European Commission and FAA representatives drafted a memorandum of cooperation in civil aviation research and development at a June meeting in Madrid. The first technical annex of the agreement covers NextGen and SESAR interoperability. The commission says it will present the text to the European Council and the European Parliament for formal adoption. The commission and the FAA intend to develop additional annexes “in the very near future.”
Col. Michael R. Gallagher, USAF (Ret.) (Hillsboro, Ore. )
I’d like to thank Ross Detwiler for reinforcing the cowboy image of military pilots with his tales of USAF pilot training in the Northrop T-38 Talon. I was in the same training program about the same time at Webb AFB, about 80 miles south of were Ross was training and the stunts he mentioned were not characteristic of the training I experienced. His salute to the T-38 could have highlighted what made and makes the airplane great.
Recently issued IRS rulings pertaining to liability for Federal Excise Taxes (FET), disallowance of accelerated depreciation deductions and tightened requirements for passive loss write-offs potentially threaten to hike costs for business aircraft operators. So warned attorney Keith Swirsky at the 13th annual Dassault Falcon Jet Aviation Professionals Conference held in May.
Joshua Hochberg, an aviation attorney, has purchased Sonoma Jet Center, one of two FBOs at Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport in California, for an undisclosed sum. “We’re pretty positive about the prospects for growth. But it’s going to take a lot of hard work,” Hochberg told The Press Democrat of Santa Rosa, Calif.
Citing a growing interest in single-engine turboprops, Extra Aircraft is beginning a push to sell its Extra 500 single-engine turboprop in the United States, said Errol Bader, a spokesperson for the German manufacturer, stating that the Extra 500 is particularly attractive in fiscally challenging times since it has a comfortable cabin and at its maximum cruise speed at 16,000 feet burns just 20 gallons of Jet A per hour. And considering the currency differential and other factors, he said building aircraft in the United States is a logical business strategy.
Dan Burkhart (Director, Regional Programs, NBAAEscondido, CA)
Very nice job on “Grassroots Business Aviation Associations” (April 2010, page 28). I have had favorable comments from all around. Additionally, this article will be helpful in both starting new and supporting existing groups. Thanks for taking the time to do this right.
AVWest of Perth Australia has placed a firm order for four ultra long-range Global Express XRS jets, including two with the Global Vision flight deck. The total value of the order is approximately $213 million US, based on the 2010 list price for typically equipped aircraft Bombardier announced July 15. “Our clientele is increasingly traveling to overseas destinations, including Europe, Asia and the Middle East, and now is the right time to add ultra-long-range jets to our fleet,” said Tim Roberts, AVWest Principal.
The FAA announced June 29 that Metron Aviation, Inc., of Dulles, Va., and Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc., of McLean, Va., received contracts, to perform engineering work supporting the transition to NextGen. The 10-year $1.15-billion contract awarded to Metron Aviation is one of the largest ever awarded by the FAA to a small business. The two contracts are the last of six awarded under an umbrella portfolio termed System Engineering 2020 (SE-2020).
Cessna Aircraft Company’ McCauley Propeller Systems division has achieved ASTM compliance for a new two-blade, fixed-pitch composite propeller for the Cessna 162 Skycatcher. “This is the first of a planned family of composite propellers we have in development, designed for a range of aircraft,” said McCauley Vice President and General Manager Peter Wilkinson, July 14. The 1L100 is a new all composite fixed-pitch propeller specifically designed for the Skycatcher’s Teledyne Continental Motors O-200D engine.
Chris Holliday (Aviation Safety Inspector, FSDO 23Rochester N.Y. )
I’m a Aviation Safety Inspector here at the Rochester, N.Y. FSDO and the helicopter POI. We recently held a helicopter safety seminar and I made a presentation on three recent helicopter accidents including the Maryland State Police accident. After reading your article (“A Medevac Ends In Disaster” May, page 79), I realize I was woefully short on details. Your article was excellent in both detail and conclusions. Thanks for your contribution to aviation safety and it is an excellent review of this accident.
Canadian certification of the Honeywell Primus Apex integrated avionics system in the reborn Twin Otter has been signed. This will be the second OEM forward fit installation of the system. Built by Viking Air, headquartered at Victoria, B.C., International Airport, the newly manufactured Twin Otter Series 400 features more than 400 modifications to the original DHC-6, the foremost being the Apex flight deck and installation of twin Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34 turboprops.
Airport operators in the Pacific Northwest are teaming up with Boeing and Washington State University on a six-month study to explore ways of developing a regional biofuels industry that will produce jet fuel from biomass. Alaska Airlines, Oregon’s Portland International Airport and Washington state’s Seattle-Tacoma International and Spokane International will participate in the study, according to the Air Transport Associations’ e-mail news bulletin.
A bill in that would extend bonus depreciation for businesses that purchase general aviation aircraft in 2010 was introduced in June by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). “Bonus depreciation is a powerful incentive to purchase a GA aircraft and is proven to increase sales during difficult economic conditions,” said Pete Bunce, GAMA’s president and CEO. Bonus depreciation allows a business to deduct an additional 50 percent of the depreciable value in the first year instead of spreading it out over five years.
Gulfstream Aerospace has earned FAA approval to provide Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) functionality for the Gulfstream G150. The WAAS-capable receiver is an option on new G150s and can be retrofitted on all in-service G150 aircraft. WAAS, which provides localizer performance with vertical guidance (LPV), enables pilots to fly into approved airports using an ILS-like glideslope. This capability yields a number of benefits, including enhanced safety, increased flight-planning options and improved airport access.
Maintenance Resource Management is something we all do on a daily basis, but if you are looking for help in creating a safe and ethical maintenance department, download FAA Advisory Circular AC 120-72, “Maintenance Resource Management Training.” There are plenty of good training and management ideas to help you keep your operation on the right track. Visit the FAA website at www.hf.faa.gov/docs/508/docs/AC120-72.pdf
When I graduated from our high school in Western Massachusetts, there were three doors from which to choose: (1) state teachers college; (2) partnering with my father in a funeral parlor; or (3) something else. At that time Pratt & Whitney was running big Help Wanted ads in the local paper, so some buddies and I flung open Door #3 and headed for East Hartford.
An absolutely great column on DCA (Viewpoint, May, page 11). I remember going to Signature DCA on numerous occasions and flying the river approach more than once. We don’t fly there for all the reasons you outlined. I suppose we would if a customer just outright insisted we do it and was agreeable to all the restrictions and requirements, but I’ve not heard anyone even suggest we go there. Besides, forget about shooting the passengers!
Jet Aviation Hong Kong recently received base maintenance approval by the Hong Kong CAD to carry out heavy maintenance on aircraft registered in PRC and Macau, the company announced July 17. Jet Aviation Hong Kong has also been awarded approval from the Bermuda authority to work on Gulfstream, Bombardier and Boeing BBJ aircraft up to a C check, as well as approval from the Isle of Man’s aviation authority to provide maintenance on G550 aircraft registered there.
Duncan Aviation recently completed an STC for the installation of Aircell’s high-speed Internet router with Wi-Fi capability in the Challenger 300. The system — which consists of an aircraft-certified high-speed data unit, wireless router and two belly mounted antennas — enables passengers to use their laptops, Blackberrys, iPhones and other Wi-Fi devices at connection speeds of 1 to 3 Mbps. This was the second Aircell STC for Duncan Aviation in the second quarter.
ExecuJet Mexico has opened a new office at Toluca Airport. ExecuJet Mexico also has offices in Monterrey’s Mariano Escobedo and Del Norte International airports. The company offers aircraft management, charter, sales and maintenance services.
Matthew Huff expects the next few months, a traditionally slow season in the previously owned aircraft business, to be quiet this year as well. “Our forecast is that the summer is going to be rather slow,” he predicted. The vice president of inventory control for O’Gara Aviation, the Atlanta-based aircraft acquisition and sales company, noted that the market showed “a noticeable improvement in late winter through mid-spring.”
Pilatus Aircraft Ltd delivered the 1000th PC-12 at a special ceremony at its U.S. subsidiary Pilatus Business Aircraft, Ltd., in Broomfield, Colo., the company announced July 15. The milestone aircraft was handed over to its new owner, David Fountain of Halifax, Nova Scotia, who is now a three-time PC-12 owner. He purchased all three aircraft from the V. Kelner Pilatus Center, in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Meridian Air Charter, the Teterboro, N.J.-based private aviation services company, announced the addition of a Cessna Citation Mustang to its fleet of charter aircraft. Privately owned and operated Meridian has been based at Teterboro for over 60 years.
The third and final Gulfstream G250 test aircraft has joined the flight-test program. Gulfstream designed and built the super-midsize business jet in collaboration with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) in Tel Aviv, Israel. The third aircraft completed its first flight on June 28, taking off from Ben Gurion Airport at 10:30 a.m. local time. During the two-hour, 56-minute flight, the aircraft reached a maximum speed of 250 knots and an altitude of 20,000 feet.
For decades, FAR Part 135 charter operators have used their aviation expertise to manage aircraft for companies that own jets for their own use. The now-common practice of placing these managed corporate aircraft on a charter company's operations specifications for charter by third parties evolved from that initial management service.
