Business & Commercial Aviation

The Women in Aviation International's 28th annual convention, held March 2-4, drew 4,500 attendees from 19 countries to Disney's Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.

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

AvFab has received European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approval for pleated window shades on Beechcraft King Air 200, B200 and B200GT aircraft. The shades replace the factory-installed polarizers and can be closed when the aircraft is parked. The shades are flame retardant, have an antibacterial coating, provide Sun protection, reflect heat and are available in several colors.

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The third and final Pilatus PC-24 prototype, P03, took flight for the first time March 6 when it launched from Buochs airfield near the company's headquarters in Stans, Switzerland.

These are disruptive times. New technologies are challenging and changing the ways we communicate, conduct business and socialize. Nothing is immune to the new economy, and the vanguard for general aviation change may reside in the charter segment as FAR 135 operators embrace the “shared economy” movement.

The Learjet 45 and 45XR, built from 1998 to 2012 and only the second clean-sheet Learjets since the 1963 Learjet 23, have a lot going for them

Pivoting to an unprecedented wave of new aircraft owners and pilots, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) is now welcoming unmanned aerial vehicle pilots into the fold. “Drone pilots are seeking their place in the larger world of aviation and looking for opportunities to expand their experience,” said AOPA President Mark Baker. The association noted an FAA estimate that 1.3 million pilots will be certificated to operate drones under 14 CFR Part 107 by 2020.

After decades of consideration and debate, the European Union recently approved commercial air transport (CAT) operations for single-engine turboprop aircraft in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) and at night. The new regulation was to take effect in March. The move was applauded by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) as well as individual airframers such as Daher, whose TBMs have been employed in such activities in North America and elsewhere for some time.

The latest companies to join the General Aviation Manufacturers Association as members include CAMP Systems, Pipistrel and Tamarack Aerospace. New associate members are Ascent Vision Technologies, SmartSky Networks and Uber.

Smyrna Air Center in Smyrna, Tennessee, is now Hollingshead Aviation. Jeff Hollingshead is president of the fixed base operation.

XTI Aircraft Co., a Denver-based startup aircraft manufacturer, is hoping to build a hybrid-electric ducted-fan vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) business aircraft. It recently teamed with electric propulsion specialist Bye Aerospace to develop the TriFan 600.

Learjet 70 and 75, the marketing names for the upgraded Learjet 40 and 45, are far more capable than the original models that entered service 20 years ago.

Airbus Helicopters Inc. saluted the U.S. Coast Guard's fleet of HH/MH-65 Dolphin patrol and search and rescue helicopters as they recently passed 1.5 million flight hours. “This is an enormous accomplishment for the U.S. Coast Guard, and for Airbus,” said Chris Emerson, president of Airbus Helicopters Inc. “We are proud of the great work the men and women of the Coast Guard perform with these aircraft. They have saved countless lives and guarded our nation’s borders and ports.”

Robinson Helicopters is considering adopting a diesel engine for a future derivative of its R44 piston-engine light helicopter. The company is “holding strong to putting a diesel” in the R44 over the next 3-4 yr., CEO Kurt Robinson announced in a speech to the Western Museum of Flight in Hawthorne, California, late last year. The helicopter manufacturer is working with a “couple of different [engine] manufacturers,” Robinson says. “We have got to get the vibration loads right.

Honeywell has selected Bird ExecuJet Airport Services at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi to enhance maintenance, repairs and upgrades for customers in India.

A coalition of aviation groups, including the American Association of Airport Executives and U.S. Contract Tower Association, has written leaders of the U.S. Senate and House appropriations committees to request that the FAA appropriations bill continue the contract towers program.

Aircraft leasing company Milestone Aviation Group Ltd. in February announced a contract for six Leonardo AW139 and three AW169 helicopters for delivery this year and next. Milestone leased seven AW169s and 11 AW139s in 2016. The latest deal is valued at $96 million.

Embraer is cautiously optimistic about its executive jet segment amid a used aircraft market that remains challenging, the company said March 9 as it released 2016 financial results.

Pratt & Whitney Canada is working on a new 2,000-shp-class helicopter engine that could be ready for market by year-end. According to P&WC President John Saabas the company identified a gap in its product range between the 1,750-shp PT6C-67C/E and the 2,300-shp PW100 family of engines, and the new engine is likely to be a further development of the PT6C core. He says the engine would be ready to launch by year’s end, but is waiting for a launch application.

More than 115 mayors from all 50 U.S. states have sent a letter to Congress saying they are concerned about the impact that privatization of air traffic control would have on communities around the country, especially in rural regions. By contrast, large commercial airlines are supporting the idea, which is being advocated by some legislators.

Duncan Aviation completed a redesign of the Android version of its AOG Services app, which makes it easy for operators to find the nearest Duncan Aviation location to their current position.

FlightSafety International now offers FAA-approved Part 142 night-vision-goggle (NVG) initial training for the Airbus Helicopters H135, Bell 212 and Bell 412EP using Level D qualified simulators.

AirMed International has opened a Beechjet 400 base at Cincinnati Municipal Lunken Airport to serve air medical transportation and organ procurement and recovery flight.

Jet Aviation’s maintenance Facility in Basel has concluded its first retrofit installation of Split Scimitar winglets on a BBJ1.