Business & Commercial Aviation

Heli-One will upgrade a fleet of Sikorsky S-61A-4 Nuri helicopters for an Asian operator with Universal's EFI-890H Advanced Flight Displays and Multi-Missions Management System. Heli-One will design and install the initial aircraft with an Asian maintenance, repair and overhaul business performing the upgrades on the remainder of the fleet. The upgrade includes four EFI-890H Advanced Flight Displays and one UNS-1L2 MMMS, Universal’s flight management system for mission support.

Cessna Aircraft has increased performance targets for its new super-midsize $23.9 million Citation Longitude, the planemaker's latest business jet under development. The announcement was made at the National Business Aviation Association’s Business Aviation in Orlando. Cessna, a division of Textron Aviation, is increasing its initial targets for range from 3,400 nm to 3,500 nm and full-fuel payload by 100 lb., to 1,600 lb. FAA type certification and entry into service is expected in 2017.

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AviationManuals is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Since its founding in 1996, it has produced more than 4,000 manuals. It recently expanded its product line to include Minimum Equipment Lists and Electronic Flight Bag application packages. The company also is expanding its workforce and seeks to employ an operations manual specialist, aviation specialist, editor/document specialist and a business development/sales coordinator.

Hawthorne Global Aviation Services's ExcelAire facility in Long Island, New York, has been approved by the Cayman Islands as an authorized maintenance provider for private jets registered in the islands. ExcelAire provides jet maintenance services around the clock. The facility offers jet charters, aircraft management, maintenance and fixed base operator services.

Blackhawk Modifications has launched another engine upgrade program, this time targeting the King Air 350. The switch involves replacing that aircraft’s 1,050 shp PT6A-60A engines with a pair of -67As, each rated at 1,200 shp. The Waco, Texas company expects to receive approval for the upgrade in the second quarter of 2017. The change-out will benefit those operators — including military units — needing improved hot-and-high performance.

Jet Support Services has announced its Tip-to-Tail Program is now available for the Dassault Falcon 8X, Embraer Lineage 1000 and Airbus Corporate Jets, including the ACJ318, ACJ319 and ACJ320. The program includes coverage for the airframe, engines and APU.

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

FlightSafety Academy in Vero Beach, Florida, celebrated its 50th anniversary in October. Its 21,000 graduates have flown for 62 airlines and over 100 corporate flight departments around the world. It employs 160 people and owns nearly 90 aircraft. Its campus also includes classrooms, flight training devices, an Air Traffic Control communications laboratory and on-site accommodations for 300 students.

Honeywell has received the FAA's STC for enhanced features for the Gulfstream PlaneDeck cockpits on GIV and V aircraft. The latest suite of upgrades will increase crew awareness with the addition of Synthetic Vision Systems and other features. The upgrades include charts and maps, video capability and XM ground-based weather. PlaneDeck provides a 3-D color image of runways, terrain and obstacles.

Jeppesen has launched Operator, a cloud-based business aviation platform that integrates flight planning, runway performance and weight and balance calculations, crew scheduling, accounting, pricing, regulatory compliance and trip checklists, among other things. BoldIQ, the fleet optimization and management program that evolved from the failed DayJet operation is intrinsic to the new Jepp service.

Between November 2015 and October 2016, Teterboro Airport was the most requested departure and destination airport for brokers and travelers shopping for charter flights with the Air Charter Guide Worldwide Trip Builder.

Bombardier’s new Global 7000 made its maiden flight Nov. 4 in Toronto. First delivery is expected in the second half of 2018. The OEM provided this promotional video touting the first flight milestone. Courtesy: Bombardier Business Aircraft

Fred George, Business & Commercial Aviation’s Aircraft Evaluation Editor, shows us the features and performance of the Gulfstream G500 as he takes us up on its 66th test flight.

There are close to 5,000 airports in the U.S. with paved runways, but only about 500 have full- or part-time control towers.

How to master automation, communications, navigation, systems and the rest when you are a crew of one.

Especially as a single pilot, organizing items you will need for the flight while still in the chocks or the planning room just makes good sense.

Going behind the scenes to see how much work is involved in creating an avionics product and bringing it to market gives one an appreciation and respect for the work of the designers, engineers and technicians who make this happen.

Universal Avionics' InSight Integrated Flight Deck system allowed the writer to instantly form a mental image of our proximity to terrain and obstacles.

Despite the seemingly glacial-pace of air traffic management evolution, the FAA has begun upgrading its services and capabilities, including controller-pilot data link communications to help make the flow of traffic safer and more efficient.

The enduring innovation of Universal Avionics products is closely tied to its core characteristics of designed by pilots, and built by pilots for pilots.

According to Honeywell, there are 700 HTF7000-powered aircraft in service with 1,400 engines that have collectively logged more than 2.6 million hours.

While Honeywell Aerospace's forward view is firmly fixed on the super-midsize business jet market, the Phoenix-based OEM continues to produce its stable of smaller turbine engines.

Rick Stoulil, chief pilot for Hormel Foods Corp., says: "The way the HTF7000 is set up, it works great. It is equipped with autothrottles and is very responsive [on spool-up] with very little lag. And it's really fuel efficient.

Mark Jones's deep expertise on Hawker series aircraft has proven to be invaluable to his employers, fellow maintainers, pilots and the jet’s manufacturer.