The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the April 19 near-collision of Southwest Airlines Flight 649 and a Cessna 172 at Burbank (Calif.) Bob Hope Airport. The skies were clear with 10-mile visibility when the event occurred, according to preliminary details released by the NTSB last week.
A spate of crashes involving turboprop aircraft drove the total number of business aircraft accidents up by about one-third in the first quarter of this year, according to a report from safety expert Robert E. Breiling Associates. U.S.-registered business aircraft were involved in 16 accidents in the first quarter of 2010, up from 11 in the first quarter of 2009. Fifteen of those accidents involved turboprops. This is not quite double the eight business turboprop accidents reported in the first quarter of 2009.
Dassault Falcon Jet’s net orders fell from a peak of 203 in 2007 to negative 98 in 2009, as the company experienced a sharp 45% reduction in backlog value in one year. The report notes that the result excluded NetJets, which walked away from 65 delivery positions after 2014. Gulfstream appears to have fared better than most, cushioned by an impressive order book for the G650. “With G650 certification and initial deliveries scheduled in 2011, the bulk of these revenues will remain unrealized (save for healthy progress payments) for the next several years,” it says.
Rockwell Collins has secured supplemental type certificates to provide Localizer Performance with Vertical guidance (LPV) upgrades for King Air C90GTi, B200, B200GT, B200C, B200CGT, 350 and 350C aircraft. Rockwell Collins worked with Hawker Beechcraft to develop the coupled LPV upgrade, enabling King Air operators with Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics to use the 1,900 LPV approaches currently available with minimum decision heights as low as 200 feet. The upgrades will be offered through the Rockwell Collins network of certified dealers.
MATTHIEU LOUVOT was named vice president, head of corporate strategy and company development for the Eurocopter Group. Louvot most recently was adviser to French President Nicolas Sarkozy in the industry, energy and transportation sectors.
Hartzell Propeller Inc. has developed the new Claw 2.0 propeller, an advanced structural composite propeller for aerobatic aircraft that uses ASC-II technology. The Claw 2.0 recently achieved FAA type certification, and the original Claw and Claw 2.0 are the only certified advanced composite propellers available for aerobatic use. Hartzell is offering the Claw 2.0 propeller for Extra 300/330 series aircraft flying in the experimental category.
Diamond Aircraft has received FAA certification for its turbo-diesel-powered DA42 NG airplane. The plane, equipped with twin 170-horsepower Austro Engine AE-300 turbo-diesel powerplants, also is now approved for IFR and flight-into-known-icing operations. For existing DA42 owners, the approval covers conversion of TAE-powered DA42s to the NG configuration and includes optional installation of the Garmin GFC 700 autopilot.
Transactions for medium- and long-range business jets increased 23% in the first quarter of 2010, compared with the same quarter last year, reports AircraftPost.com. “However, when compared to the first quarter of 2008, transactions were down 25%,” AircraftPost.com adds. “Market exposure, calculated from when the aircraft comes on the market to closing, increased two-fold in 2010.” Selling prices fell an average 12% over 2009, compared to the 39% drop in the first quarter of 2008, it says, noting that market price is running an average 20% below market value.
The recent yearend financial reporting season for most business aircraft manufacturers was telling, with confirmation of the scale and seriousness of order backlog erosion across the industry, according to consultant Rolland Vincent Associates. “Most dramatically hit was industry volume-leader Cessna, where 66% of the company’s hard-earned order backlog value was emptied,” says the report. “At Bombardier’s Business Aircraft Division, net orders were a startling minus 85. Yearend 2009 backlog fell by 55% year-over-year at Hawker Beechcraft.”
JDA Aviation Technology Solutions (JDA) has signed a deal with Houston’s Harco Aviation LLC, a repair station and aircraft management services company, for the 135Pro certification support program. The 135Pro certification support program includes manuals specifically tailored to help new charter operators and corporate flight departments satisfy FAA requirements. The customized web-based application and document manager enables the owner/operator to store and access all Part 135 requirements and obtain full-time support from the JDA 135 team.
40 Years Ago April 13, 1970 — Six general aviation associations form the General Aviation Associations Committee to provide a unified front and, among other things, improve “our image before the general public.” 30 Years Ago April 7, 1980 — Department of Energy officials, concerned by reports that U.S. agricultural production may be impacted by shortages of aviation gasoline, urge major refiners to boost avgas production. 20 Years Ago
Bombardier last week formally opened a regional service office (RSO) in Mumbai, India. The RSO, part of an overall expansion of Bombardier’s international service and support network, is the first to serve both Bombardier business and commercial aircraft operators. The 1,900-square-foot RSO, located near the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, is overseen by Subeer Kapoor, manager of RSO, Bombardier commercial aircraft.
The Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF) added John Grillo, president of Executive Fliteways, and Jim Segrave, president of Segrave Aviation, to the ACSF Executive Committee. Grillo, a 36-year veteran of the aviation industry, has been a member of the National Air Transportation Association’s Air Charter Committee, where he helped to establish operational and regulatory standards for the industry.
April 13, 1970 — Six general aviation associations form the General Aviation Associations Committee to provide a unified front and, among other things, improve “our image before the general public.”
BRITISH AEROSPACE HP.137 Jetstream Mk.1, Series 200, Series 3101 and Model 3201 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2010-0056; Directorate Identifier 2009-CE-051-AD; Amendment 39-16259; AD 2010-08-04] — Inspect the nose landing gear’s steering jack piston rod, check the torque of the end fitting, and determine the safe life of the steering jack piston rod. If the piston rod is found cracked or unserviceable, remove the steering jack and replace it with a serviceable unit before further flight.
GILLES BOUCTOT was appointed chief operating officer for Messier-Dowty (Safran Group). Bouctot most recently was executive vice president of the Aircraft Equipment branch of Messier-Dowty parent Safran Group. He also has served as chairman and chief executive of Messier Services International and executive vice president and chief operating officer for Aircelle (formerly Hurel-Dubois). His career began at Snecma.
BOBBY SMITH was appointed to the newly created post of program manager for Sierra Industries. Smith will manage the SkyWay Aerospace Technologies Group, concentrating on OEM technology development programs and government contract proposals and management. He is a retired Air Force officer with Department of Defense and corporate leadership experience. He has more than 6,000 flight hours, including in the Cessna Citation 500 series, and has test pilot experience.
PremiAir, a U.K.-based operator that has specialized in helicopter services, is expanding its aircraft management business to include fixed-wing aircraft. PremiAir recently earned its fixed-wing air operator’s certificate from the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority and is managing its first business jet, a Hawker Beechcraft Premier 1 owned by the von Essen Group. The Premier 1 is based at London Oxford Airport.
MCCAULEY Model 4HFR34C653/L106FA propellers [Docket No. FAA-2007-29176; Directorate Identifier 2007-NE-38-AD] — This proposal would require a one-time fluorescent-penetrant inspection and eddy-current inspection of the propeller hub for cracks, per the instructions of McCauley Propeller Systems Alert Service Bulletin No. ASB254 (dated Aug. 20, 2007). Any cracked hubs would need to be removed from service. This proposed AD is designed to prevent failure of the propeller hub, which could cause blade separation, damage to the aircraft and loss of control of the airplane.
THIELERT TAE 125-01 engines [Docket No. FAA-2010-0308; Directorate Identifier 2010-NE-17-AD] — This proposed AD would require operators to remove the blow-by oil separators, per the instructions of TAE Service Bulletin No. TM TAE 125-0019, Rev. 1 (dated March 5, 2009). This proposal, which resulted from an MCAI issued by the European Aviation Safety Agency, was prompted by the discovery that the small outlet of the blow-by oil separators may cause blow-by gas pressure inside the engine crankcase in excess of the oil seal’s pressure limits.
Cessna posted a $24 million loss as revenues plummeted 43% to $433 million in the first quarter of the year, Cessna parent Textron reported last week. The loss comes as the Wichita plane-maker delivered just 31 business jets in the first quarter, 21 of which were the lower-margin Mustang very light jet. Revenues were down from the $769 million reported in the first quarter of 2009. The loss, the first that the manufacturer has reported during the downturn, compares with the $90 million in profit that the Wichita plan-maker had in first quarter 2009.
The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a three-day safety forum on professionalism in aviation at its Washington headquarters beginning May 18. The safety board intends to gather information on how pilots and air traffic controllers are screened, selected and trained for the job, and to examine ways to enhance professionalism and excellence in performance.
