FAA is expected to adopt a rule that will open the ranks of FAR Part 121 and Part 135 simulator instructors to experienced pilots who no longer are able to maintain medical qualification. The proposed rule would permit airmen who do not hold a current medical certificate to check or instruct in simulators and flight-training devices. Currently, all flight instructors and check airmen conducting Part 121 and Part 135 training must hold a medical certificate.
April is a time for new beginnings, and FAA Administrator David R. Hinson and his management team at 800 Independence Avenue have a unique opportunity this spring to usher in a new era of streamlined procurement practices and invigorated personnel management systems at their often embattled agency.
Up to 33 helicopter accidents a year could have been avoided if the aircraft involved had been equipped with the McDonnell Douglas NOTAR anti-torque system, according to a study by Advanced Aviation Concepts (AAC) of Melbourne, Florida. The McDonnell Douglas-commissioned study also concluded that the severity of accidents and associated insurance claims would have been significantly reduced for NOTAR-equipped helicopters. To date, no accidents involving NOTAR helicopters have occurred.
AlliedSignal plans to invest $15 million in an effort to cut the unscheduled removal rate of LT101-series helicopter engines from 1.5 times per 1,000 hours to 0.4 times per 1,000 hours. AlliedSignal inherited the LT101 with the purchase of Textron Lycoming's turbine-engine business in 1995. The company has designed a ``solid rivet'' to counter shifting of power turbine blades. Another fix is a new gas-producer nozzle with improved cooling that should counter heat-induced distortion of the old nozzle.
Startup California regional Sierra Expressway has shut down after just under six months in operation. The Oakland-based carrier had played the public relations card perhaps more than any other carrier of its size. It began service from Oakland with a publicity blitz, and kept it up through most of its existence.
Mesa Air Group continues to ponder the return of its two Fokker 70s in light of less-than-anticipated results with the aircraft and the manufacturer's precarious financial situation. The company has been operating the two 78-passenger jets since June and July 1995 as America West Express on routes from Phoenix to Des Moines, Iowa, and Phoenix to Spokane, Washington. In addition, it operated a late-night flight from Des Moines to Las Vegas on Thursdays through Sundays, but that service was terminated in February.
FAA and Europe's Joint Aviation Authorities have reached agreement on rules for the certification of small airplanes. The rules, bringing FAR Part 23 and JAR Part 23 into harmonization, provide certification standards for all airplanes weighing less than 12,500 pounds and for which a type certificate is applied after March 11. The new rules include requirements for stronger windshields, wing flap-setting warnings on takeoff, and additional cabin fireproofing materials.
United States Aircraft Insurance Group (USAIG) and Bell Helicopter have introduced an insurance program that could potentially stabilize premiums, and could even lead to lowering them over the long term for operators of Bell helicopters. To qualify for the program, operators must fly Bell helicopters, pilots must be salaried, and training must be Bell-approved. All helicopter seats must have shoulder harnesses. All maintenance must be done by Bell-trained technicians. And, all critical parts must be purchased from Bell or Bell-authorized sources.
A stern warning against unauthorized flight operations in Cuban territorial airspace was issued by the FAA in the wake of the shooting down of two civilian Cessna 337s by Cuban fighter aircraft. The FAA said unauthorized operations in Cuban airspace have occurred, despite the fact that existing regulations prohibit such activity. The agency warned that violators will be subject to ``immediate revocation of pilot certificate, maximum civil penalties [and] seizure of aircraft.''
As a follow-up to its display of the XV-15 tilt-rotor aircraft in corporate livery at the Paris Air Show in June 1995, Bell Helicopter conducted demonstration flights of the hybrid aircraft daily from the rooftop heliport at the HAI convention in Dallas in February. Bell is shooting for a 275-knot, nine-passenger aircraft that would sell for less than $9 million. The aircraft would be pressurized, have full IFR approval, and be capable of 800-nm range. Bell anticipates making a production decision this year.
What do CitationJet operators, the Vatican's College of Cardinals and India's Gurkha soldiers all have in common? It's certainly not language, uniforms or marital status. It's remarkably fierce loyalty.
Airborne weather radar is a pilot's first line of defense against clearly hazardous, potentially fatal encounters with violent weather. Similar to a torero facing a raging bull in a small arena, a pilot must skillfully maneuver around furious storms to avoid being upended in flight, gored by hail or swatted into the ground.
The only type of helicopter operation to experience no accidents in 1994 or 1995 was corporate/executive, said the Helicopter Association International. HAI reports 162 helicopter accidents in 1995 compared to 207 in 1994. Fatal accidents dropped from 48 in 1994 to 26 in 1995, and the number of fatalities fell to 46 in 1995 from 84 the previous year.
Users of the new Magellan CNS-12 integrated communication, navigation and surveillance avionics will have access to the Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) as a result of a recent agreement between ARINC Incorporated and AlliedSignal. Previously, to use ACARS, an operator had to install an airborne flight information system (AFIS) unit that incorporated a VHF transceiver and an FMS. The CNS-12 is priced at $10,000. Magellan, based in San Dimas, California, expects to receive a TSO for its GPS navigation feature by December.
For the most part, FAA aircraft certification requirements leave plenty of margin for variations in pilot technique. However, such is not the case for engine-out takeoffs in four-engine aircraft. A flightcrew attempting such a takeoff must have a full understanding of minimum control speeds both on the ground (Vmcg) and in the air (Vmca).
California's San Jose City Council recently voted to ``unequivocally support'' the continued operation of Reid-Hillview Airport, a decision that overturns a six-year opposing stance (B/CA, August 1990, page 26). After the vote, the Council and San Jose Mayor Susan Hammer called on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors ``to cease all efforts to close Reid-Hillview.'' The changed attitude is a victory for the AOPA and other groups that have fought to keep the airport open. Reid-Hillview is the site for the AOPA's 1996 convention.
Early this month-one month after officially resigning as president of Learjet-Brian Barents will leave the company he helped turn around since it was purchased by Bombardier. Barents will be replaced by Jim Robinson, who was appointed executive vice president of Learjet in November 1995 after serving as president of AlliedSignal Engines. In 1989, when Barents joined Learjet, the firm delivered 25 aircraft worth about $115 million. In 1995, the company delivered 43 aircraft valued at $317 million.
Whelen Engineering says its CometFlash wingtip lighting system provides ``higher visibility lighting'' for business jets, and is STCed for most of them. CometFlash emits four high-energy pulses per burst of light, generating 45 bursts of light per minute, per light. Without requiring additional power, the quick light pulses provide almost twice the visible warning protection of ``other strobe designs,'' claims the company. CometFlash appears as a long streak of light, rather than a single, separate flash. Price: $380 to $2,100, depending on the aircraft.
Now available from Flightcom Corporation is the newest version of the AiRepeater II, a digital cockpit recording device. It records all incoming audio-tower, ATIS, flight following or intercom communications. Claimed improvements over the original unit include the power switch now mounted on the case, a sliding ``door'' (in-stead of removal of screws) for battery changes and a message step-back feature that plays back through the headset. To distinguish be-tween live and playback audio, the AiRepeater beeps every five seconds during replay. Price: $129.
The correct phone number for the FAA's Olympic Public Safety Air Support Operations Center (OPSASOC) is (770) 919-9929. OPSASOC is the controlling office for restricted and special-use airspace that will be in effect during the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. The office may be contacted to obtain aircraft entry requirements. An incorrect number was listed in our February issue (page 44).
The Do 328's PW119 turboprops are mature engines that benefit from the millions of flight hours of experience gained since the PW100-series was introduced in the early 1980s. Other versions of the PW100 power the ATR 42/72, Canadair CL-415, de Havilland Dash 8, Embraer EMB-120 Brazilia and Fokker 50.
FAA has clarified the delayed implementation schedule of the Age 60 rule, which states that airmen cannot serve as FAR Part 121 airline pilots after reaching their 60th birthday. The clarification regards recent regulatory revisions that consolidated certain Part 135 rules into Part 121. Starting on March 21, 1997, an airline can hire and use only the following pilots: persons who have not reached age 60 and persons who, on March 20, 1997, were employed by that carrier or another carrier, regardless of age.
Lucas Industries (Englewood, NJ)-Glenn J. Brown is the new general manager of customer support for Lucas Aerospace, an international aerospace systems supplier.
