In early February, NASA kicked off an international research effort that the agency hopes will validate a new runway friction index that can be simply applied to a variety of aircraft. The index is intended to assist air crews and airport management in making go/no-go decisions based on assessments of runway slipperiness from snow, ice or slush.
The Honeywell/Pelorus Satellite Landing System (SLS-2000) is expected to receive operational approval by summer-the final step leading to use of the first differential GPS system (DGPS) ground station. The system received FAA approval in August 1997. Commissioning of the ground station and an STC for the avionics were received in January. The first systems scheduled to go on line will serve Newark and Minneapolis-St. Paul international airports (August 1997, page 28 and November 1997, page 92).
Available from Paravion Technology is an STCed air-conditioning system for Bell 407s. The condenser mounts below the baggage compartment floor, pulling in air from the sides of the aircraft and discharging heated air underneath. The installed weight of the 7,000 BTU-rated system is 75 pounds. Standard features include dual forward evaporators and a third mounted in the rear of the aircraft. Uninstalled price: $19,000. Paravion Technology, 2001 Airway Ave., Ft. Collins, Colo. 80524. (970) 224-3898.
To compete in an increasing market for single-grade oils, Phillips 66 has reintroduced an SAE 50. Phillips discontinued single-grade oil in favor of multi-grade oils in 1970. Phillips concedes that it thought single-grade oils would become a "thing of the past."
Global Energy has entered the avcomps market with an aviation CD-ROM containing a full FAA database-more than 660 megabytes of information, says the Madison, Wis. firm. The CD-ROM includes the following: -- FAA written tests for certificates and ratings. -- FARs (required Adobe Acrobat reader is included). -- Pilot names, addresses, ratings and medicals (660,000 records).
Starting in the second quarter, AlliedSignal will offer Learjet 35/36 operators a -2C engine upgrade, which incorporates more-robust parts from higher thrust versions of the TFE731, thereby increasing ITT margins and extending maintenance intervals. The goal is to increase reliability to better than 6.7 unscheduled removals per 100,000 flight hours. The current mean time between unscheduled removals is about 10 events per 100,000 flight hours. (See related feature article beginning on page 76.)
Connecticut DOT has collected "three or four bids" to date in answer to Governor John G. Rowland's proposal to reduce state expenses by placing five state-owned general aviation airports under contract management. The airports affected would be Danielson, Groton-New London, Hartford-Brainard, Waterbury-Oxford and Windham. Danielson and Windham currently are under contract management by their FBOs. "Within the next three months, we should know if we'll be going forward with this," said a spokesperson in the state's aviation/ports office.
The number of fatal business jet accidents in the United States decreased from three in 1996 to one in 1997, according to Robert E. Breiling Associates. That one accident resulted in five deaths, compared to 11 deaths in three accidents in 1996. But the number of fatal U.S. turboprop accidents in 1997 increased to 14 from eight in 1996, and the number of fatalities rose from 38 in 1996 to 41 in 1997. Complete details of these and non-U.S.
U.S. Customs Service regulations pertaining to the filing of petitions in penalty, damages and seizure cases will be "significantly" revised to be briefer, clearer and allow for "more flexibility and useful contact" with government officials. Designed to administer cases more efficiently and fairly, these proposals will "promote a more customer-friendly atmosphere and eliminate needless or redundant provisions," said the service. Comments are due by April 3. For more details, contact Jerry Baskin at the Customs Penalties Branch in Washington, D.C.
Signature Flight Support significantly expanded its presence at Anchorage International Airport with the recent acquisition of the facilities of the former Anchorage Aviation Center. The new facilities will serve transient customers (including those with prior requests for overnight hangaring), while Signature's original and smaller site will handle tenant and avgas customers. Facility upgrading is planned. (907) 243-4328.
As Amsterdam's Schipol Airport becomes increasingly congested, plans are afoot to develop nearby LuchthavenLelystad for business aviation. Already a busy general aviation airfield with 125,000 annual movements (mainly single-engine training), construction on a new terminal is about to start and, over the next three years, the 4,100-foot runway will be extended to 5,900 feet and be fitted with an ILS. In addition, a 2,300-foot strip for light GA traffic is planned. Lelystad lies 27 miles northeast of Amsterdam with good freeway connections to Netherlands towns and cities.
University of Kansas has finalized its schedule of aerospace short courses for 1998. Some 32 courses in six locations will cover a wide variety of technical issues. For a catalog of the course descriptions and enrollment information, contact the University of Kansas, Aerospace Short Courses, Overland Park, Kan. 66213-2402. Phone: (913) 897-8500; fax: (913) 897-8540; e-mail: www.kumc.edu/kuce/app/aero.html.
Rulemaking has been proposed to require operators of older Airbus, BAC, Boeing, Douglas, Fokker and Lockheed aircraft to incorporate "repair assessment guidelines" for the fuselage. If enacted, the rule will serve to establish a damage-tolerance-based supplemental inspection program for repairs that already have been made.
Edited by GORDON A. GILBERTAndrew Healey A BRITISH VIEW OF GPS, ETOPS AND 8.33 kHz
U.S. operators may be interested in the "oversees" viewpoint of some of the new technologies facing virtually all business aircraft operators. B/CA's London-based correspondent asked John Robinson, British aviation analyst and former chief pilot with Magec Aviation, for a European take on three evolving developments.
Independent US Airways Express carrier CCAir of Charlotte has completed a private placement of 545,000 shares of company stock at $2.75 per share, or nearly $1.5 million. The placement was arranged by Barlow Management Inc., the investment group that recently was unsuccessful in an attempt to acquire control of Mesa Air Group. A Barlow partner is Jonathan Ornstein, CEO of low-fare European carrier Virgin Express, former CEO of Continental Express and former executive vice president of Mesa.
The Hunan Yuanda Air Conditioner Corp. has begun operating its Cessna CitationJet in mainland China, according to reports from the Xinhua news agency. The aircraft was purchased new in March 1997, and is believed to be the first privately owned business jet flying in China, although chartered business jets have been operating there for some time. China Southern Airlines is assisting the company with operating the aircraft.
This year's Farnborough Air Show will be the last one to be held in September (September 17-13). Subsequent events will take place in July. The show's organizers said the decision was made after "extensive consultation" with industry. "Apart from reducing the chances of rain," said a spokesman, the new date also will "balance the run-up time between Farnborough and the Paris Show." The exact dates of Farnborough 2000 will be July 24-30.
A one-day helicopter ditching training course is now offered by FlightSafety International in cooperation with Stark Survival Co. of Panama City, Fla. The course is designed for pilots only and is suitable for all types of helicopters, says FSI. For realism, egress training is conducted in a water dunker. Training time also is devoted to cockpit fire and smoke management, and emergency air bottle and smoke hood deployment. The course is presented at FSI's West Palm Beach S-76 training facility.
Several business jet manufacturers will conduct maintenance and operations workshops this year. At press time, the following M&O meetings had been scheduled: Bombardier Challenger, April 30-May 1 in San Antonio; Cessna Citation, April 27-29 in Wichita; Dassault Falcon Jet, May 18-20 in Nice, France; Gulfstream Aerospace, June 2-4 in Savannah; Learjet, April 27-May 1 in San Antonio; and Raytheon Hawker, August 31-September 2 in Hilton Head, S.C. See B/CA's Calendar for more details.
Edited by GORDON A. GILBERTPerry Bradley WAAS TRIALS SUPPORT IFR INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT
While a fully operational wide-area augmentation system is still years away, the FAA already is conducting precision approaches using its WAAS prototype and is gathering data that will help it define procedures for approaches once the system is implemented.
