IAI Westwind

Aero Commander / Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI)

Company type	Aerospace manufacturer
Industry	Aerospace
Predecessor	Aero Commander
Fate	Rights sold to Israel Aircraft Industries in 1968
Successor	Israel Aircraft Industries
Headquarters	United States (Aero Commander), Israel (IAI)
Area served	Global
Products	Business jets (Jet Commander, Westwind)
Parent	North American Rockwell (until sale of rights)

The IAI Westwind is a business jet that was originally introduced by Aero Commander under the name 1121 Jet Commander. Equipped with twin GE CJ610 turbojet engines, its maiden flight occurred on January 27, 1963, and it secured type certification on November 4, 1964, prior to the initial customer deliveries. In 1968, the program was purchased by Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI), which extended the airframe to create the 1123 Westwind and later replaced the engines with Garrett TFE731 turbofans, resulting in the 1124 Westwind. This aircraft, with a MTOW accommodating 8 to 10 passengers, saw a total production run of 442 units until 1987.

Aero Commander

The design originated in the United States by Aero Commander as an evolution of their twin-propeller Aero Commander 500. The aircraft's first flight as the Aero Commander 1121 Jet Commander took place on January 27, 1963. After successful testing, manufacturing commenced with deliveries starting in early 1965. The prototype was refined for production by extending the fuselage by 2.5 feet and enhancing payload capacity along with maximum weight limits. The second prototype flew on April 14, 1964; subsequently, the FAA granted type certification in November 1964, allowing deliveries to customers from January 11, 1965.

Following Aero Commander's acquisition by North American Rockwell, the Jet Commander competed directly with Rockwell’s own executive jet model, the North American Sabreliner. Antitrust issues led Rockwell to sell the rights to the Jet Commander to IAI in 1968.

Israel Aircraft Industries

Before IAI’s modifications, Jet Commander production totaled around 150 aircraft across both U.S. and Israeli facilities. IAI then transformed the design into the 1123 Westwind by lengthening the fuselage and increasing maximum takeoff, landing, and zero-fuel weights. Wing improvements included double-slotted flaps, drooped leading edges, and tip tanks. Additionally, the trimmable horizontal stabilizer was enlarged to allow greater adjustment range.

Soon after production began under IAI, the original General Electric CJ610 turbojets were replaced with more efficient Garrett TFE731 turbofan engines. Further airframe refinements introduced drooped leading edges on wings, a dorsal fin, redesigned engine pylons and nacelles, along with additional weight enhancements. These upgrades combined with improved onboard systems culminated in the delivery of the 1124 Westwind starting in 1976.

After a terrorist attack at Tel Aviv's Savoy Hotel in 1976, the Israeli Air Force adapted the Westwind into a maritime patrol variant called the IAI Sea Scan. This version was initially developed to fulfill a U.S. Coast Guard requirement aimed at replacing the Grumman HU-16 Albatross but ultimately lost out to the Dassault Falcon.

The Model 1124A began deliveries in 1980 featuring a redesigned wing center-section and winglets; this variant was marketed as Westwind II and succeeded the original model in production. IAI concluded Westwind manufacturing in 1987 after producing a combined total of 442 Jet Commanders and Westwinds before shifting attention to developing the IAI Astra.

By 2018, Westwind 1124 jets from the 1980s were valued between $300,000 and $700,000 on the market.

Design

The Jet Commander/Westwind employed a traditional business jet configuration, with two engines mounted at the rear of the fuselage. Unlike the common low-wing arrangement found in this category, its wings were positioned mid-fuselage.

At an altitude of 31,000 feet (FL310) and cruising at Mach 0.74, the Model 1124 consumes roughly 1,600 pounds of fuel per hour. When flying at Mach 0.7 at the same elevation, fuel burn decreases to approximately 1,200 pounds per hour.

Variants

Type certificate data sheet

	Model	Certification Date	Engines	Thrust	Maximum Operating Mach	Service Ceiling	Maximum Takeoff Weight	Passenger Capacity	Fuel Capacity	Serial Numbers
Template:Rotate text	1121	November 4, 1964	CJ610-1/-5	2,850–2,950 lbf 12.68–13.12 kN	0.765	40,000 ft 12,192 m	16,800–17,500 lb 7,620–7,938 kg	8	926 US gal 3,505 L	3-120
	1121A	September 19, 1967	CJ610-1	2,850 lbf 12.68 kN		41,000 ft 12,497 m	17,500 lb (7,900 kg)		1,090 US gal (4,100 L; 910 imp gal)	121-131
	1121B	April 23, 1968	CJ610-5	2,950 lbf (13,100 N)						132-150
Template:Rotate text	1123	December 8, 1971	CJ610-9	3,100 lbf (14,000 N)			20,700 lb (9,400 kg)	10	1,300 US gal (4,900 L; 1,100 imp gal)	36 produced
	1124	March 17, 1976	TFE-731-3-1G	3,700 lbf (16,000 N)		45,000 ft (14,000 m)	23,500 lb (10,700 kg)		1,400 US gal (5,300 L; 1,200 imp gal)
	1124A	April 17, 1980			0.785

The two aircraft initially certified under the cancelled Model 1122 were converted to Model 1123 standards. The maritime patrol variant designated as the 1124N Sea Scan is utilized for ocean surveillance. Following the introduction of the improved 1124A Westwind II model, the original 1124 was renamed Westwind I. Aircraft modified from 1971 to accommodate higher maximum takeoff weights are informally referred to as Model 1121C. The Model 1123 Westwind featured an extended fuselage by .

Accidents and incidents

• The Rockwell-produced Model 1121 experienced 21 hull-loss accidents resulting in a total of 45 fatalities; meanwhile, the IAI-built Model 1124 suffered 25 hull-loss accidents causing 47 deaths.
• The most recent incident occurred on March 29, 2020: an air ambulance operated by Lionair caught fire and exploded during takeoff at Manila Airport, tragically killing all five passengers and three crew members aboard.

See also

• Aero Commander 500
• British Aerospace 125
• Hamburger Flugzeugbau HFB 320 Hansa Jet
• Piaggio PD.808
• Learjet 35/36
• Cessna Citation III