“A bottom has been reached, and for some airplanes . . . a bounce,” declared Publisher Fletcher Aldredge in the fourth quarter edition of his Vref Market Leader newsletter. “More than a year of falling prices and lowered expectations have pulled the real buyers off the sidelines and into the market,” reports Aldredge. “Activity continues to improve almost industry-wide. Low offers keep coming in. However, on most airplanes, the sellers sense the worst just might be over, and the bottom is no longer made of quicksand.”
GE Aviation’s wholly owned subsidiary, GE Aviation Czech s.r.o., is beginning certification testing of its new H80 turboprop engine, which will produce up to 800 shp. The engine is targeted at utility, agricultural and, business and general aviation aircraft. Component testing of the H80 engine has been underway for several months, and GE has recently started aeromechanical and performance testing on the powerplants. Certification is expected in early 2010 with entry into service on the Thrush 510 cropduster.
These graphs are designed to illustrate the performance of the Citation CJ4 under a variety of range, payload, speed and density altitude conditions. Do not use these data for flight planning purposes because they are gross approximations of actual aircraft performance.
Supposedly on his first day at AlliedSignal, Larry Bossidy conducted face-to-face introductions at headquarters with the understandably nervous group of executives awaiting the new CEO. However, one vice president stood out as being particularly friendly and familiar, volunteering sports anecdotes and assessments of teams and players with the new boss, a former college ballplayer. Moving on, Bossidy, legendary for his all-business-all-the-time focus, turned to an aide and said, “Fire that guy; I never want to see him again.”
On a routine flight to an oil platform in the North Sea, the Eurocopter Super Puma helicopter carrying 16 oil-rig workers from Aberdeen Airport, Scotland, encountered low clouds at an altitude of 3,000 feet above sea level. About six nm from the rig, the crew was preparing for descent when a bright flash accompanied by a loud bang occurred. Moments later, the passengers and crew began to feel a vibration through the aircraft, rapidly getting more intense. The vibration became severe and the crew declared a mayday with a planned diversion to a nearby oil platform.
Edward W. Stimpson, a founder and long-time president of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), who went on to become the U.S. representative to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and finally chairman of the Flight Safety Foundation, died Nov. 25 at his home in Boise, Idaho, after an extended illness.
Air BP has added seven new dealers to its network, four of which are participating in the Bravo Rewards Program: Emblem Aviation of Pinedale, Wyo. (PNA) Honeycutt Aviation of Olivehurst, Calif. (MYV) Delta AirElite Jet Center of Erlanger, Ky. (CVG) Jet West of Salinas, Calif. (SNS) The remaining three dealers are: City of New Braunfels in New Braunfels, Texas (BAZ) Elite Aviation Services of Hopkinsville, Ky. (HVC) Avbase of San Jose, Calif. (SJC)
The NBAA is now offering a 10-percent discount on the Complete Aeromedical Services Program (CASP) offered by Virtual Flight Surgeons, Inc. The CASP is a one-stop source for aeromedical advice and FAA medical certification assistance.
Technical and operational standards for automatic dependent surveillance — broadcast (ADS-B) equipment have been approved, paving the way for April 2010 publication of the FAA’s final rule mandating ADS-B equipage in controlled airspace by 2020. Standards body RTCA has now approved the minimum operational performance standards (MOPS), and the FAA has already signed the related technical standard orders (TSO), said Vincent Capezzuto, FAA director of surveillance and broadcast services.
Piaggio Aero is proceeding largely unscathed while other aircraft manufacturers are struggling mightily to weather the recession and credit crisis. Speaking at the NBAA Convention, CEO Alberto Galassi said, “Despite the Honeywell forecast that 2010 will be worse than 2009, we plan to build 27 to 30 aircraft next year, the same as this year.” And, he added, “We have no white tails [new, unsold airplanes]. Not a single one.” That’s not to say the P-180 Avanti builder has been unaffected by the recession.
The Citation Mustang isn’t the biggest, fastest or most fuel-efficient very light jet to be introduced, but it’s a solid market success, and it, along with Embraer’s Phenom 100, has matured into full-scale production programs. The smallest and least-expensive Citation, the Mustang was designed from the onset to be the easiest handling member of a family noted for docility. As such, the Mustang was intended to be an easy step up for operators upgrading from piston-engine and turboprop aircraft.
The FAA rejected an application of the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority (BGPAA) to impose a nighttime ban on nearly all flights at Bob Hope Airport (BUR) in California. The agency deemed the application unreasonable because the BGPAA failed to prove that other alternatives would be less cost-effective or infeasible. The agency also determined that the BGPAA failed to provide substantial evidence to back its contention that the restriction would not create an undue burden on interstate or foreign commerce.
Cessna Aircraft has qualified its Citation Sovereign for an exemption from FAA Extended Operations (ETOPS) requirements when flown between Los Angeles and Hawaii under FAR Part 135. To qualify for the ETOPS exemption, Cessna demonstrated the aircraft could remain within 180 minutes of a suitable airport when flying with an engine out. Cessna conducted an analysis to determine that the Sovereign was able to travel 1,022 nm within 180 minutes after an engine failure. That distance is just more than halfway between Los Angeles and Hawaii.
Sikorsky Global Helicopters announced Nov. 4 that it delivered a new VIP S-76C++ helicopter in September to the Royal Travel Office for use by the Royal Household of the United Kingdom. Sikorsky has provided helicopters to support the Royal Family since the early 1950s, including the R4, S-51, S-55, S-58, S-58T, S-76B and S-76C+.
And, yes, operating in Russia is expensive, or as Mrocka put it after dropping $8.40 on a cup of coffee at his Moscow hotel, “outrageously expensive.” Carry cash for basic transactions, he advised, “as most places on the ground do not accept credit cards. It’s a cash-oriented society.” Williams at Universal Weather noted that rooms in Western-style hotels in larger cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg range from $300 to $600 a night; in remote locations, standards and prices will be lower (see sidebar on travel in Eastern Russia).
Arranging permits for flights into Russia is straightforward, although it is important for operators unfamiliar with the process to understand that among the residue of the Soviet period is a monolithic bureaucracy and rigid adherence to procedure. “This isn’t about efficiency — it’s all about control,” Parke said, by way of explaining the inflexibility. “And they control everything down to the minutiae, from obtaining the entry permit to all things associated with operating.”
Looking to brush up on turbine engine technology? Don’t know your P3 from your T5? Pick up a copy of Aircraft Gas Turbine Engine Technology by Irwin Treager. Written for technicians, instead of engineers, the text is easy to understand, and even pilots will find it helpful. The paperback book has been updated since its first release and includes information on electronic fuel controls.
Abu Dhabi plans to build a business jet by 2018 to mark the emergence of the Middle East as a major player in the global aerospace industry. The first steps were celebrated Nov. 14, just prior to the Dubai Air Show, as the Mubadala Development investment arm of the Abu Dhabi government and Western partners reviewed progress in building the Strata Manufacturing composites facility that will begin supplying parts for the Airbus A380, ATR and other airliners in the second half of 2010. Strata will open with initial contracts worth more than $2 billion.
Rockwell Collins recently announced several upgrade programs for Dassault Falcon business jets, including five new updates to its Pro Line 21 avionics retrofit package for Falcon 50s. Separately, the avionics maker is offering a Pro Line 4 to Pro Line 21 display upgrade for Falcon 2000s.
In the waning months of the Cold War, after decades of suspicion, distrust and secrecy between the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the West, watershed events in aviation history unfolded at European-hosted international air shows.
Also, if traffic is heavy at the destination airport and there are delays, don’t expect to be stacked into holding, Parke emphasized. “Russian controllers do not use holding patterns and vector everyone around if there are delays. This increases their workload considerably and contributes to the delays. During this maneuvering, it behooves you to keep your head up, as most of their aircraft are not equipped with TCAS for separation. They also maintain larger separation intervals than we do, which helps to string things out and adds to the delays.”
While airline passengers have grown accustomed to snaking their way through TSA lines at hub airports, general aviation operators based at Hyde Field, Potomac Airport and College Park Airport, a trio of small airfields near Washington, D.C., have struggled to cope with the restrictions imposed on them since the Sept. 11 attacks more than eight years ago. Perhaps the most notable of the affected facilities is College Park (CGS), which earlier this year became the world’s first centennial airfield, having been in continuous operation for 100 years.
