New Russian airspace rules provide for uncontrolled flight. Regulations dividing Russian Federation airspace into three classes based on altitude have been placed in effect to comply with ICAO standards and practices. Class A airspace extends upward from 8,100 meters (26,575 ft.). All commercial, business and government aviation operations in that airspace will be under IFR and under ATC control along designated routes.
Cessna announced Nov. 11, at the AOPA Aviation Summit 2010, that production of the Model 162 Skycatcher continues to increase, with the 50th aircraft on its way that week to the U.S. reassembly facility at Yingling Aviation in Wichita, and more expected to be shipped by the end of the year. Cessna said it is on target to deliver 30 Skycatchers by year-end and more than 150 in 2011.
“Crosswind Troubles” (Cause & Circumstance, November 2010, page 56) was superb. This is the first time I’ve seen this problem addressed and you did so admirably. While going through and completing simulator training for the CE-650 Citation III and CE-750 Citation X, I was nonplussed by the lack of any crosswind training. It seemed that the sims just weren’t equipped for it. How, I wondered, can we be considered really “safe” in these aircraft when we don’t even have basic crosswind experience in the sim?
Líder Taxi Aéreo S.A. Air Brasil ordered a Sikorsky S-92 at NBAA. Líder will operate the aircraft in support of offshore oil operations. This order will bring its S-92 fleet to four aircraft.
StandardAero is flight testing its Pratt & Whitney PT6A-135A engine upgrade for the Cessna Caravan 208. The first flight occurred on Sept. 22 at Wipaire Inc. in St. Paul, Minn. Supplemental type certification of the Caravan 208A and 208B engine packages is expected in the first quarter and second quarter of 2011, respectively.
The AvioNG Integrated Flight Management System is now available for all Eclipse twin jets. Eclipse Aerospace in Albuquerque, N.M. provides engineering, service and support for the fleet of 260 Eclipse jets. AvioNG glass-panel cockpits supplied by IS&S are installed in over 160 Eclipse Jet aircraft.
Seattle-based Aviation Partners Inc. (API) has introduced a new Hawker 800 blended winglet that incorporates the company’s scimitar-tip technology. The scimitar tip is a new aerodynamic shape that provides an additional 0.5% of drag reduction in long-range cruise. In addition, API says the scimitar provides “a striking new aesthetic.”
A November FAA exemption allows volunteer pilots for three charities to receive reimbursement for fuel used in the transport of patients, wounded warriors, and veterans. Angel Flight Mid-Atlantic, Airlift Hope and Mercy Medical Airlift are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations that utilize volunteer pilots to fly patients to distant, specialized medical facilities for treatment. Under the FAA exemption given to these three volunteer pilot organizations (VPOs), only individuals flying missions under their charge are able to accept reimbursement for fuel costs.
To a business traveler, few objects are as beautiful as the company jet. Travelers boarding high-end business aircraft may take a few fleeting seconds to regard its exquisite exterior, but they will spend long hours in the cabin. And that’s why the interiors of these airplanes are getting deserved extra attention of late.
The roomy expanse of the FAA’s new Oakland, Calif., Air Route Traffic Control Center is a boon to controllers. Commissioned in October, the fallout-proof building is the first of a new series.
Jeppesen has introduced a digital chart service for business aircraft operators that eliminates manual revisions. Jeppesen unveiled eChart Viewer at the NBAA Convention. The first eChart customer, Avantair, based in Clearwater, Fla., manages a fleet of more than 55 aircraft and has another 53 Piaggio Avanti aircraft on order through 2013. Jeppesen previously had provided short-term custom digital charts to Avantair and worked with the fractional operation and its pilots to refine the new service.
Sensis Corp.’s Wide Area Multilateration (WAM) system over Tasmania, Australia is now operational, the company announced Nov. 1. The system uses multilateration and ADS-B to provide Airservices Australia with en route surveillance of air traffic across the island and down to the surface at Hobart and Launceston Airports. The Sensis WAM system provides seamless cooperative surveillance coverage between Launceston and Hobart airports, with accurate coverage of 150 meters or better from the ground level at the airports to 18,000 ft.
Business aircraft cabins are being transformed into amazingly capable work and entertainment venues, made possible by blasting gazillions of bytes through ever-smaller boxes at ever-faster speeds. Increasingly facile aircraft systems are being installed; new satellite services offer communication capabilities unimagined just a few years ago; vendors are making the challenge of finding the right hardware and services easier than ever while inventing new tools with which to measure their value.
The Aviation Security Advisory Committee’s general aviation working group, comprised of industry stakeholders who provide input in security decision making, met to discuss a variety of issues and initiatives Oct. 25 at TSA headquarters. The group looked into ways to make temporary flight restrictions more manageable for GA aircraft, among other issues.
Avfuel Corp. has established Avplan Trip Support, a new in-house subsidiary dedicated to flight and trip-planning services. Avfuel acquired Van Nuys, Calif.-based Pacific Coast Forecasting earlier this year to build on Avfuel’s existing ground-handling and trip-planning services. Integrating the services under Avplan Trip Support will “streamline and enhance Avfuel’s service matrix, allowing for quality control,” the company says.
Embraer’s new U.S. aircraft assembly plant, expected to deliver its first Phenom 100 by the end of this year, will create about 200 U.S. jobs. The 150,000-sq.-ft. facility and paint shop at Melbourne International Airport in Florida can produce up to eight Phenom 100s per month for U.S. customers.
Brady T. Templeton (President and General Manager)
I read your story on Ag Kitty. It sounds like something I may have done in my younger years had I been a pilot with a hangar cat. The story is awesome and what I needed this morning. Thanks for sharing.
Josh Mesinger joined the family business a decade ago, and today Josh and his father, Jay, jointly manage all aircraft sales and acquisition projects for the Boulder, Colo.-based aircraft brokerage firm.
FlightSafety International announced Nov. 10 that the company’s Embraer 170/190 interchangeable flight simulator at its St. Louis Learning Center has been FAA qualified to Level D. FlightSafety has 24 simulators for Embraer aircraft at nine locations in the United States and overseas.
Peter Ingleton (Montreal), IBAC, Director ICAO Liaison (Montreal)
Regarding “Operating ‘Down Under’ — Business Aviation in Australia” (November 2010, page 31), the Australian Business Aircraft Association executive director is David Bell, not Mike Bell . . . you got confused between Mike Keenan, also of the ABAA! And, heaven forbid: “Sidney” for Sydney?! Congrats that you spelled Qantas* correctly . . . it provides some measure of atonement. Writing about the Australian Outback without reference to “GAFA”** is a feat in itself! All in all a good piece, nevertheless.
Gulfstream received FAA certification to install the latest version of its ultra-high-speed Broadband Multi-Link (BBML) data system on the Gulfstream V. With BBML 3.0, passengers in flight can surf the Internet, send and receive e-mail, or perform any other Web-based tasks at data rates up to 3.5 Mbps.
The emirate of Qatar occupies a small peninsula thrust out of the much larger Arabian Peninsula into the Persian Gulf a short distance north of the UAE. The captain we quoted first in the main text, flies often to Doha, capital and largest city. Here’s his report on what to expect: “We work Riyadh and Jeddah to Bahrain on the way down,” he said, describing arrival from the north. “Doha, right on the coast of the Persian Gulf, has one 15,000-ft. runway, and they are building two more the same length!”
