After a nearly two-decade-long production run, Gulfstream is about to close the curtain on its workhorse long-range, large-cabin G550.
Gulfstream is nearing the end of the line for its workhorse G550 with the announcement that it has taken the last order for the ultra-long-range twinjet. Ending what will be an 18-year production run, the final commercial version will be delivered to a customer in 2021.
After a program launch in 2000, the G550 entered service in 2003 with the debut of the airframer’s PlaneView flight deck, and its design team earned that year’s Robert J. Collier Trophy for its technological innovations and safety enhancements. The G550 has since been supplanted in the company’s product lineup by the G600, which entered service last year.
“The G550 set the standard for subsequent aircraft and the industry,” said Gulfstream president Mark Burns. “With more than 600 in service, the G550 has earned its place as a leader in business aviation.” With a range of 6,750 nm and high altitude capabilities, the up-to-19-passenger aircraft also saw use as a special mission platform.
Burns added that despite the end of the production run, product support for the aircraft will continue unabated at the more than 30 company-owned and factory-authorized service centers around the world.
