Gulfstream eyes 200-bizjet production rate. Backlog reached $25 billion by midyear By Kerry Lynch - Editor, AIN monthly magazine October 21, 2026 With a growing portfolio and lengthening backlog, Gulfstream Aerospace anticipates production will reach at least 200 aircraft a year in the no-too-distant future, which would be a record rate for the Savannah, Georgia airframer. Expressing confidence that Gulfstream would reach this production level, president Mark Burns said, "That's a number. It's not the number." Speaking to reporters at NBAA-BACE, Burns noted that the production rate will be about 160 jets this year, but that the company has heavily invested in its facilities and designed them with scalability to accommodate growth. Supporting these optimistic plans is a Gulfstream backlog that extends multiple years. By mid-2026, the OEM's backlog had topped $25 billion, up $4 billion from late 2025. "Barring any unforeseen catastrophe, I think it's inevitable," Burns said of the production increases. These ambitions are the fruits of a concerted plan dating back more than a decade to bring a new lineup of six business jets to market. "When we announced the G500 and G600 in 2014, we were actually working on six airplanes, not two," Burns explained, referring to the G700 and G800 siblings, as well as the still-in-development G400 and G300. "We were just coming off a very successful entry into service for G650, and we said, 'What can we do next?'" Creating a new family of airplanes under the philosophy of "a Gulfstream for every mission" was the plan, he said. While the G400 and G300 are still in development, Gulfstream has brought the other four models to market, most recently the G800 in 2025. The ultra-long-range G800 already has set speed records, including the 800th record the Gulfstream fleet has collectively set. Gulfstream has already delivered 34 of the 8,200-nm, Mach 0.935 jets in less than a year. Meanwhile, the G700 preceded the G800, with its launch in 2019 and certification in 2024. More than 100 of these twinjets are in service, and the model has set 100 speed records. Burns added that the G800 and G700 could set records on almost any trip. Earlier this month, Gulfstream flew three legs from Savannah to Singapore and back. "All three were world-record runs," he said. Meanwhile, he called the G600 "the foundation of this new family of airplanes." With more than 200 of the 6,600-nm twinjets delivered since 2019, this aircraft has set more than 100 speed records. Since entering service in 2018, the 5,300-nm G500 fleet has grown to nearly 200 jets... With this new family, Gulfstream built two campuses in Savannah for production - one for the G700 and G800 lines and the other for the G400, G500, and G600. "The lines in those facilities are built to be flexible based on demand, so as we see more of one particular airplane, the lines flex." Gulfstream continues to invest in its infrastructure as it supports the rapidly expanding fleet. This includes scaling its spare parts inventory, distribution capabilities, and its maintenance operations. Gulfstream's inventory is now at a $3 billion investment, according to the company. "As our fleet continues to grow around the world, we are making strategic investments in inventory, infrastructure, and expertise that further strengthen our ability to support customers wherever they operate," Burns said. "By increasing parts availability, we're providing customers with greater confidence that the resources they need are available when and where they need them." The airframer now has a dozen global distribution centers, and recently doubled its Atlanta warehouse, making it the largest in the network outside of its Savannah headquarters. The facility is housing some $190 million in spare parts, a 65% increase in inventory value this year alone. Gulfstream also has expanded its spares inventory by 25% over the past year, now housing $48 million worth of parts. Separately, Gulfstream expanded its in-house component support at its repair and overhaul center in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, with additional capacity for wheels and brakes, structures, paint, non-destructive testing, hydraulics, and Gulfstream G650 landing gear assemblies. That site is further expanding its capabilities to include Gulfstream G500 and G600 hydraulic and landing gear components and has boosted staff by more than 50%. Other investments have been directed toward Gulfstream Customer Support's performance analytics program, which combines aircraft health monitoring information, operational data, and maintenance history to provide an overall picture of aircraft performance and system health and enable proactive support. At the same time, Gulfstream is continuing its sustainability drive, achieving reaccreditation through NBAA's Sustainable Flight Department Accreditation Program. This recognizes continued leadership in advancing sustainability across its global operations, Gulfstream said.

Gulfstream G400 cabin test aircraft flies as business jet sets miami-las Vegas speed record. The outfitted prototype reached 48,000 feet on its first flight, while another experimental G400 completed the Las Vegas journey in four hours and eight minutes using an SAF blend. The cabin of the fully outfitted Gulfstream G400, whose test aircraft has begun in-flight evaluations of passenger systems and comfort. Key takeaways. * Gulfstream's fully outfitted G400 test aircraft completed a 2-hour 46-minute first flight from Dallas Love Field and reached 48,000 feet. * An experimental G400 flew Miami to Las Vegas in four hours and eight minutes at an average Mach 0.89 using a sustainable aviation fuel blend. * The outfitted aircraft will evaluate cabin systems and passenger comfort in an 11-seat configuration. * High-altitude and cold-weather trials are among the ongoing steps toward G400 certification. (NEWS) SAVANNAH, Georgia, United States, 2026-Oct-20 - /Travel PR News/ - Gulfstream Aerospace has taken another step toward bringing its G400 business jet to market, completing the first flight of a fully fitted cabin test aircraft while reporting a new Miami-to-Las Vegas city-pair speed record during preparations for the 2026 NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA-BACE). The two developments highlight different priorities in the same certification campaign: proving how the aircraft performs at speed and altitude, and testing the systems and passenger environment that will eventually accompany customers on their journeys. Gulfstream announced the milestones on October 19, 2026, with the G400 still undergoing flight testing rather than operating as a certified commercial aircraft. Passenger cabin joins the flight-test programme. The fully outfitted test G400 departed Dallas Love Field Airport on its maiden flight and remained airborne for two hours and 46 minutes, reaching 48,000 feet. Its interior has seating for 11 passengers arranged across two-and-a-half living areas. Unlike a test aircraft equipped primarily for performance measurement, this aircraft is intended to evaluate cabin systems, functionality and comfort under real flight conditions. Those tests matter to business aviation customers because the aircraft's eventual travel experience depends on more than published range and speed. Systems must work as intended at altitude, and cabin arrangements need validation in the environment in which passengers will use them. On its G400 aircraft information page, Gulfstream lists a preliminary maximum range of 4,200 nautical miles and a maximum operating speed of Mach 0.90. The manufacturer notes that actual range varies with weather, routing, loading and other operating conditions, and that performance figures remain subject to change. Speed-record claim on the way to Las Vegas. Separately, one of the programme's experimental G400 aircraft flew from Miami to Las Vegas in four hours and eight minutes, averaging Mach 0.89, according to Gulfstream. The company described the journey as a new city-pair speed record. The flight used a blend incorporating sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), demonstrating that the aircraft can undertake high-speed test missions while using an alternative fuel blend. The claimed record was timed to the industry gathering in Las Vegas, where Gulfstream is exhibiting the experimental G400 and a cabin mock-up. Other aircraft and displays in the company's NBAA-BACE presence include the G500, G600, G700 and G800, together with a G300 mock-up. Certification work continues. Gulfstream said its test programme has also included operations at high altitude in Telluride, Colorado, and cold-weather evaluations in Iqaluit, Canada. Such missions expose the aircraft to operating conditions beyond routine flights as the manufacturer collects data for development and certification. Mark Burns, president of Gulfstream, said the first outfitted flight and latest record reflected progress by the development team. He also pointed to work on the G400's interior fit and finish as the company prepares for eventual entry into service. Gulfstream has not established a definitive certification date in the announcement. The G400 occupies a place in Gulfstream's expanding business-aircraft family between its smaller and larger models. For operators weighing fleet options, completion of cabin trials and continued performance testing will be important milestones, but certification and entry into service remain ahead. More information is available through Gulfstream's newsroom.

Gulfstream adds outfitted G400 to flight-test program. G300 program will be on heels of G400 By Kerry Lynch - Editor, AIN monthly magazine October 19, 2026 Gulfstream Aerospace has completed the first flight of a fully outfitted G400 test aircraft, bringing the program for the 4,200-nm twin jet closer to certification, the company announced on Monday at NBAA-BACE. At the same time, the company is prepping to add a second G300 to that flight-test program. On Wednesday, the fully-outfitted G400 completed its first flight from Dallas Love Field (KDAL), stayting aloft for 2 hours 46 minutes and reaching an altitude of 48,000 feet. Configured with an 11-passenger layout in two-and-a-half cabin zones, the aircraft will evaluate cabin systems at altitude, as well as functionality and in-flight comfort. "We're in the throes of flying that airplane now. It flew recently about 3.5 hours and about 48,000 feet...so we'll continue to expand that envelope," Gulfstream Aerospace president Mark Burns told reporters at the show. He declined to provide a firm timeline for G400 certification but said the program "is going really well." Additionally, he doesn't see any issues that would upset certification. "We don't have a prediction of when. Unfortunately, I don't make that call," he explained. But Burns is encouraged the G400 will benefit from processes put in place after Gulfstream certified the G500, G600, G700, and G800 in the last seven years, even as the G700 "got mixed up in the middle of Covid" and things slowed down. He also pointed to bumps in the process during that certification program. "I was probably the most vocal person on the planet during the G700 about my dissatisfaction," he conceded. Burns told the FAA at the time that the certification process needs to modernize, adding that it has since improved. The G800 went according to schedule, and Burns recently emphasized the process improvements that led to that to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. Burns believes this will continue to improve with the G400 certification. As a testament to G400 program maturity, one of the flight-test aircraft set a new city-pair speed record while also using a sustainable aviation fuel blend while en route to NBAA-BACE, completing the flight from Miami to Las Vegas in 4 hours and 8 minutes at an average speed of Mach 0.89. The G400 program will encompass four flight-test aircraft. Burns said Gulfstream is making "good progress" with flight tests, including completing flammable fluid drainage testing on one of the airplanes this week. Another is undergoing icing tests, he said, "so the airplanes are getting exercised quite significantly." Meanwhile, he noted, the 3,600-nm G300 - the successor to the Israeli-built G280 - is expected to be not far behind the G400 in certification. The initial G300 flew in December, and Burns said the second is prepping to take to the skies shortly. This will be one of three aircraft in the flight-test program, with production on the third aircraft underway. As far as the continuation from the G280 program, Burns said the G300 will "accentuate the things that made that airplane successful, but we changed it to look more like a Gulfstream on the outside with the oval windows, new cabin, and interior." Flight testing of the super-midsize business jet is continuing to move forward with its program partner, Israel Aerospace Industries, he said. The G400 is accompanied by the rest of Gulfstream's in-production large-cabin jet fleet - the G500, G600, G700, and G800 - at the NBAA-BACE Aircraft Connection (static display) at Henderson Executive Airport (KLAS). Also included are full-scale G300 and G400 cabin mockups. "The aircraft continues to perform exceptionally well as we advance through the rigorous certification program," said Burns. "Each milestone reinforces the performance, cabin comfort, and versatility customers will experience with this remarkable aircraft."