FAA has banned the use of child booster seats and vest- and harness-type child restraint systems on FAR Part 135 and Part 121 operations. The rule does not affect use of other FAA-approved child restraint systems, such as certain rear-facing safety seats (for children under 20 pounds) or forward-facing seats for 20- to 40-pound children. The FAA says children over 40 pounds should use the airliner seat's standard lap belt.
Illustration: Figure: Range/Payload Profile EMBRAER EMB-145 These graphs present preliminary range, fuel and payload information that is designed to show the capabilities of the EMB-145. Do not use these data for flight planning. Notably, the June 1996 data indicate that aircraft performance should be considerably better than Embraer's original estimates that were published in the Technical Description.
Business aircraft operators, and the organizations that support them, often tout general aviation's ability to transport business travelers to 5,500 U.S. airports-10 times the number of air terminals served by commercial airlines. Add in all the international airports accessible to business aircraft and that number approaches 9,500 landing facilities.
The fear of flying isn't limited to novice travelers who have never, or only rarely, flown. In fact, experienced travelers are just as likely to be afraid-or to develop a fear of flying-as are people who never venture aloft. A Boeing study conducted in the 1980s estimated that about 15 percent of adult Americans are afraid to fly. For many, that fear, at least in the beginning, is not so acute that it prevents them from boarding an airplane. What it does do, however, is make the flying experience unpleasant.
The FAA has proposed dropping a stipulation that all new transponders operated under FAR Part 135 be Mode S types. Agency officials admit that few benefits originally envisioned under Mode S have materialized. If the proposal is adopted, only Part 121 aircraft required to be fitted with TCAS II would still use Mode S. The comment period on the proposal had not yet closed as B/CA went to press, but little opposition was expected.
``As a rule, General, we don't hire ex-military pilots. They fly airplanes; we fly people.'' So spake Tils Peabody to Dick Lassiter at NBAA a few eons back. Endicott Tilson Peabody founded GM's flight department and honchoed it from 1946 until his retirement, following which he was felled by a heart attack at NBAA Anaheim. In his final hour, Tils and I walked to the convention-he going to Flight Safety, where he dropped to the floor. Tils was 76, weighed 18 stone and could put away juniper berry squeezings (mit olive) like they was soda pop.
Carl Albert wasted no time in establishing an agenda for the new Dornier Luftfahrt--installing a new top management group with marching orders to cut costs.
FAA is reviewing a noise-compatibility program proposed under FAR Part 150 for Dayton International Airport. The agency is scheduled to approve or disapprove the proposal on or before October 30. Under Part 150, interested parties can comment on the proposal. Earlier, the FAA determined that associated noise-exposure maps previously submitted are in compliance with Part 150 requirements. For more information, contact Airports Engineer Lawrence C. King at the FAA's Airports District Office in Detroit.
FAA has agreed to push back the phase-in schedule for the Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum (RVSM) standards in North Atlantic Track (NAT) airspace to March 27, 1997. The plan, originally scheduled to be fully implemented in January 1997, calls for 1,000-foot vertical separation minimums initially between FL 330 and FL 370 (B/CA, May, page 11). The three-month extension gives immediate relief to operators working on getting their aircraft equipped and certificated to use RVSM airspace.
FAA certification of S-TEC Corporation's first product for the helicopter industry-a stability and control augmentation system (SCAS) in the Bell 206L-4-is scheduled in October. The Mineral Wells, Texas company says the basic SCAS (with an optional force trim) for the 206 will be the first in a complete line of helicopter flight-control systems (B/CA, April, page 26). The SCAS will be sold in kit form with installations available from S-TEC-approved service centers. Pricing was not available at press time.
The Eurocopter EC 135 single-turbine helicopter recently received certification under Joint Aviation Authorities JAR Part 27. The approval applies to both the version of the aircraft with a 700-shp Turbomeca Arrius 2B engine and the version powered by a 731-shp P&WC 206B. Certificated performance numbers include a maximum altitude of 20,000 feet, takeoffs and landings up to 5,000 feet, an operating temperature range of -30C to +39C and a maximum indicated speed of 141 knots.
Compliance Software has introduced SAFnet to assist substance abuse program managers to confidentially exchange employees' drug and alcohol test result information among employers, collectors, laboratories and medical review officers. It also avoids duplication of effort and paperwork. The interface with the SAFnet network requires a standard modem, 486 or better computer, SAFnet-supplied software and an assigned mailbox address. Price: One-time startup software fee is about $99.
Photograph: Technicans make final preparations on the BMW/RR BR710 for its expected certification on the G-V this month. BR710 FOR G-V NEARS CERTIFICATION BMW/Rolls-Royce expects to receive certification this month for its BR710 turbofan engine. This initial certification of the 14,800-pounds-thrust turbofan, the first German civil jet en- gine to be designed for production, ap-plies to the version for the new Gulfstream G-V. The BR710 series for the new Global Express is scheduled to receive certification in February 1997.
The Aviation&Aerospace Almanac from The McGraw-Hill Companies is a 660-page, softcover reference brimful of current and historical statistics, including financial and operational data, inventories and comparisons with other modes of transportation. Facts and figures on general aviation, regional airlines and major domestic and international carriers is followed by an organizational directory and statistics from the FAA, the DOT and the NTSB. Contact information for key people in the industry and for members of congressional committees overseeing aviation is included.
Photograph: The Williams/Rolls-Royce-powered Premier I remains on schedule for a first flight in mid 1997, followed by FAA certification and the start of customer deliveries in late 1998. RAYTHEON SAYS PREMIER I IS ON TARGET ``On schedule, on budget and on target'' was how Roy Norris, president of Raytheon Aircraft, described the development status of the company's first business jet design, the Premier I (B/CA, October 1995, page 50).
Allison's AE 3007A might be termed a laid-back engine design because its temperature and stress margins are so wide. At a maximum takeoff thrust rating of 7,426 pounds, flat-rated to 30C, the engine has a 200F temperature margin below its 8,600-pounds-thrust design limit. In tests, Allison pushed the engine to 9,500 pounds of thrust with no detrimental effects. Normal takeoff thrust rating is just over 6,600 pounds, further widening the temperature margin between everyday operation and design limits.
J. H. Productions has introduced customized passenger safety briefing cards design-ed to meet or exceed the requirements of FAR Parts 91, 121, 125, 135, plus Advisory Circular 121-24A. The company says its computer-design methods allow a true representation of a cabin interior, including color scheme, equipment locations and operation. Customers need to send in a videotape or color slides of their aircraft livery, cabin interior and equipment. Price: $2,000 for 50 two- or three-fold cards. J. H. Productions, Inc., P.O. Box 30528, JFK Airport Station, Jamaica, NY 11430.
With America losing more than one airport per week, it's nice to report when a field is preserved, especially an historic site that has figured prominently in the growth of general aviation. Recent developments at Philadelphia's Wings Field have increased the chances that the reliever airport and birthplace of the AOPA will not only remain open, but will be upgraded to enhance its utility for companies and individuals that use the small, privately owned, public-use airport.
The Dassault Falcon 2000 is the latest business jet to be approved to operate at London City Airport. The airport is attractive to business aircraft operators because it is just six miles from downtown London and has no slot restrictions. However, to obtain approval to use the 4,000-foot-long runway, operators are required to fly no less than a 5.5-degree approach angle; to employ noise-abatement departure procedures; and to generate no more than 94.5 EPNdB noise levels.
The Australian Advanced Air Traffic System (TAAATS) is the centerpiece of the continent's plan to improve and simplify its air traffic and airspace management. TAAATS, which is scheduled to go into operation in 1998, will provide the first fully integrated ATC system for Australian airspace and will cover about 11 percent of the world's surface. TAAATS services will apply to all operations except for VFR flights outside controlled airspace and away from radar coverage. For details, contact the TAAATS project office at +06 268-4609.
