Gulfstream G700

New York to Beijing nonstop at Mach .85. Shorter hops—up to 6,400 nautical miles—at Mach .90. And a top speed of Mach .925. Those are the capabilities offered by the $75 million, 7,500-nautical mile-range G700, which Gulfstream unveiled in 2019 and expects to enter service in 2022. Five test aircraft already have accumulated 1,100 hours (through February) and flown well beyond published limits to speeds of Mach .99 and at 54,000 feet. 

Gulfstream’s new long-range, 107,600-pound (maximum takeoff weight) flagship builds on the success of the G650 and G650ER, offering the widest, tallest, and longest serial production bizjet cabin in the sky. The G700’s long legs and increased capabilities and comfort are derived from engines, curved winglets, avionics, flight controls, a flight deck, a cabin, and seating that build on the modern systems and design philosophy employed by its smaller G500 and G600 stablemates.

Like the cabins in the G650 series, the one in the G700 provides a sanctuary of understated elegance. The new cabin is 10 feet longer, though, for a total length of nearly 57 feet—a mere three feet shorter than a regulation bowling lane—and is carved into up to five distinct living zones that can be configured to seat from 13 to 19. (On the really long hauls, you can take only eight passengers and four crew.) 

Typical layouts include a forward lavatory opposite the aircraft entryway followed by a spacious closet and a forward galley that is built around a 10-foot-long countertop, providing ample space for a crew to prepare meals from scratch. The galley has room for a large sink, a full-size oven, a big refrigerator, a microwave, coffee makers, a wine chiller, and all the storage space you’d need to keep passengers and a crew happy for 14 hours. A three-place divan or optional crew rest area can be placed opposite this airborne monument to satiation. 

An executive club-four area of fully berthable single seats follows the galley; then comes an entertainment zone with a three-place divan opposite a credenza that houses a 40-inch 4K monitor with immersive 3D sound from transducers built into the cabin sidewall panels. Aircraft connectivity is courtesy of the standard Jet ConneX Ka-band Wi-Fi. As on all modern bizjets, cabin management and entertainment can be controlled wirelessly from linked personal smart devices or passenger touchscreens. Behind the entertainment lounge, a six-seat grouping for conferences or dining features a wireless smartphone charger built into the table. 

A Grand Suite

While the G700 offers many cabin layouts and seemingly endless finer details, what makes it a true lux long-hauler is the available “Grand Suite” in the aft fuselage. It’s the closest thing to a five-star hotel room in a production business jet. It can be equipped with a curved-edge, queen-size bed opposite a full-size dresser. The adjacent aft lav features two windows, a stand-up closet, a large vanity, and an optional stand-up shower. The lav also provides in-flight access to the pressurized, 195-cubic-foot baggage hold, which can convey 2,500 pounds.

Gulfstream is building in a variety of other comfort-enhancing features on the G700: an intricate cabin lighting system with 20,000 HD LEDs that simulates sunrise and sunset and can be used to adjust human body circadian rhythms, a 100 percent fresh-air system, a maximum cabin altitude of 4,850 feet (while the aircraft is at 51,000 feet) and 20 oversized (21-by-28-inch) dimmable oval cabin windows for natural lighting—all working in concert to minimize jetlag. 

Gulfstream has also addressed the historical bugaboo of bizjet cabins: seat comfort. While the seats on the G650 are more than adequate, the airframer has enhanced the ones on the G700 to cope with passenger ergonomics on long flights with new styling, articulating back panels, recessed controls, accent lighting, and a menu of cover fabrics, materials, and pattern choices. The G700 seats won a 2020 design award from the Yacht Interior Society. 

Throughout the impressively quiet cabin, you’ll find multiple charging ports and power outlets and wider side ledges with integral storage and deep cup holders. Subtle curves in the monuments, dividers, and fabric patterns—combined with cleverly hidden lighting and controls—give the interior a flowing, serene, and uncluttered look and feel.

And this design philosophy extends to the G700’s Symmetry digital flight deck—first introduced on the G500 and G600. (The avionics of all three, based on Honeywell’s Primus Epic system, are so similar that pilots can qualify to fly them with a common type rating.) The control yokes of the G650 line are gone, replaced by BAE active control sidesticks linked to a triple-redundant computerized fly-by-wire flight-control system. A streamlined bank of 10 touchscreens has largely displaced the switches and buttons. Pilots can control up to three of the main four display screens through individual cursor control devices and can transfer data between screens in the event of a failure. New pilot seats provide greater comfort than their predecessors.

Cutting-edge Avionics

The avionics feature Gulfstream’s Enhanced Flight Vision System (EFVS) and twin head-up displays—the latter a first for a business jet—along with the new Gulfstream Predictive Landing Performance System (PLPS). The EFVS enables approaches and safe landing in the worst weather while the PLPS provides pilots with plenty of warning when a landing approach is going sideways, giving them time to either correct it or go around and try again—a valuable tool for preventing runway overruns. The system shows the exact spot on the runway where the aircraft will stop, based on its landing settings.

Power comes from a pair of Rolls-Royce Pearl 700 engines that each deliver 18,250 pounds of thrust. The Pearls are improved derivatives of the BR725 engines on the G650 series and are cleaner and more efficient. They provide 8 percent more thrust while consuming 3.5 percent less fuel and meet or exceed international standards for noise and nitrous-oxide emissions. 

The G700 delivers impressive technology and is likely all you could ever want in a production business jet. And if the cabin styling, ergonomics, and amenities don’t hold your attention, you can always set up the pins and roll a few frames down the aisle. 

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2022 Gulfstream G700 at a Glance

Price: $75 million 

Range*:

     7,500 nm at Mach .85

     6,400 nm at Mach .90 

Maximum altitude: 51,000 feet 

Crew: 2–4

Passengers: 13–19

Cabin 

     Height: 6 ft 3 in 

     Width: 8 ft 2 in 

     Length: 56 ft 11 in 

     Volume: 2,603 cu ft 

     Baggage: 195 cu ft 

Engines (2): Rolls-Royce Pearl 700, 18,250 lb each 

Avionics: Gulfstream Symmetry flight deck (Honeywell Primus Epic) 

*eight passengers, four crew, NBAA IFR reserves