The Cessna 560 Citation Excel family is a series of midsize jets designed and manufactured by Cessna in the USA. Since its inaugural flight in 1996, the Citation Excel family has seen close to 1,000 deliveries worldwide through three model variations.

Following the success of both the Cessna 650 Citation VII and Cessna 750 Citation X, Cessna set out to fill a gap in the private jet market by combining the features of both predecessors. The Citation Excel combines the unswept wing design of previous Citation models with the Citation X’s stand-up cabin making the Citation Excel’s cabin one of the most spacious in the midsize category.

In 2004, deliveries began of the upgraded Citation XLS model. The new model featured a glass cockpit with updated avionics and uprated Pratt and Whitney PW545B turbofan engines. A total of over 300 Citation XLS aircraft were manufactured and delivered before the focus shifted to the further upgraded XLS+ variant.

Deliveries of the Citation XLS+ began in 2008. Improved Pratt and Whitney PW545C turbofan engines and a redesigned nose section were among the greatest design changes on the newest model of the Excel family. To-date, the Citation XLS+ remains in production through the company’s assembly lines in the USA and China.

The Phenom 300 is a light jet developed and built by Embraer in Brazil.

Launched in 2005, the Embraer Phenom 300 first flew on 29th April 2008 with deliveries commencing in December 2009. Since then, it has seen over 550 deliveries globally. The Phenom 300 also claims the title of most delivered business jet with 266 examples delivered between 2013 and 2016.

Embraer developed the Phenom 300 from its smaller Phenom 100 aircraft after identifying a demand for a larger variant. Despite featuring the same cross-sectional cabin dimensions, the Phenom 300’s cabin is 1.88m (6ft 2in) longer than that of the Phenom 100.

In 2017, Embraer unveiled the Phenom 300E, designated “E” for “Enhanced”. The Phenom 300E features a redesigned cabin and a new improved cabin management and inflight entertainment system.