Ocean Sky has signed a deal to buy one of the Monarch Engineering hangars at London Luton Airport as it beefs up its operations as a service provider for Bombardier in the U.K. The company plans to create up to 10 new engineering jobs after the sale is completed. It also has doubled its apron area at Luton to 120,000 sq. ft., giving it capacity for up to 20 aircraft.
As the aviation industry continues its slow recovery, lessons learned in the past 20 months should be applied to three areas that will significantly impact growth across all sectors, Cessna Aircraft Chairman and CEO Jack Pelton told the Aero Club of Washington last week.
Avfuel added Vail Valley Jet Center (EGE) to its network of branded fixed-base operation dealers. Vail Valley will participate in Avfuel’s AVTRIP points and Avfuel Contract Fuel programs. EGE is a gateway to a number of ski resorts including Vail, Beaver Creek and Aspen in Colorado. The facility has on-site U.S. Customs and is equipped with a number of amenities, including two conference rooms, a business center, showers, complimentary crew cars, a flight planning room, quiet rooms and an entertainment room.
A Kaman Aerospace K-100 helicopter, N134WC, crashed June 16 outside Donnelly, Idaho, killing the pilot, the only person aboard. The helicopter, owned and operated by Woody Contracting, was on a Part 133 long-line logging flight. NTSB was unsure of how long the helicopter had been airborne, and says that there was no filed flight plan. Witnesses told investigators they heard a loud noise come from the helicopter after it had just lifted a load of logs. The helicopter was using a 200-ft.-long line.
Embraer is expanding the scope and size of its regional distribution center in Singapore to manage parts and logistics support for both commercial aircraft and executive jets. The moves, the company says, will improve its parts and logistics support in the Asia Pacific region. Embraer is expanding the storage facility to accommodate inventory previously held in Paris. The company also is increasing office space fourfold to house a centralized materials support team. The team previously had been split in separate locations in Singapore.
CitationAir by Cessna has inked a deal with British Airways to offer travel benefits to passengers through the new PrivateConnect program. Under the deal, CitationAir will offer British Airways customers access to its fleet of aircraft at a pay-per-hour rate with no contract or long-term commitment. Customers also will receive free chauffeured transportation from the fixed-base operation to the British Airways terminal when flying internationally on BA.
The Transportation Security Administration has approved Nashville International Airport (BNA) in Tennessee and Saginaw International Airport (MBS) in Michigan as “gateway” airports for business jets traveling to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). TSA has now approved about 30 gateways for business aircraft operators with an approved DCA Access Standard Security Program to fly directly to DCA.
IAN DAWKINS was named chief executive of on-board connectivity specialist OnAir. Dawkins formerly served as senior vice president, head of future programs, for Airbus SAS. He succeeds Benoit Debains, who has returned to Airbus.
The Department of Transportation has scheduled meetings for two subcommittees of the Future of Aviation Advisory Committee (FAAC). The Financing Subcommittee, which is charged with making recommendations on a secure and sufficient level of funding for the aviation system and chaired by Cessna CEO Jack Pelton, will meet June 29 at the offices of the Cessna Aircraft Company, in Wichita, Kan. The second meeting will involve the Subcommittee on Competitiveness and Viability.
Demand is growing for airborne sensors from Austria’s Diamond Aircraft Industries, says CEO Christian Dries. Its Airborne Sensing Division is winning a lot of tenders for its DA42 MPP (Multi-Purpose Platform); 15 new-generation DA42s fitted with Diamond’s Austro engines are already flying, and another 30 to 40 of these special-mission aircraft will be delivered by year’s end, he tells BA.
Aero Comfort has opened a new 10,000-sq.-ft. facility just outside San Antonio International Airport on the northeast end of the airfield. The facility will support Aero Comfort’s aircraft interior refurbishment and completion work. Aero Comfort provides custom and standard production of seating upholstery, cabinetry, carpeting kits, and panel upholstery for aircraft/helicopter manufacturers, modification centers, completion facilities, seating manufacturers and operators.
New aviation search engine AVAD Aviator, launched this month, is hoping to capture business from industry professionals, hobbyists and hopefuls. The site – http://www.AVADAviator.com – is designed to be an aviation-dedicated Web search portal offering listings including events, airports, fixed-base operations, registration numbers, FAA-certified aircraft, medical examiners and certificate holders, manufacturers, dealers, brokers, new and used aircraft and parts, aviation jobs, and a host of other aviation items and related businesses.
Bell Helicopter has delivered the 1,000th 407 to longtime customer Shin-Nihon Helicopter Corporation Ltd. Shin-Nihon is celebrating its 50th anniversary, and shortly after its founding it began operating the Bell Model 47G2. Today its helicopter fleet includes seven 206L-3s, one Fuji-Bell 204B-2, three 427s and two 407s. The 1,000th 407, Serial No. 54000, will supplement that 407 fleet.
Long Beach, Calif.-based jet card operator JetSuite Air has become the latest to achieve ARGUS International’s platinum rating. The Platinum rating is ARGUS’ highest safety rating. There are 83 platinum-rated operators and more than 300 Gold Plus- and Gold- rated operators.
Showalter Flying Service in Orlando, Fla., has unveiled a new “SimCom Advantage” program that offers free hangarage for SimCom customers. The fixed-base operation, which is located near SimCom, has dedicated three covered hangars that can store up to a Learjet 35 for the training center’s customers’ exclusive use. There is also a dedicated spot in a bulk hangar to house the larger SimCom training aircraft. The hangar spaces are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Filippo Bagnato has returned as chief executive of Franco-Italian regional aircraft manufacturer ATR. Bagnato succeeds Stephane Mayer, whose three-year term has expired. Bagnato formerly served as CEO between 2004 and 2007. Since that time, he has been executive vice president, industrial and commercial development for Finmeccanica.
FAA’s final rule on aircraft registration requirements is expected to be released shortly, now that the Office of Management and Budget has completed its review. On June 21 OMB cleared the rule for publication. The rule, designed to make the Civil Aviation Registry database more accurate, is expected to require aircraft owners to periodically update their registration information.
A new government report shows that the Homeland Security Department (DHS) and the Transportation Security Administration need to improve their risk assessments across a range of transportation modes, including aviation. The Government Accountability Office found that while TSA “has taken some actions to strengthen the security of aviation and surface transportation facilities through a risk management framework, it has not fully implemented such a framework to inform the allocation of security resources across the transportation modes.”
YU YUBIN was promoted to general manager of the ExecuJet Aviation Group base in China. Headquartered in Beijing, Yubin also will continue as aircraft sales director, China. Yubin joined ExecuJet in September 2008 following a career at Airbus.
EMBRAER E190 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2010-0175; Directorate Identifier 2009-NM-187-AD; Amendment 39-16319; AD 2010-11-14] – Revise the “Airworthiness Limitations” section of the “Instructions for Continued Airworthiness” to incorporate new structural-inspection requirements. This AD, which resulted from an MCAI originated by the aviation authority of Brazil, is designed to ensure timely detection and remediation of fatigue cracks in structural components. FAA estimates that this directive will affect 65 aircraft on the U.S. Registry and cost U.S.
MORRISTOWN, NJ — Luxury office space available at Morristown, NJ Airport. 500-15,000 sf. Office units include use of conference room, kitchen and security. Hangar space also available. Contact Charles Dorison at 973-765-0100 x 4475. Click here to view the pdf
ACM Aviation has increased its charter fleet with the addition of a fourth Bombardier Global Express. The newest ACM Global is based in West Palm Beach, Fla. ACM, which has managed aircraft and provided charter for more than 30 years, is based in San Jose, Calif., and has an operations center in White Plains, N.Y. The company operates a fleet of more than 30 aircraft and employs 150.
With a goal of lowering the international helicopter accident rate by 80%, several rotorcraft industry associations have pledged to develop a helicopter version of the International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations (IS-BAO), a set of performance-based standards that uses a safety management system as its cornerstone and addresses operations, maintenance, training and other related issues.
BILL KNAUF has joined Constant Aviation as avionics technical support manager. Knauf previously spent more than 30 years with Honeywell, holding various customer support roles. He also served with Bendix in Florida and with the U.S. Air Force as an airborne navigations system specialist.
