The pilots of a Challenger 604 had to battle strong nose-down trim forces for the last 90 minutes of a six-hour flight after a moisture-induced failure of the aircraft's Horizontal Stabilizer Trim Control Unit (HSTCU), according to a report this month by the United Kingdom's Air Accidents Investigation Branch.
ECLIPSE AVIATION said FAA issued Level D certification for the first Eclipse 500 full motion flight simulator, which was manufactured by Opinicus of Lutz, Fla. Eclipse hopes to achieve FAA certification of its Part 142 syllabus and integration of the simulator and learning environment later this month. In addition to Opinicus and Eclipse, the simulator certification program included participation by Higher Power Aviation of Dallas, Texas and Flight Simulation Company of Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
ARINC INCORPORATED was awarded FAA's new Organization Designation Authorization (ODA) status, allowing the company to issue aircraft supplemental type certificates and perform STC-related service and modifications. The ODA award covers ARINC's Aircraft Integration and Modification Group, which has facilities in Okalahoma City, Okla., Colorado Springs, Colo. and Scottsdale, Ariz. ARINC is one of the first recipients of an ODA, which is slated to replace the existing Designated Alteration Station program by November. 2009.
THE GERMAN MINISTRY OF DEFENSE ordered four Global 5000 business jets from Bombardier. The aircraft, scheduled for delivery in 2011, will be operated by the Defense Ministry's Special Mission Wing for VIP Transport and Medical Evacuation. The Global 5000s were selected by Germany's Federal Office for Defense Technology and Procurement as part of a broader agreement regarding modernization of the MoD's Special Mission Wing.
Named vice president of member programs and education for the Aircraft Electronics Association. Adamson joined AEA in 1999 and has helped grow the association's training and education programs and partnership.
Named brand reputation manager for Sullivan Higdon & Sink's (SHS) Washington, D.C-area office. Yunich has nearly 10 years of communications experience, formerly serving as director of communications for the National Small Business Association.
ERJ 170 and ERJ 190 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-0082; Directorate Identifier 2007-NM-219-AD; Amendment 39-15332; AD 2008-02-02] - Requires removing the wiring connections from Pins 51 and 52 in the electrical connectors of both inertial reference units (IRUs), following the instructions of Embraer Service Bulletin 170-34-0019 (dated Feb. 26, 2007) or 190-34-0009, Revision 01 (dated Oct. 9, 2007), as applicable.
HILLSBORO AVIATION placed orders valued a more than $3.7 million for the new Cessna 400 (formerly Columbia) aircraft. Hillsboro, an authorized Cessna Aircraft dealer and service center, will sell the aircraft in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Including orders placed earlier, Hillsboro has a total of 27 Cessna aircraft valued at more than $10 million on order. Those aircraft include Cessna 400, 172, 182 and 206 models, as well as the recently announced two-seat Cessna 162 SkyCatcher.
Appointed general manager of Bombardier's Wichita Service Center. Carleton has more than 25 years of aviation industry experience. He was a chief inspector and quality control manager for Lincoln Airlines before joining Bombardier in 1988. He has held management roles at Bombardier's Hartford Service Center, including aircraft maintenance manager, Six Sigma master agent and, most recently, program manager.
Appointed director of member services for the Aircraft Electronics Association. Adams is responsible for new member recruitment, retention and related initiatives. She joined AEA in 1993.
Eclipse Aviation CEO Vern Raburn believes an equity infusion "substantially in excess of $100 million" from the startup Very Light Jet manufacturer's principal European distributor will carry Eclipse to profitable operations by late this year or early in 2009. The equity infusion is coming from European Technology and Investment Research Center (ETIRC) Aviation, which signed on in mid-2006 to distribute the Eclipse 500 VLJ in the Russian Federation, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Ukraine and Turkey.
EXECUTIVE BEECHCRAFT delivered the first King Air C90 retrofitted with the Garmin G1000 avionics suite. Executive Beechcraft worked with Garmin International to complete the installation for Data Systems International. The G1000 avionics suite integrates primary flight, navigation, communication, terrain, traffic, weather, and engine instrumentation on high-definition LCDs. Executive Beechcraft won supplemental type certification approval for installation of the G1000 avionics package on King C90 series aircraft.
EMB-120, -120ER, -120FC, -120QC and -120RT airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-28855; Directorate Identifier 2007-NM-098-AD; Amendment 39-15323; AD 2007-26-21] - Requires modification of certain electrical wiring and replacement of the current stall-warning computers with new improved ones in accordance with the procedures described in EMBRAER Service Bulletin 120-27-0092, Revision 01 (dated Dec. 29, 2006).
March 10-11 - Federal Aviation Administration, 33rd Annual Aviation Forecast Conference, Washington, D.C. Contact Linda Baranovics at (202) 267-5370; or e-mail [email protected] March 10-12 - Flight Safety Foundation 20th European Aviation Safety Seminar - EASS, Bucharest, Romania; Contact FSF at (703) 739-6700 March 13-15 - Aeronautical Repair Station Association, Annual Repair Symposium, Washington, D.C.; Contact ARSA at (703) 739-9543
Compact Series propellers [Docket No. FAA-2007-28876; Directorate Identifier 2000-NE-08-AD; Amendment 39-15311; AD 2007-26-09] - This AD supersedes an existing directive (AD 2002-09-08) applicable to all Hartzell Compact Series props with Y-shank aluminum blades. Like the earlier AD, this rule requires initial inspections of prop blades; rework of the blades, including cold rolling of the blade-shank retention radius, blade replacement and modification of pitch-change mechanisms for certain models; and changing the airplane operating limitations of specific prop models.
ADAM AIRCRAFT is laying off workers while it attempts to raise more capital to ramp up production on the A500 and finish certification work on the A700. See article below.
SCHUBACH AVIATION, based at Palomar Airport in Carlsbad, Calif., added a Challenger 601 to its on-demand fleet. The Challenger was renovated with fresh paint and a newly designed interior that can accommodate 12 passengers. The aircraft joins a fleet of 16 aircraft that includes another Challenger 601, two King Air 200s, a King Air C90, three Citation CJ1s, a Citation 1SP, a Citation SII, a King Air 350, two Hawker 800s, a Hawker 700 and two Hawker 600s.
ANDREW BROOM, who has headed media relations for Eclipse Aviation for the past five years, will join Hawker Beechcraft Corp. in Wichita, Kan. next week as director of media and public relations. Broom will work closely with Jackie Berger, vice president communications and public affairs for HBC. A graduate of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Broom worked for the General Aviation Manufacturers Association in Washington, D.C. before joining Eclipse.
The recently formed Air Taxi Association (ATXA) in the U.S. launched a European counterpart with the election of a slate of officers to steer the new organization. ATXA, founded by eight fleet operators last spring to unify and raise the visibility of the emerging air taxi industry, most of which will use new-generation Very Light Jets (VLJs) (BA, June 25/282), announced plans last year to form ATXA Europe, and 15 existing and emerging operators already have joined the new organization.
The president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association issued a stern warning last week that retirements of experienced air traffic controllers and required overtime shifts for those that remain on the job are resulting in increasing numbers of operational errors in the National Airspace System.
AIRNET SYSTEMS of Columbus, Ohio won two new contracts from the Federal Reserve System's transportation group and has commenced service. The contracts run through Dec. 31, 2009 and are expected to generate approximately $3 million in total revenue over the two-year period. The primary contract covers weekend transportation of shipments between Federal Reserve check processing sites.
The chairman of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), last week expressed concern that the Bush Administration has not taken steps to curb greenhouse gas emissions and questioned whether the Environmental Protection Agency would support regulating greenhouse gases from aircraft. Combustion of aviation fuels was responsible for about three percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2005, Markey said in a Jan. 8 letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson.
Tay 611-8 and -8C, 620-15, 650-15 and 651-54 engines [Docket No. FAA-2007-27811; Directorate Identifier 2004-NE-11-AD; Amendment 39-15321; AD 2007-26-19] - This AD supersedes an existing directive that requires repetitive visual inspections of all ice-impact panels and fillers in the low-pressure compressor case and replacement of those panels, as needed. The new AD requires the same actions, but it provides the terminating action to repetitive inspections--installation of newly designed LP compressor case ice-impact panels.
SF340A and B airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-0333; Directorate Identifier 2007-NM-236-AD] - Requires installation of Modification 3162, which involves stowing the existing wiring to the Fuel Quantity Indication System (FQIS), installing new wires with shields to the FQIS, and conducting operational and functional tests of the rewired system, following the instructions of Saab Service Bulletin 340-28-024, Revision 01 (dated May 21, 2007).
