Bombardier Skyjet, Fairfax, Va., has entered into a sponsorship agreement with 2002 NCAA golf champion Troy Matteson, who recently kicked off his professional golf career on the PGA Tour. Matteson will serve as an ``ambassador for the Bombardier Skyjet brand.''
Air Methods just keeps on adding to its portfolio of aero medical operations. It announced on July 8 that it has started operations in Augusta, Ga., and Tallahassee, Fla. The Augusta operation is based at a local hospital and covers the city and surrounding countryside. In the Florida capital, Air Methods, through its LifeNet division, contracted directly with Leon County to provide services after Tallahassee Memorial Hospital ceased its air ambulance operation.
Aviation Professionals Sharing Information (APSI), founded at Westchester County Airport (HPN) in White Plains, N.Y., celebrated its first anniversary by holding its first regional meeting at Signature Flight Support's new facility in Morristown, N.J. (MMU), attracting attendees from Hawaii; California; Washington, D.C.; New York; and Ohio. In a show of corporate support, Signature, Sun Jets of Camarillo, Calif., and Million Air flew personnel into MMU for the June 25 meeting.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge recently outlined what happens after the president decides to raise the national threat level. ``We then give advance conference calls that I'm engaged in, to notify governors, state homeland security advisers and key mayors,'' Ridge told the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee in June. Simultaneously, the DHS begins notifying other federal, state and local agencies and the private sector via the FBI and the National Law Enforcement Telecommunication System (NLETS).
The U.S. Defense Department is launching a campaign to reduce aviation accidents and other types of mishaps by at least 50 percent over the next two years.
Harrods Aviation Limited announced that its expanded FBO at London Luton Airport is open for business. The facility has a bigger passenger lounge, private VVIP lounge, conference facilities, panoramic views over the ramp, covered drop-off area and additional car parking. Crews now have a dedicated airside lounge with the usual flight-planning amenities and Internet access. The crew lounge has direct access to operations and ramp staff. The facility's location allows push-back directly onto the taxiway.
IN ONE OF MY FAVORITE MOVIE scenes, a swashbuckling pirate is about to lead his friend into a dark morass of vegetation. The friend stops short and says, ``We can't go in there! It's the fireswamp! We will never come out alive!'' The pirate confidently replies, ``Nonsense. You're only saying that because no one ever has.'' He slashes a vine with his sword, and they step into the darkness as the music sounds a dour note.
George F. ``Rick'' Adam, Jr. CEO, Adam Aircraft Industries, Englewood, Colo. Upon graduating from the U.S. Military Academy, Adam transferred to the Air Force, where he specialized in computers and space launches. After executive stints with IBM, Litton, FMC and Baxter Healthcare, he joined Goldman Sachs, where he headed information technology as a general partner. He went on to form his own software company and, in 1998, began Adam Aircraft. 1 Whatever possessed you to get into the airplane business?
NASA ``built'' a virtual perimeter taxiway around DFW Airport to test the impact on ground safety. DFW has set a record of more than one million runway crossings without a single incursion -- unprecedented for a major airport. Perhaps realizing that a perfect record is unsustainable, the airport management sees perimeter taxiways as a means to further enhance safety by reducing runway crossings. NASA, the FAA and DFW management set up a virtual reality demonstration of a set of perimeter taxiways.
Stevens Aviation, Greenville, S.C., promoted Jon Moldovan Sr. from manager to director of aircraft certifications, engineering and modifications. In his new role, he is responsible for modifications to aircraft structures, furnishings, systems and equipment in normal and transport aircraft. Moldovan joined Stevens in 1996 after 11 years employed by Raytheon Aerospace.
Like the NBAA and NATA, the AOPA is turning up the heat on security-related flight restrictions. The AOPA in a statement said, ``The time has passed for a dispassionate review.'' The association is calling on general aviation pilots to help make the case. It wants to hear from members about problems they've encountered trying to operate in the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) or in any of the presidential movement TFRs. ``We will take these very real operational stories to the decision-makers.
THIS COLUMN HAS OFTEN SUNG the praises of air safety investigators, especially those working for the NTSB. Their hours are long; their pay is modest; and their working conditions can be abominable -- witness ValuJet in the Everglades or American Airlines in the Colombian jungle. The whole business of air accident investigation has become quite sophisticated. In the beginning, the investigations were conducted to determine whether the machine had failed or the pilot erred.
The Learjet 40, a truncated iteration of the Model 45 and which succeeds the Model 31 as Bombardier's entry-level business jet, received its U.S. type certification on July 11. The company said deliveries of the $7.7 million, 1,700- to 1,800-nm aircraft will begin in first quarter 2004.
John Wayne-Orange County Airport (SNA), in Santa Ana, Calif., signed a contract with Megadata to equip the facility with the company's PASSUR AirportMonitor, an Internet flight tracking and information system. ``Our residents, communities and customers have asked us to provide transparency, accuracy and convenience regarding information about the terminal airspace,'' John Wayne Airport Director Alan Murphy said, adding AirportMonitor provides that. John Wayne is the 10th airport nationwide to launch the system.
NATA also sent a letter to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) outlining its concerns with the FAA's final rule implementing Domestic Reduced Vertical Separation Minima (DRVSM) as it impacts small charter operators. DRVSM involves operations in airspace between FL 290 and FL 410. In the letter, NATA President James K. Coyne noted that 64 percent of the turbine aircraft operated by on-demand carriers are at least 11 years old and are likely to be phased out of use in the next five to 10 years.
The FAA will become more influential on the DCA issue if the Aviation Security Technical Corrections and Improvement Act is enacted. That legislation (H.R.2144), includes a provision that would restore nonscheduled commercial flights to DCA under a new security program to be implemented by the Department of Homeland Security, the TSA's parent agency.
Heli-Dyne Systems, Inc., expanding its reach beyond helicopters, has upgraded and delivered a King Air 300 to a foreign military customer. The King Air completion included integration of a Wescam MX-20, a camera and forward-looking infrared system designed for long-range surveillance and intelligence-gathering applications. The project was completed in 2002, but the customer asked Heli-Dyne to delay announcement of the delivery for security reasons.
Panorama Flight Service at Westchester County Airport (HPN), White Plains, N.Y., has signed a three-year agreement with ChevronTexaco to sell avgas and Jet-A.
Sviluppo Italia, an Italian government financing company, has invested $20 million ($22.5 million) in Piaggio Aero Industries in return for roughly 20 percent of the company. Piaggio says other major new investors include: Lochmore, a holding company that represents Piero Ferrari and Jos di Mase; Lannion, a holding company that represents Francisco Micheli; The Air Trust; and the members of the executive board. The new investment brings Piaggio Aero Industries capitalization to $80 million ($90 million), the company said.
The so-called ``hold-harmless'' agreements some FBOs were requiring customers to sign before allowing them on their ramps after the terrorist attacks of 9/11 are gradually fading away. Signature Flight Services, for example, has backed off entirely on requiring hold-harmless agreements. However, at some general aviation airports hosting solitary independent FBOs, the agreements occasionally may be encountered.
Adam Aircraft has chosen Avidyne's FlightMax Entegra integrated flight deck for the Adam A500. The FlightMax Entegra system uses two 10.4-inch diagonal, high-resolution, sunlight-readable displays as pilot and copilot primary flight displays (PFD). Each display has its own integrated solid-state air data and attitude/heading reference system (ADAHRS). The PFDs will present flight information in a standard format, combining an electronic attitude direction indicator (EADI), an electronic horizontal situation indicator (EHSI), altitude, airspeed and vertical speed.
Meguiar's Gold Class Rich Leather Foam Cleaner/Conditioner is designed to deep clean, condition and protect fine leather interior surfaces with precision and control. The new system provides deep cleaning through its foam actuator tip, which allows the thick foam to spread only onto the intended surfaces, according to the manufacturer. The foaming leather cleaner/ conditioner, is available in a 10-ounce container, can protect the equivalent of 40 standard aircraft seats.
VitalLink, nicknamed the ``Physician in a Bag,'' is a medical monitor that can send a passenger's vital signs in real time to a physician anywhere in the world for immediate consult and preliminary diagnosis. Audio and visual prompts show and explain to the user how to attach the medical leads to the patient. The device immediately starts to monitor the patient and then automatically calls the predetermined medical center -- hospital, private physician or medical department. The physician then watches the vital signs in real time on his or her PC.
