The jet Cessna CITITITION II represents one of the Business aviation pillars of the 80s and has changed the private air transport market forever. Direct evolution of the Cessna citation I, the CITITION II (commercial name of the 550 model) follows its style in one more performing version and with an elongated fuselageto respond to market capacity needs.
What made him so famous, however, is not just his precious timing in entering the market, coinciding with the oil crisis of the 70s, but also and above all the validity of its technical specifications.
Technical characteristics of Cessna II
Cessna II is a Jet Bimotorepushed by two turbovoles Pratt & Whitney JT15D-4, capable of exercising each one 2 500 LBFi.e. about 11 000 n, and to combine together high reliability and an excellent one Compromise between consumption and performance. 14.4 me long with a 15.9 m wing opening, the basic model has anautonomy of 3700km and is able to transport 7 passengers in standard configurations and up to 10 in the larger ones.
The wings, having a reduced arrow cornerallow one good maneuverability and also lift at minor speeds. Furthermore, the lightness of the vehicle, combined with the performance of the engines, allows Decollas and landings also in short slopesthus expanding the amount of airports actually accessible. The plane is particularly easy to pilot, thus allowing to also reduce staff costs.
CITIITION II was designed to guarantee a economic solution To those who want to buy a private jet, and see one of its strengths in the costs: not just that of purchasebut also those operational And maintenance. He therefore found an easy market and have been sold beyond 600 specimens (over 1000 considering the super and good versions), opening the world of private aviation and air chartering to a slice of significantly wider buyers.
The cessna over the years
The manufacturer was the Cessna Aircraft Companywhich to date, following a corporate merger, has become a branch of Textron Aviation inc. The citation II was marketed by 1978 As of 1985, when it was briefly replaced by the Citation Super II (S550), a improved version of it, mainly in terms of autonomy and avionics. He returned to the market in 1987 and then released definitively out of production in 1994giving way to his successor, the CITITITION BRAVO (550b).
Although it is no longer in production, the 550 still flies today and, thanks to its reliability and the good availability of spare parts, a solid choice remains in the second -hand market. It also found employment in alternative sectors such as the medical transport and military use.
In these days the cessna 550 has been sadly mentioned for a Accident in San Diegoin California. The aircraft crashed against homes in conditions of dense fog, causing the death of all six people on board and injuring eight people on the ground. Although today it is exceeded in performance and efficiency, the Cessna 550 remains antimeless iconwhich was able to consecrate CITIITION like the best -selling business line in the world.
