Aviation

Products

  • AWIN Intelligence Bundles
  • Market Briefings
  • Publications
  • Data Services
  • Directories
  • Resources

Contact Us

  • Subscriber Services
  • Advertising, Marketing Services & List Rentals
  • Content Sales
  • Events
  • PR & Communications
  • Content Licensing and Reprints
  • FAQ

Other Resources

  • Aviation Week Marketplace
  • Knowledge Center
  • Newsletters
  • ShowNews
  • Advertising - Media Kits
Copyright © 2025. All rights reserved. Informa Markets, a trading division of Informa PLC.
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use