AIRCRAFT
The Global 6500 is a twin-engine, ultra-long-range-category business jet produced by Canadian manufacturer Bombardier. Part of the company’s Global line of business jets, the Global 6500— along with the Global 5500—was announced by the company on May 27, 2018. Following the completion of its flight-test program, the Global 6500—which, along with the Global Express and Global 6000, are marketing designations for the BD-700-1A10 type—was certified by Transport Canada on Aug. 26, 2019.
As is the case with all Global airframes based on the BD-700-1A10, -1A11 and -2A12, the Global 6500 can accommodate a maximum of 19 passengers. The cabin has a length of 43 ft. 3 in.—measured between the cockpit divider and the rear portion of the cabin, but not including the airplane’s baggage compartment—width of 7 ft. 11 in. and height of 6 ft. 2 in., with the cabin promoted as being the “widest in class.” The cabin itself is divided into several different “living spaces,” including a four-seat club suite, a conference suite that has a table which can seat as many as six and, in the aft portion of the cabin, a private suite that has an en suite bathroom.
Mission and Performance Operating limitations of the Global 6500 include a maximum operating limit speed (MMO) of 0.90 Mach from 30,850 ft. to 36,313 ft., and an en route maximum operating altitude of 51,000 ft. For takeoff and landing, the maximum operating altitude is reduced to 13,700 ft. At the airframe’s maximum takeoff weight (MTOW), the initial cruise altitude is limited to 41,000 ft. In addition to the above-noted MMO, the high-speed and typical cruise speeds are 0.88 Mach and 0.85 Mach, respectively. The airframe’s 6,600-nm theoretical maximum range is based on National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) instrument flight rules (IFR) reserves, standard conditions, while operating at the typical cruise speed of 0.85 Mach and when carrying eight passengers and four crew. Beyond en route performance, the Global 6500’s airfield performance includes a takeoff distance—based on the airplane’s MTOW, sea-level altitude and standard conditions—of 6,145 ft. The landing distance, which assumes the same criteria except for a typical landing weight, is noted as being 2,236 ft.
Variants The Global 6500 is an upgraded version of Bombardier’s Global 6000 which offers modifications and upgrades that include aerodynamic changes to the wing and Rolls-Royce’s Pearl 15 engines. Those engines—designated the BR700-710D5-21—were “purpose built” for the Global 5500 and 6500, and are able to produce 15,125 lbf. of thrust. The benefits of the Pearl 15 engines include improved airframe performance and reduced specific fuel consumption (SFC)—the latter being 7% lower—while the aerodynamic improvements made to the Global 6500’s wing include a “fully reprofiled trailing edge.” In addition to the maximum certified weights, Bombardier states that the Global 6500 has a basic operating weight of 52,230 lb., maximum payload of 5,770 lb. and usable fuel capacity of 6,674 gal. (45,050 lb.), with that fuel carried in a pair of main tanks, as well as a center and aft tank.
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