Cessna officially launched the Citation Ascend at EBACE today, the business aviation exhibition in Geneva. With it comes the new Pratt & Whitney PW545D engine, which has better fuel consumption, more power, and greater durability thanks to a number of improvements. Cessna unveils new Citation Ascend with new P&W engines.
The Citation Ascend is the new midsize executive jet within the successful 560XL series that can seat up to nine passengers. With only four passengers, the range is 1.900nm/3.519km. The cabin is state-of-the-art in design and features, like fifteen percent larger windows that come with electronically dimmable screens. Cessna promises more space inside the quiet interior, thanks to the quiet cabin technology. The Ascend has features also seen on the Latitude and Longitude models of the Citation.
Up front in the cockpit, there is a new autothrottle system to provide flight-envelope protection and reduce the workload and a new Garmin avionics and weather detection system. Central are three 14-inch wide screens with split-screen capabilities. Pilots have a synthetic vision at their disposal to render obstacles in the terrain.
New engine
With the new aircraft comes a new version of the Pratt & Whitney Canada PW545, which is a familiar engine on the Cessna Citation. The A-version powers the Excel, the B-version the XLS, and the PW545C the Citation XLS+. The PW545D includes new materials and technology, like a more efficient high-pressure compressor for increased flow, an enhanced single-stage, high-pressure turbine module, and an advanced exhaust mixer to reduce fuel consumption and noise.
The engine also features Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) technology that integrates the new auto-throttle technology within the aircraft. The D-spec can operate on blends of fifty percent sustainable aviation fuels (SAF).
Thanks to more durability and reliability, Cessna and P&W guarantee that the Ascend has longer service intervals which will be extended to eighteen months of 800 flight hours for the aircraft, 6.000 hours between engine overhauls, and 3.000 hours for hot engine section inspections. With more electronic diagnostic systems on board, troubleshooting should become easier.
The Ascend is still under development and will become available to customers in 2025.
