To protect your King Air's finish from prop ice hitting the fuselage, Stevens Aviation's Colorado facility has introduced Kydex Ice Shields. The shields are positioned over the forward fuselage avionics doors on King Air 200, 300 and 350 models to ward off dents and paint chips. Price: $1,995 per aircraft shipset (two shields). Stevens Aviation, Jefferson County Airport, 10656 W. 120th Ave., Broomfield, CO 80021. (800) 606-0017.
Commuter Air Technology (CATPASS) of Scottsdale, Arizona has introduced an advanced, low profile, exhaust gas extractor system for the Beech King Air 200/B200. The company modifies the King Airs as 13-passenger commuter aircraft. The company termed the old stacks ``1950s technology'' and said the new system--constructed of stainless steel with state-of-the-art coating that ``dramatically'' reduces sooting--results in a 7.5-knot increase in airspeed, a two- to five-percent improvement in fuel efficiency and lower maintenance and overhaul costs.
Dassault's Falcon 2000 is scheduled to enter service next month. The new jet received European JAA certification in late November 1994. FAA certification was expected in December 1994. Certification of the Falcon 2000's optional thrust reverser is anticipated by the time the aircraft enters service. By mid-1995, an optional Flight Dynamics head-up display should be approved on the Falcon 2000, and certification of flight management systems other than the Falcon 2000's standard Universal GNS-X also will be undertaken this year.
Efforts to establish a floating heliport on the Thames River in Central London remain tangled in legal controversy and conflicting permissions (Jeppesen United Kingdom).
In mid-December 1994, McDonnell Douglas celebrated the FAA certification and the first delivery of the company's new Explorer twin-turbine helicopter. The first production copy of the eight-place, NOTAR-configured rotorcraft was delivered to Petroleum Helicopters of Lafayette, Louisiana. The $2.9-million Explorer is offered with two engine choices: a 629-shp P&WC or a 641-shp Turbomeca Arrius. McDonnell Douglas says it has orders for more than 50 Explorers to date.
West Virginia Air Center, an FBO at Benedum Airport in Clarksburg specializing in completions, modifications and painting, has been purchased by Short Brothers (USA). The company was put on the block late in 1994 by Five-J Energy Corporation, its former owner (B/CA, October 1994, page 26). Short Brothers (USA) is the U.S. subsidiary of Short Brothers plc of Belfast, Northern Ireland, a unit of Bombardier, the Montreal, Quebec, Canada-based corporation.
Less than a year after acquiring Allison Engine Company from General Motors for $310 million, investment banker Clayton, Dubilier&Rice has turned a $215-million profit with the Indianapolis company's sale to Rolls-Royce plc for $525 million.
This month, the first prototype Bell 430 was scheduled to enter its third month of flight testing at the company's Mirabel, Quebec, Canada factory. The mid-size twin is based on the current Model 230 design. However, Bell has lengthened the fuselage by 18 inches, redesigned dynamic components and upgraded the aircraft's cockpit.
Flightcrews heading to Miami for Super Bowl XXIX on Sunday, January 29 at Joe Robbie Stadium will find some extra hospitality at a variety of Miami and Fort Lauderdale, Florida FBOs.
To speed up the use of satellite technology in aviation, the FAA has approved GPS as a primary means of en route navigation over oceanic and remote areas--with certain restrictions. At press time, the agency was preparing detailed guidelines to cover installation, certification training and operational issues related to GPS navigation over oceans and remote areas.
REGIONAL Airlines of Nantes, France has contracted for three Saab 2000 high-speed turboprops. Deliveries will run from May through early 1996. The carrier, which already operates the Saab 340Plus, said it opted for the 2000's 360-knot cruise speed, commonality with the 340 and state-of-the-art technology. The first aircraft will link Lyon, France with Barcelona and Madrid, Spain, as well as Nice and Marseilles, France to Barcelona.
USAir Express Chautauqua has sent Saab Aircraft scrounging the world for older model 340As with an order for 10. The carrier, which took over the Indianapolis hub from USAir subsidiary Jetstream International, already operates six 340As as well as 12 Fairchild Metro II aircraft.
The latest product from Aeroprice Software--the ``Aircraft Value Book''--helps prospective buyers of piston-singles identify aircraft to fit their budgets. Once the interested buyer keys in a specific budget allowance, Value Book sorts through a database and shows every aircraft within that parameter as well as the latest affordable year and the corresponding retail values. The ``book'' contains pricing data from 1947 to 1993 for the 50 most common single-engine aircraft. A PC-based spreadsheet (Microsoft Excel, Lotus 1-2-3 or Quattro Pro) is required. Price: $29.95.
A widely accepted definition of crew resource management is a method of making optimum use of the capability of the individuals and the systems in an aircraft to achieve the safest and most efficient completion of a flight. To accomplish its goal, CRM often introduces practices and procedures that may appear to be at odds with the way many pilots were taught to fly--that is, with the pilot-in-command (PIC) as the sole arbiter of how to conduct a flight.
For 13 years, James D. Raisbeck, president of the company that bears his name, has been defying the odds. Raisbeck Engineering's specialty is building modification kits, or ``systems'' as Raisbeck prefers to call them, for Beech King Airs. Most modifiers don't survive a third as long as Raisbeck Engineering, let alone thrive as this Seattle-based firm has done. The proportion of Raisbeck-equipped Beech King Air 200 aircraft, for example, has increased from five percent in 1985 to 35 percent of the active King Air 200 fleet today, the firm's records show.
Dutch manufacturer Fokker has begun operation of the Fokker Training Center (FTC), located five miles from Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport. The center provides training for flight- crews, flight attendants, maintenance personnel and flight operations specialists. It is jointly owned by Fokker and the Friendship Simulation Company (FSC), which operates the simulator facility. The first Fokker 70/100 full-flight simulator will be installed early this year, followed by a second in the fall.
Signature Flight Support seems determined to make its La Guardia Airport FBO more attractive and efficient. Signature will completely renovate its two-story facility into a modern business aircraft service environment with a conference room, oversized telephone booths with laptop computer ports, an on-site catering kitchen and a refitted crew lounge and quiet room. New bathrooms will include spacious dressing rooms, and the reception area is being redesigned with lounge chairs and meeting centers. The overhaul is scheduled for completion by the autumn. (718) 476-5200.
The United Kingdom's CAA has withdrawn a 20-year-old U.K.-registration requirement calling for additional strength for the leading edge of the wings on Cessna Citation 500s and Citation I series aircraft. The CAA's decision is one of the early benefits of establishing Joint Airworthiness Authority standards for European aviation.
Desert Air has remodeled its executive terminal, become an Exxon Avitat, expanded its maintenance offerings and extended operations to 24 hours a day since purchasing the FBO from Aero Services in September 1994. Amenities include a conference room, separate crew and passenger lounges, on-site rental cars, a crew car, catering, hangar storage and a flight-planning ares (602) 991-0900.
Gulf Aeronautical Services plans to open a full-service FBO in March. The facility will open with all standard ground services plus line maintenance. FAA and JAA approvals are to follow. For details write to GAS, P.O. Box 20285, Manama, Bahrain. Phone: +973 451 952; fax: +873 275 198.
Air Methods Corporation, a Denver-based provider of aeromedical services, withdrew as a bidder for Rocky Mountain Helicopters of Provo, Utah. Air Methods said the price is ``more than fair value'' for the assets to be acquired. At press time, a firm offer from another buyer was expected. Rocky Mountain Helicopters has been operating under Chapter 11 since October 1993.
The move to maximize each crewmember's involvement in the safe and efficient operation of the aircraft varies widely throughout corporate aviation. While most operators speak respectfully of the tenets of CRM (cockpit and--more recently--crew resource management) for expanded communication and enhanced teamwork on the flight deck, the day-to- day application of those principles ranges from zealous to casual. Some operators even dismiss the concept as a newfangled way to compromise a pilot's independence.
