The first Gulfstream G650 ever built, MSN 6001 / N650GX, has made a rare trip outside of the US, landing at Lugano Airport in Switzerland for the first time.
The Gulfstream flew from Savannah, Georgia to Geneva on June 23 for a brief stop-over before flying on to Lugano Airport on June 25.
The last time the aircraft visited Europe was in October 2018, when it made a short visit to London City Airport as part of its steep approach certification testing. London City Airport has a 5.5° approach path. Aircraft, and pilots, need to be specially certificated to land at the airport.
Gulfstream confirmed that the G650s visit to Lugano was part of the aircraft’s steep approach testing. “We were doing some testing with the airport as a part of our overall steep approach activities, a real-life demonstration of Gulfstream’s continuous improvement culture,” the company said in an email to Corporate Jet Investor.
Lugano is frequently listed as one of the world’s most challenging and dangerous airports to land at.
Surrounded by mountains, the airport’s approach path is steeper than London City’s.
Most of the world’s airports have an approach path around 3°. Because of the surrounding environment, aircraft arriving at Lugano Airport must fly a steep approach of 6.65°.
Following a morning of trials, the aircraft returned to Geneva and, after a short stop to pick up fuel, directly back to Savannah.
