The FAA issued Jeppesen a letter of operational suitability confirming the form and functionality of IPad mini for use in the cockpit when paired with Jeppesen’s electronic flight bag (EFB) solutions. In the U.S., FAR Part 91K, 121, 125 and 135 fractional, commuter, on-demand operators and air carriers are required to gain formal FAA authorization to use EFB solutions inflight. Jeppesen will share copies of the letter to interested customers using the iPad mini and affected Jeppesen Apps for use in their authorization package.
Legacy 500’s standard Rockwell Collins Pro Line fusion flight deck features four 15-1 inch displays, arranged in a T configuration. Displays may be split into two, three or four windows, providing flexibility for individual optimization for the phase of flight.
Gogo Inc.’s business aviation group, Aircell, has launched Gogo Biz inflight internet and voice service to business aircraft in Canada. Business aviation customers can now use the service anywhere it’s available in the Continental U.S., Alaska and Canada. Canadian coverage is included with all Gogo Biz monthly service plans. No additional roaming or registration fees are required. Service coverage is available in Canada’s most populous regions and flight routes, with seamless service on cross-border flight.
The ADS-B receiver from Stratus has received three enhancements from partners Appareo, ForeFlight and Sporty’s. A split screen attitude view, animated radar and the iPad battery-saving Stratus Replay feature are all available as a free update for Stratus 2 owners. To access these new features, pilots should first download ForeFlight version 6.0, available in the App Store. This includes Stratus firmware, which pilots can update directly from ForeFlight. The upgrade is free. The Stratus 2 is available for $899.
Air France Flight AF2184 departed Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) at 0653 on March 24, 2012, bound for Tunis-Carthage International Airport (TUN). The captain was the pilot flying (PF) and the copilot was the pilot monitoring (PM). Departure, climb and cruise phases for the Airbus A319 were routine and without incident. However, the arrival at Tunis almost ended tragically due to a hurried descent, a runway change, poor planning and a lack of basic CRM.
Business jet apartheid remained the dominant theme in 2013, as it has for the last five years since the world economy struggles to recover from its deepest downturn in eight decades. Most long-range, large-cabin business aircraft manufacturers flourished while most light and midsize jet makers floundered. Total jet deliveries stabilized at 678, essentially in line with deliveries a decade ago, according to GAMA statistics.
China’s unique combination of prosperity and geography has resulted in an aircraft market that continues to focus on heavy iron that can connect China to any other spot on the planet non-stop. And, to the great relief of aircraft manufacturers, this market prefers to buy new aircraft.
As if the decision to buy an aircraft was not challenging enough, the next million-dollar question (sometimes quite literally) is where to register the thing. Offshore, or “island” aircraft registries offer owners an extensive list of options and perks from possible tax savings to catch-phrase tail “numbers,” which we’ll delineate here.
Daniel Herr, an aviation attorney based in Murray Hill, N.J., advises clients on the advantages and limitations of fractional ownership. (He can be accessed at http://www.FractionalLaw.com) B&CA asked him how Avantair managed to survive the economic downturn of 2008, only to plunge into the financial problems that led to its internal breakdown and ultimately to bankruptcy.
William Quinn, president of Aviation Management Systems in Portsmouth, N.H., has long consulted on fractional ownership issues and helped place clients into the Avantair program as shareowners when the program was solvent. When the company brought in retired FAA upper-level managers to help sort out its problems, “we were concerned but didn’t know how serious the situation was and where it would end up,” Quinn told B&CA.
In a Nov. 13, 2012, email, Avantair President and founder Steve Santo attempted to reassure the troubled fractional ownership program’s 600-plus shareholders that the company was being proactive when it voluntarily grounded its fleet of 56 Piaggio P180 Avanti turboprops the previous month.
The National Transportation Safety Board said in its determination of probable cause for the loss of Beech E90, N987GM, that “Contributing to the accident was the failure of air traffic control personnel to use available radar information to provide the pilot with a timely warning that he was about to encounter extreme precipitation and weather along his route of flight or to provide alternative routing to the pilot.”
Bombardier Aerospace recently received a $537 million order from an undisclosed customer for three Global 6000, two Global 7000 and three Global 8000 jets. Still in development, the Global 7000 and is slated to enter service in 2016, and the 8000 is to follow in 2017. So much for the good news. In January, the Montreal manufacturer announced plans to lay off 1,100 employees in Canada and 600 in the U.S. to contain costs after stretching out development of its CSeries jetliner by at least 12 months and seeing business and commercial aircraft orders decline in 2013.
RUAG has delivered the first Dornier 228-212 to the Venezuelan government at the end of January. This is the first of 10 Dornier 228s in passenger configuration ordered by that government and includes spare parts, ground equipment and training. The Dornier fleet will improve travel between remote areas and regional hubs, and will give residents in hard to reach areas greater access to medical care and government support.
The 52-year-old pilot of Beech King Air N987GM, an E90 model, was certainly experienced — the FAA's airman records showed he reported 5,300 hr. total time at his most recent second-class physical examination even though, inexplicably, his personal logbooks showed over 9,000 hr., 6,500 hr. of that in multiengine airplanes. The logbooks also indicated the pilot had accumulated 718 actual instrument flight hours. Whatever the case, he had spent a good amount of time in the cockpit.
Beechcraft is approaching initial deliveries of the Hawker 400XPR upgrade aircraft, with the first three undergoing final airframe modifications. The handover should occur in the first half of this year. The XPR mod involves installation of a Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics suite (Garmin's G5000 suite is optional), replacing the original Pratt & Whitney JT-15D-5 engines with Williams International FJ44-4A-32 turbofans, and winglets, among other improvements.
