aviation - the past, present and future of flight

completely new design

evolved, designated as

the G-159 project.

The aircraft would be

of similar dimensions

to the DC-3 and be the

largest aircraft at the time

produced specifically for

the corporate market.

Its design was of a

low-wing, nosewheel

undercarriage layout,

with a swept fin and two

Rolls-Royce Dart 529 turboprop engines.

This form of propulsion had been selected

because Grumman was uncertain whether

corporate operators would commit to a

turbojet-powered aircraft until jet airliners

had proved their operational reliability over

several years.

The Dart was already

powering almost 100

Viscounts in North

American airline service,

had the backing of

a worldwide support

organisation, and was

considered capable of

future development. The

G-159 would typically

accommodate 10 to 14

passengers in a cabin

fitted with five large oval windows on each

side.

A fully enclosed lavatory and washroom

was located at the rear of the passenger

compartment and behind that was a

baggage compartment, accessible during

flight. Go-ahead for the project was given in

the spring of 1957, with a projected break-

even point of somewhere between 125 and

150 unit sales. The name Gulfstream was

chosen for the G-159.

To give the aircraft

an additional role as

a feeder airliner it was

designed to satisfy the

Civil Aeronautics Board’s

4b regulations for civil

airliners. Four cabin

windows doubled as

emergency exits and a

roof escape hatch was

incorporated.

Built-in hydraulic

airstairs and an integral auxiliary power

unit (APU) gave the Gulfstream a degree of

self-sufficiency and speeded turnarounds.

In January 1958, Grumman was offering the

corporate version to potential purchasers for

$700,000 (around £250,000), exclusive of

electronics fit and cabin furnishings.

The latter items were

supplied to meet each

customer’s requirements

by one of four appointed

distributors: Atlantic

Aviation (of Delaware),

Pacific Airmotive (of

California), Southwest

Airmotive (of Texas),

and Timmins Aviation (of

Canada).

INTO THE AIR

The initial prototype (registered N701G)

undertook its maiden flight in August 14,

1958 from the Grumman facility at Bethpage,

New York, crewed by test pilots Carl Alber

http://www.aviation-news.co.uk 79

Above: One of several Gulfstream Is to be

operated by the USA’s Federal Aviation

Administration, N3, which ended its days

underwater, as an artificial reef off Hawaii.

Bob O’Brien

Below: A US Navy TC-4C Academe, modified

with an A-6 Intruder nose for bombardier

training. AirTeamImages.com/Caz Caswell

A flightdeck from the 1950s of a Gulfstream I, in this case N190PA. AirTeamImages.com/Jan Severijn

78-82_gulftsreamDCmfDCmfDCDCDC.indd 79 02/03/2018 23:11