Additional fuselage fuel tanks and winglets were offered as a free retrofit by Canadair in order to increase the range. A large airstair door is located on the forward port side of the fuselage.The Challenger features a large fuselage cross-section, resulting in a spacious and comfortable cabin. It has retractable tricycle landing gear with two wheels on each unit and a trailing link main gear design. The Challenger 600 is a twin turbofan, medium range, wide-body business jet configured as a cantilever low swept-wing monoplane. The Global Navigation GNS 500 VLF/Omega nav system, Delco Carousel INS, and HF transceiver options were commonly installed. The Challenger 600 was introduced before EFIS was commonly available, and so the 600’s panel was fitted with analog electromechanical ADI’s and HSI’s, the Sperry SPZ-600 analog flight guidance system and SPZ-650 autopilot, an analog air data computer, Primus 400 weather radar, and Collins Pro Line 1 comm/nav/ident radios. Engine inspection interval is 6,000 hours. The Challenger 600 is powered by a pair of Lycoming ALF 502-L-2C fanjets rated at 7,500 lbs. When the Challenger 600 was succeeded by the 601 series in 1983, a total of 85 Challenger 600s had been delivered. The Challenger 601 which followed featured General Electric CF34 turbofans and aerodynamic refinements to give the transoceanic range originally envisioned for the Challenger line. A pair of underfloor fuel tanks were offered to CL-600 owners as a free retrofit to increase range. First flight of the Challenger 600 was accomplished in November 1978 and FAA certification was granted in November 1980. It nonetheless broke new ground as a business jet with true wide-body comfort for passengers. By the time of its introduction in 1980, the Challenger 600, equipped with troublesome Lycoming ALF 502 powerplants, had ballooned far beyond its targeted weight, and its 2,600 nm IFR range fell short of the 3,900 miles projected in the original plan. Numerous costly redesigns pushed the timetable off schedule and necessitated a financial bailout of Canadair by the Canadian government. The rights to the project were purchased by Canadair Ltd in 1976, and the CL-600 went through a difficult period of development as it evolved into the twin turbofan Challenger. The Challenger 600 began as Bill Lear’s LearStar 600 intercontinental tri-jet design.
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