Air Security International has been renamed ASI Group to reflect the company's growing non-aviation risk management business. "The bottom line is that we outgrew our name," said Charlie LeBlanc, ASI's vice president of operations. "Last year nearly 90 percent of our clients turned to us for non-aviation related products or services." Founded in 1989 to provide security services for corporate flight departments, the company now provides services for whole corporations, not just their aviation units.
Refurbishment at Signature Flight Support's Le Bourget-based business is continuing after additional recent acquisitions on the field. It now has 13 hangars, three business aviation terminals, over 54,000 square meters of ramp space, and is the largest FBO at airport. A refurbishment of the crew and passenger areas is nearing completion at the terminal purchased from PrivatAir in 2005. It will be re-branded Signature Paris Terminal 1 and used as the main passenger transit handling point.
IN FALL 1965 I WAS a 24-year-old novice aviator happily employed as an instructor at Flight Proficiency at Dallas' Love Field. Tex Berry, the owner, one day said I was about to meet an authentic aviation pioneer. I was curious and skeptical.
I just finished the article "Why Your Community Needs Its Airport" In the August issue (page 46). I thought it was a great article and I just wanted to make sure that you knew about the new privately funded business and general aviation airport that is being built on the west side of Houston. We will open by the end of the year and our vision is to build it for business and general aviation.
Harrods Aviation will build a new FBO passenger terminal at Britain's Luton Airport, doubling the VIP arrivals/departures lounge area to 4,000 square feet. Due to open in summer 2007, it is to be built in Luton's cargo area and will have 100,000 square feet of new ramp space in addition to the 100,000 square feet already available adjacent to Harrods' hangar. Road access will avoid Luton's central passenger area, which is often gridlocked at peak times.
Piaggio Aero is going ahead with its much-discussed business jet, but earliest launch date is the middle of next year or at NBAA 2007, according to José Di Mase, Piaggio Aero CEO. "We are serious about the aircraft; it will be twin turbofan powered, and larger than the P180 Avanti II," he said recently, adding, "We haven't finally decided on the launch date as it will depend on Mubadala Development [the Abu Dhabi-based company that bought a 35-percent share in Piaggio earlier this year] and other risk-sharing partners."
The newest variant of the TFE731-20/40/60 family capitalizes on almost 4 million hours of operational experience accumulated on aircraft equipped with the second-generation engines. The TFE731-50 is a low-risk variant of the -60 engines, with the same 29.7-inch fan diameter as the -5 and thrust reverser geometry. This allows the -50 to use the same nacelles as the earlier -5, thereby easing upgrade challenges.
The FAA wants to wrap up a proposal that would ease the path to placing VLJs in commercial service. The proposal, based in part on recommendations from the FAR Part 135/125 Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee, is slated to cover certification, crew, equipment, training and dispatch requirements for the new small jets. The agency estimates it can finish the proposal and ship it to the DOT by Dec. 31. It also estimates the proposal should complete all necessary governmental reviews in time to be published by March 2007.
Avemco Insurance Co. recently announced a change to its Safety Rewards Program. Developed with cooperation from Cessna Aircraft Co., the new initiative expands the availability of premium credits. Any student who enrolls in a Cessna Pilot Center (CPC)-approved FAR Part 141 flight training program will qualify for the 5-percent flight training premium credit when they purchase an Avemco insurance policy (including non-owner coverage). Upon graduation the pilot will be eligible for another year of 5-percent savings on the policy premium.
Employees applauded the last Bombardier Challenger 604 business jet as it rolled off the assembly line at Bombardier's Montreal-Trudeau International Airport facility recently. The green aircraft, s.n. 5665, will be completed by Midcoast Aviation and is scheduled to enter customer service in spring 2007. This marks the conclusion of a long and prosperous run for one of business aviation's most popular aircraft designs, which was launched at the Paris Air Show in 1993.
The FAA has formed a new Age 60 Aviation Rulemaking Committee to look at the ICAO revised standard for boosting the airline pilot retirement age to 65. The ARC will recommend whether the United States should adopt such a standard. Air Transport Association President and CEO James May and Air Line Pilots Association President Duane Woerth are co-chairing the ARC.
Landmark Aviation, Tempe, Ariz., named Jim McNeill as its new regional vice president, FBO Operations. McNeill previously was general manager at the company's flagship facility at Dulles, Va.
A U.S. financial consortium agreed on Oct. 10 to buy London City Airport for an undisclosed sum. The group includes American International Group, GE Capital and Credit Suisse. Irish billionaire Dermot Desmond bought the Docklands airport in East London in 1995 for £23.5 million. Industry professionals estimate the consortium could be paying as much as £1.3 billion for the thriving airport.
A jet fuel product derived from natural gas produces 90-percent less particulate matter and soot emissions than fuels refined from crude oil, according to Syntroleum of Tulsa, Okla. A U.S. Air Force B-52 recently conducted a flight from Edwards AFB in California during which two of the aircraft's eight engines were powered by a 50-50 blend of Syntroleum's fuel and traditional JP-8 jet fuel. On a subsequent flight, the two engines ran on 100-percent synthetic fuel.
A set of voluntary restrictions at Teterboro Airport (TEB) in New Jersey is drawing strong support from local operators, who view them as necessary to ensure a long-term partnership with the surrounding community, said NATA President James Coyne, who co-chaired the Teterboro Airport Industry Working Group that recommended the restrictions.
Lufthansa Technik AG, Hamburg, Germany, announced that Uwe Mukrasch will join the board of directors as chief executive human resources with additional responsibility for information management.
When the Garrett TFE731 engine made its debut on the Falcon 10 and Learjet 35/36 in the early 1970s, it revolutionized high-performance, light jet business aviation. Compared to turbojet engines that powered light jets of that era, the new turbofan TFE731 burned one-third less fuel and its FAR Part 36 Stage III sound levels provided welcome relief at noise-sensitive airports.
THE WEATHER WAS HARDLY atypical for a summer afternoon in Florida -- warm, breezy and VMC with low scattered clouds, but there were thunderstorms in and around the St. Augustine area. It was Aug. 25, 2006, and Ward and Barbara Walter were among the many aloft over the Sunshine State. They were southeast bound from Bloomington, Ind., making their way to Governor's Harbour Airport on Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas where their vacation home was located. They planned an intermediate stop in Melbourne before heading out across the Atlantic.
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) designated the birthplace of Alberto Santos-Dumont in Cabangu, Minas Gerais, Brazil, as a Historic Aerospace Site on Sept. 13. Brazil's father of aviation, Santos- Dumont was born in 1873, moved to Paris in 1891 and embarked on a series of experiments with balloons and dirigibles. He could often be seen gliding over the streets of Paris and was very popular with the Parisians. By 1906, he felt that there should be a way to control the flight of airships, and built the 14-bis, a small airplane. On Oct.
Thanks for your feedback. There's no doubt that HSIs can run the gamut in price. We obtained that quote from a local shop that regularly maintains all types of King Airs, including the B100.
Cessna says it will introduce the CJ4 at this month's NBAA Annual Meeting and Convention. The newest member of the CJ family of Citation business jets, the CJ4's main cabin will feature seating for seven to eight passengers, depending on layout, a large forward door, private lavatory and large baggage compartment. Powered by two Williams FJ44-4A engines with FADEC, the CJ4 will be certified for operation up to 45,000 feet (13,700 meters). First flight is scheduled for the first half of 2008 and entry into service is set for 2010.
New York Gov. George Pataki has signed a law that requires additional screening and background checks of all pilots undergoing training, both initial and recurrent, effective Jan. 1, 2007. Some members of Pataki's own party and staff, as well as representatives of the New York DOT, New York Aviation Management Association, NBAA, AOPA, National Air Transportation Association and others, indicated that this bill was unnecessary, as the Department of Homeland Security already has federal requirements in place for pilot trainees.
