Midcoast Aviation expects to receive RVSM group approval for the Hawker 700 A and B this month. The project is a team effort with Collins Avionics providing the technical and equipment solution and with Kohlman Systems Research (KSR) supplying flight test data and operator approval/support. The sixth and final Hawker 700 of Midcoast's flight test group flew the final test flight successfully in mid-August, which validated the RVSM conformity of the Collins ADC-87As that include the new Midcoast/KSR SSEC criteria.
The commonwealth of Virginia and the city of Newport News have withdrawn financial backing for the planned Aviation World's Fair in the city in April 2003, saying promoter Kallmann Worldwide had failed to land a single sponsor. Exhibitor revenues were far behind projections, Virginia's Aviation Department said, and Kallmann couldn't provide the Peninsula Airport Commission a required performance bond. Fewer than 100 exhibitors had signed up, against a projected 1,600, and ticket sales that were supposed to have started last April didn't begin until September.
The FAA Center of Excellence for General Aviation, a consortium led by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, has been awarded by the U.S. Government a $20 million contract for use in the areas of training, safety and security.
Midcoast Aviation, Perryville, Mo., has added Tony Koprivnik as Learjet program manager and Dan Smith as Learjet program chief inspector. Koprivnik joins Midcoast from Bizjet, and Smith was most recently with a corporate flight department operating Learjets.
Before flight, verify the length, width and slope of the destination runway(s) to anticipate potential illusions. Calculate a visual descent point for a non-precision approach, and establish the pitch and power settings to produce a proper airspeed and descent rate.
We've used this space a couple of times in the past year to take some shots at the Transporta-tion Security Administration for its ham-handed handling of the traveling public, but we're happy to report that the mindset of the TSA leadership has shown marked improvement in recent months.
A decade after releasing ``interim'' rules requiring commercial operators to follow certain anti-icing procedures, the FAA has made those requirements permanent. The agency's action permanently institutes the requirements of two interim rules published in 1992 and 1993, outlining operating and training procedures for FAR Part 121, 125 and 135 operators.
This past spring marked a truce between the United States and the European Union over the latter's move in 1999 to ban the use of hush-kitted aircraft within the E.U.
Execaire, Montreal, Canada, has won Cessna's top sales award for the second time in three years. The Citation ASR Award is presented to the international authorized sales representative (ASR) with the highest dollar volume sold between successive NBAA Conventions. Execaire is Canada's only ASR for the Citation line of business jets. Execaire is a division of the Innotech-Execaire Aviation Group.
The U.S. government's restrictions on training foreign pilots may be creating opportunities elsewhere. National Airways and Finance Corp. (NAC) -- an Imperial Group Co. -- has concluded negotiations for the acquisition of 43 Air School, a pilot academy based in Port Alfred, South Africa. Martin Banner, NAC's CEO, said the acquisition is part of an effort to become a world player in the field of ab initio pilot training.
Adam Aircraft, developer of the A500 push/pull piston twin, has achieved organizational designated airworthiness representative (ODAR) status from the FAA, allowing the company to perform its own conformity inspections for manufacturing processes and aircraft parts. Accordingly, the company appointed Mike Schumann and Bill Eckler, manager of quality assurance, as ODARs. The company also said it will participate in NASA's Small Aircraft Transportation System research program.
It is generally conceded among aircraft noise experts that one of the greatest contributions to reducing airport noise was the NBAA's formulation of a set of noise-abatement procedures that have essentially become a world standard.
Cessna Aircraft earned FAR Part 25 transport category type certification for its Citation 500 fanjet in September 1971 and for its Model 550 Citation II in March 1978. Part 25 aircraft must have at least two crewmembers in the cockpit because of the need to have a back-up in the event of crew incapacitation. The pilot-in-command must have an aircraft type-rating, but the second-in-command need only meet the requirements of Part 61.55.
(1) Make a commitment to attend regular FAR Part 142 training with high standards that will genuinely test your proficiency. A daylight VFR check and rubber stamp sign-off by a local FAA designee isn't in your best interest if you want to be the safest possible pilot. (2) Maintain good instrument and multiengine flying skills. Show up for proficiency training with a mastery of those basic skills. Instrument refresher training isn't the best use of simulator time. Simulator time should be devoted to scenarios that are too risky to duplicate in an airplane.
There's a new FBO at Hagerstown (Md.) Regional Airport. Sovereign Air is a sister company to the long-established repair station, Aviation Resources DE, Inc. (ARDI), which operates at an adjoining facility. With Sovereign Air's fueling, cleaning, catering and deicing, the two operate together as a full-service facility for transient and locally based aircraft. Sovereign Air is a Phillips branded facility pumping Jet-A and 100LL and stocking a full line of Phillips aviation lubricants. For more information, call Dennis R. McCabe at (301) 665-1294.
Bird-X, Inc. is now offering an anti-goose device -- GooseBuster -- that uses recorded alert and alarm calls of wild Canada geese to rid airports of the befouling fowl. The device covers up to 21 acres with two units, or up to seven acres with one unit. The system consists of a control unit, four directional speakers with 100-foot cords, and a 24-hour timer. The GooseBuster design is based on field studies conducted by Dr. Philip Whitford, a noted expert on the subject of animal behavior. Price: $850 Bird-X, Inc. 300 N. Elizabeth St.
In anticipation of ``decreased passenger loads and lower aircraft usage in the fall,'' Mesaba Airlines says it will furlough about 50 pilots through January 2003 and close crew bases in Wausau and Rhinelander, Wis., by the end of the year. ``We regret the need to make these decisions,'' said Mesaba COO John Spanjers, who continued, ``They are necessary given the current economic realities of the airline industry.''
Honeywell and Aerosim are jointly developing new PC-based training software for the Primus Epic avionics suite. The system permits flight crews to practice Primus Epic procedures on a PC rather than on more expensive flight simulators and cockpit procedures trainers. Features and functionality of the software are expected to mirror what flight crews experience in flight. Honeywell Vice President Adrian Paull praised the authenticity of the planned software at the recent NBAA convention.
Bombardier and Rockwell Collins announced they will develop the integrated cabin electronics package for the Global 5000 intercontinental business jet using Rockwell Collins' new Airshow 21 cabin electronics system. The systems architecture will feature a redundant communications backbone to support cabin environmental, management, entertainment and ``global office'' functions. The system's ethernet-based local area network (LAN) will provide multiple users with ``off-board'' data connectivity, and access to printers, fax machines and shared files.
My father was a fine doctor and skilled surgeon. In college at Chapel Hill, I decided to follow in his footsteps, so I went to my advisor to adjust my curriculum commensurately. He advised me to come back ``next Monday, December 8th.'' Certain unexpected activities on the intervening Sunday, however, changed every young man's life in the United States. My two brothers were already in the service, and I enlisted as an aviation cadet in the U.S. Navy.
Reno-based Asset Research Corp. is working on the design of a supersonic business jet that could be built with existing engines and would be practical without exotic low-boom technology. Company founder and president Richard Tracy says that his strategy is to team with an airframe and an engine supplier to build the new airplane.
Gulf Coast Avionics Corp., in Lakeland Fla., has a new Internet domain name, www.gca.aero. The company, which does a substantial amount of business through its online avionics catalog, said it wanted to move out of the glutted ``dot-com'' category into the recently available ``dot-aero'' category exclusively reserved for the aviation community. Gulf Coast Avionics is a major supplier of avionics, instruments and pilot supplies to customers around the world.
Meguiar's, Inc. has introduced its Gold Class Rich Leather Cleaner/Conditioner spray to clean, moisturize and protect fine leather. The spray contains moisturizers and nutrients, including aloe, to help prevent leather from drying out and cracking; in addition, it has UV protectors to help prevent premature aging and fading. The cleaner/conditioner is available in a 16-ounce spray bottle and can be used on numerous leather surfaces including automobile, truck, marine and aircraft interiors; luggage; briefcases; furniture; and handbags.
