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Magazine Issue

Business & Commercial Aviation, April 2017

Viewpoint

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GAMA Delivers Chilling Delivery Numbers For 2016

Mar 28, 2017
General aviation delivery trend lines decline again in 2016 as the industry’s year-long freeze continued.

Reader's Feedback

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Reader's Feedback (April 2017)

Mar 28, 2017
BCA readers share their opinions on articles we published.

Intelligence

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Bell Delivers First Model 505 Jet Ranger X

Mar 28, 2017
Bell Helicopter has delivered its first Bell 505 Jet Ranger X to Scott Urschel, a private operator based in Chandler, Arizona, and the owner of Pylon Aviation.
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WAI Convention Draws 4,500 Attendees

Mar 28, 2017
The Women in Aviation International's 28th annual convention, held March 2-4, drew 4,500 attendees from 19 countries to Disney's Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
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Third Pilatus PC-24 Prototype Takes Flight

Mar 28, 2017
The third and final Pilatus PC-24 prototype, P03, took flight for the first time March 6 when it launched from Buochs airfield near the company's headquarters in Stans, Switzerland.
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Two Citations Get Steep Approach Nod

Mar 28, 2017
The FAA and European Aviation Safety Agency have granted steep approach certification for the Cessna Citation Sovereign+ and Cessna Citation Latitude.
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Textron Chooses Safe Flight AOS

Mar 28, 2017
Safe Flight Instrument Corp.'s Angle of Attack Stall Protection System has been chosen by Textron Aviation for installation in its new Cessna Denali single-engine turboprop.
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Global 7000 Program On Track

Mar 28, 2017
The Global 7000/8000 program's second flight test vehicle flew for the first time March 4, and Bombardier says the 7000 is on track to enter into service in the second half of 2018.
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Northrop Grumman Proposes G550 For Joint Stars

Mar 28, 2017
Northrop Grumman is proposing that the Gulfstream G550 serve as the platform for the U.S. Air Force's next Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (J-Stars).
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Bombardier Adds Five Maintenance Stations

Mar 28, 2017
Bombardier Business Aircraft has established five new line maintenance stations in Europe to support customers of Learjet, Challenger and Global aircraft.
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Delta Private Jets Adds Five Aircraft To Growing Fleet

Mar 28, 2017
Delta Private Jets has added five light and midsize jets to its private jet travel and management business to keep up with growing demand.
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Uber Among Latest GAMA Members

Mar 28, 2017
The latest companies to join the General Aviation Manufacturers Association as members include CAMP Systems, Pipistrel and Tamarack Aerospace. New associate members are Ascent Vision Technologies, SmartSky Networks and Uber.
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Embraer ‘Cautiously Optimistic” About Executive Jet Market

Mar 28, 2017
Embraer is cautiously optimistic about its executive jet segment amid a used aircraft market that remains challenging, the company said March 9 as it released 2016 financial results.
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VistaJet Celebrates Its 100,000th Flight

Mar 28, 2017
VistaJet reports it has conducted more than 100,000 flights carrying 250,000 passengers to 1,600 airports in 187 countries since the charter operator's founding in 2004.
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Honeywell Chooses Bird ExecuJet For Services

Mar 28, 2017
Honeywell has selected Bird ExecuJet Airport Services at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi to enhance maintenance, repairs and upgrades for customers in India.
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Arizona Public Safety Department To Buy Bell 429

Mar 28, 2017
Bell Helicopter signed a purchase agreement with the Arizona Department of Public Safety Aviation Bureau for a Bell 429 light twin-engine aircraft.
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Smyrna Air Center Now Hollingshead Aviation

Mar 28, 2017
Smyrna Air Center in Smyrna, Tennessee, is now Hollingshead Aviation. Jeff Hollingshead is president of the fixed base operation.
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Weston Aviation Expands UK FBO

Mar 28, 2017
Weston Aviation, based in the UK and Ireland, has expanded its Business Aviation Center at Humberside Airport in the UK.
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Groups Request Continuation Of Contract Towers Program

Mar 28, 2017
A coalition of aviation groups, including the American Association of Airport Executives and U.S. Contract Tower Association, has written leaders of the U.S. Senate and House appropriations committees to request that the FAA appropriations bill continue the contract towers program.
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U.S. Mayors Concerned About ATC Privatization

Mar 28, 2017
More than 115 mayors from all 50 U.S. states have sent a letter to Congress saying they are concerned about the impact that privatization of air traffic control would have on communities around the country, especially in rural regions. By contrast, large commercial airlines are supporting the idea, which is being advocated by some legislators.
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P&WC Working On New Helicopter Engine

Mar 28, 2017
Pratt & Whitney Canada is working on a new 2,000-shp-class helicopter engine that could be ready for market by year-end. According to P&WC President John Saabas the company identified a gap in its product range between the 1,750-shp PT6C-67C/E and the 2,300-shp PW100 family of engines, and the new engine is likely to be a further development of the PT6C core. He says the engine would be ready to launch by year’s end, but is waiting for a launch application.
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EU Approves Air Transport Ops For Single-Engine Turboprops In IMC

Mar 28, 2017
After decades of consideration and debate, the European Union recently approved commercial air transport (CAT) operations for single-engine turboprop aircraft in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) and at night. The new regulation was to take effect in March. The move was applauded by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) as well as individual airframers such as Daher, whose TBMs have been employed in such activities in North America and elsewhere for some time.
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Milstone Aviation Contracts For Six AW139s

Mar 28, 2017
Aircraft leasing company Milestone Aviation Group Ltd. in February announced a contract for six Leonardo AW139 and three AW169 helicopters for delivery this year and next. Milestone leased seven AW169s and 11 AW139s in 2016. The latest deal is valued at $96 million.
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AvFab Earns EASA Approval For King Air Window Shades

Mar 28, 2017
AvFab has received European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approval for pleated window shades on Beechcraft King Air 200, B200 and B200GT aircraft. The shades replace the factory-installed polarizers and can be closed when the aircraft is parked. The shades are flame retardant, have an antibacterial coating, provide Sun protection, reflect heat and are available in several colors.
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XTI Aircraft Developing TriFan 600 Business Aircraft

Mar 28, 2017
XTI Aircraft Co., a Denver-based startup aircraft manufacturer, is hoping to build a hybrid-electric ducted-fan vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) business aircraft. It recently teamed with electric propulsion specialist Bye Aerospace to develop the TriFan 600.
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AOPA Welcomes Drone Pilots Into The Fold

Mar 28, 2017
Pivoting to an unprecedented wave of new aircraft owners and pilots, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) is now welcoming unmanned aerial vehicle pilots into the fold. “Drone pilots are seeking their place in the larger world of aviation and looking for opportunities to expand their experience,” said AOPA President Mark Baker. The association noted an FAA estimate that 1.3 million pilots will be certificated to operate drones under 14 CFR Part 107 by 2020.
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Robinson Considers Diesel Engine For R44

Mar 28, 2017
Robinson Helicopters is considering adopting a diesel engine for a future derivative of its R44 piston-engine light helicopter. The company is “holding strong to putting a diesel” in the R44 over the next 3-4 yr., CEO Kurt Robinson announced in a speech to the Western Museum of Flight in Hawthorne, California, late last year. The helicopter manufacturer is working with a “couple of different [engine] manufacturers,” Robinson says. “We have got to get the vibration loads right.
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Leonardo Plans The Next-Generation Tiltrotor

Mar 28, 2017
With certification of its AW609 commercial tiltrotor finally in sight, Leonardo is now embarking on the next step of its tiltrotor journey. Backed by the European Union’s Clean Sky 2 aeronautical research program, the Anglo-Italian aerospace company is putting the finishing touches to the architecture it envisions will shape its next tiltrotor and potentially give Europe the lead in fast civil rotorcraft.
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Gulfstream And BAE Systems Win Laureate

Mar 28, 2017
Gulfstream and BAE Systems set out to reintroduce the intuitiveness of mechanically coupled flight controls by integrating electronically coupled sidesticks on the G500 and G600 business jets, set for certification this year and next year, respectively. Gulfstream G500 and G600 business jets will be the first commercial FBW aircraft with active sidesticks in service. For that achievement Gulfstream and BAE Systems were awarded the Aviation Week 2017 Technology Laureate during a gala in Washington.
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First Flight For Second G600 Test Aircraft

Mar 28, 2017
Gulfstream Aerospace's second G600 flight-test aircraft flew for the first time Feb. 24, joining the manufacturer's flight-test program. The flight lasted 4 hr. 26 min. The first G600 aircraft had its first flight Dec .17 from Savannah Hilton Head International Airport. Since then, the aircraft has flown more than 150 hr. The aircraft is undergoing flutter testing, and is expanding the flight envelope.
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Airbus HH/MH-65 Dolphins Pass 1.5 Million Flight Hours

Mar 28, 2017
Airbus Helicopters Inc. saluted the U.S. Coast Guard's fleet of HH/MH-65 Dolphin patrol and search and rescue helicopters as they recently passed 1.5 million flight hours. “This is an enormous accomplishment for the U.S. Coast Guard, and for Airbus,” said Chris Emerson, president of Airbus Helicopters Inc. “We are proud of the great work the men and women of the Coast Guard perform with these aircraft. They have saved countless lives and guarded our nation’s borders and ports.”
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Jet-A, Avgas Per-Gallon Fuel Prices—March 2017

Mar 31, 2017
Jet-A and avgas per-gallon fuel prices—March 2017

Fast Five

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Questions For Aaron C. Hilkemann, President & CEO, Duncan Aviation, Inc.

Mar 28, 2017
Aaron Hilkemann, president and CEO of Duncan Aviation, Inc., discusses Duncan’s overall business and the status of ADS-B upgrades and business aviation manufacturing.

Safety

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Big Sky Redefined

Mar 28, 2017
The Theory: The sky is so vast and your aircraft so small, there’s almost no chance of a “midair” encounter. Of course we all know this theory is invalid and would never embrace such a blind course of aircraft avoidance. And yet so many of our actions validate the theory that we needn’t look outside our aluminum tubes to see others that might share our airspace. The classic “beak-to-beak” midair collision scenario came from the U.S. Air Force in the 1970s. It featured an F-4 Phantom II heading right at you, the closure speed was on the order of 900 kt. and you didn’t stand a chance.

Cause & Circumstance

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When VFR Goes Wrong

Mar 28, 2017
Tower controller loses track, and a Sabreliner and Cessna Skyhawk 172 collide.

Accidents in Brief

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Selected Accidents And Incidents In February 2017

Mar 28, 2017
Selected accidents and incidents in February 2017. The following NTSB information is preliminary.

DOM Notebook

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Fire Detection And Suppression Systems

Mar 28, 2017
An aircraft fire in flight is one of the most deadly aviation hazards imaginable. The earlier you can detect the fire, the faster you can snuff it or get the burning airplane safely on the ground, the better the situation. Last year was a signal one for high-profile aircraft fires. In June, a Milan-bound Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER experienced engine problems en route from Changi Airport (SIN) and returned as a precaution. The engine and wing caught fire on final approach, a frightening condition that was filmed by passengers and later posted on social media.

Piloting

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The Infrequent Flier

Mar 28, 2017
If it’s your first transoceanic crossing, or the first in a long time, there’s much to do in preparation.

Operator Survey

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Operators Survey: Bombardier Learjet 70/75

Mar 28, 2017
Learjet 70 and 75, the marketing names for the upgraded Learjet 40 and 45, are far more capable than the original models that entered service 20 years ago.

Operations

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New Concepts In Charter, Part One

Mar 28, 2017
These are disruptive times. New technologies are challenging and changing the ways we communicate, conduct business and socialize. Nothing is immune to the new economy, and the vanguard for general aviation change may reside in the charter segment as FAR 135 operators embrace the “shared economy” movement.
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The Envelope, Please

Mar 28, 2017
Wheels Up was named by Aviation Week Network editors as the 2017 winner of the Laureate for Business Aviation. Founded four years ago with the promise to “democratize” travel by business aviation, the once disruptive start-up has grown into an operation with about 4,000 members. Membership is even available through Costco stores. Membership growth has come faster than anticipated expected -- up 72% from 2015 to 2016.

On Duty

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News Of Promotions, Appointments And Honors (April 2017)

Mar 31, 2017
News of promotions, appointments and honors involving professionals within the business aviation community.

Products & Services Previews

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BCA Business Aviation Products And Service Previews

Mar 28, 2017
BCA shares news of the latest products and services for the business aviation industry.

BCA 50 Years Ago

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Business & Commercial Aviation News From April 1967

Mar 28, 2017
In April 1967, BCA covered new aircraft, including the Beech Duke and Aerostar 320, and new equipment as well as 1966 general aviation aircraft and business jet deliveries.

20/Twenty

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Used Aircraft Report: Learjet 45/45 XR

Mar 28, 2017
The Learjet 45 and 45XR, built from 1998 to 2012 and only the second clean-sheet Learjets since the 1963 Learjet 23, have a lot going for them