NetJets is continuing to work to improve its financial footing, announcing plans to consolidate NJI, Inc., which operates the company’s Gulfstream large-cabin fleet, with NetJets Aviation in Columbus, Ohio. As a result, most NJI functions will move from Savannah, Ga., and South Carolina to Columbus, NetJets Chairman and CEO David Sokol said in a June statement. Sokol said, “We believe this development will further unite and strengthen our North American operations.” Pending regulatory approvals, the consolidation would be completed in October.
Cessna will to extend its Citation Mobile Service Unit (MSU) teams to Europe by year-end. Part of Cessna’s Service Direct program, mobile units are already operational in the United States. Cessna executives say the extension to Europe is a “natural progression” of the program since more than 1,000 Citations have been delivered to customers in the region. Cessna has not yet determined the specific base for the European MSU but expects the unit will be located in southern France and also cover Geneva, northern Italy and northern Spain.
Swiss-based RUAG Business Aviation is teaming with Rockwell Collins to offer a Pro Line 21 Integrated Display System (IDS) retrofit for legacy Piaggio P180 Avantis. RUAG Business Aviation — which provides comprehensive maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services, modifications and upgrades for business aircraft from three facilities in Switzerland and one in Germany — is taking pre-orders for the flight deck makeover and is seeking a launch customer for the retrofit, which is expected to be available in the fourth quarter.
The FAA has rolled out a new surveillance technology to help track aircraft in the mountainous region around Juneau, Alaska. The ground-based Wide-Area Multilateration (WAM) system will provide interim surveillance capability until the agency deploys satellite-based ADS-B in the area. WAM comprises a network of sensors that transmit signals, which are received and returned by aircraft transponders. The WAM system “triangulates” returning signals to determine the location of the aircraft and present it to controllers on their consoles as if it were a radar target.
The first European-registered aircraft to be fitted with Aviation Partners Inc. (API) blended winglets was recently completed. The Dassault 2000EX EASy aircraft, owned by Gator Aviation and flown by jet charter operator Aviation Beauport Ltd., which is based on the Channel Island of Jersey, had the performance-enhancing airfoils installed at Duncan Aviation’s Battle Creek, Mich., facility.
Hawker Beechcraft appointed Metrojet Hong Kong as an authorized service center in late May to support Hawker 900/800/700 business jets in China and the Pacific Rim. Founded in 1995, Metrojet provides engine and airframe service, avionics line maintenance, routine inspections, interior and exterior cleaning and detailing, and scheduled base inspections. Metrojet operates a 24/7 AOG hotline and has a staff of more than 90 maintenance professionals. Metrojet is a certified repair station with approvals from the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department and the FAA.
Hawker Beechcraft Services (HBS) has selected the Thrane & Thrane Aviator 200 system to provide broadband connectivity for in-service King Air 90, 200, 300 and 350 aircraft. Certification of the system on the twin turboprops is expected in the fourth quarter. In 2009, the high-speed Internet equipment was certificated on Hawker Beechcraft’s Hawker business jets.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s College of Aviation - Professional Programs Department will offer a short-course in Advanced Aircraft Accident Investigation at the University’s Prescott Campus from Aug. 2-6, 2010. This course is a follow-on to ERAU’s accident investigation management course or for an individual who has experience in accident investigation.
The flight deck has an impressive avionics suite, including three, eight-by-ten inch, portrait configuration AMLCD adaptive flight displays, dual solid-state AHRS, dual digital air data computers, full-function, multi-sensor FMS-3000 with GPS receiver, dual 4000-series Pro Line 21 comm/nav/surveillance radios with Mode S diversity antennae, standard TWR-850 Doppler turbulence detection radar, L3 Skywatch HP TCAS I, ACSS Class A TAWS and a solid-state Meggitt secondary flight display system [emergency standby instrument system].
“As we move into the summer of 2010, there has never been a market so fractured, with so many ups and downs,” commented Fletcher Aldredge, publisher of the Vref Aircraft Value Reference and the Vref Market Leader newsletter. Aldredge noted in the second quarter edition of Market Leader that international buyers have buoyed the used aircraft market in recent months. “The robust export market has helped breath life back into everything from Cessna 182s to Gulfstream 550s.”
The new FAA NIEC is off to a flying start with Boeing subsidiary Insitu providing unmanned aircraft for research to help develop recommendations for integrating unmanned aircraft into the national airspace. The system, including two ScanEagle small unmanned aircraft, has been delivered to the FAA’s William J. Hughes Technical Center in Atlantic City, N.J. The FAA will fly the UAVs in restricted airspace over the New Jersey Air National Guard’s Warren Grove Gunnery Range as it works to develop air traffic management procedures for them.
Hartzell Propeller has selected Northwest Propeller Inc., of Puyallup, Wash., to join its network of Recommended Service Facilities. Northwest Propeller was founded in 1985 and is located at Pierce Country Airport in Washington state.
Reese Air Force Base, Lubbock Texas, March 1967. This was it. We had arrived. The T-37 program was finished and we were on to the T-38. Nobody had their picture taken standing next to a T-37, the Cessna "Tweet" primary trainer. The supersonic Northrop T-38 Talon advanced jet trainer, aka "The White Rocket," was the plane we had waited to fly for a long time.
Documents promoting and explaining safety management systems (SMS) within a flight operation — specifically, “Confused About SMS?” “SMS for Senior Leaders,” “Being Proactive About SMS” and “SMS Implementation Plan of Action” — are available for free on the ARGUS website: www.aviationresearch.com/. Click on “Free Data.”
Citing FAA data, Morgan Stanley says business jet takeoff and landing activity increased 17.9 percent in April compared with the same month in 2009 — the fifth consecutive month of year-over-year gains. The increases trended across aircraft models, says analyst Heidi Wood. “Cessna and Gulfstream posted mid-teens growth compared to April 2009,” when both manufacturers started to show “signs of stabilization,” she says. “The U.S.
A French enthusiast group borescoped the engines of a Concorde supersonic airliner on display at the Le Bourget Air and Space Museum outside Paris and found them to be in perfect condition internally. “The objective is not to get [the Concorde] to fly again but to get the engines working again, hoping one day to see it taxi on the tarmac for the pleasure of visitors to the museum,” said Frederic Pinlet, head of Olympus 593, named after the Rolls-Royce/Snecma engines that power the aircraft.
Attempting to divine the future price of fuel is like trying to outguess the stock market. You can lose your shirt in the bargain. Some airlines practice fuel hedging by contracting to pay a future price in an effort to lock in fuel cost for financial planning purposes. Southwest Airlines has been most open about the practice, which has been widely reported.
The EBAA is conducting a survey of European business aviation crews to gather data to help shape upcoming European Union Flight Time Limitation rules to reflect the unique operational requirements of business aviation. In June 2012, the new regulation will take effect and will be applicable everywhere in Europe, with no national deviations permitted. The EBAA says, “As the new regulation is drafted, it is important for . . . regulators [to understand] that business aviation operations are simply not comparable to airline operations.
Efforts to remove lead from aviation gasoline date from the mid-1970s when the first unleaded and low-lead fuels were introduced by refiners in response to the Clean Air Act. The initiative to qualify some light aircraft piston engines for operation on automotive fuel (“mogas”) stemmed from that era, as well.
Bombardier Aerospace has received an STC, in conjunction with Honeywell, to install Primus Elite DU-875 Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) upgrades in Global 5000, Global Express and Global Express XRS aircraft.
“Wanna Trade” (June 2010, page 41) and “The Future is (Almost) Here” (page 63) were interesting articles about managing aviation greenhouse gas emissions. The latter, on NextGen, talked about potentially saving 50 to 60 gallons of fuel and as much as 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide per arrival. Burning Jet-A produces lots of byproducts (heat, water vapor, CO, CO2, etc.). Exactly what is produced and in what percentages depends on the efficiency of the engines.
Concerned about a recent spate of incidents in which airline pilots failed to activate the Pilot Controlled Lighting (PCL) systems at uncontrolled airports, the FAA has issued SAFO 10008, which recommends that manuals and training programs be reviewed for clarity regarding PCLs. The agency says flight crews need to demonstrate knowledge and proficiency during training and checking events in the use of the Common Traffic Advisory Frequency (CTAF) and PCL systems. Although aimed at airlines, the SAFO also applies to general aviation operations.
Now in its sixth year of production, Gulfstream's G450 is one of the few large-cabin aircraft capable of flying eight passengers 4,300 nm at Mach 0.80 and land with 200-nm NBAA IFR reserves. It has nearly 200 nm more range than the first- or second-generation GIV or GIV-SP aircraft, an increase made possible by subtle drag reduction improvements and upgraded Rolls Royce Tay Mk 611-8C turbofans. The G450 also has a larger capacity APU and revised intake and exhaust ducting that greatly reduces external noise.
On April 26, the FAA issued an Information for Operators (InFO 10003) advisory which stresses that use of personal electronic devices (PEDs) for activities unrelated to flight duties constitutes a safety risk.
