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Duncan Aviation transformed an outdated Bombardier Challenger 300 at its Provo, Utah facility, unveiling the new interior on Tuesday. The aircraft received a new interior, partial paint and minor maintenance work before it was delivered to the customer.
The Provo MRO facility took a dated Challenger 300 and brought it back to life, altering it to look like it came straight off of the maintenance line. Duncan Aviation Associate Designer Amie Jensen said the team had purchased all the materials ahead of time and once the pre-purchase evaluation was complete, work commenced. Jensen said the owner sent inspiration photos of what they wanted to do with the aircraft.
"We would be in video communication with the owner halfway across the world as he showed us different samples of what he wanted," Jensen said. "This is a great example of how we cater to our customers' individual needs. Whether they are on-site in one of our Design Centers, or on an international video call in their home, we take the necessary steps to assist them in the decision-making process."
The interior includes reupholstered seats with two-tone patterned headrests, a new countertop in the lavatory, vinyl flooring, grey and white patterned carpet and new shades. The aft lavatory countertop features complex curves, which offer a special set of challenges when working with a material like Corian. The Duncan Aviation team has refined their technique for applying materials to more organic shapes and can now shape Corian into different profiles.
"Before this new capability, the only option to customize the material was to paint it, and we had difficulty customizing lavatory countertops because of it," Jensen said. "Because of this capability, we were able to install a new, customized Corian countertop in the lavatory."RELATED STORIES:Duncan Aviation completes Falcon 50 refurbishmentDuncan Aviation transforms Falcon 900EX
Upholstery automation
The team reupholstered the seats using Duncan's automation technology. Upholstery automation includes machinery to enable the precise cutting of seat covers and foam, computerized sewing machines for quilting and stitching, as well as the use of automated design software to create seat models and generate dress cover patterns to match customer specifications.
"Using the automation technology ensures there is conformity across all of the seats," Upholstery Team Leader Brandon Crosby said. "The automation process helps us provide a great product."
The Provo Upholstery Shop made two-tone patterned headrests highlighted with a bit of black around the base.
"The seats are a huge reason the new interior looks great," Jensen said. "The sliver of black really makes the seats pop and adds a unique touch."
Updated shades
The existing Challenger shades had plastic components that often break or lose strength over time. The Duncan Aviation team found a manufacturer to use a more durable shade that is easier to maintain.
"The maintenance on these shades is a lot easier to perform," said Clay Witte, the Interior Completions Team Leader. "If the pleats begin to lose rigidity, it will be quick and easy to swap out. We have been very satisfied with this new product and anticipate using it quite a bit."
Exterior paint solution
The customer wanted the new paint on the Challenger to match the paint on his previous plane, a Hawker XP. The Paint Shop and Design team developed a solution to modify the existing stripe scheme rather than repaint the entire exterior.
"We changed one of the stripes from a rounded stripe to a pointed stripe, and modified the design to create a really sleek look," Jensen said. "We also added a logo to the tail. It was a creative interpretation of the design they had on their Hawker."
"We worked directly with the customer, understood their needs, and got them exactly what they wanted," Jensen continued. "We were happy to deliver this aircraft to an extremely happy customer."