Learjet models are best known for their quiet performance in climb, enhanced range, and high-altitude cruising speeds. The new models have upswept winglets that deliver far better performance over the traditional wing-tip tanks of the late 1960s. The technologically advanced Learjet 45 was designed entirely on computers for the new millennium of corporate travel. The Learjet 60 is the successor of the 55 model, equipped with more powerful engines and a longer fuselage than the 55. The most advanced Learjet 85 can seat as many as 10 passengers, and comes equipped with the state-of-the-art Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion avionics suite.
Most Learjet series aircraft are powered by the Honeywell TFE731 turbofan engines. These engines are known to have a cleaner and greener performance, with a fuel consumption that gives the series its trademark high-range performance. Later versions of the Learjet 60 and the new Learjet 85 are equipped with the more powerful Pratt and Whitney Canada PW300 series turbofan engines. These engines deliver between 4600 and 6100 pounds of thrust.
The mid-size Learjet 60 can climb to a service ceiling of 41,000 feet in a mere 19 minutes at maximum weight. The super-light Learjet 45 can achieve cruising speeds of up to 464 knots, with a maximum range of 2100 nautical miles (sometimes abbreviated nm) with fuel reserves. The best-in-class Lear 85, though, can do 470 knots on a high-speed flight at 43,000 feet, covering 3000 nm on a single tank of fuel.
While an older used Learjet 45 has a price range between $2.5 million and $4 million, a used Learjet 60 can cost as much as $5 million as of 2010, depending on age and number of hours on the plane. Post-2008 models of the 45 and 60 can cost between $8 million and $11 million. A brand-new Learjet-85, as of 2010, comes in at slightly over $17 million.
