Blue Origin, the company founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, released video and stills, as part of a recruiting pitch on its Web site, of a successful flight of a vertical launch/vertical descent test rocket at his 165,000-acre test range in Texas in front of company families and friends. The flight took place Nov. 13, 2006, but the news only recently came to light. The program, intended to take a small number of astronauts on a sub-orbital space journey, is dubbed Good Shepard. For more background on the program, visit its Web site at www.blueorigin.com.
Data network communications between the TSA and airports could work much faster under a pilot program to test technology that uses existing facility electrical wiring as the physical path for data communications. "The TSA has not yet committed to use any power line communications providers, but is currently testing technology provided by Telkonet," said spokeswoman Amy Kudwa. The TSA is looking for a way to produce a rapidly deployed, cost-effective communications infrastructure at security locations, said Kudwa.
Mike Doiron (Moncton Flight College, Dieppe, N.B., Canada)
I just finished reading "Aftermath," your January Viewpoint (page 7). I couldn't agree with you more. However, one item that is missing from the puzzle is the following insight that I've gained in over 30 years of working for the industry and the regulator. When we screw up in the cockpit or on the hangar floor, there is a cultural bias to look over our shoulder and if we didn't break anything and nobody noticed, we move on. Why? Because we know all things being equal, if we report on ourselves, we'll probably create a lot of grief. That tends to be the general scenario.
Citing the expected continued growth in corporate profits, a new report on the business jet industry published in December by analysts at financial services company JPMorgan predicts that the market for corporate jets could remain robust for up to two more years.
Cessna is continuing its evaluation of a proof-of-concept light sport aircraft, logging some 50 flight hours on its POC aircraft to evaluate aircraft characteristics. The POC first flew Oct. 13, 2006, nine months after Cessna initiated the project. Cessna also continued to test the market, displaying the aircraft during the U.S. Sport Aviation Expo held recently in Sebring, Fla. The Wichita airplane-maker said the aircraft meets company expectations but has not announced when its evaluation would be completed.
In its 75-year history, few innovations in business aviation have had the impact of fractional ownership, and today those programs account for as much as 20 percent of new turbine-powered aircraft deliveries. But after two decades of existence, is the fractional model becoming a victim of its own success?
Garmin has acquired a leading provider of ultra-low-power, low-cost wireless connectivity solutions. Dynastream Innovations Inc. is located in Cochrane, Alberta, and employs approximately 50 people including over 25 engineers and scientists. The Canadian firm is also a leader in the field of personal monitoring technology - such as foot pods and heart-rate monitors for sports and fitness products. Both the foot pod and heart-rate sensor use the ANT ultra-low-power wireless interface protocol invented by Dynastream.
I have been a reader of your fine aviation articles for many years. Please accept my complements for Richard Aarons' excellent Cause & Circumstance in the December 2006 issue ("Winter Weather," page 82). His last two paragraphs summarized it very well.
The FAA released a new ETOPS rule that effectively changes current limitations and opens up routes for twin-engine passenger airplanes by setting uniform standards for all multiengine commercial aircraft when they fly "extended operations" routes - more than three hours from an airport. Regulators said the final rule would govern the design, maintenance and operation of airplanes and engines for long-distance flights and extend some requirements that previously only applied to twin-engine airplanes to those with more than two engines.
Kaballit Nunaat is thawing quickly. The ice mass of the world's largest island -- a.k.a. Greenland -- is melting at a rate of 41 cubic miles per year. Using a technique that reveals regional changes in the weight of the massive ice sheet across the entire landmass, NASA scientists report that Greenland's low coastal regions lost 155 gigatons of ice per year between 2003 and 2005 from excess melting and icebergs, while the high-elevation interior gained 54 gigatons annually from excess snowfall.
Boeing Business Jets and Rockwell Collins announced an EVS offering for BBJs that incorporates a Max-Viz multi-wavelength infrared sensor into the Rockwell Collins Head-up Guidance System (HGS) to present an image of the terrain and the airport environment on the HGS to enhance pilot situational awareness in low-visibility situations. EVS displayed on the HGS allows a pilot to descend below instrument approach minimums if the visual references to the intended runway are visible using the EVS.
A B-52 took off from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., using a blend of synthetic fuel and JP-8 in all eight engines on Dec. 15, 2006, on a flight test -- the first one flown using a "synfuel-blend" as the only fuel on board, U.S. Air Force officials said. In September, the Air Force successfully flew a B-52 with two-engines using the synfuel-blend. The next test phase will determine how well the synfuel-blend holds up in extremely cold weather conditions. (See related story, "Will Climate Change Challenge BizAv," on page 40.)
Yingling Aviation, the Wichita-based FBO, has introduced a joint ownership program that offers partnerships on refurbished and updated Cessna twin-turbine airplanes.
The FAA says it has completed ATC-system-wide installation of the User Request Evaluation Tool (URET) that automatically detects conflicts and alerts controllers. The tool, now at all Centers, allows controllers to reroute aircraft in a timely manner and flags not just conflicts between aircraft but also between aircraft and special activity airspace. It can also flag conflicts in adjoining airspace, not just in the immediate area. The FAA claims it also cuts down on the use of paper by more than one-third in some facilities by eliminating flight progress strips.
The private pilot and four passengers were fatally injured when a Cessna T303 collided with terrain near Rolling Prairie, Ind. It was IMC at the time of the accident. The aircraft was transporting employees of Two Rivers Marketing back to Iowa following a business meeting. The pilot was in contact with South Bend departure control and did not communicate that he was having any problems. Preliminary radar data indicate the airplane climbed to approximately 5,700 feet after takeoff and entered into a left spiral until radar data were lost.
A National Business Travel Association forecast reports that, "About 56 percent of respondent companies [will] use alternatives to commercial air travel, such as corporate jets, charter flights, fractional jet ownership or VLJs. That compares to 33 percent who reported using corporate jets or charters in 2004, and 27 percent in 2002." The association surveyed 189 travel managers for its forecast and almost 70 percent of those surveyed said they expect their companies' travelers to take more trips in 2007 vs. 2006.
Zurich-based charter company Comlux has taken delivery of the first Airbus A318 Elite - the newest and smallest member of the Airbus Corporate Jet (ACJ) family, which also includes the Airbus ACJ and A320 Prestige. Lufthansa Technik's Hamburg operation will outfit the aircraft with an 18-passenger VIP cabin. Comlux plans to place the aircraft in service by this spring, thus becoming the first to operate the new model. Comlux has two additional A318 Elites on order.
Oxford Airport in the United Kingdom will be installing an ILS on widened and strengthened main Runway 01/19 between this month and the end of May. BBA Aviation, Oxford's parent, has formally authorized the investment in the runway widening and ILS, along with associated approach lights to the north of the airfield. The main 5,095-foot (1,553 meter) runway will be widened to 30 meters (98 feet). During the construction period, Runway 01/19 will be closed for four days each from 2000 on Thursday nights to 0730 on Tuesday mornings (local times).
NTSB, Washington, D.C., named John Clark, formerly director of aviation safety, as the agency's chief scientist for aeronautical engineering. Tom Haueter, deputy director of aviation safety, has been named acting director of the office.
Houston Executive Airport has named Chevron Global Aviation to be the new business airport's fuel supplier. Scheduled to open this month, the airport is a private commercial development established by a former commercial pilot and Houston native, Ron Henriksen.
In general, the concentration of GA traffic does substantially increase the probability of an inflight collision. With only two aircraft in the same piece of airspace there is only one possible collision pair. However, with five aircraft there are 10 possible pairs and with 10 aircraft there are 45. What is the practical meaning of this?
JetBird, Dublin, Ireland, announced that Patrick Raftery was appointed to operations director. He will be involved in developing the firm's European operating model in preparation for launch in early 2009.
Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.) has been named ranking Republican on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for the next session of Congress. Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.) will chair the committee. Mica currently chairs the House Aviation Subcommittee. Oberstar and Mica are both considered to be well-informed and open- minded on aviation issues.
A Beech F33 was substantially damaged during a forced landing following a loss of engine power during cruise when it was a short distance from William P. Hobby Airport, Texas. With the airplane still slipped up on it's nose due to the landing the FAA inspector who responded to the accident observed that the left fuel tank was empty and the right tank had "about an inch" of fuel in its tank. However, the pilot reported to the inspector that he visually checked the fuel before departing Houston and that both tanks were at the three-quarter level.
