A multi-engine, instrument rated pilot, James Wynbrandt has been an AIN and Business Jet Traveler contributor since 2003. His in-depth reporting and insightful features have won more than a dozen editorial honors, including two National Business Aviation Association Gold Wing Awards (2019; 2021), and his articles have also appeared in the New York Times, Barron’s, Fortune, Forbes, and Smithsonian Air &amp; Space. He has flown his Mooney M20K 252 on assignments throughout North and Central America and the Caribbean. Wynbrandt is also the author of Flying High (Wiley &amp; Sons), a biography of Jet Blue founder David Neeleman, as well as histories, references works, and books on a variety of other topics from major publishers. He lives in New York City.

Contributor - Business Aviation

James Wynbrandt

Test your strength on Bombardier’s Flex-o-Meter at Henderson Executive Airport while getting a first-hand feeling for what’s beneath the “smooth ride characteristics” of its Global 5000/6000 ultra-long-range jets during NBAA 2017 in Las Vegas. The Globals’ “wing flexibility and loading are superior to our competitors,” allowing the wing to flex “like springs on a car, reducing vibration,” said a Bombardier spokesman.

 


You can feel it for yourself—or try to, by pushing up under the wing of the Global 6000 on static display (SD20)—while seeing how you match up against fellow NBAA attendees. Bombardier engineers have mounted their Flex-0-Meter on a pedestal beneath the wing, the instrument’s panel registering the amount of deflection each competitor achieves, while also incorporating a leader board into the display. (The opportunity to press hard against the type of airframe we’re always told to keep our hands off of is reason enough to try it!)

 


The marketing team “had a very interesting meeting with engineers who think we’re crazy” to confirm that the impact of thousands of people—or one very strong one—pushing up on the designated point posed no structural threat to the aircraft, the spokesman said. “[Even] if Mr. Olympia comes and applies a couple of thousands of pounds of pressure, we’re okay.” The smooth ride comes from the wing’s relatively thin chord, or width, thanks to additional lift at slow speeds provided by the wing's slats and flaps configuration. “We use the analogy of an umbrella. If it’s a small umbrella, it’s much less impacted by gusts of wind,” he said. At the convention center, Bombardier (Booth N6000). is displaying accelerometer data gathered from a Global 6000 and a competitor’s jet flying an identical route, reproduced in the form of vibrations seen in a pair of water glasses.

 


The forthcoming Global 7000/8000, though flying a new wing, will have a similarly smooth ride, according to Bombardier.

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