Iron-willed, Wendi Gavigan sets a fast pace. At Daniel Webster College she became hooked on managing the maze of moving crews, aircraft, weather and surprises and went from there to the airlines -- Continental, USAir, United and Airborne -- and thence to Baseops in Houston, handling corporate flight support. She liked it.
Rockwell Collins announced April 3 that it has consolidated its Rockwell Collins Deutschland operations, located in Heusenstamm, Germany, with TELDIX, a Rockwell Collins company located in Heidelberg. The business will be known as Rockwell Collins Deutschland GmbH and will operate in Heidelberg. "This change strengthens our presence in the aerospace and defense marketplace worldwide and allows us to present an integrated product portfolio in this important region," said Bernard Loth, vice president and general manager of International Subsidiaries for Rockwell Collins.
Elliott Aviation has promoted Donald Jay to chief operating officer. Jay formerly was vice president of branch and flight operations, managing operations at Elliott's facilities at Flying Cloud Regional Airport in Eden Prairie, Minn.; Eppley Airfield in Omaha; Des Moines International Airport in Iowa; and Quad Cities International Airport in Moline, Ill. He also managed the company's air taxi operations. Jay joined the company in 1989 as director of customer service and was named vice president and general manager at Des Moines in 1991.
A German-registered Learjet 40, D-CNIK, ran amok for a short time on the ramp at Gatwick Airport on March 17. The aircraft was ready for flight with one or two engines running. Suddenly it swung 180 degrees and one person on the ground was injured. The authorities are still investigating the incident, but according to an unofficial Web report, the motion was caused by a pilot tripping into the cockpit and knocking the right throttle.
I find the Learjet 24D "gear-up" landing in Accidents in Brief in the February issue (page 79) interesting. I have flown all the 20 Series Learjets, and either I'm missing something in this summary, or the FAA Investigators are. First, it states the copilot called for the landing gear to be extended. In my training, as copilot, it was my duty to extend the landing gear when called for by the pilot (the flying pilot). The article states that the pilot (assuming the flying pilot) extended the landing gear, or so he thought.
Gama Aviation Ltd. at Farnborough Airport has acquired two Beechcraft King Air B200Cs. The aircraft will be used for the Scottish Ambulance Service. A cargo variant of the King Air with a wide cargo door, the B200C is equipped with Lifeport pneumatically assisted loading and dual patient stretcher systems.
Hidden behind the contours of the terrain, the federal facility is unseen by the thousands of northern Virginia commuters who speed past its access road every day. Even if one of those drivers were to turn onto the road leading to it, they'd find no hint of a major government installation.
Accidents involving turbine-powered business aircraft dropped substantially from first quarter 2005 to the quarter just ended, according to information compiled by Robert E. Breiling Associates of Boca Raton, Fla. The U.S. business jet and turboprop fleet combined experienced 15 accidents, including five fatal accidents, which resulted in 16 passenger and crew fatalities during the first quarter of this year, Breiling said. By comparison, there were 23 accidents in first quarter 2005, five of which resulted in 24 fatalities.
A 1947-vintage G-73T Grumman Turbo Mallard powered by two Pratt & Whitney PT-6s and operated by Chalks Airline rumbled out of its Watson's Island amphibian terminal across from Port Miami and began its water run for takeoff. The Bimini-bound flight had 18 passengers and two pilots aboard. A number of beachgoers and passersby watched as the aircraft climbed away from the ship channel and then saw the right wing separate, followed by a burst of flames as the Grumman plummeted into the water. All aboard were killed.
Thanks for your note. I was unfamiliar with the Atlanta Olympics experience, but I agree that it does reflect the same kind of overreaction as those who fear VLJs will soon darken the skies. As for user fees, we're discussed them several times in the magazine and have a feature on that subject in this issue (page 58). The Jet-A tax issue was the subject of my March Viewpoint, and a matter of real concern. Unfortunately, the problem persists and, yes, the whole industry will suffer if it doesn't get resolved.
The British Airports Authority (BAA), which owns Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports, has rejected a pre-conditional buyout proposal ($14 per share) from a consortium led by Grupo Ferrovial S.A. The BAA board said that it, "has no hesitation in rejecting this proposal, which does not begin to reflect the true value of BAA's unique portfolio of airport assets. On the basis of this proposal, the board does not believe it is in shareholders' interests for it to enter into discussions with Ferrovial." BAA's total revenues in 2005 were $3.4 billion from its seven U.K.
Lowering the WAAS floor to 200 feet agl has opened the door to precision approaches at literally thousands of general aviation airports. (See B&CA, April, page 22.) AOPA President Phil Boyer wants the FAA to recognize WAAS LPV (lateral precision and vertical guidance) approaches as true precision approaches and to launch an aggressive program to implement them at airports now without precision approaches.
Aviation Daily reported that this past February Newark and La Guardia airports posted the worst on-time arrival rate of the major U.S. airports tracked by the DOT. Newark reported a dismal 60.9 percent rate, followed by LGA with only 64.1 percent of flights arriving on schedule. Neighboring John F. Kennedy Airport did better with a 70.3 percent on-time performance. San Francisco and Seattle also posted rates under 70 percent largely due to weather delays.
The National Air Transportation Association has renewed its call for the IRS to ease its Jet-A fuel tax collection procedures. That came after Eric Solomon, acting deputy assistant secretary of the treasury for tax policy, sent letters to key legislators acknowledging lawmakers' requests to delay implementation of the new tax rules, but said the Treasury Department has no authority to do so. "I recognize that the . . .
New Piper Aircraft dealer Piper Generalvertretung Deutschland AG (Piper AG) is taking over the territories formerly covered by Senate Aviation Ltd. Piper AG will sell and provide parts and service for Piper aircraft in the United Kingdom, Spain and related territories. Piper AG established a new subsidiary, Piper Parts and Sales U.K., to support the expanded territory. The new unit will be based at Bournemouth International Airport in Christchurch, U.K. Piper AG also represents New Piper in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Hungary.
Bombardier reported profits of $249 million for the fiscal year ending in January, a significant improvement from a loss of $85 million the previous year. Revenues fell from $4.7 billion a year ago to $4 billion in the 12 months ended Jan. 31 as airliner deliveries fell. The company said increased business aircraft and turboprop deliveries compensated for declining regional jet deliveries. Business jet deliveries were up 45 percent to 186 from 128, while regional airplane deliveries dropped 26 percent to 149.
The Dassault Falcon Jet 7X, the first all fly-by-wire business jet, was designed with the technician in mind. "The Falcon 7X fly-by-wire system has a high level of redundancy providing both a high level of safety and availability," said Jean Gauthier, spokesman for the 7X program at Dassault Aviation in France. "It includes an advanced onboard self-test and diagnostic capability, allowing continuous monitoring of the integrity of the system and to aid technicians in troubleshooting and component replacement."
An Airworthiness Directive that became effective on March 15 requires the four U.S.-based operators of Hansa Jet HFB 320 airplanes to revise the "limitations" section of their airplane flight manual to prohibit operation of the aircraft past its design life limit for the primary structure, which is 15,000 flight hours or 15,000 fight cycles, whichever occurs first.
Landmark Aviation announced April 3 that it has acquired Corporate Jets Inc., of Scottsdale, Ariz. -- a full-service FBO and aircraft maintenance, sales and charter operation at the Scottsdale Airport (SDL). "Scottsdale is a strategic acquisition for Landmark Aviation in a key market, expanding our maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) and FBO network throughout North America," said Roger Wolfe, Landmark CEO.
Bombardier Aerospace has received an order from National Air Support of Adelaide, Australia, for three Q300 Maritime Patrol Aircraft for the Surveillance Australia Coastwatch program. Bombardier valued the order at $53 million (U.S.). Surveillance Australia has operated Bombardier turboprops since 1996 and currently flies five Dash 8/Q200s. The aircraft, which have amassed some 70,000 hours of surveillance time, are used to search for fishing, immigration, quarantine violations and environmental hazards, drug smuggling and missing vessels.
