“Jet sales are no longer in a cool-down mode. This industry has been pickled,” declared Carl Janssens, author of the Aircraft Bluebook’s Marketline newsletter. Values for virtually all jets and turboprops are declining or, at best, stable, according to the spring 2009 edition of the publication.
Canada is currently the only country in the world that requires noncommercial operators of turbine-powered aircraft to be certificated and periodically audited for safety compliance. Further distinguishing the Private Operator Certificate program is the fact that the Canadian DOT (or “Transport Canada”) has deeded its administration entirely over to the Canadian Business Aviation Association (CBAA) as a means of saving the government money and resources.
In March, the FAA reassured Eclipse EA500 operators, at least for the time being, that it is not grounding the aircraft in the wake of Eclipse Aviation’s Chapter 7 (liquidation) bankruptcy. All Eclipse operations including certification, production, service centers, training centers and dealers are shut down. Initially it was thought that ETIRC Aviation, Eclipse Aviation’s largest shareholder, would bring the OEM out of bankruptcy and restart operations, but it is evidently unable to come up with necessary financing — sparking creditors to demand liquidation.
Michael Garvey, son of the editor of this magazine, flies a helicopter for the U.S. Coast Guard out of a base in Alaska and knows all about operations in low visibility. NVGs are a routine part of his life, and the USCG has extensive experience with the devices.
Two safety experts interviewed by Business & Commercial Aviation for this report provided some operational examples that can be addressed by safety management systems. Ray Rohr, director, regulatory affairs, International Business Aviation Council — “The example I like to use is fatigue. You can put down hard hours to fly, which might work for the airlines but not charter; however, with an SMS, you can have performance-based rules that provide a safety objective and a process for the operator to meet it.
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Dallas set a Feb. 19 deadline for bids in the auction of Coppell, Texas-based aftermarket supplier Superior Air Parts, a Thielert subsidiary. Superior sells parts for Teledyne and Avco engines as well as other aircraft companies. Superior Air Parts filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in late December 2008 as part of an agreement for Textron unit Avco Corp. to buy Superior’s assets from Thielert for $11.5 million in cash.
Sylvain Sequin of Canadian Helicopters was another keynote witnesses who opened the NTSB HEMS safety hearing. The Canadian testimony was a striking contrast to that of Dr. Blumen (see item), noting that Canada has not experienced a single fatal HEMS accident since the country established its program in 1972.
Operations at FlightSafety International’s Citation Learning Center in Toledo, Ohio, are continuing as before, the company says, regardless of the shutdown of the adjacent Citation Service Center due to reduced maintenance activity related to reduced flight activity. FlightSafety spokesman Steve Phillips noted that there is no direct connection between Cessna’s maintenance business and his company’s training activities.
Turbomeca Arriel 2B and 2B1 engines Replace the Hydra-Electric low-fuel-pressure switch in the hydromechanical unit with either of two different low-fuel-pressure switches.
NetJets Europe in February agreed to buy Egelsbach Airport just south of Frankfurt International Airport to improve its access to the German banking capital and the economically important Rhein/Main region. NetJets says slot scarcity at Frankfurt International drove the decision. Roughly two-thirds of requests for slots are turned down if submitted one day before, making the region “underrepresented” in the NetJets network,
FAA career executive Lynne A. Osmus replaced Robert A. Sturgell Jan. 20 as acting FAA administrator. A 30-year agency veteran, Osmus had been the agency’s liaison with the Obama transition team. In one of his final acts before leaving office, Sturgell approved a contract for Thales ATM to install and test a low-cost ground surveillance system that could improve runway safety at small to medium-sized airports. Other similar contracts will be awarded soon, the agency said. Thales ATM is based in Shawnee, Kan.
Henry “Hank” G. Beaird, Jr. , well-known test pilot and World War II pilot, died on Feb. 2 in Dallas. He was 84. Beaird received his U.S. Army Air Forces commission and wings in 1944 when he was 19. He was stationed in New Guinea with the 3rd Air Commando Group and flew P-51s and C-47s. After the war Beaird finished his aeronautical engineering degree and went to work for Chance Vought and flew for the Texas Air National Guard. He and his wife, Rosalind, moved to Long Island, N.Y., and later Lancaster, Calif., where he flew the first production model of the Republic F105.
C rane Aerospace & Electronics, Lynnwood, Wash., appointed Rick Jones to senior vice president, solutions. Nigel Duncan joins the company as vice president, sales and marketing for the Aerospace Group. Dallas Airmotive, Dallas, announced that Andrew Woodworth has joined BBA Aviation Engine Repair and Overhaul as regional sales manager for Australasia.
Flexjet 25 Jet Card Program, operated by Jet Solutions, has introduced new features. The Flexjet 25 split-payment options provide card owners with the benefit of dividing the purchase price of a 25-, 30- or 35-hour jet card into two equal payments. The first half of the payment is made at the time of purchase. The second half is due after six months or upon scheduling more than half of the purchased flight hours.
Michelle A. James (Universal Avionics Systems Corp.)
Excellent Viewpoint in the January Business & Commercial Aviation. I agree with your points, and this has been a topic of conversation here at Universal as of late.
Price indexes recently released by Vref Publishing — the Shawnee Mission, Kan.-based business aircraft market research firm— reflect how precipitously values for older, previously owned, turbine-powered aircraft have declined in recent months. First quarter 2009 composite prices for benchmark used business turboprops and the three classes of used corporate turbojets have declined roughly 20 percent during the last year. Vref has been tracking prices for these aircraft since 1995.
The McDonnell 119 made its maiden flight in February from the company’s St. Louis plant. The four-engine, swept-wing aircraft will cruise at 550 mph, seat 10 passengers and has a range of 3,000 miles.
— At 1409 CST, a Sikorsky S-76C++ (N748P), registered to and operated by Petroleum Helicopters, Inc. (PHI), crashed into marshy terrain approximately seven minutes after takeoff and 12 miles southeast of Lake Palourde Base Heliport (7LS3), in Amelia, La. Both pilots and six of the seven passengers on board were killed. One person was critically injured. The helicopter departed 7LS3, a PHI base, en route to the South Timbalier oil platform ST301B to transport workers from two different oil exploration companies. No flight plan was filed, nor was one required.
Northern Jet Management , Grand Rapids, Mich., has promoted Rick Hansen to chief pilot. John Snyder was promoted to captain and Kip Catlin has been given IOE responsibilities with the flight crew team in additional to his captain duties.
Diamond Aircraft Industries has received a European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) type certificate for its turbo-diesel AE300 engine to power its DA42 NG, DA40 and DA50 models. Diamond created its own subsidiary — Austro Engine — after Thielert Aircraft Engines went into insolvency in April 2008. Diamond said it invested $61.4 million in the project. “The complete program developed into one that was significantly more complex than originally anticipated,” CEO Christian Dries said.
Citing “a built-in conflict of interest” in the Brazilian military’s accident investigation report for the 2006 collision of a Boeing 737 airliner and an Embraer Legacy 600, one of the attorneys representing the business jet pilots against manslaughter charges claims the document “manufactures and exaggerates liability on the part of the pilots.”
Walter Hansen , a career corporate aircraft mechanic, died on January 17. He worked as a mechanic for Union Carbide from 1969 to 1971, as director of maintenance for McDonald Corp. from 1971 to 1982 and as director of maintenance for Digital Equipment in Bedford, Mass., until his retirement in 1998.
Air Culinaire and Morton’s Restaurant Group are taking inflight fine dining to a new high through a partnership that will offer Morton’s steaks and cuisine to private aviation clients and passengers. Aviation Customers in 12 of Air Culinaire’s 14 U.S. markets will have the option of placing orders for select Morton’s menu offerings, with a minimum of 24 hours notice. Air Culinaire will coordinate the logistics, packaging, delivery and onboard service of each Morton’s order. Air Culinaire 6525 Busch Blvd. Ste. 200
I’d been yelling at the television and pounding on the newspapers day after day. The business jet had suddenly become the whipping boy for all the world’s ills, and the righteous blather emanating from Washington, talking heads, columnists and editorial pages around the country was myopic, one sided and unchallenged. I was fed up with the quick, thoughtless castigation, the posturing pols hoping for sound bites on CNN, and the rampant hypocrisy that was doing real damage to good people in a vital transportation segment. This was madness. It was fight back.
