Garmin to offer G5000 for Beechjet, Hawker owners

Garmin is developing a G5000 avionics suite retrofit for Beechjet 400A and Hawker 400 XP models, offering owners of about 600 aircraft a significant upgrade.

Those models are no longer in production, following the post-bankruptcy reorganization of Beechcraft Corp., which has been looking to market its business jet line to another company. Many owners have already signed on for retrofits from Nextant Aerospace, which offers an engine and avionics package, including Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 panels.

The G5000 flight deck is built around three high-resolution, 12-inch displays, along with touch screen display/controllers with multi-pane capability. The package weighs 200 pounds less than installed avionics, increasing useful load, and Garmin expects to secure supplemental type certificate approval in 2015.

The G5000 flight deck includes optional synthetic vision, traffic and terrain warning capability, and enables Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum (RSVM) operations. The autopilot supports NextGen satellite-based precision approach (PBN/RNP 3.0 with LPV/APV approach) capability, and the system can display geo-referenced charts and weather displays, along with checklists and video.  

“G5000 is the ideal solution for Beechjet 400A and Hawker 400XP operators,” said Carl Wolf, Garmin’s vice president of aviation sales and marketing, in a news release. “This upgrade offers existing owners and operators a chance to breathe new life into the aircraft they love with industry leading situational awareness tools, safety enhancements, and NextGen capabilities.”