I love escaping normality and commonness, that’s why I’m going to delight you with something pretty much unusual, in all terms. The Saker S-1 is not just your regular jet, or a low-performance aircraft designed to look like one, but a pretty fantastic way of having fun up high in the clouds.
According to the manufacturer, Saker Aircraft, the S-1 is able to reach a top speed of Mach 0.99 and cruise at Mach 0.95. Inspired by military jet aircraft and designed to look like one, the S-1 is a tandem two-seater jet able to shorten the fly time of 1,500 nautical miles (that’s around 1,726 miles or 2,778 km) by an hour, compared to its closest competition. In addition, the plane is designed to land on or take off from runways of just 1,500 feet (457 m) in length, and will reportedly climb at a rate of 14,000 feet per minute (4,267 m per minute).
Moreover, Saker Aircraft specialists say the S-1 will come with a service ceiling of 45,000 ft (13,720 m) and a maximum range of 1,600 miles (or around 2,575 km in metric terms). This is possible thanks to an internal tank of 500 gal (1,890 litres). But, if the buyer’s willing to lengthen the range to 2,200 miles (3,540 km), Saker can fit it with two external 100 gal (380-litre) pods. The S-1 is 12.3 meters long (40.5 ft), 4.6 meters high (15 ft) and has a wingspan of 8 meters (27 ft). Empty, it tips the scales at 2,495 kg (5,500 lb), but it can carry payload of as much as 2,720 kg (6,000 lb).
But what’s even more interesting is that in spite of its looks, the pilot won’t need military training to fly it. The stall speed is 90 knots, while everything inside the cockpit has been designed to be correctly handled by the properly trained pilot. Propulsion-wise, the S-1 is powered by two Williams FJ44-4 engines with 5,000 running time before overhaul. Saker also estimates that the operating costs of the S-1 will be of around $2 per mile, 20% better fuel saving than its closest competitor.
The aimed purchase price of the Saker S-1 will reportedly be somewhere between $5 and $7 million. If the certification process doesn’t encounter issues, the concept aircraft will start being delivered in 2019.
[Gizmag]
