Jet Commander/Westwind
Business jet
ManufacturerAero Commander
Israel Aircraft Industries
First flight27 January 1963[1]
Introduction1965
StatusLimited service
Primary userPel-Air
Produced1965–1987
Number built442
Developed fromAero Commander 500
Developed intoIAI Astra
Gulfstream G100

The IAI Westwind is a business jet initially produced by Aero Commander as the 1121 Jet Commander.

Powered by twin GE CJ610 turbojets, it first flew on January 27, 1963, and received its type certification on November 4, 1964, before the first delivery. The program was bought by Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) in 1968, which stretched it slightly into the 1123 Westwind, and then re-engined it with Garrett TFE731 turbofans into the 1124 Westwind.

The 16,800-23,500 lb t MTOW aircraft can carry up to 8 or 10 passengers, and 442 were produced until 1987.

Development

Aero Commander

The Westwind was originally designed in the United States by Aero Commander as a development of its twin-propeller namesake aircraft, first flying on January 27, 1963, as the Aero Commander 1121 Jet Commander.[2] After successful testing, the aircraft was put into series production with deliveries to customers beginning in early 1965.[3]

After initial testing of the prototype, it was modified to production standard with an addition of 2.5 ft to the fuselage length and increased payload and maximum weights. The second prototype first flew on April 14, 1964, which was followed by the first production aircraft in November 1964. Type approval was awarded by the FAA in November, enabling the first customer delivery on January 11, 1965.

Shortly thereafter, Aero Commander was acquired by North American Rockwell. The Jet Commander created a problem, since Rockwell already had an executive jet of its own design, the Sabreliner, and could not keep both in production because of antitrust laws. Therefore, the company decided to sell off the rights to the Jet Commander, which were purchased by IAI in 1968.[3]

Israel Aircraft Industries

Jet Commander production amounted to 150 aircraft in the United States and Israel before IAI undertook a series of modifications to create the 1123 Westwind. These included stretching the fuselage and increasing maximum takeoff, maximum landing, and maximum zero-fuel weights, with the wing modified to incorporate double-slotted flaps and drooped leading edges and tip tanks. The trimmable horizontal stabiliser was also modified to have increased span and more travel.[4] Not long after the aircraft went into production, the original General Electric CJ610 turbojet engines were replaced by more fuel-efficient Garrett TFE731 turbofans[3] Numerous airframe modifications also were made, such as drooped leading edges on the wings, a dorsal fin, revised engine pylons and nacelles, and further increases in maximum takeoff, maximum landing, and maximum zero-fuel weights. With improvements to a number of onboard systems incorporated, as well, these changes resulted in the 1124 Westwind[4] delivered from 1976.[3]

In 1980, deliveries of the Model 1124A commenced; modifications included a new wing centre-section and the addition of winglets to the tips. The revamped aircraft was called the Westwind II, replacing the original design in production. IAI built its last Westwind in 1987, after a total of 442 Jet Commanders and Westwinds had been built, switching production to the Astra.[3]

By 2018, 1980s Westwind 1124s were priced from $300,000 to $700,000.[5]

Seascan

In 1976, in the wake of the terrorist takeover of the Savoy hotel in Tel Aviv, the Israeli Air Force decided to use the Westwind as the basis for a maritime patrol aircraft, which became known as the IAI Sea Scan. It had originally been developed to meet a requirement for the United States Coast Guard to replace the Grumman HU-16 Albatross, but they selected the Dassault Falcon instead.[citation needed]

IAI produced Seascan nicknamed "Seagull" (Hebrew: שחף) since 1976, based on Aero Commander 1121 Jet Commander. The last one retired in 2017.[6].[7]

Design

The Jet Commander/Westwind was of broadly conventional business jet arrangement, with two engines mounted in nacelles carried on the rear fuselage, but the wings were mounted halfway up the fuselage instead of the typical low-wing arrangement of aircraft in this class.

At FL310 and 0.74 Mach (489 kn; 907 km/h), the 1124 burns 1,600 lb (730 kg) per hour, and 1,200 lb (540 kg) at 0.7 Mach (463 kn; 858 km/h).[8]

Variants

Type certificate data sheet[4]
ModelApprovedEnginesThrustMmoCeilingMTOWpaxfuelSerials
1121Nov 4, 1964CJ610-1/-52,850-2,950 lbf kN 20.76540,000 ft
12,192 m		16,800-17,500 lb 08926 US gal
3,505 L		3-120
1121A[a]Sep 19, 1967CJ610-12,850 lbf
12.68 kN		41,000 ft
12,497 m[b]		17,500 lb
7,938 kg		1,090 US gal
4,126 L		121-131
1121BApr 23, 1968CJ610-52,950 lbf
13.12 kN		132-150
1123[c]8 Dec 1971CJ610-9[d]3,100 lbf
13.79 kN		20,700 lb
9,389 kg		101,300 US gal
4,921 L		36 built[3]
1124[e]17 Mar 1976TFE-731-3-1G3,700 lbf
16.46 kN		45,000 ft
13,716 m		23,500 lb
10,659 kg		1,400 US gal
5,300 L
1124A[f]Apr 17, 19800.785
  1. ^ overwing refuelling points with integral fuel tanks, new wheels, tires and brakes, improved cockpit lighting[citation needed]
  2. ^ with passengers, 45,000 ft (13,716 m) with crew only
  3. ^ Increased fuselage length, tip tanks, double-slotted flaps and drooped leading edge, Increased horizontal tail span...
  4. ^ plus Microturbo SAPHIR III APU
  5. ^ Improved drooped leading edge, added dorsal fin, new pod and pylon shapes, new wheel well fairing...
  6. ^ winglets on the wing tip tanks, New leading edge profile

The 1122 Type Certificate was cancelled, the two airplanes manufactured have been converted to model 1123.[4] The 1124N Sea Scan is a maritime surveillance aircraft, and the 1124 was renamed Westwind I after the introduction of the 1124A Westwind II.[3] The 1121C is an unofficial designation for 1121 aircraft modified under a Supplemental Type Certificate with an increased all-up weight available from 1971.[citation needed] The 1123 Westwind was stretched by 22 in (56 cm).[9]

Operators

Civil operators

  • Pel-Air: six, of which four are in aero medical configuration.
  • Medex Aero: three, two of which are in aero medical configuration and one in corporate configuration
  • Brasil Vida Táxi Aéreo: four aircraft, two in aero medical configuration
  • Helipro Fiji: one aircraft is in aero medical configuration.

Military operators

Accidents and incidents

  • The Rockwell 1121 had 21 hull-loss accidents causing 45 fatalities,[11] and the IAI 1124 had 25 hull-loss accidents causing 47 fatalities.[12]
  • On December 15, 1993, a chartered IAI Westwind business jet carrying two flight crew members and three passengers (including Rich Snyder, president of In-N-Out Burger), crashed while on approach to John Wayne Airport. All five occupants were killed in the crash. The aircraft, which departed Brackett Field, 30 miles to the north in La Verne, followed a Boeing 757 for landing, became caught in the 757's wake turbulence, rolled into a deep descent, and crashed near the intersection of State Route 55 and Edinger Avenue. The crash investigation led to the FAA requirement for an adequate period between heavy aircraft and following light aircraft to allow wake turbulence to diminish.[13]
  • On 2 July 2004, an IAI Westwind operated by Air Tek crashed after takeoff and eventually came to rest inside an empty hangar. All 6 occupants were killed, along with an airport worker on the ground.[14]
  • On 18 June 2014, an IAI Westwind corporate aircraft crashed upon takeoff, killing all three on board.[15][16]
  • On 29 March, 2020, an air ambulance operated by Lionair, caught fire and exploded during take off at Manila Airport, killing all five passengers and three crew.[17][18]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Sport and business". Flight International. 14 February 1963.
  2. ^ Scott A. Thompson, Flight Check!: The Story Of Faa Flight Inspection (Government Printing Office, 1990), p. 108; "Jet Commander Flies", by Gerald J. Schlaeger, Flying magazine (April 1963), p. 30
  3. ^ Frawley, Gerald. "IAI Westwind". The International Directory of Civil Aircraft 1997/98. Fyshwick ACT: Aerospace Publications, 1997. ISBN 1-875671-26-9. p. 123.
  4. ^ "FAA Type Certificate Number A2SW". FAA. April 17, 1980.
  5. ^ Mark Huber (December 2018). "For many models, market hitting the apex". Aviation International News. pp. 20–21, 24. Archived from the original on 2018-12-27. Retrieved 2018-12-27.
  6. ^ מתכננים "ווסטווינד‭-"‬מדגם חדש לסיוע טקטי לחילות ים, Davar, September 20, 1976
  7. ^ Israel Retires Last Seascan, 16 March 2017
  8. ^ Hugh Field (25 November 1978). "Westwind 1124 in the air". Flight International
  9. ^ "At the NBAA convention". Flight International. 9 October 1969.
  10. ^ Hartoch, Noam. Jet Commander - Westwind Tonbridge, Kent, England:Air-Britain (Historians), 1979. ISBN 0 85130 075 8, p. 42-44
  11. ^ "Rockwell 1121 Statistics". Aviation Safety Network. 30 March 2020.
  12. ^ "IAI 1124 Statistics". Aviation Safety Network. 30 March 2020.
  13. ^ "Incident Report – Israel Aircraft Industries LAX94FA073 – December 15, 1993". National Transportation Safety Board. 1993. Archived March 15, 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 24, 2011.
  14. ^
  15. ^ Grass, Jonathan (June 18, 2014). "Plane crash at Huntsville International Airport claims 3 lives". The Huntsville Times. AL.com. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  16. ^ Robinson, Carol & Davidson, Tiffany (June 19, 2014). "3 men killed in Wednesday plane crash identified". The Huntsville Times. AL.com. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  17. ^ Jason Gutierrez (2020-03-29). "8 Killed After Philippine Plane Bursts Into Flames". The New York Times
  18. ^ "Eight killed after medical evacuation plane crashes in Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport". Channel News Asia. 2020-03-29. Archived from the original on 2020-03-30. Retrieved 2020-03-30.