Honda Jet  

We already knew that Rolls-Royce historically builds jet engines. But now, Honda is also entering the aviation industry by building a jet from A to Z. The announcement has been made at the Experimental Aircraft Association’s AirVenture in 2006, the biggest annual aviation get-together on the planet.

This new plane is called simply the HondaJet, and is the fruit of a new independent division called Honda Aircraft Company that’s based near the airport of Greensboro, North Carolina, in the United States.

The HondaJet is a project created and led by Michimasa Fujino, currently the head of this division. The plane required 20 years of research and development before the conception of a prototype (in pictures) that can carry 7 passengers with a top speed of 778 km/h and an action range of 2,000 km!

According to the press release, the HondaJet innovates in many technological aspects, in regards to the piloting cockpit, the vast passenger cabin as well as the powerful yet sober engine.

The prototype is currently being tested; they are very long in the aerodynamic industry for obvious security reasons, in order to achieve certification from the Federal Aviation Association (FAA). As a result, production should only begin in 2010, but orders will start being taken by year’s end.

From a commercial standpoint, Honda Aircraft Company associated itself with Piper Aircraft for the sale and distribution of the HondaJet.

Satoshi Toshida, general manager of Honda Motor Company Ltd, expressed himself on this project: “Aviation has always been an important dream for Honda. It’s in perfect harmony with the philosophy of other Honda products which consists of providing efficient and comfortable transportation that contributes in improving the life of its users. We are very proud to enter a new dimension of mobility after the automobile and the motorcycle.”