Business & Commercial Aviation

Constant Aviation has expanded its aircraft-on-the-ground mobile team coverage in the central U.S. with the addition of Denver and Rifle, Colorado.

In the closing weeks of 1966, three successive items appeared in influential newspapers damning private and business aviation for freeloading on the U.S. taxpayer. “Fly now, pay never,” was how The New York Times reported it.

FlightServ, an independent fixed-base operation, opened Jan. 1 at the Trenton-Mercer Airport in New Jersey. The FBO was founded by a team from its sister company, Aviation Charters.

Take some time to put together a plan that offers the opportunity for you and your flight team to gain additional knowledge and continue to grow your operation’s safety culture.

For the business aviation community, at once both a broad but thin and rarefied sliver of society and the body politic, the way forward is rife with questions, opportunities and concerns.

David Sneed discusses the scope and operations of Delta Private Jets, which provides charter and jet card services to companies and individuals.

A new report, commissioned by the Los Angeles World Airports, has found that the Van Nuys Airport contributes $2 billion to the local economy and supports more than 10,000 jobs. Van Nuys Airport tenants are in the midst of capital improvement projects valued at $43.4 million. The study is a “success story about how airport businesses . . . can join together on issues that rise above individual tenant concerns to create positive change, jobs and economic growth,” said Curt Castagna, Van Nuys Airport president.

The NTSB report on the Learjet 60 rejected takeoff (RTO) accident in Columbia, South Carolina, noted the following: “In 1990, the NTSB issued a special investigation report (SIR), “Runway Overruns Following High-Speed Rejected Takeoffs,” that examined high-speed RTOs involving commercial jet aircraft. The SIR reviewed three studies, which included data from the NTSB, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and Boeing, related to the causes and outcomes of RTOs. The SIR found that tire failures led to more high-speed RTOs than engine-related anomalies.”

Jet-A and avgas per-gallon fuel prices—December 2016

The General Aviation Manufacturers Association says new aircraft deliveries for the first three quarters of 2016 were down 3.5% from the same period in the previous year, with 1,504 units shipped compared to 1,558 units in 2015. Helicopter shipments were even worse—down 16% to 615 units compared to 732 units in the same period in 2015. Combined airplane and rotorcraft billings were $15.9 billion year-to-date in 2016 compared to last year's $19.1 billion, a contraction of 16.5%.

The Polish Ministry of National Defense has signed a contract to buy two Gulfstream 550 aircraft for VIP transport, with delivery in 2017,

Canada has selected the Airbus C295W twin turboprop as winner of its fixed-wing search and rescue competition, fully 12 years after the government originally called for a modern platform to replace six 40-year-old de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalo turboprops. The $2.4 billion (Canadian) deal involves 16 aircraft and five years of in-service support, as well as an option for 15 years of additional service, which would raise the total value to $4.7 billion.

As a maintenance manager, you need to ensure your troops receive the training and education to address the demands of high technology aircraft.

BCA shares news of the latest products and services for the business aviation industry.

Wheels Up, the membership-based aviation company, is now offering flights to and from Havana on its fleet of King Air 350i turboprops and Citation Excel/XLS turbofans. It has also launched an on-the-ground booking assistance program in Cuba for its 3,500+ members, and provides trips through any of the 18 U.S. airports approved by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Norwegian oil and gas company Statoil has announced it will cease operating the Airbus H225/EC225 for offshore operations even if regulators clear the aircraft for such use. The decision comes after the April 30 loss of a Statoil-chartered H225 operated by CHC crashed as it was returning from an offshore platform, killing all 13 persons aboard. Unions say oil workers no longer had faith in the helicopter. The company says it will henceforth use the Sikorsky S-92 for its heavy helicopter requirements.

Even before taking office, President-elect Donald Trump is shaking up the business world, taking credit for keeping UTC jobs in Indiana that might have gone to Mexico. “Companies are not going to leave the United States anymore without consequences,” Trump says. The parent company of Pratt & Whitney may have been motivated to stay to remain in a Trump administration’s good graces.

Questions for David Sneed, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Delta Private Jets.

The Citation Mustang, introduced at the 2002 NBAA Convention by then-Cessna Chairman and CEO Russ Meyer, was marketed as a sure-thing alternative to the new class of very light jets (VLJs) that were all the rage at the turn of the 21st century.

Quest Aircraft has signed a major fleet order with a sister subsidiary in Japan for up to 20 Kodiak aircraft. The 10-seat aircraft single-engine turboprop will be used for a new membership-based private travel service that was launched in November. The order is Quest’s largest commercial fleet order to date. “We are very excited to have completed such a large order for the Kodiak,” said Nick Newby, Quest senior vice president of sales, marketing and customer service.

Signature Flight Support's new state-of-the art FBO at London Luton Airport is open for business. The facility comprises a 4,500 sq. meters (48,000 sq. ft.) hangar, which became operational in 2014 and is capable of housing two BBJ or ACJ-sized aircraft, and a 7,000 sq. meters (75,000 sq. ft.) parking ramp with a dedicated ground service facility in addition to the legacy apron and a covered arrivals area. The new 1,572 sq. meters (17,000 sq.

To help mark and celebrate its half-century in business, Jet Aviation has adopted a new logo, a stand-alone, circular monogram with the word JET to replace the deer head with which it has long been identified. “We wanted the new logo and branding initiative to visually reflect the strength and stability of our trusted brand name as we turn to face and welcome future opportunities,” explained Heinz Aebi, Jet’s senior vice president of Group Marketing and Communications.

BCA readers share their opinions on articles we published.

Rolls-Royce delivered the 7,000th engine made at its plant outside Berlin. The engine, a BR710, was being shipped to Gulfstream Aerospace in Savannah, Georgia. The site, which began production in 1995, employs more than 2,300 worker who produce the Tay 611-8C and V2500 engines in addition to the BR700 series, which power the G550 and 650 as well as the Bombardier Global 5000 and 6000. The engine maker reports more than 4,000 BR700s have been delivered to date. Later this year the German facility will begin assembly of the Trent XWB turbofan, which powers the Airbus A350.

CAE and Abu Dhabi Aviation (ADA) are expanding their commercial, business, and helicopter aviation training agreement to include the sale of two full-flight simulators (FFS) as well as CAE instructor-led training and courseware. The agreement centers on ADA’s new, eight-bay training center in Abu Dhabi.