DIAMOND D-JET CONTINUES FLIGHT TESTING

After the successful first flight of its sensational new D-JET on April 18th, Diamond continued with an aggressive flight test program with additional flights on April 19th, 20th, and 21st to further expand the speed envelope and continue evaluation of handling characteristics. Diamond CEO, Christian Dries was able to evaluate the jet personally, on its 53 minute 2nd flight on April 19th. "I was particularly impressed by the feeling of space, security and solidity. The simplicity of operation, from engine start through take-off, flight and landing was very obvious and reflects my vision of what a personal jet should be. The Williams engine performed flawlessly and in combination with the high L/D wing design, produces higher take off performance than the thrust to weight ratio might suggest. My familiarity with the Garmin G1000 in the DA40 and DA42 made the transition to the D-JET avionics suite very natural," said Dries. "Our personal jet balances big airplane comfort, realistic acquisition and operating cost with practical performance for private pilots - the response since our first flight has been tremendous and we look forward to continuing the development to bring this aircraft to market."