GULFSTREAM'S G550 recently set two more city-pair speed records. A G550 flew nonstop 6,473 nautical miles from Nagoya, Japan to Savannah, Ga. Feb. 11 in 12 hours and 20 minutes. The eastbound flight achieved an average cruise speed of Mach 0.83. Roc Miles, Gulfstream director of demonstration and corporate flight operations, Hank Gibson, Gulfstream senior international captain, and Ed Faciszewski, Gulfstream international captain, piloted the flight, which also carried six passengers and two flight attendants.
FAA decided to take all three major bidding teams to the next round in its competition for a big satellite surveillance contract. The three teams are contending to provide an automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast system, which FAA regards as a crucial plank of its future ATC system. FAA's Joint Resources Council approved funding for the second phase of this program, which will include nationwide deployment.
March 7 - Coping With Crisis 101-Managing an Aviation Disaster, Hilton Garden Inn, Nashville Metro Airport, Nashville, Tenn. Register at www.thecommunicationsworkshop.com March 8 - Greater Washington Business Aviation Association, Safety Stand Down. Details and registration information available at www.gwbaa.com. March 12-14 - Flight Safety Foundation: 19th Annual European Aviation Safety Seminar, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Call 703-739-6700, fax: 703-739-6708.
Canadian Business Aviation Association scheduled a Safety and Security Professional Development Day July 9, the first day of the association's 46th annual convention, trade show and static display July 9-12 during the Calgary Stampede. Safety and Security Management System - Theory and Practical Application, is the theme for the development program, which is designed to provide operators with a better understanding of how to manage risk on a daily basis.
Model TBM 700 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-26191 Directorate Identifier 2006-CE-60-AD; Amendment 39-14927; AD 2007-03-16] - Requires a check for lateral play of the elevator trim tabs and installation, if necessary, of a setting washer. This AD stems from mandatory continuing airworthiness information issued by a foreign aviation authority. Excessive lateral play caused by a nonconforming washer that might lead to the deterioration of the elevator trim tab bearing fatigue resistance. FAA estimates the AD affects 52 aircraft on the U.S.
Makila 1A and 1A1 turboshaft engines [Docket No. FAA-2006-26570; Directorate Identifier 2006-NE-39-AD; Amendment 39-14931; AD 2007-03-20] - Requires replacing the LPG board (modification TU241) of the control system. The AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) issued by the European Aviation Safety Agency. The MCAI notes that the back-up mode in the control system can be activated by an electrostatic discharge or by a malfunction of the collective pitch signal.
President Bush last week announced his intention to designate Thomas J. Barrett, a longtime U.S. Coast Guard officer who currently is the administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), to become acting deputy secretary of the Department of Transportation. Barrett would fill the position that Maria Cino is vacating March 2. Cino earlier this year announced her plans to resign after serving as deputy secretary for two years (BA, Feb. 5/65).
The stretched version of Bombardier's CRJ-900, previously known as the CRJ-900X, has now launched as the CRJ1000, with its 100 seats just 10 shy of the smallest member of the proposed C-Series family. CRJ-700 launch customer and Air France subsidiary Brit Air will also take that role with the CRJ1000, ordering eight aircraft with eight options. Italian carrier My Way is converting 15 of 19 CRJ-900s it ordered to the CRJ1000 configuration. Bombardier also logged a 15-plane order from an undisclosed customer.
Dart 528, 529, 532, 535, 542, and 552 Series turboprop engines [Docket No. FAA-2006-25272; Directorate Identifier 2006-NE-16-AD; Amendment 39-14924; AD 2007-03-13] - Requires repetitive inspections of high-pressure turbine (HPT) blade platforms and shrouds and reworking the engines, if the inspections reveal excessive gaps between blade shrouds. This AD results from reports of HPT disk rim failures. FAA is issuing this AD to prevent HPT disk rim failures resulting in the release of portions of the HPT disk, uncontained engine failure, and damage to the airplane.
The National Transportation Safety Board pointed to pilot decisions to fly into bad weather in two air tour helicopter crashes in Hawaii. The first crash, involving a Bell 206B operated by Bali Hai Helicopter tours, occurred Sept. 24, 2004. The helicopter, conducting an air tour over the island of Kauai, flew into poor weather and crashed into mountainous terrain, killing the pilot and all four passengers. NTSB investigators learned that operations on Kauai can be challenging because of terrain, mountain winds and rapidly changing cloud conditions.
The Federal Aviation Administration's safety efforts continue to be hindered by unreliable data and inspector shortages, the Government Accountability Office said, adding the agency will need to improve its data and staffing to meet its desired safety goals. In a report to Congress this month, the GAO noted that FAA missed its target for commercial aviation accidents last year and likely will miss it again this year.
Model CL-600-2B19 (Regional Jet Series 100 & 440) airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-25192; Directorate Identifier 2006-NM-004-AD; Amendment 39-14930; AD 2007-03-19] - Supersedes an existing AD that currently requires repetitive detailed and eddy current inspections of the main fittings of the main landing gears (MLG) to detect discrepancies, and related investigative/corrective actions if necessary.
Promoted to vice president of sales and marketing for Elliott Aviation. Stein will be responsible for advertising, public relations and sales support programs for Elliott. She joined the company in 1998 as marketing administrator after serving with a Dallas-based consumer advertising agency. She earned a bachelor's of arts degree in business administration from St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa.
The General Accountability Office has taken FAA to task again for its shoddy general aviation flight data collection. GAO also warned that FAA appears to be falling well short of the number of aviation safety inspectors it needs. See article below.
Former Helicopter Association International President Roy Resavage, 61, died last week after a long illness. Resavage served as HAI president from March 1998 to October 2005. Before that, he spent 27 years in the U.S. Navy, retiring as a captain. While with the Navy, he commanded two helicopter squadrons, was executive officer of the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy and commanding officer of the Naval Air Station in Jacksonville, Fla.
(LAVIA) S.A. (Type Certificate Data Sheets No. 2A8 and No. 2A10 previously held by The New Piper Aircraft, Inc.) Models PA-25, PA-25-235, and PA-25-260 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2007-27109; Directorate Identifier 2007-CE-005-AD] - Proposes to require repetitive inspections for cracks, evidence of corrosion or any other anomalies on support tubes of the horizontal stabilizer. The proposal also would require a modification that would serve as a terminating action for the repetitive inspections.
BOMBARDIER DEDICATES DALLAS CENTER, LAUNCHES 'PARTS EXPRESS' - Bombardier continued to bolster its support network with last week's dedication of a $17 million, 100,000-square-foot expansion of its Love Field facility in Dallas and the unveiling of a new aircraft-on-ground (AOG) parts delivery service. The expansion increases Bombardier's maintenance capacity in Dallas by more than 60 percent.
AVJET Corporation recently completed a transaction that involved the acquisition, completion and delivery of a new 2006 Boeing Business Jet for a private U.S. corporation. The aircraft will be used for international travel by the owner, but will not be available for charter. The BBJ is equipped with a noise-dampening system to decrease noise levels in the cabin and seven auxiliary fuel tanks for extended range.
March 1-3 - Helicopter Association International, Heli-Expo 2007 Conference & Exhibition, Orlando, Fla. Contact Marilyn McKinnis at (703) 683-4646, fax: (703) 683-0341. March 7 - Coping With Crisis 101-Managing an Aviation Disaster, Hilton Garden Inn, Nashville Metro Airport, Nashville, Tenn. Register at www.thecommunicationsworkshop.com March 8 - Greater Washington Business Aviation Association, Safety Stand Down. Details and registration information available at www.gwbaa.com.
The State Of Oregon is issuing $72.5 million in lottery fund revenue bonds to fund the Connect Oregon program, which pays for upgrades at airports and other non-highway projects statewide. The nine facilities receiving grants under the program will use the money for cargo facilities, runway extensions and automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast systems.
President Bush this month signed into law a bill that would provide $14.5 billion for the Federal Aviation Administration for fiscal 2007. The continuing resolution covered the budgets of most federal agencies for the remainder of the fiscal year (BA, Feb. 5/60). While most federal agencies were limited to fiscal 2006 spending levels, FAA fared better, receiving a slight boost in operations funding. Congress also dedicated $998 million for regulation and certification activities, $16 million more than the Administration sought.
National Business Aviation Association is establishing the Donald A. Baldwin, Sr., Business Aviation Management Scholarship in coordination with the Baldwin family. The scholarship will be awarded to the first recipient in 2008 at the CAMC Leadership Conference and be used to provide financial support for individuals seeking to become NBAA Certified Aviation Managers. The $1,025 scholarship will cover expenses to prepare for the CAM exam.
Eclipse Aviation is building a new facility on its 150-acre tract at Double Eagle II Airport in Albuquerque, N.M., to house training, flight support and administrative support functions. The 41,585-square-foot, two-story building will be the first Eclipse aviation facility at Albuquerque's West Side airport, where the emerging airplane manufacturer hopes to eventually consolidate all of its operations. The new building will house about 100 employees, more than half of which will be new hires. Eclipse currently employs 1,000 people in Albuquerque.
