Fred George

Chief Aircraft Evaluation Editor

San Diego, CA

Summary

Fred is a senior editor and chief pilot with Business & Commercial Aviation and Aviation Week's chief aircraft evaluation pilot. He has flown left seat in virtually every turbine-powered business jet produced in the past three decades.

He has flown more than 195 makes, models and variants, ranging from the Piper J-3 Cub through the latest Boeing and Airbus large twins, logging more than 7,000 hours of flight time. He has earned an Airline Transport Pilot certificate and six jet aircraft type ratings, and he remains an active pilot. Fred also specializes in avionics, aircraft systems and pilot technique reports.

Fred was the first aviation journalist to fly the Boeing 787, Airbus A350 and Gulfstream G650, among other new turbofan aircraft. He’s also flown the Airbus A400M, Howard 500, Airship 600, Dassault Rafale, Grumman HU-16 Albatross and Lockheed Constellation.

Prior to joining Aviation Week, he was an FAA designated pilot examiner [CE-500], instrument flight instructor and jet charter pilot and former U.S. Naval Aviator who made three cruises to the western Pacific while flying the McDonnell-Douglas F-4J Phantom II.

Fred has won numerous aviation journalism awards, including NBAA’s David W. Ewald Platinum Wing Lifetime Achievement Award.

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Articles

Fred George fred_george@aviationweek.com
Albuquerque, N.M.-based Eclipse Aviation said yesterday that it has filed for Chapter 11 protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. The airframer simultaneously applied for a sale of its assets in accordance with Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code to the European Technology and Investment Research Center (ETIRC), a company that is Eclipse’s largest shareholder with an investment estimated to be close to $140 million. ETIRC Chairman Roel Pieper also is acting CEO of Eclipse Aviation.

Fred George
The 4,119-pound-thrust PW545C that powers the Citation XLS+ is a virtual clone of the 3,991-pound-thrust PW545B fitted to the Citation XLS. Both models have the same thermodynamic rating and 3.8:1 bypass ratio. Both feature the same fan powered by a three-stage low-pressure turbine, along with two-stage axial and single-stage centrifugal compressor powered by a single-stage high-pressure turbine, plus a reverse flow annular combustor. The difference in takeoff thrust rating results from a five-degree reduction in flat-rating from 82°F (28°C) to 77°F (25°C).

Fred George
Last month, Gulfstream Aerospace took the wraps off its G250, a radical midlife makeover of the G200 that will transform it from being the most comfortable super-midsize cabin parked on pavement into a potent performer that’s worthy of the Gulfstream name. The G250 not only will look like a genuine Gulfstream, having athletic proportions, big wing and engines and a signature T-tail, it also should measure up to the sporty performance heritage of legacy Gulfstream jets.