[Hernando]

Cessna Shows New Citation M2. Great new plane

Cessna just announced that they will be producing a new jet. The Citation M2. It's designed to fit in between the Mustang and the CJ2+. Essentially a replacement for the CJ1+. In my view it just looks like the CJ1+ was upgraded. This will definitely be a great airplane with the new G3000 avionics and a 1,300nm range. I'm definitely interested to see the progress on this new plane.

Quote:

Cessna Aircraft Co. has announced the $4.195 million Citation M2, a light business jet that fills the gap between the Mustang entry-level jet and the Citation CJ family. It can carry two crew and up to six passengers at a maximum cruise speed of 400 knots true airspeed. It has a Garmin G3000 glass cockpit, as does the HondaJet and the PiperJet. Synthetic vision is an option.

“Operator feedback and owner insight have indicated a market for a Citation with the size, speed, and range of the Citation M2. We expect to see customers new to the Citation family, Mustang owners looking for a logical next step, or CJ1+ operators who want a new, more advanced Citation,” said Scott Ernest, Cessna president and CEO.

Ernest told reporters Sept. 26 that he is now learning to fly in a Cessna 172 with the company’s chief piston-engine test pilot, Kirby Ortega.

And the official Press Release:

Cessna Launches New Light Business Jet: Citation M2

WICHITA, Kan., Sept. 26, 2011 — Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, today launched the Citation M2, a new light business jet that fills the gap between the Citation Mustang and the Citation CJ family.

The Citation M2 features Garmin G3000 avionics, engines similar to those found in the Citation CJ series and an all-new cabin design. The aircraft is an aluminum airframe with a T-tail and a straight wing that includes LED lights. A cabin mock-up of the Citation M2 will be on display at Cessna’s exhibit in the Las Vegas Convention Center during the 64th NBAA Annual Meeting and Convention Oct. 10-12.

With room for two crew and up to six passengers, the $4.195 million Citation M2 has a maximum cruise speed of 400 knots true airspeed (741 kilometers per hour) and a range of 1,300 nautical miles (2,408 kilometers). The aircraft can operate at airports with runways as short as 3,250 feet (991 meters) and will climb to 41,000 feet (12,497 meters) in 24 minutes.

“Operator feedback and owner insight have indicated a market for a Citation with the size, speed and range of the Citation M2. We expect to see customers new to the Citation family, Mustang owners looking for a logical next step or CJ1+ operators who want a new, more advanced Citation,” said Scott Ernest, Cessna president and CEO.

The Citation M2 is powered by a pair of FADEC-controlled Williams International FJ44-1AP-21 turbofan engines, each producing 1,965 pounds of thrust. This new and improved version of Williams’ FJ44 engine incorporates improvements gleaned from more than 6 million hours of operation of the 4,000 FJ44 engines in service. The FJ44-1AP-21 produces 10-15 percent more altitude thrust (depending on conditions) and consumes less fuel at long range cruise than the previous version, enablin the M2 to climb quickly and cruise fast and far. The engine also provides significantly higher performance at hot and high conditions and an increase in the time between overhaul (TBO) from 3,500 to 4,000 hours.

The Citation M2’s clean cockpit design is anchored by the fully integrated Garmin G3000 avionics suite that seamlessly integrates numerous system components into an easy-to-use flightdeck to simplify operation and enhance situational awareness during flight and when taxiing. The G3000 system centers on three 14.1-inch LCD primary and multifunction displays and two infrared, touch-screen control panels. The touch-screen controllers react to changes in an infrared grid rather than traditional surface resistance sensors for better response under a variety of conditions. The controllers allow multi-function display page navigation as well as audio and FMS control. The MFD and PFD provide split-screen capability so that two separate vertical pages may be viewed side-by-side. Pilots may simultaneously view maps, charts, TAWS, flight planning or weather.

Popular options from other Citation models are standard on the Citation M2. Among the standard features of the avionics system are weather radar, TCAS I, terrain awareness and warning system (TAWS) and ADS-B Out.

From the cockpit divider aft through the rear lavatory, the main passenger cabin of the Citation M2 is 58 inches wide (1.47 meters) and 11 feet (3.3 meters) long with a 5-inch dropped aisle providing a cabin height of 57 inches (1.45 meters). Eight large windows, roomy pedestal seats and intuitive cabin appointments highlight the all-new interior, of which materials and colors can be hand-selected by customers.

Cessna’s proprietary cabin management system that includes the latest interface options for greater in-flight productivity and connectivity is optional.

First flight of the new Citation M2 will be in the first half of 2012, with Federal Aviation Administration certification (Part 23) expected in the first half of 2013, followed by deliveries beginning in the second half of 2013.

For more information, go to Cessna.com. Follow Cessna on Twitter at twitter.com/fly_cessna and be a Facebook fan here.

Source [Cessna]

[DJ]

Great post Hernando, thank you!

[Renovatiopr]

Rep. Hernando.... That freshens up a bit the citation line. Funny I was just thinking like a week ago, that Cessna should put the G3000 on the Mustang... but this seems very logical.

[Renovatiopr]

Here is the promo vid from Cessna

[mannnu81]

sleek looking plane

[Dktran31]

one day...

[Striker]

I just love that interior!!

[rangieboy17]

Nice...

[Insman]

Good looking plane right there...

[Insman]

I am a Cessna owner and not sure what the price will be on this plane, but the probably better "per seat" value would go to the Phenom 300 in the 7 seat config, along with much better range and speed.