Embraer's large cabin Lineage 1000 received its type certificate from India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The latest certification is in addition to certifications by Brazil's ANAC and the European Aviation Safety Agency in December 2008, and the U.S. FAA in January 2009. To date, nine Lineage 1000 jets are in operation worldwide.
Despite the uncertain economy in recent years, the European Business Aviation Association's membership has more than doubled since 2005. The association picked up 40 new members last year alone. EBAA credits a more proactive membership recruitment approach in 2010 — the association gave a trial membership to anyone who attended last year's European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition. The organization went from 211 full members in 2005 to 458 in 2011, including 23 members from the U.S.
In 2009, the DOT ordered CSI Aviation Services Inc. to cease and desist from acting as a broker of air charter services for the federal government. The company appealed, and on April 1, 2011, the District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals granted CSI's petition for review, finding that the DOT failed to justify its authority to issue the contested order.
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.
Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion, the company's newest and most advanced integrated avionics system, has reached a major milestone by receiving its final FAA Technical Standard Order (TSO). Certification of the avionics hardware and software sets the stage for supplemental type certification on Rockwell Collins' Challenger 601 test aircraft and on Bombardier's Global Express XRS.
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.
The Gulfstream V is one of the highest performance large-cabin business aircraft on the pre-owned market. Between 1997 and 2002, the Savannah firm built 194 units before replacing it with the GV-SP, commercially known as the G550.
Signature Flight Support has launched a new maintenance brand. Signature TECHNICAir consolidates all Signature-owned maintenance facilities under one unified brand covering the former Executive Beechcraft locations at Kansas City Downtown Airport, Spirit of St. Louis Airport, New Century AirCenter Airport (Olathe, Kan.) and Signature locations at Hanscom Field in Bedford, Mass.; St. Paul (Minn.) Downtown Airport; and the newly acquired Yellowstone Jetcenter in Bozeman, Mont.
Malaysian offshore operator Weststar Aviation Services has taken delivery of the last three of the nine AgustaWestland AW139s it ordered, primarily for supporting offshore oil and gas operations in the country. The three were delivered to Kuala Lumpur's Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport via an Antonov AN124 freighter. Six AW139s will be based at Kertih, with the remaining three at Sultan Ismail Petra Airport in Pengkalan Chepa. Weststar, reputedly the fourth biggest AW139 offshore operator in the world, provides helicopter services to oil and gas companies.
Thrane & Thrane's Aviator 200 SwiftBroadband system with Wi-Fi has received a European Aviation Safety Agency STC for installation in Cessna Citation CJ1 and CJ2 jets. The system was integrated and tested aboard a Cessna CJ1 by RUAG Aerospace Services GmbH in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany. Thrane & Thrane's Aviator 200 is a compact, lightweight system that offers reliable, affordable connectivity to provide users with a range of voice and data services.
Decades ago, I was responsible for providing technical support for several out-of-production aircraft models. I had to maintain the manuals for each type and had a full bookcase to care for. The oldest model came out in the late 1940s and its entire manual fit snugly into a three-ring binder. As the aircraft progressed in time, the manuals became larger. The latest model aircraft (1970s vintage) took up about half the shelf space. Volumes of maintenance data, vendor manuals, parts lists and overhaul instructions were in constant need of updating and revision.
Whatever your motivation it is clear that your intent in reporting on David Sokol's resignation (AWIN, March 31) was to besmirch his character. There is not one iota of evidence suggesting insider trading by Sokol; get your facts straight prior to launching a tirade. While you may be building a résumé that will have your considered for employment by NBC, the New York Times or CNN, reporting honestly and fairly would serve mankind far better than your guttersniping.
Ian Becker (Boys Town, Neb. ), San Diego, Calif. (Boys Town, Neb. )
The arrival of BCA every month is a highlight in my life, and the February issue is another stellar example of this. Viewpoint has a way of segueing from an interesting tidbit, or familial tale, into a serious deliberation concerning general aviation. It never fails to spike my sinews and provide a good old-fashioned jolt! And it inspired me to share an idea.
The European Aviation Safety Agency certified Honeywell's TPE331-12JR turboprop engine on the Cessna Caravan. Honeywell claims that with the TPE331-12JR conversion, Caravan operators experience up to 40% more power than with the production engine. They also save as much as $40 per hour in operating costs due to longer maintenance intervals, fewer life cycle-limited parts and better fuel efficiency when compared to the standard OEM engine. The engine also passes Germany's stringent maximum fly-over noise level of 78 dBA.
Having raised four children, you'd think I'd be much more vigilant about saying “Yes” too easily simply because its contingent obligation seems so removed in time. After all, “You promised!” is one of the most potent tools in a child's weapons locker.
Cessna took orders for 30 aircraft at the Sun ‘n Fun International Fly-In & Expo in Lakeland, Fla. “The opening days of Sun ‘n Fun were very positive, and while the storm on Thursday [March 31] interrupted that mood somewhat, the exhibitors and the crowds bounced back to finish the show strong,” said Mark Paolucci, Cessna's senior vice president of sales and marketing. “Cessna took 16 orders for the new Corvalis TTX and 13 orders for high-wing single-engine pistons.
During its most recent gathering at Orlando's Heli-Expo in early March, an industry-wide sigh of relief was heard as the helicopter community celebrated the conclusion of a year during which it managed to survive. Forget growth for the moment, the industry seemed to say, as it focused on how it had weathered the storm and what its plans will be when the clouds clear.
Cessna established a Citation service facility in Prague, located at sister company Bell Helicopter's service facility at Prague Ruzyne International Airport. Cessna and Bell are Textron companies. Certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency in February, the center has begun performing scheduled and unscheduled maintenance operations.
Embraer signed a preliminary agreement with AVIC (Aviation Industry Corp. of China) for their Chinese joint venture company, Harbin Embraer Aircraft Industry Co. (HEAI), to set up a Legacy 600/650 production line in China. The preliminary deal calls for output at the joint venture to shift from 50-seat ERJ-145 regional jets to Legacy 600/650 business jets, which are derived from the ERJ-135/145 family. As we go to press, Embraer says it expects to finalize the details of the new arrangement with AVIC and “execute the relevant documentation” within weeks.
Cleveland-based Constant Aviation has completed its first STC'd installation of a Wi-Fi system, along with Aircell's Gogo Biz Inflight Internet, in a Gulfstream IV. The company also is completing its STC for installation of Aircell's Gogo Biz Inflight and Wi-Fi in the Cessna Citation X, Hawker 800A/XP, Beechjet and Embraer Phenom 300.
HondaJet certification flight testing confirmed that the light business jet exceeds the maximum speed promised to customers, says Honda Aircraft. The first FAA-conforming prototype has achieved 425 KTAS at 30,000 ft. and a maximum Mach number of 0.72 above that altitude. The performance commitment for the production HondaJet is 420 kt., the Greensboro, N.C.-based company says.
FAA's plan to restrict use of the Block Aircraft Registration Request (BARR) program is “dangerous, invasive and unwarranted” and could have far-reaching implications, says the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA). AOPA was one of the more than 600 commenters on FAA's March 4 notice of a tentative decision to limit BARR participation to only those operators with a verifiable threat to their operations.
Aero Dynamix Inc., Euless, Texas, named Tonka Hufford operations manager, project development. He most recently was president of RSG Aviation. Aero Law Group, Bellevue, Wash., has added Paul Lambert to its team of lawyers responsible for clients in sales, leasing, financing and the exchange of business and commercial aircraft.
I read with some distress “Backdoor Rulemaking” (Washington Watch, April 2011, page 61). The purely economic arguments made in the column did nothing to diminish the need for hard time duty limits for all crews. Multiple studies have shown the extreme danger of fatigue in air operations; some have even scientifically equated a 17-hr. day to being legally drunk (0.05% BAC).
