Wilson Air Center is operating its fourth FBO at Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (KCHA). The facility officially opened Aug. 4 and includes a newly constructed 9,000-sq.-ft. executive terminal and modern FBO campus featuring an office complex, hangar facilities, ramp and self-serve fuel farm. Wilson Air Center also operates FBOs in Memphis, Charlotte, and Houston.
I was working on my second cup of coffee that Tuesday morning at 800 Independence, and reviewing some paperwork, when the phone rang. My wife, Lenore, was all business: “Go to the TV! Oh my God! It's unbelievable.”
The Gulfstream Aerospace service center in Dallas, which supports business jet operators in Latin America and the Southwestern U.S., has earned approved maintenance organization (AMO) designations from Mexico and Brazil, meaning that aircraft registered in those countries can undergo maintenance, repairs, alterations and inspections at the Dallas Love Field facility.
MENA Aerospace Enterprises' avionics division, SA MENA Avionics, has been selected by Flight Display Systems to sell, install and support its systems. Flight Display Systems manufactures inflight entertainment products and cabin management systems, including moving maps, high-definition LCD monitors, monitor mounts, iPod docks, Blu-ray/DVD players, flight view cameras and iPad mounts. MENA Avionics is a full-service avionics repair station based at Bahrain International Airport and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
Jet Professionals has opened a new branch office at Al Bateen Executive Airport in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The office will provide aviation staffing services to the Middle East market. “Our Al Bateen presence allows us to better serve and support our Middle East customers and to handle this market's current and anticipated growth,” says Hani Farag, managing director of Jet Professionals Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and Asia. The company is working with its affiliate company in the Americas to provide universal staffing and support services.
Garmin International has delivered the first Daher-Socata TBM 700 upgraded with the avionics maker's G1000 integrated flight deck. The airplane, which went to the French Ministry of Defense, is part of a contract to upgrade 27 TBM 700 aircraft that are in service with the French military. The cockpit modification has received both FAA and European Aviation Safety Agency approval.
Aircell, Broomfield, Colo., appointed industry veteran Dennis Hildreth manager, OEM sales. He is responsible for managing the company's relationships with business aircraft manufacturers. Avantair Inc., Clearwater, Fla., announced that Stephen Wagman has joined the company as executive vice president, finance and operations. Aviation Research Group/US, Cincinnati, named Mark Wulber to the ARGUS PROS (Partners and Resources for Operational Safety) team as the director of audit programs for business aviation.
Cessna is offering Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) upgrades for the Citation Ultra and Citation Encore. The STCed installation, which covers all Ultras and Encores serial number 260 through 750, includes dual Universal UNS-1Espw flight management systems certified for fully coupled WAAS LPV (localizer performance with vertical guidance) approaches.
Blackhawk Modifications, the Waco, Texas-based company that specializes in engine performance solutions for turboprops, has won an FAA STC for its powerplant enhancement package for the Cessna Caravan 208B.
Eclipse Aerospace Inc. (EAI) has completed a combustion liner recertification project that will enable its EA500 very light jet (VLJ) to return to its maximum certified service ceiling of 41,000 ft. EAI calls the FAA approval the last of a lengthy list of certification projects that the company has undertaken to fix problems and improve the aircraft since it bought the program out of bankruptcy in August 2009. The fixes are expected to increase the value of existing EA500s and set the stage for new production of the VLJ.
Flying Colours Corp., the Ontario, Canada-based interior completions specialist, says it is experiencing increased demand for midsize business jet refurbishments. Since the beginning of the first quarter, the firm has seen “a steady growth in orders,” particularly from Bombardier Challenger 300 and 604, Dassault Falcon 900 and Hawker 800 operators.
Fresh off its July fiasco, when interminable political squabbling led to temporary unemployment for tens of thousands of FAA employees and construction workers assigned to FAA-funded projects, Congress returns to Washington this month faced with the same issue that led to the shutdown: the need to pass long-term legislation to authorize the FAA's operation.
Beechcraft Barons and Bonanzas can be upgraded to LED landing, taxi position and anti-collision lights, with an aftermarket package offered by Hawker Beechcraft Global Customer Support (GCS). Designed in conjunction with Astronics LSI, the lights have no filaments to break, are shock- and vibration-resistant, and consume substantially less energy, according to GCS. The solid-state LED lights also are highly reliable, with a mean time between failure of more than 8,000 hr.
Oliver Stone, a long-time broker with Texas-based Business Air International, is now the managing director of London-based Colibri Aircraft Ltd., a new firm that is offering aircraft acquisition, resale and asset consultation services. “My work was always based on being overseas, especially in London, so this takes advantage of being in the same time zone as a number of people who buy and sell aircraft,” said Stone recently.
It is not often that the NTSB issues a probable cause of “undetermined,” but such is the case with the loss of a Learjet 35A and its two-pilot crew on Jan. 5, 2010. The twinjet, configured for cargo operations, was maneuvering on a circle to Runway 34 at Chicago Executive Airport (PWK) at 1327 local time when it stalled and crashed into the Des Plaines River some 1.3 mi. short of the threshold.
When asked recently about the state of his used aircraft business, John Newton said Cessna's deliveries of previously owned Citations are 300% ahead of last year, and the order rate “is pretty consistent. I am feeling pretty good.”
Jeppesen has been experimenting with nothing less than a complete overhaul of how flight information is presented, with the assumption that some form of digital access and display device will serve as the platform and that aircraft will be connected electronically to a dispatch operation or its equivalent. Another tacit assumption is that NextGen and the implementation of ADS-B will be paralleling the Jeppesen development effort.
The Cessna 441 Conquest II's blend of over 300 kt. cruise speeds and top-notch fuel efficiency is stimulating buyer interest. In the past three years, the increasing price of jet fuel and the pressure to “go green” are causing some would-be used light jet buyers to reconsider high-performance turboprops instead. Cessna built 362 units from 1977 through 1986 and more than 300 aircraft remain in service. Midlife aircraft in good condition now command $1 million to $1.9 million.
Recent research reports published by corporate aviation information provider JETNET and J.P. Morgan's aerospace and defense analysts say there are some positive signs in the pre-owned aircraft market, but that a broad-based recovery has yet to take hold. In releasing first-half results for the pre-owned business jet, business turboprop and helicopter markets, Utica, N.Y.-based JETNET called 2011 a “year of correction.”
Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. delivered two more S-76C++ helicopters to France's Heli-Union for offshore oil missions. The purchase contract was signed in November 2010. With this delivery, Heli-Union now has eight S-76C++ helicopters operating internationally.
“Inflight Monitoring Systems for Business Aviation, Part 1” (August 2011, page 28) was nicely done. These devices are effective tools for managing the safety and cost-effectiveness of flight departments. It may take some time and possibly education before business aviation accepts these tools, but I suspect flight department managers will embrace this technology in time. General Aero Co.
Elrey Jeppesen would be hard pressed to recognize the company he founded in 1934. The United Air Lines pilot began taking notes as he flew his routes, and soon other pilots were borrowing them. Jeppesen quit his airline job to launch the charting operation full time, and the company grew to become the dominant private navigational data provider to the world. In 1961, it became part of the Times-Mirror companies, and in 2000, the company was acquired by Boeing.
On Sept. 3, 2010, a Boeing 747-400 cargo jet departed Dubai International Airport bound for Cologne, Germany. About 20 min. later, the crew made an emergency call indicating that there was a fire onboard. They returned to Dubai, donning oxygen masks and smoke hoods. Smoke entered the cockpit and eventually the crew was overwhelmed. The aircraft crashed south of the runway, killing both pilots. It was carrying a shipment of rechargeable lithium batteries.
All manufacturers of auxiliary power units (APUs) make other aircraft components as well. Honeywell makes propulsion engines, among other things, Hamilton Sundstrand is just one small part of United Technologies, and Goodrich makes landing gear, nacelles and a whole catalog of system components. APUs provide electrical power, compressed air and, in some cases, hydraulic power, mostly while the airplane is parked and has no external power sources. APUs may also be capable of starting in flight to provide backup power when necessary.
