The 2020 Private Jet Preview: Boldly Go Where No Jet Has Gone Before

When you need to jet to St. Barts once a year, and Aspen every other weekend, there hasn’t been a one-Gulfstream-fits-all solution. Until now. Meet a new crop of private jets just in time for your wildest 2020 itineraries. Many that made the cut look and feel like a penthouse at 40,000 Feet. Owning your own plane has long been a badge of success, offering privacy and access to the world on your terms.

In the market for a new company jet to accommodate your C level executive team? How about a light jet for quick family jaunts? This hot list will certainly get your imagination flying.

Pilatus PC-24

The PC-24 is the only aircraft combining the versatility of a turboprop with the cabin of a medium-light jet, and the performance of a light jet. Moreover, the cabin volume tops business jets costing twice as much. The interior is designed for easy reconfiguration – an option not found in many competitors.

The PC-24 has also been engineered to be “off-road” compatible. Outstanding short-field abilities opens up incredible mobility. Consider the runways around the world that offer a length of at least 2,930 feet but feature unpaved surfaces. The number is almost 20,000. So, with the PC-24, you have access to 100 % more airports around the world.

Cessna Citation Longitude

The Citation Longitude is equally designed around pilot experience and passenger comfort, delivering an aircraft that lives up to its designation as the flagship of the Citation family of business jets. The Longitude revolution starts now, having completed a 31,000-nautical mile world tour, demonstrating the aircraft’s outstanding long-range performance capability.

The Longitude, produced at Textron Aviation’s facility in Wichita, benefits from state-of-the-art fabrication and techniques. Cabin technology improvements enable passengers to manage their environment and entertainment from any mobile device, maximizing in-flight connectivity.

Gulfstream G700

The new G700 is an achievement in ultralong-range and performance, alongside flight-deck upgrades and leading-edge cabin creation culminating in a rarefied private jet experience. Raising the bar for the industry as a whole, the G700 heralds a new era for Gulfstream, building on the company’s decades of investment in research and development. The aircraft boasts the tallest, widest and longest cabin in the industry.

With up to five living areas, the G700 offers an extra-large galley and lounge; a six-place dining or conference room; and a master suite with shower. The interior enhances wellness through 20 panoramic oval windows, the largest in the industry; the industry’s lowest cabin altitude, 100 percent fresh air and a whisper-quiet cabin.

SyberJet SJ30i

SyberJet showcased its SJ30i for the first time at NBAA, with the arrival of the light business jet at the static display a week after it made its maiden flight. The aircraft flew from the airframer’s San Antonio, Texas, base, kick-starting what SyberJet says will be “an 18-month certification test program, which will culminate in an amended type certificate and immediate deliveries in 2021.”

The high-speed, six-seat business jet is an upgraded version of the SJ30-2; four examples were delivered and remain in service. SyberJet develops and manufactures aircraft with unparalleled performance through the relentless pursuit of innovation and high design.

Embraer Phenom 100EV

In a class of entry-level jets, the perks of the Phenom 100EV certainly stand out. With enviable thrust, climbing over the weather to 41,000 ft is standard course, while intuitive avionics make flying elegant. And for executives who enjoy piloting themselves, the Phenom 100EV is the most comprehensive light jet. New features include a Prodigy Touch flight deck based on the popular Garmin G3000 suite. The engines were also upgraded to the PW617F1-E model, offering increased thrust. Boasting turboprop-grade efficiency, enhanced safety and beauty, this stunner is sure to light up the skies.

Embraer Phenom 300E

The best-selling light business jet in the world seven years in a row, Embraer’s Phenom 300 made waves as the fastest, most efficient and longest-range single-pilot aircraft in the market. The ambitious Phenom 300E dares to do even more. The “E” stands for “enhanced,” and it is now the only Model 300 in production. Featuring highly intuitive avionics, revolutionary cabin interiors, an industry-exclusive upper technology panel and best-in-class cabin altitude, this private jet experience delivers in spades. Ingenious ergonomics make this the most astounding cabin design in the entire single-pilot market and well beyond.

The Lilium Jet

Attracting more than $100M in venture capital from investors, the Munich-based startup unveiled their Lilium Jet, an all-electric five-seater aircraft prototype in Germany after completing a successful maiden flight. The all-electric Lilium Jet is a pioneering tilt jet aircraft with 36 engines that allow it to take-off and land vertically while achieving efficient cruise flight.

It promises to deliver high performance at minimum operating costs (similar to that of an electric car) with negligible noise or impact to the environment.

About The Author

Si Si Penaloza's first brush with unbridled luxury came when she was 18 months old, when she toddled from the lobby of Hôtel Ritz Paris into the adjacent Bar Hemingway – only to be busted 15 minutes later. After cutting her teeth as a curator, arts editor and cultural critic, she fell down the rabbit hole of luxury travel. A natural born flâneur, she thrives as a professional lounger – jetting to the world’s top destinations to review hotels and spas for top international outlets. Amid bouts of horizontal hedonism, she’s not immune to the lure of stunt journalism – interviewing Brad Pitt, George Clooney and the cast of Ocean's Thirteen in Cannes, reporting from Prince Harry’s Diamond Jubilee Tour of the Caribbean or racing the Top Gear team through the vineyards of Stellenbosch. She’s also been known to trek the Himalayas in seersucker pajamas, track baby kiwi birds at Cape Kidnappers, observe octopus at 80 feet below in Curaçao and frolic with frisky penguins on Cape Town's Boulder Beach. For editorial consideration please contact editor@jetsetmag(dot)com.

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