Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), Frederick, Md., named James W. Coon as senior vice president of Government Affairs and Advocacy. He will be based in the Washington office where he will manage the association's advocacy team on issues including medical certification, FAA funding and avgas alternatives.
Next month the FAA is expected to issue a draft request for proposals for private companies to operate the agency's 252 contract control towers for the next five years. The current contract expires in September. The towers use a civilian workforce to handle operations at visual flight rules airports in the U.S., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam and Saipan.
Cessna commemorated the 20th anniversary of its Greensboro Citation Service Center in December. Located at Piedmont Triad International Airport, N.C., the facility is one of the busiest in the network of company-owned service centers, handling approximately 2,500 service orders for aircrft operating in or traveling through the mid-Atlantic U.S.in 2013. Greensboro is one of 15 company-owned service centers offering maintenance, inspections, parts, repairs, avionics upgrades and other specialized services for the line of Citation business jets.
I am an owner-pilot who previously operated a Citation Bravo but currently own and operate a CJ4. I have enjoyed reading your editorials for years and find your magazine's articles very informative and educational. Keep up the great work. Hamilton, Ont.
General Dymanics, Falls Church, Va., announced the Robert E. Smith has been appointed president of Jet Aviation report to Joseph T. Lombardo, executive vice president of the company's Aerospace group. Smith succeeds Daniel G. Glare, who has been appointed CFO of Gulfstream Aerospace Corp.
Sabreliner is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the certification of the original Sabreliner business jet, the Model 40. The aircraft's roots began as the Air Force T-39 aircraft and incorporated many of the design standards to become the 40. Sabreliner subsequently delivered four additional models — the 60, 75, 75A/80 and 65. Production of the Sabreliners ended in 1982 after 631 were built. Of those, 232 are still in service, include 42 Sabre 40s. Sabreliner Corp., which has facilities in Perryville and Ste.
The autothrottle system provides automatic thrust control from the start of takeoff through climb, cruise, descent, approach and go-around or landing. In normal operation, the flight management computer provides the A/T system with engine N1 limit values. The A/T moves the thrust levers with a separate servomotor on each thrust lever. Following manual positioning, the A/T may reposition the thrust levers to comply with computed thrust requirements except while in the THR HLD and ARM modes.
By the time you read this, Beechcraft may have completed the sale of its shuttered Hawker 4000 and Premier aircraft lines, along with tooling and associated facilities. The company had been weighing bids and in negotiations for the sale since last July and hoped to close the deal by year-end. CEO Bill Boisture said earlier that it would be unlikely that production of those aircraft would restart under new ownership, but rather that a support company would acquire all rights to maintain the existing fleet of 400 Premiers and Hawkers 4000s.
You're 25 times more likely to suffer a controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) crash if you're flying a circling approach rather than a straight-in procedure, according to accident statistics compiled by the Flight Safety Foundation. As such, IFR circling approaches are among the highest risk maneuvers attempted by pilots.
Clay Lacy Aviation, working with Envoy Aerospace, is hoping to secure certification next year for a Universal Avionics package that would enable Gulfstream IV and IVSP aircraft to meet new equipment requirements for North Atlantic crossings. Clay Lacy plans to begin installation of the package — which includes FANS 1/A+, CPDLC, Link 2000+ and ADS-B — in January. The package initially will be installed on a G-IVSP, with certification expected to follow in April.
Turbomeca and China's Avic Engine have completed the first test bench runs of the new Ardiden 3C turboshaft that is destined for use on the Chinese version of the Eurocopter EC175. The tests, completed at Turbomeca's Bordes facility in France, confirmed what the company called “good aeromechanical behavior and performance,” and allow the manufacturer to proceed to the test and certification phase of the engine's development program. The trial is a major milestone in the development of the Ardiden 3C, which will be called the WZ16 by Avic.
Aerostar Aircraft Corp. of Hayden Lake, Idaho, is developing a turbofan-powered version of the speedy twin. A fully conforming pressurized model, with Pratt & Whitney Canada PW615s slung below each wing, has been flying since July 25 when it lifted off the runway at Coeur d'Alene Airport, Aerostar's home field. The aircraft is expected to have a cruise speed in excess of 400 kt. The aircraft's designer, the late Ted Smith, had contemplated fitting it with jet engines either under the wings or mounted on the empennage, but that didn't come to pass until now.
Earlier this year on a red-eye flight from China, I had the pleasure of sitting next to a highly intoxicated and unusually talkative German. As the sun rose and breakfast was served, the flight attendant cheerfully passed him another Guinness. He was happy. She was happy. I was not. Was the FAA?
Gulf Helicopters has signed the largest order by an offshore operator so far for the AgustaWestland AW189 eight-metric-ton helicopter. The Qatar-based operator will buy 15 of the aircraft, which is awaiting imminent certification from the European Aviation Safety Agency. The firm order, announced during the Dubai Airshow, is the second-largest for the new helicopter, behind Bristow Group's, which has ordered six aircraft for offshore operations and a further 11 to support its U.K. search-and-rescue (SAR) contract awarded this year.
Aviation Search Group, an executive recruiting firm for the aerospace and aviation industries, formed a new recruiting department dedicated to business aviation clientele. Grayson Barrows, director sales, says that hiring demand in the business aviation segment has grown significantly recently. Aviation Search Group works with manufacturers, airlines, service providers, business and general aviation businesses and airports.
The Middle East Business Aviation Association (MEBAA) is working with regional governments to introduce regulations and policies that lay a foundation for business aviation and curb illegal operations. Addressing illegal operations is one of the higher priorities for the European Business Aviation Association, and MEBAA is hoping its next conference, to be held in Dubai, will serve as a springboard to address the issue in the Middle East. “The conference will tackle the issue of the gray market, and we need a mechanism to fight this . . .
Nov. 19 — At 1956 EST, a Learjet 35, Mexican registration XA-USD, operated by Aero JL SA de CV, was destroyed when it crashed in the Atlantic Ocean after takeoff from Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport (FLL), Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The commercial pilot and a physician on board were lost and presumed fatally injured. The copilot and a flight nurse were fatally injured. An IFR flight plan was filed for the positioning flight from FLL to Cozumel, Mexico.
Shell has BEcome the latest company, Shell has become the latest company, and the first of the major oil companies, to declare it has developed an unleaded replacement for leaded avgas. The launch of the formula follows a 10-year research and development program. Shell must still undergo a testing program to obtain regulatory approvals from FAA and the European Aviation Safety Agency, along with ASTM specification for the fuel. But the fuel is designed as a drop-in replacement to meet all the key avgas properties and have a motor octane rating of more than 100.
Jetex has launched a full-service FBO at Al Maktoum International Airport at Dubai World Central. The facility offers a VIP lounge, ground support, fueling, handling and security services, and catering. Adel Mardini, president and CEO of Jetex Flight Support said “the FBO is just another step in Jetex's overall strategy to redefine ground handling and FBO quality worldwide. Jetex Flight Support www.jetex.com
I just wanted to say how much I like the new look of B&CA. It's clean, not cluttered and easy to read. With all the current debate about print versus digital, I find myself scanning the digital version when it arrives in my inbox, and later enjoying the hard copy when I have a little more time. Well done! Aviation Marketing CommunicationsWarrenton, Va.
The FAA is advising operators of various Hawker 750s, 800s, 900s and 1000s to check the aircraft aileron and aileron tab assemblies for potential problems that could cause oscillations at high altitudes. The agency issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) in late November 2013 encouraging the checks, saying it had received reports of wing/aileron oscillations from operators of Hawker 800XP and 850XP airplanes at altitudes above 33,000 ft. and at speeds of more than Mach 0.73. Unlike an airworthiness directive (AD), an SAIB is not mandatory.
Toward the end of 2012, NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen spoke of pitfalls facing the industry. Chief on his mind was budget. Washington was in deadlock and facing a fiscal cliff, sequestration and a government shutdown. Many of these prospects played out, much to the detriment of industry — from sequestration cuts that threatened the contract tower program to a shutdown that froze many aircraft deliveries, some flight training and all certificate renewal efforts. “2013 has been a challenging year for our industry,” Bolen says.
Scheyden's new True Aviator is functional in the cockpit and is the only timepiece to offer an Aide Memoire Bi-Directional ATIC bezel as a paperless reminder of the Automated Terminal Information Service (ATIS) recordings, according to the company. It comes with engraved airport identifiers. The lower gauge is a multi-feature digital IFR timer than can be used for timing instrument procedures or assisting with time checklist items. The upper gauge features a Liquid-Filled Magnetic Compass that provides awareness on the ground.
