A Safety Alert for Operators issued by FAA this month lays out a scenario that could explain the midair collision last September between an Embraer Legacy and a Gol Airlines 737 over Brazil (BA, Oct. 9/165).
CORPORATE ANGEL NETWORK arranged 275 patient flights in June, a new record for the organization, which works with corporate flight departments and other aircraft operators to provide free transportation on business aircraft for cancer patients traveling to and from treatment centers. The previous monthly record of 257 patient flights was set last year.
Charles Bergman, a former U.S. Air Force pilot and a former employee of the Air Line Pilots Association, was named executive director of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NGATS) Institute, the third person to hold the job in the past two years.
A veteran airline executive, was named to the board of directors of Eos Airlines. Eos is operating specially configured 48-passenger Boeing 757 aircraft providing premium flights between New York's JFK Airport and London's Stanstead Airport. The carrier is currently providing 32 flights per week between those points and plans to boost the schedule to 40 flights per week in September. Coltman is currently chairman of Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust Plc., and senior independent director at John Menzies Plc.
Model DA 42 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-27610 Directorate Identifier 2007-CE-023-AD; Amendment 39-15120; AD 2007-13-16] - Replace the wing stub safety walks with new ones that have a surface roughness equal to or finer than sandpaper grit 100. Also, make a temporary revision to performance data in the Airplane Flight Manual.
CORPORATE FLIGHT DEPARTMENTS and other business aviation operators who plan to fly their aircraft to the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China and the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia are being asked to participate in a flight activity survey for those events.
Uruguay's flag carrier Pluna ordered seven Bombardier CRJ900 NextGen aircraft as part of a newly unveiled plan to fly 15 regional jets by 2010. The airline took options on eight additional aircraft. Currently, Pluna flies an all-Boeing fleet - one 757-200, one 767-300ER, one 737-300 and three 737-200s. Pluna's ownership structure was revamped earlier this year. Leadgate Investments, a consortium of members from Uruguay, Germany, Argentina and the U.S., owns 75% of the carrier. The government of Uruguay owns the remaining 25%.
Model HP.137 Jetstream Mk.1, Jetstream Series 200, Jetstream Series 3101 and Jetstream Model 3201 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-28115; Directorate Identifier 2007-CE-045-AD] - This proposed AD would require initial and recurrent inspections for cracks in the main landing gear radius-rod forged-cylinder flashline, following the instructions of British Aerospace Jetstream Series 3100 and 3200 Service Bulletin 32-JA060741 (dated November 1, 2006). If cracks are found, the radius rod assembly needs to be replaced with a serviceable unit before further flight.
Within a week of detailing plans to buy communications company ARINC, the Carlyle Group unveiled the acquisition of Sequa Corp. in a deal worth $2.7 billion. Sequa is the parent of engine component repair company Chromalloy Gas Turbine. Carlyle is acquiring all outstanding Class A and B shares of Sequa for $175 per share in cash.
Brazilian plane-maker Embraer last week broke ground for a new business jet service center at Williams Gateway airport in Mesa, Ariz. Slated for completion in mid-2008, the facility will be one of three U.S. locations that will service Embraer's Phenom and Legacy business jets. The $8 million, 45,000-square-foot center will include a hangar, workshops and office space.
FAA is expected to release a new interpretation within the next few weeks addressing some of the scheduling practices of "fractional" charter, which is a charter flight that may be sold to more than one customer (i.e. either sold on a per-seat basis or sold to two or more separate passengers or passenger and cargo combination), according to Joseph Conte, manager of the Operations Law Branch in FAA's Office of the Chief Counsel.
EUROCOPTER received joint U.S., European and Canadian approval to offer night-vision goggle capability to civilian operators of the EC145 helicopter. Eurocopter certified the EC145 using a configuration based on the system used by the French Securite Civile. The configuration uses the MEGHAS display systems and CMA3000 flight management system. The Night Vision Imaging System installation includes internal and external aircraft lighting with either the night-vision goggles ITT F 4949 and/or NOGALIGHT NL-93.
A number of charter operators have pulled empty-leg postings off the Internet after a senior FAA official warned recently that FAA considers a flight to be scheduled when the operator advertises departure point, arrival point and a departure window.
The National Business Aviation Association last week decried the "airline lobbyists' finger-pointing on delays" after the Air Transport Association called for FAA to impose further ground delay programs at Teteboro Airport (TEB) in New Jersey to create more capacity in New York area airspace.
The flight crew of a Cessna Citation II 550 that crashed into Lake Michigan last month began having directional control problems shortly after takeoff, the National Transportation Safety Board said last week.
EMBRAER selected Component Control's Quantum Control Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software to manage the company's maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services network. The selection of the software will support the company's efforts to expand the number of aircraft maintenance service centers worldwide, Embraer said. The software will be implemented at Embraer Aircraft Maintenance Services in Nashville, Tenn.
THE TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADMINISTRATION is "currently reviewing the process by which standard security programs are developed and implemented in the future." TSA made that statement in response to a letter from the National Air Transportation Association, which expressed concern with how the agency has handled the Twelve-Five Standard Security Program (TFSSP) for Part 135 operators. NATA had urged TSA Assistant Administrator John Sammon "to intervene in the management of the TFSSP to eliminate unnecessary and burdensome revisions" (BA, May 21/227).
ADMINISTRATOR BLAKEY told senior staff members recently she was encouraged by the quality of applicants who are seeking the post of chief operating office of FAA's Air Traffic Organization and said she planned to begin interviewing candidates soon. FAA Deputy Administrator Bobby Sturgell has been serving as acting head of the ATO since former ATO head Russ Chew left the agency earlier this year to join Jet Blue (BA, Feb. 26/99).
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved a fiscal 2008 NASA budget bill that includes a total of $17.46 billion, an increase of $150 million over what the Bush Administration had requested for the agency. The total approved by the Appropriations Committee is $1.175 billion above the amount Congress provided for NASA in fiscal 2007. The bill includes $5.655 billion for science, $554 million for aeronautics research and $3.972 billion for exploration systems.
Aircraft Model CAP 10 B airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-27530 Directorate Identifier 2007-CE-019-AD; Amendment 39-15118; AD 2007-13-14] - Conduct repetitive inspections for cracks to the rudder lower support. If cracks are found, remove the cracked part and replace it with an airworthy one before further flight. This AD, which is based on an MCAI originated by a foreign aviation authority, was prompted by two reported cases of cracked rudder lower supports. The AD goes into effect Aug. 3. FAA estimates that this AD will affect 31 aircraft on the U.S. Registry, costing U.S.
IRIDIUM SATELLITE released a Request for Information (RFI) to potential partners interested in participating in the development of a next-generation satellite communications network. Iridium said release of the RFI is the company's first official step in the design, development and deployment of the Iridium NEXT system. The Iridium constellation provides mobile satellite communications coverage worldwide for voice and data services.
THALES received a contract to provide airport navigational aids for Almaty International Airport in Kazakhstan. The contract includes the Thales Advanced-Surface Movement Guidance and Control System, which will connect with the Terma X-Band radar and will provide the "basic building block" for an ADS-B system. Thales also will supply two instrument landing systems (ILS 420) with the distance measuring system (DME 415) and one Doppler VHF Omnirange (DVOR 432) with the DME 435.
Was promoted to technical representative for Cessna Citation business jets for Duncan Aviation in Battle Creek, Mich. Merkling, who earned a bachelor's degree in aviation maintenance technology from Western Michigan University, has been a member of the Citation maintenance team at Duncan for a number of years. DAVID (GUNNER) WILES was named manager of operations for the Salina, Kan. Airport.
Model P-180 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-27723 Directorate Identifier 2007-CE-029-AD; Amendment 39-15116; AD 2007-13-12] - Replace the outboard flap track forward bushing and the outboard flap track forward support in accordance with the instructions of Part A of Piaggio Aero Industries S.p.A. Mandatory Service Bulletin (SB) No. 80-0210, Rev. 4 (dated July 19, 2006).
