Pilots often characterize flying as “hours and hours of boredom, occasionally punctuated by moments of terror.” Modern cockpit automation increases the risk that pilots will be lulled into a dull state, unaware of subtle changes that may portend increasing risks.
In the days when a time clock actually had hands, punching the clock was the universal marker for the beginning or end of the workday. Late arrival or early departure meant a skinny payday; or depending on your boss's mood, an assignment to clean the lav service cart. The time card was all-important and represented the portion of your life you exchanged for a paycheck. When the hangar was busy, overtime meant a sometimes welcome opportunity to earn more cash at the expense of family life.
The Department of Labor has a useful website to help explain the various labor laws. Although they are very complex, and almost every situation has a unique way to interpret the rules, the website has helpful explanatory brochures and regulatory and interpretative materials. It is available on the Wage and Hour Division's website: www.dol.gov/whd/
Faced with a ludicrous plan by the FAA to dismantle a well-run joint government/industry program that helps ensure the safety of thousands of aircraft and their occupants, the leaders of the NBAA, AOPA and EAA have joined forces to contest the FAA's misguided efforts.
Investigators from Ireland's Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU) are working with their peers from the U.K.'s AAIB, the American NTSB, Spain's CIAIAC and Israel's AIAI to determine the cause of the loss of a Fairchild Aircraft SA-227-BC Metro III on approach to Cork Airport on Feb. 10, 2011. Both pilots were killed as were four of the 10 passengers. The remaining passengers survived, some with serious injuries.
Compiled By Jessica A. Salerno April 16 — A Cessna 172S (N1835U) was substantially damaged when it hit terrain following a touch-and-go landing at Payson Airport (PAN), Payson, Ariz. The private pilot, the sole person on board, received minor injuries. It was VFR for the instructional flight and no flight plan had been filed.
ACSS (an L-3 Communication and Thales company) Phoenix, named Kimberly Murdoch vice president of operations, responsible for manufacturing repair and overhaul and integrated supply chain management. She will report to Terry Flaishans, ACSS vice president and general manager. American Helicopter Society International (AHS), Alexandria, Va., has selected Michael J. Hirschberg to be its executive director. He replaces M.E. Rhett Flater, who served the Society for 20 years.
The Air France 447 tragedy might have been avoided if the flight crew had a display of critical and rudimentary aerodynamic performance data. That is angle of attack (AoA), the geometric angle between the mean chord of the wing and the relative airflow.
A U.S. Air Force tactical airlift pilot during the Vietnam conflict, I crisscrossed the length and breadth of the war zone on a regular basis. My C-123K Provider was a 60,000-lb. workhorse whose curious pairing of two Pratt & Whitney R2800 radials and two General Electric J-85 wing-mounted turbojets made it surprisingly well-suited for its mission.
The Innotech-Execaire Aviation Group — which has decades of experience performing a variety of completion, maintenance, repair and overhaul services — is also Canada's authorized sales representative for Cessna Aircraft. Recently, Andrew P. Pearce was appointed to grow the company's aircraft sales presence in Europe, the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Middle East.
New research from Hawker Beechcraft Corp. (HBC) and Corporate Jet Investor indicates that the majority of business aviation financing experts expect demand for financing to increase in Europe, the Middle East and Africa over the next five years. None of those interviewed anticipate demand for financing in those regions to fall. The findings are based on a poll of 48 aviation finance experts that was conducted at the International Corporate Jet & Helicopter Finance 2011 conference earlier this year.
Hawker Beechcraft has developed new retrofit packages for the Hawker 750 and King Air 200GT and is approaching milestones in its upgrade programs for the Hawker 450 and 800.
BAE Systems and U.K. design consultant Design Q recently unveiled the latest interior concept for the Avro Business Jet (ABJ) — the ABJ Eleganté. This new concept is the fourth of five new interiors developed by Design Q for ABJs. The Eleganté interior features a large forward galley, which can be shut off from the main cabin for privacy. The forward lounge has two large sofas, a dining table in the aft section and a 46-in. display. The dining area can be used as a work area.
Safe Flight Instrument Corp.'s Power Line Detection System (PDS) has been certified for installation on the Enstrom 480B helicopter, and the system will soon be available for retrofit on the approximately 90 in-service models of that rotorcraft. The PDS also will be offered as an option on new production models of the light turbine helicopter built by the Menominee, Mich., rotary-wing manufacturer. Enstrom has already delivered PDS-equipped 480B helicopters to the Royal Thai Army as part of a 16-aircraft contract.
Fokker Aircraft Services recently handed over a converted Airbus A320 airliner to MasterJet, a Geneva, Switzerland-based operator. The makeover — which was done at the company facility in Woensdrecht, Netherlands — included a complete teardown of the airline interior and installation of five separate cabins, including a private suite with bedroom, bathroom and office; a conference and dining area; separate executive lounge; and special first-class seating area.
Rockwell Collins has introduced a digital high-definition (HD) upgrade to aircraft equipped with its ACMS and CMS-1 cabin management systems. The upgrade includes HD monitors, dual Blu-ray disc players and an HD audio/video distributor that also can upscale analog content to HD quality. The avionics manufacturer says the upgrade enables passengers to enjoy a high-end home-theater experience without the expense and downtime required by changing control switches and modifying the woodwork.
St. Louis-based JetCorp Technical Services has received an STC for the installation of Aircell's Cabin Telecommunications Router (CTR) in a Bombardier Challenger 300 business jet. The CTR provides in-cabin Wi-Fi capability for the Gogo Biz Inflight Internet service, which enables passengers to use their BlackBerry, iPhone and other Wi-Fi enabled devices inflight at connectivity speeds equivalent to ground-based hotspots.
Rockwell Collins has received an STC to retrofit Pro Line 4-equipped Falcon 2000 and Falcon 2000EX aircraft with the Pro Line 21 avionics suite. The upgrade replaces the legacy CRT displays with LCD displays. Some 250 Falcon 2000 and 2000EX aircraft are eligible for the Pro Line 21 retrofit.
There are plenty of choices in today's pre-owned light jet market and plenty of trade-offs in cabin comfort, performance and direct operating cost. The Beechjet 400/400A has one of the roomiest cabins in its class, rivaling those of Phenom 300 or Learjet 40XR, although it's about two feet shorter in length. It will climb directly to FL 410, or higher, and cruise at 440 KIAS, assuming standard-day conditions. And most aircraft in the resale market are priced at $1.2-$1.8 million, an attractive value.
The FAA is soliciting comments on an air tour management plan (ATMP) under development for Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida. The Florida ATMP is one of a number of plans the agency has initiated to develop regulations governing air tours over national parkland. The FAA was directed to develop ATMPs under the National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 2000.
The Professional Aviation Maintenance Association (PAMA) board of directors has selected Dale Forton as president of the association, which represents aviation maintenance personnel. Forton has 32 years of aviation maintenance experience and has been involved in PAMA for more than 26 years. He has served as an airframe and powerplant technician and director of maintenance. He also has been an active PAMA board member, launching a chapter, serving as Great Lakes regional director and vice chairman of the board.
India wants to introduce 100 seaplanes into service in the next 10 years to support tourism and essential services to its coastal and island territories. The federal government will allow 100% foreign direct investment in the seaplane sector and urges overseas operators to take advantage of the offer.
Maintenance standard orders proposed by the FAA would gradually replace maintenance guidance material now provided by CAMs and CARs. MSOs are intended to prescribe maintenance minimums and generally would not go into detail, but would provide for alternate methods acceptable to the FAA. The Bureau of Flight Standards invites industry to comment and has proposed a typical new MSO A-1 relating to tire retread.
Solairus Aviation has added an Austin, Texas-based Bombardier Challenger 604 to its charter fleet, and an Oakland, Calif.-based Challenger is undergoing the company's conformity procedures before being cleared for charter operations. The company has already added a Gulfstream GV, a Gulfstream GIV and a Hawker 800SP to its charter fleet so far this year.
Embraer posted first-quarter 2011 earnings higher than the same quarter last year, reporting a net income of $105.1 million, up from $24.1 million in the first quarter of 2010. The rise largely is attributable to tax credits from the appreciation of Brazil's real. The appreciation of the real is a “real challenge,” the company says, and Embraer's response has been to increase productivity at its manufacturing facilities. Embraer delivered two large business jets and six light jets in the first quarter, which the company said was in line with expectations.
