Jet Aviation Basel completed and delivered its first Boeing BBJ 2. The head-of-state aircraft seats up to 31 passengers and eight crewmembers, the company announced. The Basel facility performed the exterior and interior completion project, supported by its Jet Aviation Engineering Services organization in San Antonio. Jet has completed six BBJs and has two more in progress.
Airliner missile defense is now a political issue. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), is a cosponsor of a bill with Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) to equip airline aircraft with anti-missile defense systems. Boxer said she has met with Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, who is ``very interested in moving this forward. He agrees it's a priority.'' She said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, wants to work with her on the bill. Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) introduced a companion bill in the House in February.
During a gala dinner and awards ceremony held June 14 at the Inter-Continental Le Grand Hotel in Paris, four B/CA writers were honored as recipients of Aerospace Journalist of the Year Awards 2003. Organized by London-based World Leadership Forum, in conjunction with the Royal Aeronautical Society, the competition involved more than 500 submissions across 16 categories, including Best Breaking News, Best Space and Best Defense submissions. B/CA writers won in four separate categories, the most of any publication.
Pacific Sky Air Charter unveiled its new luxury-configured 737-500 VIP aircraft at the Canadian Business Aviation Association meeting in Calgary, Alberta. The airplane seats 23 passengers and has a stateroom with its own lavatory including a shower. It has 4,455 pounds of cargo capacity and a company-claimed range of 4,500 nm. Pacific Air Charter Services is based in Victoria, British Columbia. The Web address is www.pacificsky.ca.
THE INITIAL REPORTS were hearsay. Supposedly some customs officials in France had impounded an American business jet for violating the arcane regulations of cabotage. An unbelievable story had it not been for all the work Contributing Editor David Esler had already accomplished on that very subject. Civilian aviation throughout Europe is undergoing fundamental and pervasive change in its organizational structure. Understanding how the evolving regulations impact operators is of keen importance.
In ``Flying Route 66,'' aviation writer and photographer Russell Munson takes you on a tour of the entire path of Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica in his Piper Super Cub on this DVD (running time: 40 minutes). Munson also wrote and photographed the book Skyward: Why Flyers Fly, and made all of the photographs for Richard Bach's classic book Jonathan Livingston Seagull. He is a commercial pilot with multiengine and instrument ratings, and has a DC-3 type rating.
The Qualichek 200 is a highly sensitive trace gas leak detector that displays leak rate or concentration in a wide variety of applications. The unit features a simple user calibration and audible alarm, carrying case, power supply, small cylinder of compressed argon gas and main display panel. A second display on the hand-held detector probe enables the user to monitor measurements even when working in difficult locations. The unit has an RS232 serial printer interface and can store up to 100 results and built-in fault diagnosis. Call for pricing Uson LP 8640 N.
Delta's Comair subsidiary celebrated the 10th anniversary of the introduction of its first regional jet on July 16. The first North American airline to operate the aircraft, Comair took delivery of 10 CRJ-100s in 1993, according to AirClaims, and now operates about 140.
The seven operators at Teterboro participating in the initial TSA Access Certificate (TSAAC) program have all passed TSA inspection with flying colors. The TSAAC program is based on the NBAA Security Protocol. Subsequently, the NBAA has been informed that the TSA has granted permission to FAR Part 91 operators based at Westchester County Airport (HPN) in White Plains, N.Y., and Morristown Municipal Airport (MMU) in Morristown, N.J., to begin training for TSAACs. TSAAC holders are granted international access without the need for a waiver.
With fewer new aircraft being sold and older aircraft coming off warranty, maintenance repair and overhaul is quickly becoming the growth industry in business aviation. Repair stations report increases in flight department outsourced maintenance and aircraft equipment upgrades. That's both good news and bad news. ``Our work has picked up enough that we have placed ads for A&Ps, but so far, we have not found anyone qualified to fill the jobs,'' said John Ackerman, a maintenance executive with Atlantic Aero, Greensboro, N.C.
AOPA regional representative John P. Luce died on July 1 of an apparent heart attack. He was 68. Luce was the AOPA's Eastern regional representative for nearly a decade, covering Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia. He was an electrical engineer by training and had worked for NASA. His flying career began in the 1950s at Philadelphia's Wings Field, where the AOPA was founded.
FOR THE FIRST TIME in recent memory, FAA reauthorization legislation -- which outlines spending levels for various agency activities -- sailed through the committee process, with separate House and Senate measures winning approval by mid-June. But aviation watchers were left wondering last month whether a provision in the House bill regarding air traffic controllers would derail the process, jeopardizing final passage and enactment. The confrontation concerns a Democratic-sponsored amendment that would prevent privatization of the air traffic control system.
Flight Options announced that it has completed a financial recapitalization agreement with Raytheon Co.'s wholly owned subsidiary, Raytheon Travel Air, and other investors that results in Raytheon owning approximately 65 percent interest in Flight Options LLC. As part of the recapitalization agreement, Raytheon exchanged certain Flight Options LLC debt it holds for equity.
The NBAA should also benefit from Longmuir's past service in the executive branch. She worked closely with White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card when both were at the DOT in the George H.W. Bush administration -- Card was DOT secretary -- and is acquainted with a number of other individuals who serve in the current administration. Asked about FAA Administrator Marion Blakey, who also worked under the senior Bush, Longmuir responded that she has ``the greatest respect'' for Blakey, who she said has a great sense of the big picture.
The Bombardier Challenger 300 is the first new aircraft to be equipped with the Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 CNS. The VHF-4000 voice/data transceiver accommodates VHF Data Link (VDL) Mode 2, with growth to support VDL Mode 3 and Mode 4, enabling new capabilities such as automated digital messaging, automatic flight plan loading and the transmission of graphical weather information. A high-speed digital interface carries both data and audio, which is managed and consolidated by the Collins RIU-4000 radio interface unit.
``Al-Qaida has long considered attacking U.S. Homeland targets using light aircraft. Recent reliable reporting indicates that al-Qaida was in the late stages of planning an aerial suicide attack against the U.S. Consulate in Karachi. Operatives were planning to pack a small fixed-wing aircraft or helicopter with explosives and crash it into the consulate . . . ``Al-Qaida may attempt to use charter or general aviation aircraft to conduct future attacks because of their availability, less stringent protective measures and destructive potential.
The B-717's Advanced Common Flightdeck (ACF) system is part of a family of Honeywell integrated avionics products originally developed for the DC-10 and MD-11 wide bodies, with the intention of migrating the technology to Douglas' narrow body airliners. The ACF's workload reduction features were designed to eliminate the need for a third flight crewmember. Aboard the two-crew B-717, the ACF essentially adds a second officer to the cockpit team.
Austria's JetAlliance AG has put a VIP MD-83 on charter. Based in Vienna, the recently refurbished aircraft features 20 passenger seats in an open ``living room'' plan and has a mid-fuselage master bedroom complete with bathroom and shower. An office area seats eight and there is seating for up to 12 additional personnel at the rear of the aircraft. The MD-83 has a nonstop range of 3,940 miles and is the largest aircraft in JetAlliance's managed fleet.
Jet Aviation International, West Palm Beach, Fla., has named Richard Harris the new head of maintenance for Jet Aviation Saudi Arabia. Harris will be responsible for all maintenance activities at the Jeddah and Riyadh facilities.
The BoltMike III ultrasonically measures tension and clamp load of threaded fasteners. A large, bright, easy-to-read display, rapid calibration and setup, and automatic temperature compensation ensure fast, repeatable, accurate fastener tension measurements in many applications. The system's Stressware software is compatible with Windows 95 or higher version software and enables the user to download reports, set up test parameters and print out results. Call for pricing StressTel 2790 W. College Ave.
Jet Aviation is authorized to install Quiet Technology Aerospace's hush kits on Gulfstream GII, GIIB and GIII aircraft. The authorization covers Jet Aviation's facilities in Geneva, Switzerland; Singapore; Teterboro, N.J.; and West Palm Beach, Fla. The hush kit will bring the Gulfstream business jets into compliance with FAR Part 36 Stage 3 and ICAO Annex 16 Chapter 3 noise regulations. The hush kit, which weighs 234 pounds, is integrated with the aircraft's existing engine and thrust reversers and does not require airframe or structural modifications.
Atlantic Aviation Flight Services added a Hawker 800, a new Hawker 800XP, a Falcon 900 and a Falcon 50 to its charter certificate. The Hawkers will be based at Teterboro, N.J., and the Falcon 50 at Morristown, N.J. The Falcon 900 is currently based at Oxford Airport, Conn., and Atlantic officials are determining the best place to base it during that airport's closure this summer (see page 20). Atlantic's Web site is www.atlanticflight.com.
SkyWest Airlines announced on June 10 that it and United Airlines have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for an 11-year contract, including a multi-year rate agreement for United Express contract flying. Under the terms of the agreement, SkyWest will be reimbursed its operating costs plus a base margin and performance-based incentives, similar to the previous agreement between the parties.
