The Honda HondaJet is a light jet that is built by the Honda Aircraft Company in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. The aircraft was officially certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on December 9th, 2015 and deliveries began on December 23rd, 2015. A provisional type certificate was given to Honda Aircraft earlier in the year on March 27th, 2015. The name of the aircraft is slightly different from other aircraft as the name of the manufacturer is included in the model name (The Honda HondaJet). The technical name of the aircraft is the Honda HA-420, which is used by aviation regulators, like the FAA.

The Honda HondaJet First Flight - HA-420 at Greensboro

Above Honda HondaJet - HA-420 Photo by Honda News on Flickr (Link is Broken). Photo (only) released under a Creative Commons License.

Background on the HondaJet’s Features and Systems

Engine

Honda worked with General Electric to develop the engines for the aircraft, the GE Honda HF120. To develop the engines, Honda and GE created a new company, GE Honda Aero Engines LLC. Two GE Honda HF120 engine are mounted over the wings of the jet, which is a new configuration that Honda developed. Honda Aircraft Company calls the special configuration the Over-The-Wing Engine Mount. The over wing engine mounts allow the aircraft to have a large cabin, while reducing noise and increasing fuel efficiency.

Avionics

The avionics system on the HondaJet is built by Garmin. The HondaJet uses the Garmin G3000 avionics suite that is also used in other aircraft. The Embraer Phenom 300 and the Cessna Citation M2 both use a version of the Garmin G3000 avionics suite. When the HondaJet was latched by the company in 2003, it was originally going the use the Garmin G1000 avionics suite. As time progressed, Garmin created a better avionics platform, the G3000. Honda subsequently moved to incorporate the newer G3000 suite into the Honda HondaJet.

Cabin

The Cabin of the Honda HondaJet can seat up to 5 five passengers with two pilots. The there are 4 bucket style seats in the main cabin and an optional fifth seat can be installed. A full lavatory or restroom is located at the back of the aircraft. It has a full flushing toilet and a running water sink.

History and Background on the Honda HondaJet

Honda Aircraft Company is a division of the Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Honda started researching jet aircraft in 1986. Their research led them to design the HondaJet in 1997. Michimasa Fujino created the first HondaJet concept drawing in 1997 as a result of his idea to create a low cost business jet in 1996. In 1999 the company settled on a design and in December 2003 began flight testing their new aircraft. Honda HondaJet testing was started at the company’s location in Greensboro, North Carolina at the Piedmont Triad International Airport (FAA: GSO ICAO: KGSO). On July 25th, 2006 the Honda began accepting orders for the HondaJet and on August 8th, 2006 the Honda Aircraft Company was created as a new subsidiary of the Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Michimasa Fujino became the CEO and president of the new Honda aircraft subsidiary.

After 2006, the Honda Aircraft Company embarked on a long journey to develop the HondaJet and officially complete the light jet. It took the company slightly short of a decade, from 2006, to deliverer the aircraft to customers. From 2006 to 2015 the company experienced problems with the engine it was developing, while also being part of the Great Recession that began in 2007. Those problems, combined with the regulatory requirements involved in creating the new aircraft slowed down the progress of the jet. Deliveries began on December 23rd, 2015 and the Honda Aircraft Company was able to persevere in bring the aircraft to the global marketplace.

Test Flights and The Journey

Honda finished building their first actual conforming aircraft and completed the first test flight of the aircraft in December 2010. The company originally delayed deliveries to 2013 due to a problem with the HondaJet engine (GE Honda HF-120). The Honda HondaJet would eventually be delayed all the way to the end of 2015 as the company worked on issues in certifying the aircraft. The delays were common throughout the development period.

To learn more about the HondaJet please visit the other pages here on the site. The pages are located in the HondaJet menu. Each article has detailed information about certain areas and topics for the light jet.