First Flight For the Gulfstream G300 The first flight of the new Gulfstream G300 has been made. The recently-announced G300 is essentially the replacement of the G280 as this was announced back in September of 2025. On December 5th, the first test article took off from the Ben Gurion International Airport, Israel around 8:05 in the morning. For those who may not be familiar with this arrangement, the midsize Gulfstream jets typically have been made in Israel at IAI under license for Gulfstream. This was the arrangement for the G280 and will continue for the G300.
The first flight article had a good work-out on the first flight flying for approximately 2.5 hours and eventually reach flight level 30,000 with a top speed of MACH 0.75. This is just the first flight and as testing matures the flight envelope will naturally be expanded to verify and include the maximum performance of the aircraft. It is expected the new G300 will have a maximum cruising ceiling of 45,000 feet. The G300 combines trans-Atlantic range with short-field agility, covering 3,600 nautical miles/6,667 kilometers at Mach 0.80 or 3,000 nautical miles/5,556 kilometers at Mach 0.84.
“With its combination of safety, technology, performance, and cabin comfort, the G300 is a game changer for the super-midsize category,” said Gulfstream president Mark Burns. “This latest investment, designed to exceed our customers’ expectations for large-cabin features in a mid-cabin aircraft, brings another new category leader to our next-generation fleet.”
The G300 program is already well mature with over 2,000 ground test hours amassed on the first aircraft even before that first flight test article took to the skies to formally commence real-world flight tests. Before that, the G300 program has amassed over 22,000 ground test hours in lab conditions. With the first example now aloft, Gulfstream will add another 2 flight test articles -which are currently under construction-. The aircraft is expected to be priced at $28.9 million. For more information: Gulfstream Aerospace 500 Gulfstream Road Savannah, GA 31407 www.gulfstream.com ***
