ExcelAire added another Gulfstream to its growing charter fleet, this one being a GIV-SP that can seat 18 passengers. Based at Long Island MacArthur Airport (ISP) in New York, ExcelAire operates a range of light, medium, super-midsize and heavy jets. It is the anchor charter and management company for Hawthorne Global Aviation Services, which is a growing chain of fixed-base operations.
Louis Chenevert, the architect of the biggest aerospace and defense (A&D) acquisition ever and a driving force behind Pratt & Whitney’s geared turbofan (GTF) engine, has stepped down as chairman and CEO of United Technologies Corp. (UTC). Gregory J. Hayes, UTC’s chief financial officer, is replacing him as CEO. Edward A. Kangas, a member of UTC’s board, will become non-executive chairman. In an announcement before the stock market opened Nov.
Cessna’s grand plans for China have been scaled back considerably from those outlined at signing ceremonies with AVIC two years ago. But progress has been made: the first Cessna Caravan utility aircraft has been delivered from one joint venture; the first two Citation XLS+ business jets delivered from a second JV, based at Zhuhai, to Zhongheng Air Lines. The XLS+ aircraft were built, completed and licensed in Wichita, then flown to Zhuhai.
Louis Chenevert, the architect of the biggest aerospace and defense (A&D) acquisition ever and a driving force behind Pratt & Whitney’s geared turbofan (GTF) engine, has stepped down as chairman and CEO of United Technologies Corp. (UTC). Gregory J. Hayes, UTC’s chief financial officer, is replacing him as CEO. Edward A. Kangas, a member of UTC’s board, will become non-executive chairman. In an announcement before the stock market opened Nov.
Signature Flight Support has signed an agreement to lease part of a new general aviation terminal at Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) in St. Maarten, as the company moves to upgrade its facilities and build up its presence in the Caribbean. SXM became Signature’s first location in the Caribbean when the company acquired the Arrindell Aviation Services facilities there in 2011.
Surf Air, the all-you-can-fly startup airline operating within California, hopes to launch similar operations in Texas and Florida within the next year, and wants to eventually begin near-hourly service between the San Francisco and Los Angeles areas, executives said in interviews. The airline, run by former Frontier Airlines CEO Jeff Potter, placed a firm order in August for 15 Pilatus PC-12 aircraft with 50 options. The first arrived last month, giving Surf Air a fleet of four aircraft, each with eight seats.
FAA is proposing a $160,000 civil penalty against aviation spare parts, support services and inventory products provider Parker Aerospace of Irvine, California. The agency alleges the facility violated drug and alcohol testing regulations, hiring two people for safety-sensitive positions before conducting pre-employment drug tests and receiving results. FAA further claims the company transferred an employee into a safety-sensitive position before conducting drug tests and receiving results. Parker has until late December to respond to the allegations.
The U.S. House passed the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014 (H.R. 5771) on Dec. 3, renewing provisions to encourage capital investment. But the move only served to kick the can down the road, and not very far at that. Nevertheless, business aviation organizations see passage as a step forward. “NBAA applauds this action by the House to renew bonus depreciation and other tax incentives that encourage businesses to upgrade equipment and invest in assets such as aircraft,” National Business Aviation Association President and CEO Ed Bolen says.
PAC Seating Systems has been selected by San Antonio cabin completion specialist GDC Technics to provide all seating products for two wide-body BBJ787 programs. The two BBJ787 contracts mark the first time the Palm City, Florida-based company has received a multiple aircraft order. It is the third BBJ787 seating order for PAC, and the company also has a fresh seating contract for a Boeing Business Jet.
Dassault rolled out its three-engine Falcon 8X on Dec. 17 at a special ceremony at its Bordeaux-Merignac production facility. The first flight will follow in the next few weeks. The 6,450-nm ultra-long-range jet is powered by improved Pratt & Whitney Canada PW307D engines, it will build on the strengths of the fast-selling Falcon 7X, adding 500 nm to that aircraft’s range and 3.5 ft. to its cabin length.
Airbus has started selling off its share of French combat aircraft and business jet manufacturer Dassault Aviation. The company sold 4% of its share in Dassault back to its majority holder GIMD (Groupement Industriel Marcel Dassault) after trading in Paris closed on Nov. 28. The deal raised €794 million ($987 million) with the share valued at €980 per share, roughly a 9.2% discount over the last trading price of the day, according to Dassault.
Concerned that the air taxi sector accounted for 65% of all commercial aviation fatalities over the past 10 years, the Transportation Safety Board (TSB) of Canada is planning an in-depth “Safety Issues Investigation” on those operations. Announced last week by TSB Chairman Kathy Fox, the study is set to begin in early 2015, and will cover historical data and case studies in Canada as well as accidents and incidents in other countries.
Cirrus added a second conforming-prototype Vision SF50 personal jet to the flight test program as the company progresses toward certification and delivery in late 2015. The second prototype, C1, first flew on Nov. 25 from Duluth, Minnesota. The flight occurred as the company was in the final stages of adding a third aircraft to the flight test program. The initial proof-of-concept single-jet Vision SF250 flew in July 2008, but the program gained momentum after Caiga, the general aviation manufacturing subsidiary of China’s AVIC, acquired Cirrus in 2011.
Dassault Falcon Service plans to build a heavy maintenance, repair and overhaul facility at Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport in southwestern France, adjacent to the Dassault Aviation manufacturing plant. The 7,200-sq.-meter facility will serve Falcon 7X, 8X and 5X large cabin aircraft. The six-bay facility is expected to open in mid-2016, in time to handle initial C Checks for the Falcon 7X, of which more than 230 are now in operation.
Chinese companies are steadily adding to their portfolio of Western general aviation manufacturers ahead of the anticipated boom that will follow the opening of low-level airspace there. Two little-known acquisitions came to light at last month’s Airshow China in Zhuhai:
Airbus Helicopters has delivered the 2nd Super Puma AS332 C1e to the Bolivian Air Force (FAB). At the end of 2013, the FAB purchased six of these light-medium helicopters to fight drug trafficking and perform civil security and public service missions throughout the country. The first helicopter was delivered in August of this year and the four remaining helicopters will be delivered between now and 2016.
1. You have built a foundation for a chain now with five facilities. What are your long-term plans? Levesque: We started the year with two and added facilities in Chicago, Atlanta and Eau Claire, Wisconsin. We would like to grow to 15 or 20 facilities. But we want to grow smartly and in the right way. We are not in a rush. We have looked at a lot more than we have attempted to acquire. 2. What do you look for in a potential acquisition?
Three major airports around Washington, D.C., are using their own NextGen systems. Also, Textron has sold 17 acres where Beechcraft manufactured its piston-powered general aviation aircraft.
