Textron Aviation took the wraps off the latest iteration of its popular 560XL family—the Cessna Citation Ascend—on Monday at EBACE 2023, announcing major upgrades to extend the midsize twinjet’s production run well into the future. Key features of the $16.725 million airplane include Garmin G5000 avionics, autothrottles, more powerful Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) PW545D engines, a higher maximum takeoff weight (mtow) and payload, increased range, flat cabin floor, and other cabin amenities. The Ascend is expected to enter service in early 2025.

According to Textron Aviation president and CEO Ron Draper, the 560XL “is the most successful business jet family in history." The company has delivered more than 1,000 560XLs during the past 25 years.

The trenched floor on the 560XL, while it provides more headroom, has bucked the flat-floor trend in modern business jet design. In the case of the Ascend, engineers didn’t make any changes to the fuselage’s external dimensions to accommodate the flat floor but essentially filled in the trench and moved some systems components to allow the change.

Then designers were able to create new cabin seats that take advantage of the flat floor, giving passengers more room to move the seat around and find more comfortable positions. A customer advisory board helped influence the design changes, which include power at every seat—a total of three standard universal outlets and 19 USB charging ports—and wireless phone charging. 

Of course, flattening the floor does shrink the height of the Ascend cabin by eight inches when measured from the previous bottom of the center trench in the 560XL. The height is 60 inches in the Ascend's main cabin but 63 inches at the threshold where the entry door is located. From the entry, passengers will step up a small three-inch ramp into the main cabin.

EBACE visitors can judge how the flat floor changes the cabin by visiting the Ascend mockup at the Textron Aviation booth (T26). “The flat floor gives customers the ultimate relaxation experience,” said Christi Tannahill, senior v-p of customer experience. 

“When you sit down,” said Draper, “it feels like a bigger cabin. Customers overwhelmingly supported it.”

“A notable difference is the flat floor,” said Chris Pinkerton, director of cabin development. “It’s level with the threshold and makes ingress and egress easier. We worked with customers on this feature, and it’s much more comfortable to have options where you can place your feet, especially once you move your seat.” 

Along with the less-cramped look afforded by the flat floor, the Ascend cabin windows are 15 percent larger, with a smoother, more rounded profile at the top and bottom. From the outside, sharp-eyed business jet observers will be able to tell the Ascend apart from earlier 560XLs by the new jet’s small winglets and slightly larger flight deck side windows. 

Revamped seats with an “ergonomic design” have dual armrests that fold into the seat back and movement controlled by an electric pushbutton. Two club seats can move more than a foot on their tracks. Buyers can opt for footrests, electrically controlled lumbar support, and personalized quilting and tailoring.

Stone counters are available in the lavatory, and the floor can be covered with stone or vinyl material. Carpeting is standard.

A typical nine-seat layout includes two seats opposite the entry door, a four-seat club-seating area, then two forward-facing seats, with one convertible seat in the lavatory. Up to 12 seats could fit into the cabin. Seatbacks can fold down to create flat sleeping areas. In the aft cabin is a centerline closet. 

Textron Aviation engineers have improved the Ascend’s cabin noise level using advanced materials, making it much quieter than earlier 560XLs. The cabin sound level will be similar to that of a modern car, according to the company.

The manufacturer’s Clairity cabin management system lets passengers wirelessly control cabin lighting, temperature, window shades, and the entertainment system. A Bongiovi speakerless sound system is optional.

For airborne connectivity, the Ascend includes Gogo’s Avance L-3 Max air-to-ground system for U.S. and partial Canadian coverage. Options include the higher-capacity Avance L-5 and Cobham’s Aviator 300 Inmarsat SwiftBroadband satcom for light internet use and voice calls outside the U.S.

External storage is easier to see at night, with the addition of LED lighting on the left engine pylon. The aft baggage space hasn’t changed and can take up to 700 pounds in its 80 sq ft.

Meanwhile, the P&WC 545D delivers more power and improved fuel efficiency than previous iterations of the engine. Changes include a more efficient high-pressure compressor, enhanced single-stage high-pressure turbine module, and upgraded exhaust mixer, according to Textron Aviation.

A Woodward autothrottle system is integrated with the Garmin avionics to reduce pilot workload, especially in busy airspace. This is the same autothrottle system on the Latitude and Longitude, so all three will share the same avionics systems, “an important feature for customers who operate multiple Citations,” according to Textron Aviation. “Having a common flight deck is important for customers,” said Lannie O’Bannion, senior v-p of global sales and flight operations. 

With the introduction of the Ascend, only one in-production Citation model—the CJ4 Gen2—will be equipped with Collins Aerospace avionics, with all others now featuring Garmin G3000/G5000 avionics. The XLS changed from Honeywell Primus avionics to a Collins Pro Line 21 flight deck with the introduction of the XLS+ in 2008.

Garmin, working with its dealers, developed a G5000 supplemental type certificate (STC) for Primus-equipped versions of the 560XL, but not the XLS+, and dozens have been converted since it was introduced about four years ago. Textron Aviation and Garmin are working together on the G5000 installation for the Ascend, but certification-wise this is being done under the airplane’s type certificate, not as an STC.

In addition to the autothrottles, G5000 features in the Ascend include three ultra-high-resolution 14-inch displays with split-screen capability and synthetic vision; four touchscreen controllers; autopilot with envelope protection; a Garmin GSR 56 Iridium satcom for flight crew voice calling and messaging; Garmin GWX 8000 StormOptix radar with weather detection and avoidance technology; and a second Iridium satcom for CPDLC and FANS 1/A communications and operations.

While final performance specifications aren’t yet available, Textron Aviation’s preliminary numbers anticipate a range of 1,900 nm at high-speed cruise with four passengers, up from the XLS+’s 1,750 nm. Maximum cruise speed at 441 knots and range at 2,100 nm are the same, as is time to climb to the maximum altitude of FL450 at 30 minutes.

The new mtow is 20,500 pounds, 300 pounds higher than the XLS+. Maximum zero fuel weight grows by 400 pounds to 15,500 pounds, and maximum payload to 2,390 pounds, up from 2,240 pounds.

With its higher mtow, the Ascend’s takeoff field length is nearly the same as the XLS+ but at 3,660 feet, 60 feet longer. Landing distance is 3,220 feet for the Ascend versus 3,180 for the XLS+.

One of the XLS’s popular features is its auxiliary power unit (APU), and for the Ascend, Textron Aviation upgraded to the unattended Honeywell RE100 [XL] APU, which allows heating and cooling the cabin while the crew attends to other duties. This APU has self-management features and added bleed leak detection.

Textron Aviation expects the Ascend’s maintenance intervals to be 18 months or 800 hours, and the PW545 engine will have a longer TBO of 6,000 hours and 3,000 for the hot section inspection. The engine will be monitored via P&WC’s Fast box, and the Ascend will also be equipped with Textron Aviation’s Ares data collection system for flight data monitoring and troubleshooting.

Because the Ascend will be certified as an amendment of the 560XL type certificate, existing Excel/XLS/XLS+ pilots will require only differences training, primarily on the avionics and autothrottles.

“This is built on 20 years of 560XL success in the market,” said O’Bannion. “Whether for charter, personal transportation, or corporate flight departments, nothing competes with Ascend’s cabin and performance. This offers pilots the power of Garmin’s G5000 with autothrottles and the improved performance of the PW545D. This is the next aircraft in the proud lineage of the XL family.”