TheCessna 500 Citation I is a smallbusiness jet produced byCessna, the basis of theCitation family.TheFanjet 500 prototype was announced in October 1968, first flew on September 15, 1969, and was certified as the500 Citation on September 9, 1971. It was upgraded in 1976 as theCitation I, and the501 Citation I/SP single-pilot variant was introduced in 1977. Production ended in 1985 with 689 of all variants produced.Thestraight wing jet is powered byJT15D turbofans.The aircraft was developed into theCitation II.
In the early 1960s, the three major Americangeneral aviation aircraft manufacturers—Beechcraft, Cessna andPiper–faced a competitive challenge in the form of two newly-developed lightbusiness jets, theLearjet 23 and theAero Commander 1121 Jet Commander, which were much less expensive to buy and operate than previous business jets such as theNorth American Sabreliner andHawker Siddeley HS.125.[4] Previous efforts by Beechcraft and Cessna to market small jets had not met with success: theCessna 407, a proposed civil version of theT-37 Tweet jet trainer, had not proceeded past the mockup stage due to insufficient customer interest,[5] while an effort by Beechcraft to market theMorane-Saulnier MS.760 Paris in North America had ended with only two aircraft sold.[6] However, the runaway success of the Learjet caused the two companies—which only manufacturedpiston engined aircraft at the time—to reconsiderturbine engined aircraft, and Beechcraft launched two simultaneous efforts: the development of theturboprop-poweredKing Air 90 and an agreement to market the HS.125 in North America.[7]
Cessna quickly found that its premium twin piston-engine aircraft were uncompetitive with the King Air, which was substantially faster, yet could be flown by pilots with similar skills and licensing qualifications. However, the company also saw a broad gap between the King Air and existing light jets such as the Learjet, which were far faster but also relatively unforgiving to fly, requiring highly skilled pilots and long runways. Cessna reasoned that a market existed for a light jet that was faster than the King Air but similarly easy to fly, relatively inexpensive to buy and maintain, and able to access small airports with shorter runways. This type of aircraft would appeal to traditional Cessna buyers: amateur owner-pilots who intend to fly the aircraft themselves.[8][citation needed]
In October 1968 Cessna announced an eight place business jet capable of operating from airfields accessible to light twins.TheFanjet 500 prototype first flew on September 15, 1969.By then its unit cost was $695,000,[1] $5.96M today.The renamed500 Citation had a relatively long development program with a longer forward fuselage, repositioned engine nacelles, a larger tail and more dihedral to the horizontal tail.It was FAA certified on September 9, 1971.[9]
In 1974,thrust reversers became optional, and in 1976, the gross weight was increased by 1,000 pounds (450 kg) to 10,850 pounds (4,920 kg).[10] In early 1976, the wingspan was increased from 43.9 to 47.1 ft (13.4 to 14.4 m).[11] The enhanced500 Citation I was introduced later in 1976 with the higher gross weight, improvedJT15D-1A engines and the increased span wing. Speed and range were enhanced, the aircraft'sservice ceiling increased from 35,000 to 41,000 feet (11,000 to 12,000 m), and the cabin pressure at altitude was increased from 7.6 to 8.6 psi (52 to 59 kPa).[9][10] Many of the original Citations, of which 349 were produced, were upgraded with the new engines.[12]The501 Citation I/SP, certificated for singlepilot operations, was delivered in early 1977.Production ended in 1985, it was developed into theCitation II/Bravo and theCitation V/Ultra/Encore.[9]395 Citations and Citation Is and 296 I/SPs were built between 1971 and 1985.[9][13] The aircraft were dropped from production because JT15D engine prices had increased to the point that the price difference between the Citation I and Citation II series had become minimal, causing most buyers to opt for the larger and faster II and II/SP.[14]
By 2018, used 1970s model 500s were valued at $300,000, Citation ISPs at $695,000 to $1.25 million with the Eagle II package.[15]
The aircraft was powered by twoPratt & Whitney Canada JT15D-1 turbofan engines after Cessna's experience with theT-37 Tweet twinjet trainer.Its use of turbofans rather thanturbojets and straight wings rather thanswept wings made it cruise slowly compared to other business jets andLearjet salesmen mocked it as the "Nearjet" vulnerable to "bird strikes from the rear"; Cessna renamed it the "Citation" after the thoroughbred but it was nicknamed as "Slowtation".[16]
On March 30, 2008, a Citation I/SP, registrationVP-BGE,crashed near Biggin Hill Airport, killing former racing driversDavid Leslie andRichard Lloyd, the two pilots, and another passenger, and causing a fire that destroyed two houses struck by the aircraft. The accident was attributed to the flight crew's improper emergency procedures in reaction to a perceived engine fault.[23]
On October 13, 2016, a Citation 500, registrationC-GTNG, crashed shortly after takeoff fromKelowna International Airport, killing formerPremier of AlbertaJim Prentice, the pilot, and two other passengers. TheTransportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) was unable to conclusively determine the cause of the crash, but the flight profile was consistent with aspiral dive caused byspatial disorientation, and the pilot's lack of experience flying at night and ininstrument meteorological conditions were thought to have contributed. The TSB also noted that although the aircraft had been outfitted for single-pilot operations in accordance withTransport Canada (TC) regulations, the operator lacked the required TC approval for single-pilot flights, and the TSB criticized TC for lax operator oversight.[24]
On May 29, 2021, a Citation 501, registrationN66BK,crashed into Percy Priest Lake shortly after takeoff fromSmyrna Airport, killing American authorGwen Shamblin Lara and her husband, American actorJoe Lara, along with five other leaders of the Remnant Fellowship Church. The NTSB investigation determined the cause of the accident was pilot error related to somatogravic illusion (a type of spatial disorientation), due to heavy cloud cover.[25]
a Redesignated during development • b Not built • c Produced only by Reims • d Transferred toBeechcraft during development • e Early models had no "I" suffix; some sources call these aircraft theCitation 500
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