According to a statement by Raytheon Aircraft chairman and CEO Jim Schuster last month, certification of the super-midsize Hawker Horizon is still expected for late this year, but “our main focus is not so much the certification milestone, but to assure that we introduce a reliable, producible aircraft that meets or exceeds all of our customer expectations. We are on track for our 2004 deliveries, which is the key goal for the program.” However, according to Raytheon Company’s annual 10-K report with the Security Exchange Commission, which was filed in March, certification may extend to the “first half of 2004.”
When it introduced the Horizon at the 1996 NBAA Convention, the company estimated first flight in the fourth quarter of 1999 and certification in the first quarter of 2001. Actual first flight took place in August 2001. To be fair, a good number of other business aircraft designs in development about that time have also failed to meet their proposed certification milestones–or have even been mothballed–including the AASI Jetcruzer 500, Bell Boeing (now Agusta) 609, Century Jet, CMC Leopard (now Leopard 6), three Contender Aircraft models, Israviation ST-50, Sino Swearingen SJ30-2, Soloy Pathfinder 21, Star*Kraft 700 and VisionAire Vantage. So the fact that the Horizon is still alive at all is no small accomplishment.
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