MARKEY'S LETTER comes as the business aviation community is looking for ways to stay ahead of the emerging focus on environmental issues. A National Air Transportation Association official noted that the association's new Environmental Committee already has attracted more than two dozen members with more expected to participate in the initial meeting Jan. 28 in Savannah, Ga. (BA, Dec. 17/280). One of the key items on the agenda will be the development of a carbon offset program.
EUROCOPTER sold 11 new helicopters to the Spanish Interior and Defense Ministries. The Director for Traffic will take delivery of four AS355NP twin-engine and two EC135 twin-engine helicopters. Eurocopter valued the contract for the six helicopters at 20 million euros. Eurocopter also received contracts for two AS532AL (Cougar) helicopters for the Ministry of Defense for the FAMET (Army Airmobile Force) and three Cougars for the Military Emergency Unit (UME).
PIPER AIRCRAFT insists officials have not made a decision on a possible relocation of the company's manufacturing operations, despite a Jan. 15 vote on a $12 million incentive package from Indian River County Florida designed to keep the small aircraft manufacturer in Vero Beach, Fla.
Lisa Porter, NASA associate administrator for aeronautics research, will leave the agency on or around Feb. 1 to become the first director of the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA). In a Jan. 9 notice to colleagues at the civil space and aeronautics agency, Porter said the new organization will sponsor innovative research that will yield revolutionary game-changing capabilities for the intelligence community.
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
EADS CEO LOUIS GALLOIS said the company has initiated talks to find an outside partner to help run Socata, EADS' general/business aviation manufacturing and support unit. Gallois did not say who the partner might be or how the partnership might be structured, but said the outside expert could aid Socata's development. There has long been speculation that EADS might sell off the Socata unit because it is not a good fit with EADS' other major lines of business.
The total number of accidents and incidents involving U.S.-registered business jet and turboprop aircraft last year differed only slightly from the results in 2006 although the number of fatalities increased for both jet and turboprop operators and Part 135 operators were involved in considerably more serious accidents in the year just ended, according to data compiled by Robert E. Breiling Associates of Boca Raton, Fla.
STANDARD AERO expects a $1.6 million facility transformation at its Winnipeg, Manitoba MRO unit will substantially increase its ability to overhaul Pratt & Whitney PT6A engines. "The transformation will increase the Standard Aero engine overhaul capacity, efficiency and provide faster turn times for our customers," said Manny Atwal, general manager of Standard Aero's PT6 Strategic Business unit.
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION issued special conditions for the Adam A700 twin turbofan aircraft and Bell 429 helicopter. The special conditions for the A700 require protection of the VLJ's external centerline fuel tank, which is located below the fuselage pressure shell immediately below the wing. Because this tank is not in a protected area with the wings or fuselage as in most aircraft, FAA will require Adam to develop alternative ways to protect the tank.
HOW MANY AIRPLANES do you suppose you could sell in 50 years on the job? Well, since Philip Carrell sold his first airplane - a 1947 Stinson 108 in 1948 - he has averaged more than 10 sales a year, finding buyers for more than 500 aircraft. A lifelong resident of Portland, Ore., Carrell began working for fixed-base operator Flightcraft in 1948, the year it was founded, after he had completed his studies at Clark College. Carrell has sold planes for as much as $8 million to customers as far away as Australia, Brazil and the Czech Republic.
CESSNA AIRCRAFT appointed Elia Dragone general manager of its New York Citation Service Center. Dragone, who has more than 20 years of aviation maintenance experience, is returning to Cessna after a three-year stint with Jet Support Services Inc. He formerly spent nine years in sales and marketing at Cessna's New York facility, and Cessna credited him with helping to triple sales volume during that time. a
DELTA AIRELITE added another Learjet 45 to its fleet. The aircraft will be based in Tulsa, Okla. for use by Delta AirElite members and charter customers.
Model 680 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-0379; Directorate Identifier 2007-NM-331-AD; Amendment 39-15318; AD 2007-26-16] - Requires inspecting the routing of the aft fairing wire bundle assembly for adequate separation between the wiring and the nearby hydraulic line. The AD also says technicians should look for chafing or damage of the wire bundle assembly and damage to the hydraulic line and perform corrective actions, if necessary.
BOB BLOUIN will join Hawker Beechcraft Corp. (HBC) in Wichita next month as Vice President of Flight Operations. Blouin previously spent seven years as senior vice president-operations for the National Business Aviation Association and before that spent many years with Short Brothers/Bombardier. He has more than 30 years of aircraft operations and management experience. Since resigning from NBAA in 2004, Blouin has headed his own consulting service, The Sky Group, which is headquartered at Washington Reagan National Airport (DCA).
Embraer has set a company record with 169 commercial aircraft deliveries last year, reaching the high end of its forecast 12 months ago. Also, the airframer says the strong order intake throughout the year continued into the new year, when it added 39 170/190s to its order book, and two ERJ135s for the Thai military.
A KEY CONGRESSMAN asked the Environmental Protection Agency to consider the link between aviation and global warming and questioned whether EPA would support regulating emissions of greenhouse gases from aircraft. Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), the chairman of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, made the inquiry in a Jan. 8 letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson. See article on Page 16.
NOISE PROGRAMS FOR TWO FLORIDA AIRPORTS are being reviewed by FAA following the agency's recent approval of noise-exposure maps for Orlando Executive (ORL) and Ocala (OCF). FAA is seeking comments on Orlando Executive's plan by Feb. 29 and expects to make a decision on the proposed Part 150 noise program by June 28. The agency is accepting comments through Feb. 26 on the Ocala plan and expects to issue a ruling on that airport's program by June 25.
THE AIR CHARTER SAFETY FOUNDATION scheduled a 2008 Air Charter Safety Symposium Feb. 19-20 at the National Transportation Safety Board Training Center in Ashburn, Va. The symposium, "Developing A Healthy Safety Culture," will cover recent Part 135 accidents and factors, NASA safety initiatives, safety tools, safety management systems, and safe management experiences in Canada. Scheduled speakers include NTSB Vice Chairman Robert Sumwalt, along with specialists from FAA, NASA and Transport Canada.
FARNBOROUGH INTERNATIONAL LTD. (FIL) recently moved to new permanent headquarters on the air show site at Farnborough Aerodrome, reflecting the expansion of FIL "and its commitment to developing the Farnborough site for all-year-round events," officials said. The move also frees up exhibition space that will be available during the 2008 air show. The new address is: Farnborough International Ltd., ETPS Road, Farnborough, Hampshire GU14 6FD. All telephone and fax numbers remain the same.
Joined Executive AirShare as sales director. Bayless will be based at Fort Worth Meacham International in Texas and will be responsible for expanding Executive AirShare's fractional aircraft ownership program in the Midwest. He formerly was southwest sales director for First Service Networks.
Model F.28 Mark 0070 and 0100 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-0300; Directorate Identifier 2007-NM-191-AD] - This proposed AD would require inspection of the wing-to-fuselage fairings for indications of incorrect fit, damage or wear, using the instructions of Fokker Service Bulletin SBF100-53-101 (dated Sept. 30, 2005). This proposal, which resulted from an MCAI originated by the Civil Aviation Authority of The Netherlands, was prompted by several reports of pilots having difficulties with the airplane's roll control.
Eclipse installed a new software program that is expected to produce more consistent and transferable manufacturing and maintenance procedures for the company's production facility in Albuquerque and its service centers in the U.S. The software was implemented as the company produced its 100th aircraft, a milestone the company reached one year after the company certified its Eclipse 500 Very Light Jet.
ASSOCIATED AIR CENTER (AAC) delivered an Airbus Corporate Jet with a VIP interior to a customer based in Florida and another ACJ to a customer in Asia, the 10th and 11th ACJs completed by the Dallas, Texas aircraft outfitting and modification center. The 10th aircraft, which AAC said is the first "N" registered VIP ACJ, was completed with a contemporary design with a master bedroom, master lavatory with shower and storage closets. A full Honeywell cabin management system was installed on the aircraft along with the Airshow moving map system.
ARINC is supporting the Rockwell Collins eXchange broadband communications system with its SKYLink satellite service. SKYLink will enable a high-speed network connection for Internet, fax over IP, voice over IP telephone and data service for Wi-Fi enable smartphones. SKYLink will provide coverage for eXchange customers in North America, Europe and the North Atlantic. ARINC plans to expand the coverage to the Caribbean and parts of South and Central America in early 2008 and is considering further expansion to the Middle East and Asia Pacific.
