There were two of them then. The second ACJ Twotwenty was delivered to its new owners at the Comlux Completion Center in Indianapolis with a custom interior. But the no-nonsense corporate cabin is a far cry from the first ACJ 220 launched for Five Hotels & Resorts last summer. Designed for hourly charters from Dubai, the aircraft had a more playful design reminiscent of a nightclub, with vibrant overhead lights connecting six purple-hued sectors.
The six-zone interior includes forward and main living rooms, powder rooms forward and amidships, a full galley and an aft cabin. The aircraft has a total of 18 passenger seats, including 10 convertible seats. The main room has tables between two sets of chairs for meals or meetings, and a leather L-shaped sofa at the back for social gatherings. The front cabin has six seats, made of blue leather, and gray patterned carpet on the floor. All seats have separate controls for the audio system and other on-board systems. The aircraft is equipped with a special Panasonic Ku-band system for continuous communications.
The ACJ220 is designed to fly for up to 12 hours or 5,650 nautical miles, so the Airbus features three times the cabin space of a large business jet, each measuring 130 square feet. Of course, the big advantage is the ability to personalize the interior.
Comlux Chairman and CEO Richard Gouna told Robb Report, “This latest model has a slightly more corporate design, but it shares 70 percent of the earlier design.” “Once you understand the A220 concept, you’ll see it .”
From leather to wood to seating and more, the ACJ 220’s canvas features 77 possible interior configurations. But it also uses the Airbus A220 commercial aircraft as its base. The idea is to customize the interior within a standard architecture rather than a custom cabin that must be designed from scratch, which could extend the completion process by months or even years.
“Sometimes we start communicating with customers 14 months before the aircraft arrives,” said Ashley Moulton, senior interior designer at Comlux Completion, during a walk-through last summer at the completion of the first ACJ220 in Indianapolis. Said. The second interior just completed is “green” – so named because it has an open interior that is often green and has just been started.
The final ACJ 220 took approximately eight months to complete, with the first interior taking 14 months to complete. The process will get easier as you progress. Comlux has signed an agreement with Airbus to purchase the first 15 ACJ 220 aircraft, with plans to launch four to six aircraft through the Indianapolis plant starting in 2026. The third ACJ 220 cabin is due to be completed by the end of this year. The fourth plane will arrive in a few days. Days spent at the Airbus plant in Montreal.
The large hangar at Indianapolis has room for many aircraft, both old and new, with new interiors. The next two ACJ 220 aircraft will have cabins similar to Five Hotels’ ACJ 220.
The Comlux facility is large in size and houses several departments including a design showroom and a customer meeting room. Since everything in an airplane must be lightweight and fire-resistant to achieve certification, creative solutions are often necessary. For stone countertops, Comlux uses very lightweight composite finishes, and thin real wood veneers are attached to acoustic foam panels. The remains – the galley, toilet and cargo compartment – are prepared in workshops, then transferred to aircraft mock-ups. This process is not only an art but also a technology.
This method of saving time and money on an intercontinental business jet without compromising quality has been adopted by ACJ competitor Boeing Business Jets, which recently announced a similar program. The company offers 144 cabin design options for the 737-7 business jet. “This allows us to offer the aircraft at a very attractive and stable price,” said BBJ President Joe Benson.
With 15 aircraft sold, the ACJ 220’s semi-custom business model has proven itself, making it a viable alternative to long-haul offerings from business jet manufacturers such as Airbus Gulfstream, Bombardier and Dassault.
