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How a Swiss jet gets made

The new business plane from Swiss manufacturer Pilatus has been 12 years in the making. A behind-the-scenes look at the assembly line shows what it took for the company to make its first-ever jet aircraft.

The PC-24 business jet can fly distances up to 3,600 kilometres (2,236 miles) and can reach top speeds of 815 kilometres per hour.

Pilatus invested more than CHF500 million ($522 million) in developing and producing the PC-24 at its operations hub in the central Swiss canton of Nidwalden.

The 17-metre-long business jet is the only one of its kind that can start and land on short runways made of sand and gravel. The company says that 84 orders have been placed for the PC-24 so far, 23 of which it plans to deliver in 2018. The US company PlaneSense, which offers a sort of time share model for business jets, is receiving the first PC-24.

Pilatus revealed in December that the PC-24 jet had obtained type certificates from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), allowing for the planes to be delivered to customers abroad. 

Photos: Christian Beutler/Keystone

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First ‘homemade’ Swiss business jet approved for take off

This content was published on Pilatus revealed on Friday that the PC-24 jet had obtained type certificates from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This clears the ground for the planes to be delivered to customers abroad.  “The PC-24 is fully produced and assembled in Stans, Switzerland. Of course, we also buy components…

Read more: First ‘homemade’ Swiss business jet approved for take off


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SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR