The VLJs is just one of a new breed of small, powerful — and, yes, easy to fly — civilian jet planes poised to take off. Very Light Jets (VLJs) are loosely defined as jets with a gross weight below 10,000 pounds. They typically carry three to four passengers (in addition to two pilots) and cost from $1.5 million to $3 million, roughly half the price of current entry-level jets. Fuel and operating costs are also substantially lower. Yet these minijets don’t cut corners on performance, Some reach speeds of up to 450 mph at jetliner altitudes of 41,000 ft.

The VLJs are expected to open up jet flight to a whole new tier of private pilots, small businesses, fractional-ownership groups and regional air-taxi services. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) anticipates some 5000 VLJs in the air by 2017. “This is a real game changer for our industry,” FAA chief Marion Blakey told an enthusiastic crowd of plane buffs at the Oshkosh air show in Wisconsin last year.

A number of designs are currently in development, and will feature advanced avionics.

VLJs are intended to have lower operating costs than conventional jets, and will be able to operate from runways as short as . In the United States where the majority of these jets are being designed, NASA and the FAA have encouraged their development and foresee their widespread use in point-to-point air taxi service. The Small Aircraft Transportation System would provide air service to areas ignored by airlines.

These “on-demand” air taxi services depend on low cost projections and high demand to become a reality. The viability of these services is the subject of much debate among industry experts. Richard Aboulafia, an aviation industry expert and a self-described “VLJ agnostic”, believes that the VLJ phenomenon may turn out to be one of the greatest disappointments in the aviation industry, due to the hype and economic infeasibility of large-scale air-taxi operations.

In total, over 3,000 VLJs have been ordered from three manufacturers. Cessna Aircraft Company, based in Wichita, Kansas, delivered the first ever production VLJ, the six-seater Citation Mustang, to Mustang Management Group of Fresno, California on November 23, 2006. Cessna has over 500 orders for the Mustang, mainly from owner-operators. Cessna received full certification for the Mustang on September 8, 2006. Cessna received FAA certification to fly into “known icing conditions” on November 9, 2006. Cessna received its FAA Production Certificate for the Mustang on November 23, 2006.

United Airlines has placed an order for 50 jets from Boeing and Airbus with a list value of nearly $10bn, in a move analysts say is a sign of a return to health for airline financing.

The order for 25 jets from each group is a boost for both aircraft makers during the worst aviation downturn since the one that followed the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US in 2001.

United said it ordered 25 of Boeing’s long-awaited 787 widebody jetliners and 25 of the Airbus A350. Delivery is expected between 2016 and 2019, around the same time the airline will retire Boeing 747 and 767 aircraft. At list prices the planes would be worth roughly $10 billion, with about $4 billion for Boeing’s 787-8 and about $6 billion for the Airbus plane.

The order comes just under four years after United emerged from bankruptcy protection, which it sought in 2002.However, analysts said the broader significance of the airline’s announcement on Tuesday was its statement about the health of the airline financing market.

United’s balance sheet is not as robust as that of some other airlines and yet it has been able to go out there and place a 50-aircraft wide-body order.

The order is particularly noteworthy for Airbus because it is the first time United has bought long-range wide-body jets from the European group.

This deal comes as a huge relief to Airbus, This is probably their worst year in terms of sales in many years.

Airplane manufacturers have been particularly hard hit by the global financial crisis, which has seen travel rates drop, particularly in developed markets such as the US. This in turn has driven down airline demand for new planes.

Airbus sold only 194 planes in the first 11 months of this year. The 14 aircraft it sold to Air New Zealand on the eve of the Dubai air show have yet to show up on their order book.

United Airlines is the number three US airline by traffic. The US stalwart emerged from a bankruptcy-court reorganisation in 2006 to turn itself into a market leader in capacity reduction in a crisis-hit travel market.

The Learjet 35 has a relatively long range for a private jet, and can cruise at speeds as high as 451 ktas, or 424 ktas with four passengers.  Fuel consumption is excellent: the 31A burns only 177 pounds of fuel per hour.  For comparison’s sake, that’s 14 pounds fewer than the Hawker 400XP and 64 pounds fewer than the Citation X.  A few other details make the Learjet 35 a popular private jet.  First of all, it meets FAR part 36 noise standards, making it a kind of “good neighbor” at airports.  Furthermore, the avionics system is completely redesigned from previous models, giving pilots an uncluttered control panel that is easy to work with.  Pilots have also commented on its agility and excellent performance capabilities. The Learjet 35 is known, above all, for its range。It can fly 1,400 miles nonstop.

The Learjet 35 began as the Learjet 25BGF (with GF referring to “Garrett Fan”), with a then-new TFE731 turbofan engine mounted on the left side replacing the Lear 25’s GE CJ610 engine.

This test bed aircraft first flew in May, 1971 with the full prototype featuring a larger wing (and the additional window) in January 1973. Deliveries began the following year. Production of the 35/36 series ended in 1994.

The Lear 35 features the straight wing with tapered leading edge and distinctive tip tanks at either end. It has five windows on the right hand side of the cabin and four on the left (fewer than the Lear 31 series). The engines are rear fuselage mounted behind which is the T-tail with swept fin and tailplane.

Despite its mild manners and good looks, the Learjet 35 is a superman among light business aircraft. Load it up and fly it high! The Learjet 35 is ready to transport you and your colleagues anywhere, anytime. From the Rocky Mountains to the Namibian Plains, no aircraft will compare in the speed, agility and sheer ability of the Learjet 35. There are few light jets in the world today that are as rugged as the Learjet 35. It offers design features and cabin amenities that are seen only in midsize jets.

The Learjet 35 will transport you across the United States at altitudes almost 10 miles above the ground, well above the weather – and the competition. The Learjet fleet has amassed more than four billion flight miles. Reliability is the primary reason these aircraft are routinely chosen for charter use.

The Cessna Citation X is considered as the World’s Fastest Private Jet. It is a medium-sized business jet aircraft which the company has designed to be state of the art as well as uniquely designed to fly at high subsonic speeds. In fact, it is the third fastest civil airplane that has ever flown! Thus it is known to be the fastest private jet available in the world today.

One of its key features is that of its incredibly large diameter in regards to the size of the engine intakes. This feature greatly reduces the noise from the engines as well as improves fuel efficiency.

The design objectives behind the Citation X included transcontinental USA and trans Atlantic range in a mid size package that cruises faster than any other business jet available. This high speed cruise capability, which Cessna says is 105 to 210km/h (55 to 113kt) faster than other mid size corporate jet, means the X can save up to one hour’s flight time on transcontinental US flights, flying from Los Angeles to New York with normal wind conditions in 4 hours 10 minutes. Because of its ability to cruise at high speed at high altitudes, Cessna also says the Citation X will consume less fuel than current jets on such a transcontinental flight.

Other design features of the Citation X include the fuselage cross section of the Citation III, VI and VII but with more efficient use of internal space that allows greater head and shoulder room, an area ruled, waisted rear fuselage, trailing link main undercarriage units and a modern Honeywell Primus 2000 EFIS avionics suite with five colour CRT displays

The Citation X cabin has created its own category – with one of the widest, most spacious and stunningly attractive interiors ever crafted for a Citation. Densely pillowed seats beckon you to sink deeply into the wide-body-jet-size cushions. Generous head and shoulder room gives each passenger his or her own ample space. And, if anyone needs some horizontal time, the seats recline completely to accommodate a nap. The full-length, stand-up center aisle stretches on for almost 24 feet (7.3 meters). There’s also an abundance of space in the private dressing room. Here, you’ll find a vanity with washbasin and wide countertop, a flushing toilet and a large closet.

It’s among life’s little ironies that one of the most beautiful and luxurious places on Earth is often several miles above the Earth. It’s even more ironic that, as desirable as the place is, inhabitants rarely get to spend much time there. In the whisper-quiet cabin of the world’s fastest business aircraft, passengers get where they’re going in an extraordinarily short amount of time.

SWISS PrivateAviation, the business-aviation subsidiary of Swiss International Air Lines, added two further transports to its managed-aircraft portfolio last month. Following a newly-concluded collaboration with Swiss-based Mathys Aviation AG, SWISS PrivateAviation is now responsible for the operation of seven private jets, six of them Cessna Citations. This latest expansion helps further consolidate SWISS PrivateAviation’s position as a specialist in managing this particular aircraft family.

Zurich based Swiss Private Aviation AG is a fully-owned subsidiary of Swiss International Air Lines providing executive jet services as well as aircraft management and commercial charter services on behalf of its parent company. Swiss Private is also the new platform for operation of the Lufthansa Private Jet fleet, formerly operated by Swiss European Air Lines.

This Swiss private jet charter company is in business since 1981and offers a variety of types of aircraft. Since the acquisition, it has become a fully owned subsidiary of Swiss International Air Lines AG. Depending on aircraft availability, short-haul flights within Europe can normally leave within an hour. Long-haul flights to North America, North Africa and the Middle East take two to three hours time for the crew to get ready. It is a fast expanding company, which customizes the services to their clients’ needs, almost without restrictions of their fleet and possibilities.

Aircraft management, in which SWISS PrivateAviation specialises, covers a wide range of services and activities, from managing flight operations and maintaining aircraft fleets to arranging insurance and continuously training crews. In this connection, SWISS PrivateAviation will also be training and assessing the pilots of Mathys Aviation AG, who will continue to fly the company’s two aircraft.

With demand for executive charter flights currently showing sizeable growth, SWISS has decided to enter this segment through SWISS Private, and will use its new subsidiary to offer aircraft management services to private clients and companies. The new activities envisaged include providing assistance and advice on procuring and introducing new executive jets, planning and performing flight operations, recruiting and supplying crews, handling, catering and arranging the requisite maintenance, repair and overhaul services on the customer’s behalf.