CLIFFORD DEVELOPMENT named Stevens Aviation as an authorized installation center for the Clifford Cessna Citation 550 and S550 re-engining program. Clifford in December won FAA supplemental type certificate to re-engine the Citation 550/S550 business jets with Williams FJ44-3A (BA, Dec. 22/283). The program boasts 35 improvements including an Ametek digital engine display, BFG brakes and a dual FADEC system. The Williams engines are thermodynamically rated at 3,000 pounds (with takeoff flat-rated thrust of 2,820 lbs.).
THE FIRST RETAIL CITATION XLS+ also was delivered by Cessna to an undisclosed customer on the East Coast. First announced in October 2006, the Citation XLS+ achieved FAA certification on May 30. European Aviation Safety Agency certification is expected in early 2009. Cessna holds more than 200 orders for the XLS+, which features the Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics suite and electronically controlled (FADEC) engines from Pratt & Whitney Canada.
January 11-15, 2009 – American Association of Airport Executives: 23rd Annual Aviation Issues Conference, Kona, Hi. For more information contact AAAE at (703) 824-0500 or go to www.aaae.org/products/allmeetings.html January 20 – NATA Environmental Compliance Seminar, Sheraton North Houston Hotel, Houston, Texas. For more information call (703) 845-9000
Quick passage of an FAA reauthorization bill and changes on a sweeping security proposal remain among the most pressing priorities as business and general aviation groups start the new year.
JetDirect Aviation Holdings is restructuring its operations with the sale of its wholly owned units Sunset Aviation and Presidential Jets as well as three fixed-base operations. The Berwyn, Pa. aviation services provider said the reorganization would allow JetDirect Aviation to focus on its national aircraft management and charter business.
HAWKER BEECHCRAFT has delivered a Beechcraft Premier IA to NASCAR driver Clint Bowyer. The driver will use the Premier IA to fly across the country to take part in NASCAR races. Bowyer has participated in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series for three years, finishing in the top five in 2007 and 2008.
GULFSTREAM AEROSPACE also is “battling through” the tumultuous market, according to the latest analysis from Macquarie Research Equities. Macquarie said Gulfstream was “weathering the economic storm in decent shape” in the face of a sharp reduction in flight hours and the increasing used jet inventory in the business jet market. Gulfstream does plan to cut production of its midsized aircraft, but expects modest increases in wide-cabin business jet output, Macquarie said.
NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION ASSOCIATION tapped Eric Wunderlich of NetJets Aviation to serve as chairman of the Environmental Committee. Wunderlich is replacing Traver Gruen-Kennedy of DayJet Corporation, which recently filed for Chapter 7 liquidation. Wuderlich plans and directs all aspects of NetJets’ environmental efforts in the U.S. and coordinates efforts in Europe. Before joining NetJets in 2008, he was a business development manager for the Trulite fuel cell unit of Standard Renewable Energy in Houston, Texas.
GULFSTREAM’S London-Luton Service Center won approval from the United Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority to perform maintenance on Gulfstream G150 aircraft registered with the European Aviation Safety Agency. The amended certificate means the maintenance facility can now provide comprehensive service for the Gulfstream G550, G500, G450, G350, G200, G150, G400 and G300 as well as the GV, GIV-SP, GIV, GIII and GII.
DELPHI CONNECTION SYSTEMS, a subsidiary of Delphi Automotive Systems, is partnering with JR Aero Services to expand its Data Connectivity Systems (DCS) business in the corporate and general aviation markets. JR Aero Services, an aviation services integrator, will represent DCS, offering the connection systems and data connectivity systems to the corporate and general aviation markets. DCS engineers and assembles wiring systems, from whole aircraft systems to harness-and-box assemblies.
ATR handed over a new 72-seat ATR 72-500 to Sweden’s Golden Air. The airline, which currently operates a fleet of five Saab 340Bs, five Saab 2000s and a secondhand ATR 72-500, becomes the first Swedish carrier to operate the -500 series. Since the inception of the ATR turboprop program, 974 aircraft have been sold (419 ATR 42s and 555 ATR 72s) and 806 delivered (401 ATR 42s and 405 ATR 72s).
GENERAL ELECTRIC CT7-8A turboshaft engines [Docket No. FAA-2006-24261; Directorate Identifier 2006-NE-12-AD; Amendment 39-15768; AD 2008-26-02] – This AD, which supersedes an existing directive (AD 2006-06-51), requires that operators remove certain Sikorsky S-92 engines from service, flush their front frame and replace the engine’s No. 3 bearing, per the instructions of GE CT7-8 Shop Manual GEK 10517 and GE Aircraft Engines Service Bulletin No. CT7-8 S/B 72-0017, Rev. 02 (dated May 14, 2008). This AD, which resulted from investigation of two failures of No.
NATIONAL BUSINESS AVIATION ASSOCIATION, which earlier in December announced that it was scaling back its new Light Business Airplane Conference (BA, Dec. 22/283), also decided to cancel the Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (ABACE) in 2009. The event was scheduled Feb.11-12 in Hong Kong. “NBAA recognizes the importance of Asia to the future of business aviation,” said NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen. “But ABACE requires a huge commitment of resources.
The pilots of the ExcelAire Legacy 600 business jet that collided with a Gol Airlines 737-800 on Sept. 29, 2006, will face a Brazilian court criminal trial sometime in 2009, their attorney said. On Dec. 10, CENIPA, the Brazilian accident investigation authority, found the Legacy 600 pilots, Joe Lepore and Jan Paladino, responsible for the accident, saying the business jet’s transponder ceased transmitting, likely because it was inadvertently set to standby mode.
GULFSTREAM and the General Aviation Manufacturers Association recently teamed to sponsor an event in Savannah, Ga. to encourage local elementary, middle and high school students to pursue aviation careers. Katie Pribyl, communications director for the General Aviation Manufacturers Association, showed 30 students the cockpit and avionics of a Cirrus SR22 and detailed the many career opportunities available in general aviation. Students selected from the Gulfstream youth apprentice program also received 30-minute flights in the SR22.
ELLIOTT AVIATION’s facilities at Quad Cities International Airport in Moline, Ill. completed a custom air ambulance interior in a Beech King Air B200 for air medical provider Life Flight, a division of Salt Lake City-based Intermountain Healthcare. The interior included the installation of a two-place divan, a Spectrum medical bed, Spectrum Overhead Servoplex, patient entertainment system, new cabin flooring, and Raisbeck crown wing lockers. The completion also involved reupholstering, avionics modifications and paint work.
Florida lawmakers and the air traffic controllers union are urging FAA to postpone any moves to split the Orlando ATC operation into separate tower and approach control units.
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION downgraded Israel’s aviation safety rating to Category 2. The move, which the agency said follows an assessment of the country’s civil aviation authority that was completed last summer, prevents Israeli air carriers from establishing new service in the U.S. FAA said the civil aviation authority of Israel is working on “an aggressive action plan to correct all areas of concern” to demonstrate that the safety oversight system is in full compliance with International Civil Aviation Organization standards.
Textron has unveiled a plan to shutter its Textron Financial Corporation’s (TFC) commercial finance business as it adjusts its fourth-quarter outlook. The company blamed the move on continued economic weakness.
ROBERT PRESTON was appointed to a three-year term on the Pease Development Authority, which oversees Pease International Airport in Portsmouth, N.H. Preston had previously served on the Pease Development Authority board from December 1999 to December 2005. He was chairman of the Airport Committee and a member of four other committees, including the Zoning Adjustment and Appeals Committee.
The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority (RTAA) is hoping that the Nevada legislature will pass a draft bill to exempt taxes on aircraft services, maintenance, parts and labor in order to attract more aviation/aerospace companies. Passing the measure will be a challenge, since Nevada, like others, is in desperate financial straits, said Krys Bart, executive director of RTAA.
LANDMARK AVIATION completed a $5.4 million expansion and renovation of its facility in White Plains, N.Y. (HPN). The project added 8,110 square feet of space to the terminal, which now encompasses 23,208 square feet. The project included a new executive conference room, a private VIP lounge, a snooze room and a separate galley. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Landmark Aviation operates 42 fixed-base operations in the U.S., Canada and Western Europe.
A number of aviation groups expressed concern last week about a new Transportation Security Administration “Security Directive” (SD) which would dramatically increase the number of people who would be required to undergo background checks, be fingerprinted and meet other standards necessary to qualify them for airport identification badges at hundreds of commercial airports across the country.
The European Parliament is expected to approve the recent agreement between the European Union and the U.S. on cooperation in the regulation of civil aviation safety, in plenary session next month.
JON CONLON joined Avjet Corporation as a market analyst with a focus on Gulfstream and Global Express aircraft. Avjet, which operates one of the largest Gulfstream charter fleets worldwide, also provides large cabin aircraft sales and acquisition services. Conlon was a managing partner and senior equity strategist of a Washington D.C.-based hedge fund, where he monitored both the commercial and business aviation markets.
