RICK DAY was appointed senior vice president-operations for FAA’s Air Traffic Organization. Day previously was the ATO’s vice president-en route and oceanic services. In his new role he will direct the ATO’s largest business units: en route and oceanic, system operations, technical operations and terminal. The new position was created in July and has been filled on an acting basis by Steve Zaidman, who also is vice president-technical operations.
THE PORTSMOUTH, N.H. INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT will conduct a full-scale airport emergency exercise Saturday Oct. 4. The airport expects responders from approximately 25 local, state and federal agencies to participate. For more information, contact Andrew Zielike at the Pease Development Authority at (603) 433-6536 or at: [email protected].
DAVID KROGMAN was named general manager of West Star Aviation’s facility in Grand Junction, Colo. (GJT). Krogman will replace Rick Brainard, who left the job to become vice president of sales. Krogman will oversee all day-to-day operational activities at the aircraft maintenance facility and fixed-base operation in Grand Junction. He has been serving as director of hangar operations there since July 2006. Prior to that, Krogman had been Citation and Hawker program manager since joining West Star in 1996.
Satellite communications provider Iridium Holdings LLC took steps to prepare for the launch of the next generation satellite constellation with a definitive agreement to merge with GHL Acquisition Corp. The merged company will be renamed Iridium Communications Inc.
THE WICHITA aviation community plans to form the Wichita Aero Club, based on the Aero Clubs of Washington and Atlanta and The Wings Club in New York. The group, comprising a consortium of business, government and educational organizations, will host monthly luncheons with speakers addressing major aviation industry issues. The Wichita Aero Club also plans to have a Web site, online newsletter, and fund-raising events.
THE HONDAJET WILL NEED A FIRE EXTIGUISHING SYSTEM, says the Federal Aviation Administration, which recently issued special certification conditions for the Very Light Jet. Part 23 airplanes don’t normally require a fire extinguishing system, but because the HA-420’s engines are mounted aft on the top of the wings, out of the pilot’s primary field of view, the agency states that “early visual detection of engine fires is precluded” and a fire extinguishing system is necessary.
MARK H. HILDEBRANDT , 52, was elected to the board of directors of HEICO Corp., Miami, Fla. Hildebrandt will fill the seat vacated by Joseph W. Pallot, who resigned to become the company’s full-time general counsel. Hilebrandt is a partner in the Miami law firm of Waldman, Hildebrandt, Trigoboff Marx & Calnan. He began his legal career as an assistant state attorney in the Miami-Dade County State Attorney’s office working under Janet Reno. He has been engaged in the practice of law for more than 25 years.
BOMBARDIER Model CL-600-2C10 (Regional Jet Series 700, 701 and 702) and Model CL-600-2D24 (Regional Jet Series 900) airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2008-1007; Directorate Identifier 2008-NM-135-AD] – Requires modifying the fuel system wiring along the fuselage and in the avionics compartment by installing protective conduit and spacers, in accordance with the instructions of Bombardier Service Bulletin 670BA-24-011, Rev. C (dated Nov. 28, 2005).
PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA established a new parts distribution center in Sydney, Australia to supply parts to customers in the Australia and New Zealand regions. The facility is the third parts distribution center that P&WC has opened worldwide as part of an aftermarket strategy to expand its global reach. P&WC opened a center in Singapore last year and one in Amsterdam in 2006. The new center will house a range of parts, including exchange accessories and line-replaceable units for all P&WC engine models.
BRISTOW is planning to open a new European headquarters and training facility in Aberdeen, Scotland. The helicopter services company has invested nearly 180 million pounds in the European business unit over the last three years. The new facility will include 12,000 square feet of office space, 6,000 square feet of classroom/training facilities and 11,500 square feet of space that will house up to four flight simulators. Bristow plans to begin construction next month and move into the new headquarters by May 2009.
Hangar space for lease at the Van Nuys Airport. Maguire Aviation is in the process of developing 460,000 sq. ft. of hangar and offices for single and multiple tenant occupancy. Please contact Mike McDaniel or Tim Wray for more information at 800-451-7270. Click here to view the pdf
Eclipse Aviation is awaiting word on when it can expect a cash infusion from Russia. Timing is a matter of concern since the Albuquerque, N.M., airframer’s current cash reserves only will sustain company operations at their current levels through the end of October.
THE NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD was continuing its investigation last week of the Sept. 19 fatal crash of a Learjet 60 (N999LJ) as it was attempting to take off from the Columbia, S.C. Metropolitan Airport. Investigators found pieces of tire from the aircraft about 2,800 feet down the runway. The aircraft ran off the end of the 8,600-foot runway, through a fence and across a five-lane highway before striking terrain and bursting into flames. Both pilots and two passengers were killed and two other passengers were severely injured.
M7 AEROSPACE joined forces with San Antonio Aircraft Support (SAAS) to open a new modification center in San Antonio, Texas that will specialize in custom corporate interiors. M7 said the new joint venture combines M7’s background in maintenance, repair and overhaul and engineering with SAAS’s experience in fabricating interior furnishings for corporate aircraft. The new center will install corporate interiors in regional aircraft, manufactured by Bombardier, Embraer, ATR, Saab and Dornier, as well as in a range of business aircraft and helicopters.
SUZANNE ROY was appointed vice president, India for CAE. Roy will be based in Bangalore. She joined CAE in 2005 as vice president, program management, responsible for CAE Civil Simulation Products development and implementation programs.
“THE OEMS are fat, dumb and happy with their current order backlogs and are oblivious to how quickly things will change,” is the assessment of industry veteran Brian Foley, who heads the business aviation market research and consultancy Brian Foley Associates. Foley, a former executive with Dassault Falcon Jet, forecast that the next downturn will be more pronounced than originally predicted and the subsequent recovery will take longer. Foley maintains that a weak U.S.
CLARKE MOUNCHER was named global program director Rolls-Royce 250 for all of BBA Aviation’s engine repair and overhaul RR250 activities. For the past 10 years, Mouncher has been a program director at H+S Aviation (a BBA company) and for the past two years he has led the R-R Model 250 program at H+S. In his expanded role he will be responsible for overhaul services at both H+S Aviation and Premier Turbines as well as repair activities at BBA Aviation’s Phoenix and Dayton Regional Turbine Centers.
BELL HELICOPTER TEXTRON CANADA Model 222, 222B, 222U, 230 and 430 helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2008-0449; Directorate Identifier 2007-SW-10-AD; Amendment 39-15669; AD 2008-19-02] – This AD, which supersedes an existing directive (AD 2001-01-51), requires visually inspecting the main-rotor hydraulic actuator support to verify the presence of all dowel pins and sealant between the support and transmission. It also mandates verifying the proper torque of each attaching nut.
PILATUS AIRCRAFT LTD. PC-6 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2008-0990; Directorate Identifier 2008-CE-060-AD] – This proposed AD would require operators to inspect the brake pedals for full and free movement. If any stiffness or limited movement of a brake pedal is found, operators would need to perform the corrective actions detailed in Pilatus PC-6 Service Bulletin No. 32-002, Rev. 2 (dated April 29, 2008) before further flight.
The Federal Aviation Administration faced a new round of accusations of “cozy relationships” with industry as key transportation leaders in the House questioned the validity of the type certificate and production certificate issued to Eclipse Aviation Corp. for its Eclipse EA-500 Very Light Jet. The chairmen of the House aviation subcommittee and Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Wednesday presided over a nearly six-hour hearing on whether senior FAA officials “rushed” the certification of the Eclipse over the objections of agency inspections and test pilots.
Van Nuys, CA VNY CRS #DWHR329D NOW OPEN St. Louis, MO SUS CRS #DELR158D Philadelphia, PA MQS CRS #U7JR551L Dallas, TX DAL COMING SOON Growing in Scope. Keeping our Focus. MAINTENANCE, COMPONENTS, AVIONICS AND INTERIORS AOG 314.602.5366
FLIGHTCRAFT completed a $1.5 million Business Aviation Terminal at the company’s facility in Eugene, Ore. The 3,800-square-foot remodeled facility is more than double the size of Flightcraft’s former terminal. The new facility includes executive luggage service, improved catering facilities, two conference rooms, wireless Internet, ramp and parking lot security cameras, as well as a pilot lounge with a flight planning center, private shower and bathroom, and snooze room.
BOMBARIDER will hold its 12th annual Safety Standdown next month at The Hyatt Regency Crown Center in Kansas City, Mo., the first time the manufacturer has moved the domestic version of the Safety Standdown outside of Wichita. The Oct.
October 6-8 – National Business Aviation Association, 61st Annual Meeting & Convention (NBAA2008), Orlando, Fla. For more information, contact NBAA www.nbaa.org/2008 October 16-18 – Chevron Global Aviation Advanced Safety Training, Richmond, Calif. Contact Chevron Customer Service at (866) 557-3456 or e-mail to [email protected] October 22-24 – International Aviation Womens Association (IAWA) 20th Anniversary and the Accomplishments of Women in the Aviation and Aerospace Industries, Chicago. Contact: Karen Griggs at [email protected]
