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Magazine Issue

Business & Commercial Aviation, January 2018

VOL. 114 NO. 1 December 20, 2017

Viewpoint

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Sixty Candles: A Happy Bonfire, With Thanks

Dec 21, 2017
With this issue, Business & Commercial Aviation begins its 60th year of publishing in service to the business aviation community.

Readers’ Feedback

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Readers’ Feedback

Dec 21, 2017
Readers comment on recent articles in BCA.

Intelligence

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Jet-A And Avgas Per-Gallon Fuel Prices: December 2017

Dec 21, 2017
The tables show Jet-A and avgas prices from a survey of U.S. fuel suppliers performed in December 2017.
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Pilatus PC-24 Earns FAA, EASA Certifications

Dec 21, 2017
Pilatus has received FAA and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) type certifications for its PC-24 twin-engine business jet, the Swiss company announced. The certifications pave the way for initial customer deliveries.
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Textron Launches New SkyCourier Turboprop

Dec 21, 2017
Textron Aviation is betting that a boom in online commerce and package deliveries will provide a boost to the business aviation market's nascent recovery and has found a valuable partner to hedge that bet.
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Jet Aviation Marks 50th Anniversary

Dec 21, 2017
Jet Aviation's history goes back further than 50 years to a decision by young Carl Hirschmann in 1940 to leave Paris for the U.S. ahead of the German blitzkrieg.
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Paramount Business Jets Redesigns Website

Dec 21, 2017
Paramount Business Jets has launched a newly designed website with faster response speeds for desktop computers and mobile devices. It is optimized to allow clients to book private jets through their mobile devices and provides improved support for international websites, the company said. The website is www.ParamountBusinessJets.com
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Jet Aviation Moscow Earns Maintenance Approval

Dec 21, 2017
Jet Aviation's maintenance facility at Moscow Vnukovo Airport has received Federal Air Transport Agency approval in Russia for Federal Aviation Rules 285 (FAP-285), confirming adherence to all Russian civil aviation laws. The approval allows the facility to provide line maintenance and AOG support to Bombardier Challenger 300 series, 600 series, Global 5000/6000 and Gulfstream G550/G650 aircraft.
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Dassault Terminates Falcon 5X Program

Dec 21, 2017
Faced with a new set of delays associated with Safran's Silvercrest engine, Dassault Aviation has announced in December that it is terminating the development of its Falcon 5X business jet program.
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FAA Study: Drones More Dangerous Than Birds

Dec 21, 2017
Drone collisions with aircraft will cause more impact damage than a bird strike of equivalent size and speed, concludes a study conducted for the FAA.
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Business & Commercial Aviation Awards And Honors 2007-17

Dec 21, 2017
Here is a list of honors won by BCA writers in the past decade. This much abbreviated record is provided not as a boast, but to recognize those contributors who work hard in behalf of readers and as a way of underscoring your trust in what we deliver.
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Zhehjiang Geely Holding Group Completes Terrafugia Acquisition

Dec 21, 2017
China's Zhehjiang Geely Holding Group, owner of auto manufacturers Volvo and Lotus, has completed its acquisition of roadable-aircraft developer Terrafugia.
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Airbus Ends H120 Helicopter Production

Dec 21, 2017
Airbus has ended production of the H120 after delivering 700 of the light helicopters. Production also has ceased for the H120's Safran Arrius engine.
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B. Coleman Aviation Opens New Hangar

Dec 29, 2017
B. Coleman Aviation has completed construction of its 40,000-sq.-ft. hangar at Gary/Chicago Airport located 25 mi. from Chicago. The construction expands the facility to about 95,000 sq. ft. The new hangar can accommodate four large-cabin aircraft and eight small-to-midsize aircraft. The addition was added to meet the growing demand in the region for business aviation services.
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Monarch Air, Premium Jet Now Accepting Payments in Bitcoin

Dec 21, 2017
Two private jet operators have begun accepting a new form of payment for charter flights—bitcoins. Monarch Air Group and Premium Jet said they will accept the bitcoin.
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Delivery Milestones Reached For Two Challenger Models

Dec 21, 2017
Bombardier Aerospace has achieved delivery milestones on the Challenger 650 and 350. The company has surpassed 200 deliveries of its Challenger 350 super-midsize aircraft and has made more than 50 deliveries of its Challenger 650 large-cabin aircraft.
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Pipistrel Will Construct Electric Aircraft In China

Dec 21, 2017
Slovenia's Pipistrel Aircraft has created a Chinese company to produce the Alpha Electro and Panthera electric-powered light aircraft.
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Global Aviation Technologies To Upgrade USAF Learjets

Dec 21, 2017
Global Aviation Technologies will update 19 C-21A jets, which are military versions of the Learjet 35A, for the U.S. Air Force.
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Satcom Direct Adds Cybersecurity Course

Dec 21, 2017
Satcom Direct has launched a new certified cybersecurity course called CyberSAFE (Securing Assets for End Users), which is designed for those interfacing, supporting or interacting with aircraft communications.
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FlightSafety Adds PT6A Engine Course For Pilots

Dec 21, 2017
FlightSafety International has introduced a Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A engine series pilot familiarization course designed for agricultural aircraft operators.
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Zetta Jet Ends Operations, Files For Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Dec 21, 2017
Zetta Jet ceased operations Nov. 30 and filed a motion for Chapter 7 bankruptcy after a judge declined to approve outside financing and two aircraft financiers demanded the return of six aircraft critical to its business.
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North American Bizjet Operations Continue To Grow

Dec 21, 2017
​Business jet operations in North America rose 3.8% in October, in line with September results and slightly above the year-to-date average of 3.5%, said Robert Stallard of Vertical Research Partners, citing figures from the FAA.
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Florida Deliveries Of Mid-to-Large Business Jets May Hit 30 Per Year

Dec 21, 2017
About 30 medium and large business jets valued at a total of $1.5 billion are expected to be delivered to owners in Florida each year between now and 2025.
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Surf Air Moves To London City Airport, Adds Scheduled Flights

Dec 21, 2017
Surf Air, an all-you-can-fly membership airline, is moving its London service to London City Airport from London Luton Airport. Surf Air began London-to-Zurich daily weekday service on Nov. 13.
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AOPA Offers 2018 Bahamas, Caribbean Guides

Dec 21, 2017
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) has released its 2018 Bahamas and Caribbean guides for 2018. The guides provide photographs of all airports in the islands, including 61 in the Bahamas and 88 in the Caribbean, and provide runway and navigation information, customs, immigration procedures, hotel contacts, survival tips and other information, AOPA said. It also includes tips from other pilots about places to stay and what to do. The guides are for sale and can be downloaded as an app on iTunes.
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Flamingo Air Offers Drone Training In Japan

Dec 21, 2017
Flamingo Air in Cincinnati is establishing agreements with partner companies in Japan to offer drone training and maintenance and repair courses there.
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Business Aviation Use Boosts Canadian Companies

Dec 21, 2017
Canadian corporate business aviation users, on average, outperformed non-users by 43% in top-line revenue growth, according to a study by NEXA Advisors.

Fast Five

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Questions For BCA Safety Editor Dick Aarons

Dec 21, 2017
Questions for BCA Safety Editor Dick Aarons, a 50-year member of the staff.

Pilot Report

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Nextant G90XT Pilot Report: GE Czech, Nextant Transform King Air

Jan 26, 2018
Thanks to its GE Aviation Czech engine technology, Garmin G1000 cockpit makeover and wider, quieter and more functional cabin, the G90XT is very much a contemporary turboprop.
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Garmin G1000 Powers Nextant G90XT’s Regency Flight Deck

Dec 21, 2017
The Nextant G90XT's Regency flight deck is powered by Garmin G1000 avionics. It features 10.4-in. left- and right-side PFDs and a central 15-in. MFD that displays engine parameters, fuel quantity, flap position, oxygen quantity, and cabin altitude and pressure differential. Regency also clusters all annunciator lights in a new glareshield panel, rather than splitting them between top and bottom panels as with a stock King Air G1000 retrofit panel.
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H75-100 Turboprop Resembles The Walter/Motorlet M601 Powerplant

Dec 21, 2017
At first glance, H-series engines look a lot like the Walter/Motorlet M601 powerplants from which they are derived. All engines in this family are two-shaft, reverse flow designs.

Cause & Circumstance

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Cause And Circumstance: Loss Of Control And Breakup

Dec 21, 2017
The investigators' factual information on the loss of a Cessna Citation 525 contains lessons for all pilots flying aircraft with modern, complex flight management/information systems.
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Selected Accidents And Incidents In November 2017

Dec 21, 2017
Selected accidents and incidents in November 2017.

Technology

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Special Report: GE’s Passport Engine

Jan 31, 2018
A distillation of technologies from its larger turbofans, this may be General Electric’s most advanced engine yet.
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GE Business Aviation's Mottier: Keeping Fast Company

Dec 21, 2017
Brad Mottier says the philosophy behind the conception of General Electric's Passport turbofan was to conceive an entirely new engine to power large long-range business jets at high speeds and altitudes with unprecedented fuel economy.
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GE Aims For More Efficient Product Support

Dec 21, 2017
GE Vice President and General Manager Brad Mottier wants the Passport turbofan to provide operators with a different product support experience.

Safety

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Oops, Wrong Airport: It’s More Than Embarrassing, It’s Dangerous

Dec 21, 2017
There are a variety of contributing factors that result in wrong-airport landings and a few common threads we can look out for to avoid being on the nightly news.
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Divert Field Planning: Getting There Is The Easy Part

Dec 21, 2017
Potential divert airports are organized by the specific services they offer, such as FBO line support and fuel, aircraft maintenance, passenger accommodations and amenities, and availability of airline service.

Operations

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Rudder Blanking Can Result In A Quick Runway Excursion

Dec 21, 2017
Many of the runways used by business aircraft lack the surface features (grooves, crowning, PFC) that lessen the effects of runway contamination.
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Four Steps To Landing Safety

Dec 21, 2017
The field of safety science has developed a hierarchy of steps to reducing accidents.
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Tick-Tock: ADS-B Deadline Nears, Along With Installation Tears

Dec 21, 2017
Two years out from its mandate for aircraft to equip for ADS-B Out position reporting, the FAA is grappling with a significant level of misinstalled avionics.
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ADS-B Myths Abound As Deadline Nears

Dec 21, 2017
Jan. 1, 2020, seems like a long way off, but if you remember previous FAA mandates, the industry experienced huge backlogs because there simply was not enough hangar space.

Operators Survey

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Operators Survey: Bombardier Challenger 350

Dec 21, 2017
Bombardier has delivered more than 200 Challenger 350 super-midsize jets since its introduction into service in mid-2014.

On Duty

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News Of Business Aviation Promotions, Appointments And Honors

Dec 21, 2017
News of business aviation promotions, appointments and honors.
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On Duty: Awards And Honors

Dec 21, 2017
News of awards and honors involving professionals within the business aviation community.

Retrospective 20/Twenty

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Retrospective 20/Twenty: The Grumman Gulfstream

Dec 21, 2017
At the end of World War II, Leroy Grumman, co-founder of Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corp., espoused the radical idea of building an aircraft designed expressly for the conveyance of small teams of business executives.

BCA 50 Years Ago

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Business & Commercial Aviation News From January 1968

Dec 21, 2017
Business & Commercial Aviation News From January 1968
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More Business & Commercial Aviation News From January 1968

Dec 21, 2017
More Business & Commercial Aviation News From January 1968