Certification expands flying capabilities for Eclipse 500 owners and operators

ALBUQUERQUE, NM — June 25, 2008 — Eclipse Aviation, manufacturer of the world's first very light jet (VLJ), today announced that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has granted Flight Into Known Icing (FIKI) certification for the Eclipse 500. With this certification, the Eclipse 500 can now operate in conditions in which ice is known to be present.

"This certification process is one of the most difficult things to put a new model of aircraft through," said Vern Raburn, president and CEO of Eclipse Aviation. "We've worked through this process for some time, flying the Eclipse 500 in the precise natural icing conditions that the FAA requires. We tested the aircraft in some of the most severe weather conditions we could find, wherever we could find it. By receiving the FAA certification, we proved that the aircraft can withstand known icing conditions in a real-world operating environment with no structural changes required of the airframe," said Raburn.

Eclipse conducted its first test flight with an artificial ice shape in August of 2007. Since that time, more than 300 flight hours on three test aircraft have been recorded, including more than 60 hours conducted in natural icing conditions in many locations in the United States and Canada.

Eclipse also performed extensive tests with the Eclipse 500 in normal operation and ice protection system failure conditions in icing tunnels and with artificial ice shapes to simulate ice build up attached to the aircraft's airfoils. The de-icing system on the Eclipse 500 includes pneumatic de-ice boots on the wings and horizontal stabilizer leading edges, electrically heated windshield and air data probes, and bleed air heated anti-ice engine inlets.

Original Release

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