10 July 2007
The Epic Victory Jet has become the latest VLJ to take to the air.
The single-engine, all-carbon jet (sister to the twin-engine Elite) has a max cruise ‘in excess’ of 320 KTAS and features an all-Garmin glass cockpit. It claims a climb-time to FL280 of just 10 minutes. Even with full fuel, the Victory offers more than 900 lbs of payload, easily accommodating 4 – 5 passengers and their luggage. Economy cruise is 250 KTAS, giving a range of 1,200 nm.
It’s been a remarkably short drawing-board-to-flight time for the Victory: just six-and-a-half months (or 202 days).
The company is hoping to deliver at least six of the new jets to customers before the end of the year, each with a price tag of less than one million dollars.
“And this is not a promotional price or a price in 2002 dollars like we’ve seen with other jets,” siad CEO Rick Schrameck. “This is the Victory price today.”
The new Victory VLJ will first be available as an owner-built aircraft via the company’s Customer Build Center in Bend, Oregon.
The aircraft is now expected to fly in to the EAA’s Airventure fly-in at Oshkosh later this month.
