Founded

1958

Headquarters

Savannah, Georgia

Key People

Mark Burns (President)

Number of Employees

13,000

Phone Number

(800) 810-4853

Website

Gulfstream

Gulfstream

Gulfstream Aerospace focuses on the large-cabin market, manufacturing business jets capable of intercontinental operations. The company, a division of U.S. defense contractor General Dynamics, also provides sales and refurbishment services for preowned Gulfstream aircraft.

The company was established in 1958 as an outgrowth of Grumman Aircraft Engineering Co., which developed the Gulfstream 1, a 12-passenger turboprop business aircraft. The success of that model led to the jet-powered Gulfstream II. In 1966, Grumman moved its civil-aircraft production to Savannah, Georgia; and in 1978, the Gulfstream line and Savannah plant were purchased by American Jet Industries, headed by Allen Paulson, and its name changed to Gulfstream American. 

In the 1980s, the GIII came to market; the company’s name changed again, this time to Gulfstream Aerospace; Chrysler bought the company; and the Gulfstream IV was introduced. At the end of the 1980s, Paulson repurchased Gulfstream with private equity firm Forstmann Little & Co. The 1990s brought Gulfstream’s first sales contract with NetJets, the introduction of the GV, and in 1999, the company’s purchase by General Dynamics.

In the 2000s, Gulfstream bought Galaxy Aerospace, developing its midsize jets into the G100 and G200, and purchased its first service facility outside the U.S. Gulfstream also introduced the G550 and G650 and brought Enhanced Vision Systems and internet connectivity to business aircraft. This decade saw the introduction of the 650ER and the G500 and G600 super-midsize jets.

The product line includes the G280, a super-midsize model introduced in 2008 with 3,000-nautical-mile range; G550, a large-cabin, ultra-long-range jet seating up to 18 passengers with a PlaneView flight deck; G500/600, a pair of long-range jets introduced in 2014 that feature the Symmetry Flight Deck and fly-by-wire flight controls; and G650/650ER, the flagship ultra-long-range jets, with 7,000- and 7,500-nautical-mile ranges, respectively. 

Gulfstream operates a global network of service centers for maintenance and repairs. It refurbishes its aircrafts’ interiors at a purpose-built facility in Savannah.