Grumman Gulfstream I
| Gulfstream I | |
|---|---|
 |
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| A USCG VC-4A Gulfstream I in flight, 1964 | |
| Role | Business aircraft |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Grumman |
| First flight | August 14, 1958 |
| Produced | 1959–1969 |
| Number built | 200 |
The Grumman Gulfstream I (company designation G-159) is a twin-turboprop business aircraft. It first flew on August 14, 1958. The aircraft has similar design characteristics to the Hawker Siddeley HS 748, especially the Rolls-Royce Dart powerplant.
After first rejecting an idea to develop the Grumman Widgeon as an executive transport, the company studied producing an executive transport based on a turbine-powered variant of the naval utility transport Grumman TF-1 Trader. The company had already determined that any new aircraft would have to be turboprop-powered and the Rolls-Royce Dart engine was chosen. Further studies showed that the Trader-based design would not sell and they needed an all-new design with a low-wing and room to stand up in the cabin. In June 1957 the design of G-159 was finalised and Grumman started selling slots on the production line at $10,000 each. The initial customers worked with Grumman on the detailed design and avionics fit. The G-159 was given the name Gulfstream and on 14 August 1958 the first aircraft, registered N701G, took off from Bethpage, New York on its maiden flight. By 2 May 1959 the aircraft was awarded a type certificate by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The Gulfstream I is a low-wing cantilever monoplane with a semi-monocoque aluminium alloy fuselage structure. The aircraft is powered by two Rolls-Royce Dart turboprops with Rotol four-bladed constant speed propellers. The Gulfstream I has a retractable tricycle landing gear, with twin wheels on the two main units and the nose gear. The cabin is designed to take up to twenty-four passengers in a high-density arrangement or only eight in an executive layout, although ten to twelve was more usual. The aircraft has a hydraulically operated airstair in the forward cabin for entry and exit.
The United States military version for this plane is the C-4 Academe. The TC-4 is a version with added instruments and navigation. It was used by the US Navy for bombardier/navigator training for the A-6 Intruder. A VC-4A variant was flown by the United States Coast Guard as an executive transport until the early 1980s. It was later used as a logistics and long-range command and control aircraft until 2001.
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