HondaJet Sees Same Special Conditions as Phenom 100

July 8, 2008
Aircraft

When the FAA wrote FAR Part 23, it apparently never envisioned that jets would be certified under those rules. Part 23 doesn’t require engine fire-extinguishing systems, and with engines mounted outside the pilots’ field of view “early visual detection of engine fires is precluded,” according to the FAA.

As it did for the Embraer Phenom 100 earlier this year, the agency is proposing special conditions for certification of Honda Aircraft’s HA-420 HondaJet to require a fire-extinguishing system. Even with the HondaJet’s engines on upper-wing-mounted pods, they are not visible from the cockpit.

“Special conditions for the HondaJet are still in the acceptance process with the FAA,” said a Honda Aircraft spokesman, “and generally apply to any Part 23 high-performance airplane. He added that Honda Aircraft expects to define the certification basis for the HondaJet by year-end.

The FAA proposal reveals that the maximum takeoff weight for the HondaJet is 9,963 pounds, but this could change as the final certification basis is established, according to the spokesman. The next HondaJet test aircraft is expected to fly during the second quarter of next year, followed by FAA certification and deliveries in 2010.

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