The Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion avionics system took to the air aboard a customer airplane for the first time last month, completing a five-hour initial test flight in a Bombardier Global Express XRS that originated at the business jet maker’s Downsview test center in Toronto on August 3.

The avionics under evaluation for these flight trials will serve as the centerpiece for the
Global Vision flight deck, a Pro Line Fusion-based system selected as the replacement for the Global Express XRS’s and Global 5000’s original Honeywell Primus 2000XP avionics. Standard features of the system include four 15-inch-diagonal displays, HGS-6000 head-up guidance system, enhanced- and synthetic-vision systems, Collins MultiScan weather radar, integrated flight information system, triple Waas-capable flight management systems and TSS-4100 traffic surveillance system with ADS-B capability.

“This is a rewarding milestone for Pro Line Fusion,” said Greg Irmen, vice president and general manager of business and regional systems at Rockwell Collins.

He called the test flight with Bombardier the culmination of “many months of hard work and dedication.” Testing will continue for many more months as Rockwell Collins and Bombardier work toward a certification target of 2011.

Rockwell Collins has won several avionics competitions in recent years as aircraft manufacturers choose to add Pro Line Fusion to their newest products. In addition to the Global series jets, the Collins avionics system has been picked for the
Learjet 85; Embraer Legacy 450 and 500; Gulfstream G250; and the Bombardier C Series and Mitsubishi MRJ regional jets.