this month officially took the helm of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, completing a three-month transition for the Dec. 31 retirement of outgoing president Phil Boyer. Fuller is only the fourth president of the nearly 70-year-old association.
PIPER Model PA-46-350P, PA-46R-350T and PA-46-500TP airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2008-1085; Directorate Identifier 2008-CE-057-AD; Amendment 39-15777; AD 2008-26-11] – Install a stall warning heat-control modification kit, as specified by Piper Mandatory Service Bulletin No. 1192 (dated Sept.15, 2008). This AD, which resulted from ice forming on the stall vane heater during flights into icing conditions with the landing gear down, was issued to prevent failure of the stall warning system. FAA estimates that this directive will affect 803 airplanes on the U.S.
ROLLS-ROYCE AE 3007A engines [Docket No. FAA-2008-0975; Directorate Identifier 2008-NE-29-AD; Amendment 39-15772; AD 2008-26-06] – This new directive, which supersedes emergency AD 2008-19-51, still requires operators to perform initial and repetitive eddy-current inspections on the high-pressure turbine (HPT) Stage 2 wheel for cracks, per Rolls-Royce Corp. Alert Service Bulletin AE 3007A-A-72-367 (dated Sept. 5, 2008). However, the new AD revises the compliance schedule for the initial inspection and specifies the affected HPT Stage 2 wheels by part number.
MORE CUTS: At least two of the major business jet makers are revising their production schedules again and expect more rounds of layoffs. See article on Page 16.
NATIONAL BUSINESS AVIATION ASSOCIATION tapped Chris Strong to serve as vice president, membership marketing. Strong joins NBAA with a background in association marketing, strategic planning and member relationship management. He most recently was director of business operations for the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, where he oversaw membership, trade show and nondues revenue. He also served as vice president of member programs at the National Association of Manufacturers.
JOHN D. CLARK, III , was elected the 2009 chairman for the Airports Council International – North America. Clark is executive director/chief executive of the Jacksonville Aviation Authority, where he oversees Jacksonville’s airport system, including Jacksonville International, Craig Municipal and Herlong Airports along with Cecil Field.
FLIGHT SAFETY FOUNDATION received a $1 million gift from the estate of Manuel Maciel, who ran the Sonoma Aviation fixed-base operation at the Sonoma County Airport in Santa Rosa, Calif. Maciel, a private pilot and immigrant from the Azores, had a 50-year aviation career that began with fueling airplanes at Sonoma County. Flight Safety plans to dedicate a portion of the gift to helicopter emergency medical services safety initiatives, but most of the money will fund a new Manuel S. Maciel Chair for Aviation Safety Research.
GKN AEROSPACE took over the former Airbus wing component and assemblies manufacturing facility in Filton, United Kingdom. GKN renamed the facility GKN Aerospace-Filton. The facility employs 1,500 workers, increasing GKN’s overall work force to 10,000. Acquisition of the facility, which works on Airbus A350 XWB wing trailing edge and wing spar and assemblies, essentially doubles GKN Aerospace’s order book for large civil aircraft structures.
BOB YANCEY was appointed president of Goodrich Corporation’s Engine Control and Electrical Power Systems business unit. Yancey has served with Goodrich since 1980, initially with the Aircraft Wheels and Brakes team. He held positions of increasing responsibility, and most recently was president of the Engine Components business.
SAAB Model 340A and 340B airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2008-1044; Directorate Identifier 2008-NM-095-AD; Amendment 39-15774; AD 2008-26-08] – Requires conducting functional checks of the landing gear emergency extension valve at newly established intervals, per the instructions of Saab Service Bulletin 340-32-136 (dated Jan. 9, 2008). If any discrepancy is found during the checks, repair the valve before further flight using a method approved by either FAA or the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
ELLEN ULRICH was named human resources manager for Mid-Continent Instruments, the Wichita, Kan.-based manufacturer of general aviation aircraft instruments. Ulrich will oversee all aspects of Mid-Continent’s human resources functions, including benefit management, recruiting, employee relations, training and development. She has more than 14 years of human resources experience.
EXCELAIRE added a 16-seat Gulfstream GIV-SP to its fleet. The Ronkonkoma, N.Y.-based charter operates a fleet of Gulfstream, Embraer Legacy, Bombardier Learjet, Hawker Beechcraft Beechjet, Cessna Citation and other aircraft.
CHAKER CHAHROUR was appointed executive vice president of CFM International. Chahour has been serving as Asia-Pacific sales executive for GE Aviation. He is succeeding Bill Clapper, who is retiring.
NATIONAL BUSINESS AVIATION ASSOCIATION is advising members to rely on their training and use all of the knowledge that they have available when making decisions about flight into icing. The advice came after the National Transportation Safety Board late last month issued a Safety Alert advising pilots to activate deice boots as soon as the aircraft encounters icing (BA, Jan. 5/3). NTSB questioned the existence of ice bridging, but Doug Carr, vice president of safety and regulation for NBAA, said he’s known of a number of people who have experienced ice bridging.
has earned a type certificate from FAA for its new lighter-weight hub that can be used in conjunction with its ASC-II composite blades. The first unit was certified and delivered to Cirrus in December.
MD HELICOPTERS Model MD900 helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2008-1250; Directorate Identifier 2008-SW-49-AD; Amendment 39-15755; AD 2008-17-51] – Before further flight, inspect the aft threads of the forward directional-control cable for cracks and replace the cable with an airworthy one if cracks are found, per MDHI Service Bulletin SB900-108R1 (dated Aug. 13, 2008). If cracks are not found, demagnetize the cable threads to a certain gauss level.
.-based Executive Aircraft Completions and Lewisville, Texas-based Cabin Innovations, LLC, have been merged into a new company, taking the latter’s name. The move comes as the new company opened its new 39,630-square-foot facilities in Lewisville. Cabin Innovations will have its design, engineering and certification office in Tulsa and a production and engineering office in Lewisville.
THE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADMINISTRATION signed a Joint Statement of Intent with the St. Lucian Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation to develop and improve aviation security initiatives at the Caribbean island nation. TSA and St. Lucia will collaborate on aviation security programs and best practices. TSA deployed an Aviation Security Sustainable International Standards Team (ASSIST) to work with local security officials. TSA will help assess training needs, equipment, current aviation programs and aviation security programs. St.
(ACSF) completed the first audits as part of a beta test for the new Industry Audit Standard program. Announced in June (BA, June 16/276), the Industry Audit Standard is designed to provide a standardized independent evaluation of air charter operators and/or shared ownership companies. The audit includes a Safety Management System evaluation. ACSF worked with accredited auditors to conduct three separate audits, involving a midsize operator in the Northeast, a large operator in the Southwest as well as a shared ownership company in the Southwest.
Embraer secured FAA, European and Brazilian approvals for the largest member of its business jet line, the Lineage 1000 executive jet. The approvals come just weeks after Embraer won Brazilian and FAA type certification for its smallest business jet, the Phenom 100 (BA, Dec. 15/271). FAA granted approval for the Lineage 1000 last week, while Brazilian ANAC and European Aviation Safety Agency certification were awarded in December.
ROBERT YOUNG was named assistant vice president for civil aviation for the Aerospace Industries Association. Young is joining AIA from BAE Systems in Washington, D.C., where he worked on FAA’s Next Generation Air Transportation System modernization program. A former pilot for American, TWA and other airlines, Young will be responsible for AIA aviation safety and security policy as well as environmental efforts.
SCALED COMPOSITES and Virgin Galactic successfully flew the SpaceShipTwo mothership WhiteKnightTwo on its first flight from Mojave, Calif. on Dec 21. The aircraft made a 59-minute flight, taking off from Mojave at 08:16 local time and reaching a maximum altitude of 16,000 feet. The twin-boomed aircraft, powered by four Pratt & Whitney Canada PW308A turbofans, had been undergoing a series of high-speed taxi and brake tests in the run-up to the first flight. A second test flight, marking the start of an 18-month long test effort, is expected in early January.
HOUSE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CHAIRMAN Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.) is urging that Michael Griffin continue as NASA administrator, at least until President-elect Barack Obama sorts out his space policy agenda. “I have recommended that, at a minimum, he be kept during the transition period,” Gordon said, adding that he also was recommending that Griffin “be considered” to be kept on beyond that.
The latest UBS index of business jet market conditions only slightly improved over the all-time low hit in the November index, reflecting a market that continues to rapidly deteriorate (BA, Dec. 22/281). The UBS business Jet Market Index rates market conditions on a scale of zero to 100 with 51-100 representing strengthening market conditions, and below 50 marking weakening conditions. The December Business Jet index was valued at 14, barely better than the 13 in November.
