Grumman G-1159 Gulfstream II

The success of the Grumman Gulfstream I led to the development of an improved jet powered version in May 1965. The G-II shares the forward fuselage with it’s turboprop powered predecessor but differs with a swept wing and tail and two rear mounted jet engines. The G-II proved to be even more successful than the G-1 and over 250 were built. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration uses several G-II’s for transport and experimental flights and two of them were converted to serve as pilot trainers for the Space Shuttle. In those aircraft half of the G-II cockpit was replaced with an exact replica of the Shuttle’s cockpit and the aircraft was flown in such a way that it mimicked the flight characteristics of the Shuttle.

Wingspan	68 ft 10 in.
Length	79 ft 11 in.
Height	24 ft 6 in.
Weight	65,500 lbs (loaded)
Maximum Speed	581 MPH
Service Ceiling	45,000 ft
Range	4,718 miles
Engines	Two Rolls-Royce Spey 511SR turbojets with 11,400 pounds of thrust each
Crew	2 with 22 passengers

Manufacturer
Grumman

Markings
National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas, 2007

Designation
G-1159

Registration
N948NA

Serial Number
222