The Legacy 600 (market designation adopted after 2005) is based on the ERJ-135 model. It was launched in 2000 at the Farnborough Airshow as the "Legacy 2000". The Legacy carries 13 passengers in three partitioned sections for or 8 passengers for . It features added range via extra fuel tanks in the tail behind the baggage compartment and forward of the wing, winglets, and an extensive drag reduction program. It is certified to 41000feet altitude versus 37000feet for the airline configuration. The Legacy Shuttle can seat 19 to 37 in airline-style seats but without the range.
The first flight was made in June 2000, with the prototype of the ERJ-135 (PT-ZJA). This same aircraft was once the prototype of the first ERJ-145. New winglets and new wing-to-fuselage fairing was added, but no additional fuel tanks were available. The new fuselage fuel tanks were ready for the second prototype (PT-XJO), along with engine and avionics, that flew only in 31 March 2001. It was the second Embraer model to feature winglets, as the first were installed on the EMB-145SA military model. Embraer winglet models differed in shape and structure, due to their optimum design speed.
The Legacy 600 competes on the upper end of the small to mid-sized range of business jets and is considered a "Heavy Jet" aircraft. It has nearly the opposite design progression as the rival Canadair Challenger. The Legacy 600 was derived from the established ERJ family of regional jets, while the Canadair Regional Jet was developed by Bombardier from the Challenger business jet. Both lines of aircraft are competitors. Embraer has since launched an extensive lineup of business aircraft, from the entry-level Phenom 100 to the Lineage 1000, a bizliner version of the company's 100-seat E190.
With the updated Mark I cockpit of the EMB-145, the Legacy includes a Honeywell Primus Elite avionics suite glass cockpit.[1]
U.S. private aviation companies offering Legacy 600-family business jets for charter include Embraer Executive Jet Services, Clay Lacy Aviation, ExcelAire, Aircraft Services Group and Jet Edge International.[2]
Announced at the 2009 NBAA show, the Legacy 650 is a longer-range version of the Legacy 600, giving it a range capability of 7,220 km (3,900 nmi;) non-stop with four passengers, or carry more than the Legacy 600 for a trip.[3] It features also a lowered alley, with increased headroom. It was certified by the FAA in February 2011.[4]
Embraer had a joint venture with Aviation Industry Corp. in China assembling Legacy 650a and ERJ-145s from 2004 to 2016.[5]
An enhanced version, the 650E, was announced at the 2016 NBAA and scheduled for introduction in 2017. It includes a synthetic vision system and autothrottle as standard, a restyled three-zone interior and comes with a 10-year or 10,000-flight-hour warranty.[6] In August 2020 Embraer announced that it was stopping sales of the Legacy 650.[7]
On 29 September 2006, an ExcelAire Legacy 600 (aircraft registration N600XL) collided with Gol Transportes Aéreos Flight 1907, a Boeing 737-800, while cruising over Mato Grosso, Brazil. The Boeing aircraft crashed, killing all 154 passengers and crew, while the Embraer Legacy 600, despite serious damage to the left horizontal stabilizer and left winglet, was able to continue flying and landed at Cachimbo Air Force Base.
On 23 August 2023, a Legacy 600 belonging to the military Wagner Group (registered RA-02795[8]) crashed in a field near Kuzhenkino, Tver Oblast, Russia. According to Russian officials, all 10 persons aboard, three crew members and seven passengers, including Yevgeny Prigozhin and Dmitry Utkin, were killed. DNA tests subsequently confirmed human remains recovered from the crash site exactly matched the flight's passenger manifest.[9] Prigozhin was additionally identified by a partially severed finger on his left hand.[10] Embraer stated they had not serviced the aircraft since 2019 due to international sanctions against the Wagner Group.[11] US intelligence reported that an intentional explosion caused the aircraft to crash.[12]
| Variant | Legacy 600[15] | Legacy 650[16] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | Two pilots | ||
| Passengers | 13 or 14 | ||
| Baggage Capacity | |||
| Length | |||
| Wingspan | |||
| Height | |||
| MTOW[17] | |||
| BOW | |||
| Max Fuel | |||
| Max. Payload | |||
| Engines (2×) | Rolls-Royce AE 3007A1E | Rolls-Royce AE 3007A2 | |
| Thrust (2×) | , ISA+22°C | , ISA+15°C | |
| Ceiling | 41000feet | ||
| Range | |||
| Cruise | 0.78Mach at | ||
| Maximum Speed | 0.8Mach at | ||
| Takeoff (MTOW, SL, ISA) | |||
| Landing (Typical LW, SL, ISA) | |||
| Avionics | Honeywell Primus Elite | ||