Initially designed and built by Mitsubishi, it has been further developed and updated by the Beech Aircraft Company, now part of Textron Aviation. It was produced over 30 years under the names such as Mitsubishi Diamond/Diamond II, Beechjet 400/400A, and Hawker 400XP; military version T-1 Jayhawk was also produced. In total, over 900 Hawkers 400 have been delivered. Since 2017, a factory-engineered and supported upgrade to Hawker 400XPR is provided, reducing fuel consumption by 16-20%, and improving range by as much as 33%. It is a small, low-winged twin-turbofan aircraft of all metal construction, flown by a crew of two pilots and accommodating eight passengers in a pressurised cabin. Its wings use a computer designed, supercritical airfoil in order to minimise drag. Its two Pratt & Whitney Canada JT15D turbofans are mounted on the rear fuselage. For more details of the design and development, operational history and variants, click here. Specifications below are for the 400XPR model.
