New Piper Aircraft began another round of layoffs and lowered its production estimates. The Vero Beach, Fla., airplane maker is cutting employment by 150 and lowering its planned production from just over 300 aircraft to 252. New Piper spokesman Mark Miller said the layoffs are ``directly attributable'' to the Textron Lycoming situation. The FAA grounded certain Lycoming-powered aircraft and Lycoming suspended production of certain Lycoming engines after problems with the crankshafts were discovered.
Ourjet, a new aircraft charter company, has started operations from Farnborough Airport with four aircraft acquired from the Official Receivers of the bankrupt Chauffair fleet. Chauffair Ltd. went into receivership on Jan. 14, 2002, with debts estimated at around $19 million. Ourjet's fleet consists of two Hawker 125-800s, one 125-700 and a Cessna Citation V. ``The takeover of Chauffair's assets inked in late November and December [2002] saw the necessary AOC [Air Operators Certificate] gained.
Outerlink Corp. announced that 12 air medical operators installed its satellite-based automatic flight following system. The Outerlink system enables both automatic flight following and real-time data messaging between air ambulance aircraft, ground dispatchers and hospital emergency rooms. The flight following system not only provides immediate aircraft status information, it also provides a historical record of actual flight paths, which is very helpful for billing purposes, the company says.
Multiflight, in partnership with its home base landlords at Leeds/Bradford Airport, Yorkshire, is about to start building two new hangars providing over 19,685 square feet of space, a new Business Executive Aviation Terminal and new taxiway and apron on the south side of the airport. It is believed that one of the hangars will house Multiflight's new BBJ2, while the other will offer line maintenance for large air transport aircraft.
The issue of U.S. intelligence primacy has been decided with the CIA directed to establish and operate a new terrorist threat integration center to evaluate and analyze all pertinent intell data from the diverse array of civil and military agencies, including the CIA, that collect it. Early word from government officials is that the new center will be physically separate from the CIA headquarters compound. Some readers may recall that the original charter of the CIA, as its name implies, was to coordinate the nation's intelligence activities.
The TSA is extending until at least April 1 the deadline for FAR Part 135 operators with aircraft weighing over 12,500 pounds to implement new security programs under the agency's ``Twelve-Five'' rule. Until the reprieve, the National Air Transportation Association had been inundated with calls from air charter operators facing an early February deadline for setting up mandatory security programs, but who had not seen the final guidance on implementing those programs.
GAMA's 2003 outlook accompanying its 2002 report notes strong fundamental indicators of underlying industry strength. GAMA's Bolen notes that the industry, from bottom to top, has coped well with the potentially disastrous security issue. Actually, as some point out, the issue was not general aviation security, but GA as a danger to the rest of society. Industry associations, individually and collectively, in the form of the General Aviation Coalition, are credited with effectively keeping the truth out in front of legislators, regulators and the public.
A difficult year is now history for MD Helicopters, Inc. (MDHI), which joined other manufacturers in reporting a decline in 2002 deliveries. MDHI delivered 15 helicopters in 2002, according to Chairman and CEO Henk Schaeken, who led the MDHI contingent at February's Heli-Expo in Dallas. The 2002 delivery total included five MD 500Es, four MD Explorers, four MD 520Ns and two MD 600N helicopters. ``In terms of deliveries, it was a disappointing year,'' Schaeken said.
Premier Turbines, St. Louis, Mo., has hired Rick Hollandsworth as TFE731 engine operations manager. A licensed A&P mechanic with more than 20 years of aviation experience in maintenance and management positions, Hollandsworth will oversee the company's Honeywell TFE731 Major Periodic Inspection program.
Turbomeca Engine Corp., Grand Prairie, Texas, has named Russ Spray president and chief executive officer. Spray will also serve as president and CEO of Mictroturbo, Inc., which occupies the same facility as Turbomeca Engine Corp.
Dassault Falcon Regional Sales Manager Bob Dalin and his wife, Linda, were killed on Jan. 12 in a motorcycle accident in Sarasota, Fla. Dalin, who had worked with Dassault since 1986, was responsible for sales in the Eastern United States and sold more than $800 million worth of Falcons over the course of his career. He was 58 years old.
The Helicopter Association International presented Francisco Orlaineta, chief pilot for Evergreen Helicopters, with its 2002 Pilot of the Year award on Feb. 12 at the Heli-Expo in Dallas.
AC -- Alternating current Amp (Ampere) -- Basic unit measurement of electrical current (flow) Amp-Hour -- The amount of electrical power represented by one amp of current flowing for one hour APU (Auxiliary Power Unit) -- Installed device that provides electrical power for ground ops, engine start and emergency operations Bus Tie -- A switch or relay that disconnects one bus from another, or reroutes power in the event of a fault Current Limiter -- A non-resettable device that operates like a slow blow fuse to limit excessive current DC -- Direct current Diode -- A
Metro Business Aviation's London-Stansted business aircraft engineering operation has been awarded ``Challenger Authorized Service Facility'' status by Bombardier Aerospace.
Metro Business Aviation is moving its engine shop from London-Luton Airport to the TAG owned and operated Farnborough Airport in Hampshire. ``The move to larger premises is ideal for expansion into the TFE731 engine series where we have recently been approved to conduct line maintenance,'' said Metro's technical director, Mick Adams. Metro is a Honeywell TFE731 and APU, GTCP30-32, 36-100 and 36-150 major service center.
WE TEND TO THINK OF spatial disorientation as something that happens to low-time recreational pilots who stray into IMC and spiral in. Yet spatial disorientation can overtake experienced, high-time pilots as well and can lead to complete loss of control if not remedied immediately. Such was the case on Jan. 27, 2001, when a King Air 200 (N81PF) spiraled out of control and crashed into rolling terrain near Strasburg, Colo., killing both pilots and eight members of the Oklahoma State University basketball team.
Pilots and crews of Austin-Travis County STAR Flight were awarded the Helicopter Association International's Eurocopter Golden Hour Award on Feb. 11 at Heli-Expo 2003 in Dallas. STAR Flight is a public safety helicopter program operated by the city of Austin and Travis County, Texas. It serves 19 counties around Austin. The program has expanded from EMS transportation to a broad set of services, including search and rescue, law enforcement and aerial firefighting. STAR Flight was credited with saving 24 lives during storms and flooding in November 2001.
General Dynamics reported its Aerospace unit had lower operating earnings in 2002, but said its Gulfstream Aerospace still managed to outperform its competition. In its year-end financial statement, GD said Aerospace sales fell from $950 million in fourth quarter 2001 to $907 million in the same quarter in 2002. For the year, Aerospace sales increased slightly, from $3.265 billion in 2001 to $3.289 billion in the year just ended.
3M Aerospace is offering its High Intensity Fiber-Optic Flashlight System to aid in the inspection of aircraft structures, fuel tanks and insulation. The flashlight was designed to direct bright, high intensity light into cramped spaces, and around tight corners and obstructions without producing a glare or shadow. The fiber-optic flexible wand comes in 7.0- and 12.0-inch lengths and is constructed from high-strength polymers. Price: TBD 3M Aerospace 3M Center, Building 220-8E-05 St. Paul, MN 55144 www.mmm.com
Enstrom President Steven P. Daniels predicted that public service operators will play an increasingly important role in his company's growth. ``Our core business has been, and always will be, the private individual who wants a helicopter for business or personal use,'' Daniels said. This year, 75 percent of the company's sales will fall into that. The remainder of sales will be to public service agencies. However, by 2004, Daniels expects the public service segment to grow to nearly 50 percent of all Enstrom sales.
Author Dennis Newton speaks pilot-to-pilot in this guide on how not to fly into severe weather. In addition, Severe Weather Flying covers the fundamentals of weather, atmosphere, and air stability and then goes further into the aspects of severe conditions, such as thunderstorms, downbursts, lightning, icing and wind shear. Price: $19.95 Aviation Supplies & Academics 7005 132nd Pl. S.E. Newcastle, WA 98059 Phone: (425) 235-1500 Fax: (425) 235-0128 www.asa2fly.com
THE MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL area is a beautiful place (at least during the warmer months of the year) that is blessed with a system of reliever airports most metropolitan areas would relish. In fact, most cities would be happy to have a couple of decent relievers, but Minneapolis-St. Paul has six: Airlake (LVN), Anoka County-Blaine (ANE), Crystal (MIC), Flying Cloud (FCM), Lake Elmo (21D) and St. Paul Downtown (STP). Those six facilities handle a combined total of nearly 800,000 operations per year.
An FAA announcement that it would revoke the airman certificate of anyone found to be a ``security threat'' by the TSA caught many by surprise and stirred up a hornet's nest in Washington. The rule applies to any pilot, mechanic or dispatcher who is identified by the TSA. The process involves the TSA issuing an ``Initial Notification'' to individuals believed to be a threat, and then notifying the FAA as well.
Gold Air International of Biggin Hill, Kent, England, has ordered five Learjet 45XRs, valued at $55 million, to add to its current charter fleet of five Learjet 45s. Founded in 1997, Gold Air claims to be the United Kingdom's largest executive jet operator, with a current annual turnover in excess of $16.5 million. ``We've seen our sales increase by 40 percent year on year against a downturn within the airline industry. Security concerns and the inconvenience of airport delays have fueled our growth,'' said Will Curtis, Gold Air's managing director.
If you need a mobile workspace, then the Helilodge may be for you. Designed to be transported effectively by a helicopter, this portable lodge has a modular layout that can be combined in different configurations. You can either use a single Insidelodge unit as working space inside a production plant or you can get an additional conference room with a view when you put a Helilodge on your unused roof space. It can also be used as a research center or a Helimotel in remote areas, or more units can be combined with a rooftop helipad to secure the link to the outside world.
