Bizjet International received FAA approval as an authorized overhaul facility for the Rolls-Royce Tay MK 611-8 engine. Tulsa-based Bizjet is now authorized to perform overhauls on both the Rolls-Royce Spey MK 511-8 and Tay MK 611-8 powerplants.
ARINC introduced a new service for general aviation customers delivering westbound oceanic clearances via data link on the busy North Atlantic routes. The new service, which went live last month, complements ARINC Direct's existing eastbound service. ``The addition of this westbound service brings business aviation on the North Atlantic routes the same . . . electronic clearance delivery most commercial airlines enjoy,'' said Dave Poltorak, ARINC vice president of business aviation solutions.
AH, AT LAST APRIL. The month of fresh starts, fresh flowers and baseball. But it's also a month for looking back and accounting for what went before. So, we tally our chits of income and outgo and grudgingly give the taxman his due. And we in business aviation consider Bob Breiling's latest issue of figures and wonder how we can do better.
YOUR FLIGHT DEPARTMENT has a beautiful old GII, or a JetStar or a Sabreliner, sitting out in the hangar. The owner has invested the money to comply with new RVSM requirements and you've also installed TAWS to meet those new federal standards. The airplane is paid for, it's carefully maintained and in great shape, the crew is top-notch and the owner loves the old bird, even though it burns more fuel and doesn't have the range of some of the newer models from Wichita or Savannah.
SpaceShipOne, the Burt Rutan spaceship that won the $10 million Ansari X Prize, will be on display at the Experimental Aircraft Association AirVenture convention July 25-31 in Oshkosh, Wis. SpaceShipOne and its carrier aircraft, White Knight, will be making their only scheduled joint appearance, the EAA said. Rutan and pilot Mike Melvill, who made the first of two flights required to claim the X Prize, will lead a delegation of employees from Rutan's company, Scaled Composites. Both men are longtime EAA members.
The FAA wants CVRs and FDRs designed to give accident investigators more information. A new NPRM, generated after years of prodding by the NTSB, would require that CVRs used by air carriers, other operators and aircraft manufacturers be able to retain the last two hours of cockpit audio. The proposed rule would require that if data-link communication equipment is installed, all data-link messages received on an aircraft be recorded. Current regulations for aircraft operating under FAR Part 91 require the CVR to record only the last 15 minutes of cockpit conversation.
PS Engineering, Inc. offers an audio selector panel that integrates Sirius satellite radio. The PMA8000-SR includes all of the current audio panel functions, plus functions such as split mode, a dedicated cellular telephone interface (DuTel), a six-place high-fidelity stereo IntelliVOX intercom with dual independent music inputs, a marker beacon receiver, and a built-in Sirius satellite receiver. Dual entertainment inputs for the panel allow the passengers in back to listen to Sirius programming, or play their own CD/DVD, while the crew communicates by radio.
Bell Helicopter delivered 189 rotorcraft in 2004, a nearly 80-percent increase over 2003. A key component in the company's success last year was previously owned models, which accounted for almost 19 percent of all the rotorcraft shipped by the Texas-based airframe manufacturer. Bell officials, who have seen their backlog swell, said that ``product improvements, continued superior customer support and service coupled with an improving economic picture and world events all combined to provide for a busy year for Bell commercial helicopter sales.''
The NBAA plans to post on its Web site a letter template that association members can use to communicate the value of business aviation to local, state and federal officials, NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen announced at the recent Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference in Reno.
All Points Distributing's newest addition to its Vertex Standard line of handheld aviation products is the VXA-300 Pilot III nav/com. The unit features European 8.33 KHz channel spacing (receive only); one-touch squelch control; VOR/CDI navigation display; a new PA mode; built-in VOX for ``hot mic'' operation; Dual Watch Monitor mode, which allows pilots to monitor two channels at the same time; a stopwatch and countdown timer feature; and NOAA weather.
FlightSafety's Melbourne, Australia-based Dash 8-Q100/200/300 full-flight simulator received its certification from Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) at the ICAO Level ``D'' standard. The Dash 8 simulator is located at the Ansett Flight Simulator Center at Tullamarine. The Australian certification was also witnessed by the CAA of New Zealand.
Cirrus Design Corp. increased its stake in aircraft parachute specialist Ballistic Recovery Systems, Inc. (BRS) to 15.3 percent, making the Duluth, Minn., airplane maker the second largest shareholder of BRS. Cirrus exercised the last of four sets of options to purchase an additional 650,000 shares of BRS stock. The option was triggered after Cirrus sales exceeded the original contract goal, BRS said.
He championed product liability reform. He fought against the aircraft luxury tax. He's negotiated a balance between air tourism and national parks. And he also believed that corporate aviation has taken a free ride at the expense of the middle-class taxpayer. Whatever his position, Washington, and often the nation, knew exactly where Sen. John McCain stood.
Selected accidents and incidents in February 2005 The following NTSB information is preliminary, subject to change and may contain errors. Feb. 1 -- While attempting to transition from the ground to a hover, at the Lancaster Airport (LNS), Lancaster, Pa., a Bell 206B was substantially damaged. The certificated private pilot was not injured.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, Fla., named Martin Schaaf the new executive director of its Commercial Airline Pilot Training (CAPT) program. Schaaf joined Embry-Riddle from Alteon, a Boeing Co. subsidiary, where he was general manager and director of technical training at the company's Miami training center.
Skytruck Co., the U.S. distributor for the newly certified M28 Skytruck, has taken delivery of its brand-new demonstration aircraft. Skytruck President Lance Maclean flew the aircraft back from the factory in late January. Maclean said that Skytruck has reached an agreement to lease part of a new 12,000-square-foot hangar/office facility that is being constructed at the Immokalee Airport, just east of Naples. ``When it is completed, the new facility will initially house our spares inventory,'' he said.
Brisk sales and growing backlogs for new business aircraft have helped push prices of many used airplanes higher and depleted the inventory of the most popular late-model previously owned aircraft. Recently released statistics on new aircraft sales in 2004 indicate that last year was one of the best in general aviation sales history. GAMA said billings of its member companies rose 19 percent in 2004, compared with 2003. GAMA shipments were up more than 10 percent overall, with turboprop deliveries jumping 18 percent and jet shipments climbing 14 percent.
Kansas City Aviation Center (Olathe, Kan.) -- Don Peterson was promoted to director of aircraft sales at Kansas City Aviation Center (KCAC). He will be responsible for all of KCAC's national sales activities, including sales of new Pilatus and Piper aircraft and marketing various previously owned airplanes. A five-year veteran of the company, Peterson most recently served as the Midwest regional director for Pilatus Aircraft.
Columbia Air Services added a new 20,000-square-foot hangar and 6,000-square-foot FBO building to its site in Groton, Conn. The new facilities include meeting rooms, crew lounges and a passenger area. Columbia plans to formally dedicate the facilities in the spring. Opening of the new facilities coincides with the aviation services company's 25th anniversary. Columbia said it plans this year to take delivery of an Adam Aircraft A500 centerline thrust twin. The company will host the Malibu/Mirage Owners and Pilots Association 2005 Convention.
Bell/Agusta Aerospace Co. traces its beginning to 1952, when Bell licensed Agusta to produce its signature AB47 helicopter. Agusta has been manufacturing Bell products under license ever since.
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics awarded author Dennis Newton the 2005 Losey Atmospheric Sciences Award ``for an outstanding career of research, leadership and practical guidance in the field of inflight icing and hazardous weather affecting aviation.''
Frank N. Piasecki, founder and president of the Piasecki Aircraft Corp. of Essington, Pa., received the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Trophy for Lifetime Achievement in ceremonies at the museum on March 9. Piasecki was honored ``for his distinguished career as a pioneer in helicopter design and development, and for his lifelong commitment to aerospace,'' said Jack Daily, director of the museum. Piasecki is responsible for the development of more than 23 different vertical-lift aircraft in a career than spans 60 years.
Most biological processes are cyclical. Our body's chemistry, the effectiveness of drugs, blood characteristics and even our sensitivity to pain vary at different times of our lives and different hours of the day. The most common of the body's rhythms is the circadian, or 24-hour rhythm, and it is directly related to the earth's rotation time. The stability of the circadian rhythm is remarkable.
Evelyn Bryan Johnson in May will be honored by the Tennessee Museum of Aviation and Tennessee Aviation Hall of Fame at an event to celebrate her many contributions to aviation. Among the 95-year-old's accomplishments are 57,600 hours of flight time, logging more documented flight time than any other living person in the world. As an FAA Pilot Examiner since 1952, she has administered more than 9,000 flight checks. She has been manager of Morristown Airport since 1953.
Leading Edge Aviation Solutions, Grapevine, Texas, hired John McCormick as vice president of business development. McCormick, who previously held the title of national vice president of sales at Executive Jet Management, will open Leading Edge's new Chicago office.
