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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 |
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)
A 37-passenger stretched version, the G-159C, was developed by Gulfstream for regional airline use. Five were delivered from November 1980.[4] Air North (based in Plattsburgh NY and which subsequently changed its name to Brockway Air) was one of the few airlines in the U.S. to use this version before its acquisition by Brockway Glass. Another Gulfstream I-C airline operator was Chaparral Airlines which flew passenger services as American Eagle via a codesharing agreement with American Airlines. Royale Airlines also operated the G-I in scheduled passenger service in the U.S. operating as Continental Connection on behalf of Continental Airlines; however, its aircraft were standard length G-159 models and thus were not the stretched version. Several other airlines in the U.S. as well air carriers in Africa, Canada, Europe and the Mideast also operated standard Gulfstream Is in scheduled passenger service, including Peregrine Air Services in the U.K. which operated airline flights for British AirwaysTake off Distance
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In 1956, Grumman Aerospace Corporation began the design of a twin turboprop-powered executive transport to replace the many hundreds of war surplus piston twin-engine aircraft performing such missions at that time.
Grumman G-159 Gulfstream I is a twin-engine turboprop business aircraft, developed by Grumman in the late 1950s
It is the first aircraft of this type equipped with a turboprop powerplant, as well as the first aircraft of the Gulfstream family, which, in our time, has become one of the leaders in the global business aviation
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