N986DS

The airframe bearing registration N986DS is a 1983-built Cessna 501 Citation I/SP, serial number 501-0321, manufactured by Cessna (Textron Aviation). The aircraft is recorded as owned by 'J & B AIR LLC' (an LLC based in Geneva, Ohio, US) and is operated from that locale as its apparent home base and operator point of contact. The airframe is a fixed‑wing, multi‑engine business jet with two turbofan powerplants and an executive six‑passenger cabin; registry entries and equipment fittings indicate this example retains modernized avionics and collision‑avoidance/weather detection gear relative to its manufacture year. Condition indicators reported for this airframe emphasize its updated cockpit fit and preserved interior layout consistent with executive use.

The cabin of N986DS is configured as an executive six‑passenger layout with dual forward barrel seats and a four‑place mid/rear club, supporting short‑to‑medium haul corporate transport and owner‑flown missions. Avionics and mission‑support equipment installed on this airframe include a Garmin GTN-725 WAAS, dual Garmin GTX-335 transponders, Collins ADF-60, DME-40, dual Collins RMI, Sperry SPZ-500 IFCS autopilot, BFGoodrich WX-1000E weather radar, and BFGoodrich Skywatch TCAS; this equipage supports both IFR flight and situational awareness enhancements for single‑pilot or two‑pilot operation. Typical operations for this Citation I/SP example would include interstate business shuttles and owner/charter missions from its Geneva, OH base, with maintenance and operational considerations focused on older‑airframe systems that have been retrofitted with contemporary navigation and traffic/weather avoidance instrumentation.

The Cessna 501 Citation I/SP occupies the light business jet niche as an early 1980s small-cabin twin, offering transcontinental‑adjacent range for its class and higher cruise speeds relative to piston and turboprop alternatives. Competing models historically include early Learjet and older mid‑size light jets; demand trends favor well‑equipped, lower‑time examples with updated avionics like those fitted to N986DS. Maintenance and resale considerations for this airframe center on availability and overhaul status of JT15D engines and the desirability of documented avionics retrofits and interior condition for corporate or fractional use.