Tamarack Aerospace Group recently showed good performance results with its Active Winglets, which the Sandpoint, Idaho-based company has been** testing on a Cessna Citation CJ1**. Recently the CJ1 flew from its headquarters in Idaho to White Plains, New York, on one fuel tank — a flight that took 6 hours and 16 minutes and spanned 1,853 nm, surpassing a previous distance record in the CJ's weight classification by nearly 50 nm. Tamarack claims the fuel tanks of the CJ1 were not modified and that the airplane landed with the required 45-minute IFR fuel reserve.
While the record flight was recorded on FlightAware, it won’t be added to the history books since there was no official observation by the National Aeronautic Association. While admitting the airplane had a “slight tailwind” at its cruise altitude of 41,000 feet, Nick Guida, Tamarack’s CEO, who also piloted the airplane during the flight, credited the improved climb and cruise performance resulting from the Active Winglet installation for the accomplishment.
“We had predicted that our Active Winglets could provide substantial improvements to the Citation Jet in terms of range and endurance, so it’s not a surprise to us to see performance like this,” Guida said.
The Active Winglets effectively deactivate in turbulence through an automatically deployed control surface near the wingtip. While the system has also been tested extensively on a Cirrus SR22, the FAA has yet to sign off on any STCs for this new technology.
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