HondaJet Achieves EASA Certification

Just in the nick of time, with the European Business Aviation Convention and Expo opening its doors today in Geneva, Switzerland, Honda Aircraft Company has received the official paperwork confirming the EASA certification of the HondaJet HA-420. Honda Aircraft’s president and CEO Michimasa Fujino received the HA-420 EASA certificate from Steve Higgins, EASA’s section manager for high-performance aircraft and turboprops, at an EBACE press conference yesterday.

So far, the company has also achieved certification for the light jet in the United States and Mexico. Honda Aircraft has concurrently been working on certification in Canada and Brazil.

Fujino also announced that the HondaJet has outperformed itself, proving a top speed of 422 knots, 2 knots faster than the previously announced top speed.

So far, the Greensboro, North Carolina-based company has delivered nine of the light jets, and the current production rate for HondaJet is two to three airplanes per month. Fujino said plans are for that rate to increase to four per month by the end of the year.