Executive Jet Aviation (EJA) has ordered six additional Dassault Falcon 2000s for its NetJets fractional ownership program. The new aircraft were slated for delivery early this year and increase the operator's commitment to 60 of the large cabin, long-range jet. NetJets currently operates seven Falcon 2000s, which are assigned to its U.S., European and Middle East fractional ownership programs.
TAG Aviation will offer its Blue Light (AOG) maintenance support service at the Million Air facility in Farmingdale, N.Y. Blue Light has been operated out of Westchester County Airport (HPN) under the Wayfarer name for the past two years. For immediate service, contact Bill Zink at (800) 787-0997.
On February 29, the FAA and the aviation industry passed a major milestone in airspace modernization. The administration received the initial Aeronautical Telecommunications Network (ATN) software package needed to upgrade its ATC computers for Controller-to-Pilot Data Link Communi-cations (CPDLC). The ATN is sanctioned by ICAO and internationally accepted by all signatories. It's essentially an aviation Internet that will provide communications, navigation and surveillance functions by means of terrestrial- and satellite-based data links.
Embraer has chosen Honeywell's Primus 1000 avionics suite for installation on its proposed ERJ-140 regional airliner. The manufacturer had already chosen the system for ERJ-135 and -145 aircraft while the Primus Epic system is planned for the ERJ-170 and -190. Honeywell's Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System (EGPWS) and cockpit voice recorders have been selected for installation on Embraer ERJ-135, -140, -145, -170, -190-100 and -190-200 aircraft. Total value of the deal is estimated to be more than $180 million through 2013.
Operations at Westchester County Airport (HPN) are proceeding normally, despite concern that President Clinton's acquisition of a home in nearby Chappaqua, N.Y., would lead to restrictions on air traffic. According to HPN tower chief Doug Alter, the FAA has yet to receive any formal request for a prohibited area encompassing the house, and the only change has been to enact a temporary flight restriction (TFR) when the president is in residence.
The National Aviation Hall of Fame in Dayton, Ohio, will enshrine four new members at its annual gathering this summer. This year's inductees include Buzz Aldrin and Eugene Cernan -- the second and last astronauts, respectively, to walk on the moon; the late test pilot and combat veteran Lt. General Laurence C. Craigle; and Army Air Corps ace Thomas B. McGuire, who was killed in combat during World War II. The enshrinement is scheduled to take place July 15 at the Dayton Convention Center.
Cessna's Citation CJ1 received FAA certification in February and began customer deliveries in March. The CitationJet derivative features Rockwell Collins' Pro Line 21 avionics suite, which includes color weather radar, a GPS FMS, liquid crystal displays for the pilot and copilot, and center multi-function display. The manufacturer introduced the aircraft at the 1998 NBAA convention. Cessna also is anticipating spring certification of its Citation Encore. The first Encore rolled off the assembly line in March, although customer deliveries are not planned until the fall.
Sporty's new NTSB Investigator CD-ROM gives users access to the records of 31,000 accidents and incidents involving general aviation piston aircraft since 1983. Various database searches are available, including aircraft make/model, serial numbers, weather -- or any word in the accident description. Price: $59.00 Sporty's Pilot Shop Clermont County Airport Batavia, Ohio 45103-9747 Phone: (800) LIFTOFF Fax: (513) 735-9200 www.sportys.com trim: 8'' x 10.75'' RHP
With the advent of ultra-long-range business jets and an increase in intercontinental flights, the need for overwater safety equipment also has increased. Survival Products, manufacturers of life rafts, vests and slides, has introduced a new line of double tube rafts that are ideally suited to business aircraft. The TSOed equipment can accommodate from six to 15 passengers with a variety of survival equipment options to meet FAR Part 91, 121 or 135 requirements. Price: six-person raft, $2,970 to $4,220; 10-person raft, $3,517 to 4,995
Skyshares, TAG Aviation's fractional ownership operation, says it plans to double its fleet of Raytheon King Airs by the end of the year. The company operates a mixed fleet of King Air 90s and 200s and expects to add ``at least five more.'' While the program remains a regional one, aircraft are now available anywhere east of the Mississippi, the company says. Due to owner demand, two aircraft were based in Florida for the entire winter.
Dassault Falcon Jet (Teterboro) -- Senior Vice President for Customer Service Peter L. Ginocchio is retiring. Gerald A. Goguen, who had been Ginocchio's second-in-command, will succeed him. R. Patrick Reardon has been promoted to field service representative.
National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) President Mike McNally says his union is continuing to fight the ``piecemeal'' privatization of ATC facilities. He contends that privatization led to two recent Chicago-area accidents and will lead to further problems if budget pressures put ``the corporate bottom line ahead of safety.'' NATCA is lobbying members of Congress and the administration as well as encouraging a grassroots lobbying campaign to ``educate'' leaders about the risks of contracting out FAA installations.
Make It Fly Foundation (Dallas) -- Aviation veteran Ron Jackson is the Make It Fly program's new managing director. The foundation's goal is to attract more individuals to careers in aviation maintenance.
Epps Aviation at DeKalb-Peachtree Airport near Atlanta recently hosted the Georgia Aircraft Exposition, a gathering of aviation manufacturers and service providers. Conceived by Epps' Richard Randolf, the invitation-only event featured aircraft from Pilatus, Cessna, New Piper, Raytheon, Commander and Socata.
Jet Aviation Singapore is now a Honeywell-authorized TFE731 maintenance service center. Jet also says that its Private Fleet of charter aircraft based in Teterboro; Burbank, Calif.; and Zurich all have been equipped with DVD players, a DVD movie library and Sony noise-canceling headsets.
Rolls-Royce has signed engine sales and maintenance deals with Continental Express worth as much as $1.19 billion over the next 10 years. Under the terms of one agreement, Rolls-Royce will supply engines to the carrier for 75 Embraer RJ-145s and 25 Embraer RJ-135s. Continental Express also has tapped the engine manufacturer to provide fixed-fee maintenance for the carrier's 200 ERJ-135 and ERJ-145 aircraft currently in operation and on order. Rolls-Royce also will supply an unspecified number of spare engines under the maintenance contract.
Nav Canada and Air Canada have completed early tests of a Controller Pilot Data Link Communications (CPDLC) system over the North Atlantic. CPDLC is designed to replace certain voice communications between pilots and air traffic controllers with digital messaging. Nav Canada says benefits of the system include reduced pilot and controller workload, as well as an improvement over unreliable HF radio communication systems currently in use over the North Atlantic.
Bombardier Aerospace (Montreal) -- Stephen McNally joins as director of the manufacturer's new Business Aviation Services center in Dallas. Also at Bombardier Business Aviation Services, Bert Moas is promoted to regional manager for Mexico and Latin America, Mark Neihaus joins as manager of engine service sales and Walter Cram joins as manager of sales and support at Lufthansa Bombardier Aviation Services in Berlin, Germany.
One thing FOARC members could agree on easily was that elements of FAR Part 135 are woefully antiquated. A case-in-point is the ``60 percent'' rule, which requires Part 135 operators to be able to land within the first 60 percent of the available runway at their destination, adding a 40-percent margin to landing distance. The rule rests on the ``state of the art'' in the 1930s and 1940s, which in many respects wasn't very advanced.
New Piper Aircraft announced three new California-based dealers: Northern California Piper in Palo Alto, Cutter Aviation in Santa Monica and Southern California Piper in San Diego.
KaiserAir of Oakland recently hosted more than 40 private jets during the NBAA All-Star 2000 festivities at the nearby Network Associates Colisseum. Founded in 1946, KaiserAir manages 14 business jets for San Francisco Bay-area corporations and private owners. Additional information is available at www.kaiserair.com.
Spring may be in the air, but Brad Nelson, Airport Operations Manager at Jefferson County Airport in Colorado is already planning for next winter. The airport has acquired four new, high-speed runway ``brooms'' and a military surplus snowblower, enabling crews to attack snowfalls directly. In the past, crews had to wait for accumulations of an inch or greater before efficient removal operations could begin. ``We noticed braking actions improving from poor to good while testing the brooms on the ramp area,'' Nelson says.
