Aircraft Category
A / B / C / D / E / F
Purpose or Role in Game
Long-Range Executive Transport, Government Transport, Military, General Aviation
Why should this aircraft be added?
The Bombardier Global BD-700 is one of the world’s largest and most popular business jets, with over 1000 airframes built since 1996. With the future implementation of General Aviation and business jets, as the developers have talked about numerous times, this would be one of the most important aircraft to be added to fill this role.Also, this aircraft is just gorgeous, and certainly brings a powerful presence to any airport it flies into, thanks to it’s enormous wingspan and tall stature. It very clearly shares a lot of its elements with the CRJ family, such as the cockpit windows, fuselage design, etc.
One thing that is unique about the Global, especially the 7500, is the rather steep AoA it has upon landing, leading to a beautiful approach.
Airlines that use it
There are hundreds of different operators, mostly private, so I will only list major operators of each type.
GLEX:
- FlexJet
- NetJets
- VistaJet
GL5T:
- Luftwaffe (German Air Force)
- NetJets
GL7T:
- NetJets
- VistaJet
E-11:
- United States Air Force
GlobalEye:
- Luftwaffe (German Air Force)
- Royal Air Force (RAF)
- Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF)
- Swedish Air Force
- United Arab Emirates Air Force
Special characteristics or variants
Variants:
Global Express, Global Express XRS, Global 6000/6500 (GLEX)
The Global Express (BD-700-1A10) was the first variant of this family, which first flew in 1996. The Aircraft was then upgraded to the Global Express XRS, with larger tanks and longer range. The aircraft was then rebranded again in 2011 from the Global Express XRS to the Global 6000, where avionics were improved.
The GLEX has a wingspan of 94 feet and length of 99 feet. It seats 16-17 people in its standard configuration.
Global 5000/5500 (GL5T)
The Global 5000 is a slightly smaller version of the Global Express, entering service in 2005. In 2019, the Global 5500 was introduced as a heavily upgraded and updated version of the older 5000, with longer range, better avionics, etc.
The GL5T has a wingspan of 94 feet and length of 97 feet. It seats 15-16 in its standard configuration.
Global 7000/7500/8000 (GL7T)
The Global 7000/7500 is the largest variant of the BD-700. Originally entering service in 2018, it was quickly renamed from the 7000 to the 7500. The Global 8000 is just an optional modernization package for existing 7500s.
The Global 7500 is currently the largest purpose-built business jet in the world, having a wingspan of 104 feet, and length of 111 feet, making it just slightly smaller than a 737-800. Relatively speaking, in terms of business jets, this is an absolutely massive airplane. It seats 19-20 in its standard configuration.
Other Variants:
Bombardier/Raytheon E-11A Sentinel:
The E-11 is a variant of the Global Express used by multiple militaries for Aerial Surveillance and Communications between other military assets. It has multiple large humps on the aircraft containing extra sensors and electronics.
Bombardier/Saab GlobalEye:
The Saab GlobalEye is a modification of the Global Express, turned into an Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C or AWACS) aircraft, used be several Air Force’s across the world. The aircraft has a large rectangular radome, as well as extra sensors and electronics.
Optional: Links or references
