Deliveries of the Agusta A109 Power are under way following IFR certification of the new twin-turbine helicopter by both the FAA and Italian aviation authorities. Production of the $2.85-million aircraft is sold out through 1998, says Agusta.
All right. Just plain talk. No soaring prose. No intricately balanced discourse. No subtlety. Just the facts. And the facts are these: Well-meaning people in Washington during the next 12 months will change the way the national aviation infrastructure works and the way for which it is paid. If they get it right, fine. If they get it wrong, you could be doing something else for a living before the year's out.
For a base fee of $45,000, St. Louis-based Avtec Corporation will perform a detailed inspection of Sabreliners that the company claims will extend the life of the business jet from 10,000 hours to 15,000 hours. Avtec points out that its price is significantly lower than Sabreliner Corporation's Excaliber life-extension package because it involves inspection only. If no corrosion is found, then no further expense is required, under the Avtec program.
The Collins FMS 3000 slated for Raytheon's Premier I, the FMS 5000 available on the Beechjet 400A and Learjet 60, and the FMS 6000 (standard equipment on the Canadair 604) have been upgraded. All three boxes now can compute climb, cruise and descent from look-up tables. GPS, satcom and airborne flight information functions can be controlled from the FMS CDU. For commuter aircraft, Collins announced a GPS non-precision approach capability for its new FMS 4200.
Recent statistics indicate that the collision risk at non-tower airports is relatively low, even as the NTSB continues its investigation into the fatal collision of a Beech 1900 and a King Air 90 at Illinois' Quincy Municipal Airport on November 19, 1996. According to the Regional Airline Association, the accident was the first involving an airline at an uncontrolled airport. The AOPA reports an average of only five runway collisions a year, although 75 percent of those accidents occurred at non-tower airports.
Like many mechanical failures, this one had begun with a seemingly insignificant flaw. One small shaft in the propeller reduction gearbox had been milled from material with a microscopic imperfection. Eventually that molecular weakness had spawned a crack that migrated radially until the shaft's design strength was seriously reduced. When the strength of the shaft was eroded below the load demanded of it, the shaft failed. The crack propagation had taken over 600 hours. The catastrophe that followed the shaft failure developed in less than 10 seconds.
The QuickMask is designed to protect passengers against toxic gases (except carbon monoxide) and fumes created by smoke. An electrostatic mesh filter removes solid smoke particles as small as three-tenths of a micron. The light-weight, fire-resistant escape hood also comes with an exhalation valve and visor. Five inches long and weighing five ounces, this respiratory protective device can be carried easily in a pocket, briefcase or handbag and dons in seconds, according to the manufacturer. A QuickMask wearer can breathe, see, speak and hear normally.
New from American Aviation are Aerodynamic Speed Stacks designed to boost the performance of the Cessna Conquest I. The two stacks are manufactured for individual positioning, so they can be fitted in their most aerodynamically correct positions. The result, according to American Aviation, is a four-to-eight-knot increase in airspeed and an improved boundary-layer airflow that blows off more exhaust residue from the aircraft. Price: $10,900 per aircraft. Kit includes four stacks, new mounting hardware and protective covers. American Aviation, 3608 S.
Illustration: Illustration: Graph: CESSNA CITATION ULTRA: TIME AND FUEL VERSUS DISTANCE, SPECIFIC RANGE, RANGE/PAYLOAD PROFILE These three graphs are designed to be used together to provide a broad view of Citation Ultra performance. Do not use these data for flight planning. For a complete operational performance analysis, consult the Citation Ultra airplane flight manual and appropriate cruise performance data supplied by Cessna Aircraft.
Calcor Aero Systems of Whittier, California has signed on with the United Kingdom's GKN-Westland Aerospace to help market a thrust reverser and variable-position exhaust nozzle system. Calcor has been developing the system since late 1994 (B/CA, December 1994, page 30). Compared with fixed exhaust nozzles, the new system results in increased thrust and reduced fuel consumption, the company says. The system has yet to be chosen by any airframe or engine manufacturer, but has been tested on a PW306 engine.
Bombardier has introduced Smart Parts Plus for its Challenger, Learjet and Global Express customers. Challenger 604 operators already enrolled in the basic Smart Parts plan can join Smart Parts Plus or remain on the basic plan. Smart Parts Plus differs from the basic Smart Parts by extending the number of parts covered by the plan to include factory-installed engine nacelle and thrust-reverser structure, fuselage fuel tanks and aerodynamic fairing parts.
The Business Aircraft Division announces three staff changes: Charles Garneau moved up to sales director in Canada for Canadair Business Aircraft. Michael Blouin has become the first field service representative (FSR) to be assigned to the Bombardier Global Express, and will be based in Wichita during flight-testing. New FSR Richard Jamieson will support the Canadair Challenger fleet from the base of K-C Aviation in Dallas.
The Detailer and Pro-Buff polishers from A&H Machine Incorporated make aircraft shine, and they eliminate swirls, cross hatches, burns and bright spots on bare metal, according to A&H. A small-drum polisher, the Detailer ($595) is designed for small surfaces, like aircraft leading edges. The Pro-Buff ($695), with a 0.75-hp motor and a variable-speed throttle, has a larger, longer drum to cover more area. The company calls its method ``non-destructive polishing,'' since it leaves sealants and protective coatings intact. A&H Machine, Inc., 15500 E.
In what is probably a first in the U.S. regional-airline industry, Delta Connection Comair asked for-and received-a direct fly-off between its own Canadair Regional Jet and the EMB-145. The two 50-passenger aircraft were flown over two scheduled CRJ routes from Comair's Cincinnati hub-one roundtrip to Minneapolis/St. Paul and the other to Cleveland.
The new year brings the AOPA's updated airport guide now known as AOPA's Airport Directory. This 36th edition is a list of more than 7,200 public and private-use U.S. airports and heliports. Listings give runway length, width, surface, lighting and alignment. Safety-related information is categorized and highlighted in bold type. FBO listings include type of fuel offered and credit cards accepted. Readers looking for the usual indices for public-use landing facilities and FBOs and aviation service companies won't find them in this year's edition.
Collins promises to give new meaning to the term ``situational awareness'' with a system that gives a real-time picture of what you should see when you look out the windshield but find your view obscured by IMC. The system under development will allow pilots to view terrain, traffic, structures and even weather in ``real-time, 3-D high-resolution color LCDs,'' says the company. Meanwhile, in 1998, Collins will offer 7.25-inch-square flat-panel LCDs for retrofit of existing Collins Pro Line 4 EFIS CRTs.
Under an agreement with Pilatus Aircraft of Stans, Switzerland, SimCom International of Orlando, Florida will provide factory-authorized, non-motion simulator training for the PC-12 single-engine turboprop. The PC-12 simulator will be built with actual aircraft parts and will feature a full 180-degree, wraparound visual system, as do the company's other simulators. The unit will be FAA certificated as a Level 6 Flight Training Device and is expected to be ready for use by September in Orlando.
Bombardier will team up with two Lufthansa units to establish a maintenance and charter presence in Europe. The Canadian company has reached an agreement with Lufthansa Technik in Berlin to create a maintenance facility to service Bombardier business jet customers based in Europe and Africa. Separately, Bombardier and Lufthansa CityLine are scheduled to launch an executive jet charter service for Europe. The new operation will be based at Berlin's Schonefeld Airport.
Operators of TFE731 engines soon will be able to choose from two new fixed-cost maintenance programs from AlliedSignal. In addition to the company's basic Maintenance Service Plan, the firm will offer a Cost Assurance Program and MSP Gold. The CAP allows operators to select coverage from deductible-type protection, each with two deductible levels. MSP Gold extends a customer's basic MSP coverage to include ancillary costs, such as engine removal and reinstallation, access labor and transportation costs.
-- The static display at AirShow DownUnder `97 at Avalon Airport in Victoria, Australia, February 18-23, will feature restored ``War Birds,'' along with corporate aircraft, modern airliners and modern military jets. More than 400 exhibitors-including Boeing, McDonnell Douglas, Rolls-Royce and Hawker Pacific-from 30 countries are expected to participate. Phone: +61 52 82 4400.
Bombardier's Canadair business aircraft division is among the several firms that have submitted bids to run an FBO at Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong's new international airport scheduled to open in April 1998. Canadair's involvement would be in partnership with another organization, according to company officials. Bids have flooded in since the news that a business aviation center and a second runway are planned for the airport (B/CA, August, page 30). Hong Kong is scheduled to become part of China later this year.
Spectro Oil Analysis Company, which dates back to 1976, and its sister company Jet-Care, which was developed in 1980, dovetail in some of the techniques used for trend analysis. Jet-Care is a gas-path analysis program that relies on pilot-recorded data to develop engine trends, which, like oil analysis, can be used to provide early warning of impending trouble.
This year's software upgrade will include Universal's Unilink FMS modem interface that will be capable of using VHF, radiotelephone or satcom digital communications links. The system was inspired by AlliedSignal's AFIS. Since Universal's strength is avionics development, Unilink will provide operators with an air-to-ground connection to their choice of third-party vendors of weather, ground support and flight-planning data.
