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.
APPH Ltd. has acquired Commercial Aircraft Products (CAP) of Wichita. CAP designs and builds hydraulic system components, electro-mechanical positioning systems and access mechanisms for a range of business aviation and light jet aircraft. The company's products are approved for and used on aircraft manufactured by Cessna, Raytheon Aircraft Co., Bombardier and Adam Aircraft.
The FAA reauthorization legislation sent to Congress this month calls for establishment of a commission to recommend the closing or consolidation of certain FAA facilities, similar in structure and mission to the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) organization that was used to shutter scores of Defense Department installations.
Model 750XL airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-26285; Directorate Identifier 2006-CE-69-AD; Amendment 39-14932; AD 2007-04-01] - Requires inspections of the rivets in the fuselage roof at STN 180.85, BL 19.67, WL 86.2, and replacement of undersize rivets. AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information from the aviation authority of New Zealand. FAA estimates the AD will affect seven aircraft on the U.S. Registry at a cost of $9,660, or $1,380 per aircraft. The AD takes effect March 21.
BLAKEY FORCEFULLY ESPOUSES NEED FOR FUNDING CHANGE FAA Administrator Marion Blakey took off the gloves last week and went after opponents of the Bush Administration's FAA reauthorization proposal as she advocated the need for a major change in the way her agency is funded.
Brian H. Rowe, who led General Electric's aircraft-engine business through a period of tremendous growth and to eventual market dominance, died Thursday following surgery. He was 75.
Gene Snyder, 79, a Republican congressman from Kentucky who served 11 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, died Feb. 16 in Naples, Fla. Snyder, a lawyer by training, was a colorful and outspoken member of the Public Works and Transportation Committee and involved in aviation issues during his congressional service. Marion Gene Snyder was first elected to the House in 1962, but was defeated for re-election two years later. He ran again in 1966 from another district and won the first of 10 consecutive terms. He decided not to seek re-election in 1986.
RTI International Metals entered into a new contract with Sumitomo Titanium Co. (STC) of Japan for the long-term supply of titanium sponge. The Japanese firm has been a principal supplier to RTI since 1991. Under the new agreement, which runs through 2016, STC will supply up to 13 million pounds annually, beginning in 2009. RTI has agreed to purchase a minimum of 10 million pounds annually for the first five years of the agreement. During the latter years of the contract quantities can be reduced under various pre-set options available to both parties.
Appointed vice president, service sales and marketing for Raytheon Aircraft Services. Znamenak will oversee the development of service products and programs for Hawker and Beechcraft owners and operators as well as be responsible for the sales team. He joined RAS from Stevens Aviation, where he was vice president, sales and marketing. He also was regional sales manager, service sales director and service products director for Bombardier Aerospace and manager of service sales and marketing for the Cessna Citation Service Network.
Petters Group Worldwide signed a contract for an Airbus A318 Elite, making it the first U.S. customer for that corporate jet version of the aircraft, according to the manufacturer. Petters, which is based in Minneapolis, Minn., plans to use the executive-configured airliner for flights to Asia, Europe and within the U.S. The order from Petters is the latest in a series announced recently by Airbus for VIP/executive models of its airliner family (BA, Feb. 12/73).
The Asheville, N.C. Airport Authority is seeking proposals next month from a variety of aviation service providers interested in participating in a mixed-use aviation service center at the Asheville Regional Airport (AVL).
FAA Administrator Marion Blakey sharpened up her rhetoric last week in response to widespread criticism about the Bush Administration's reauthorization proposal, particularly from the business and general aviation organizations who adamantly oppose imposition of new aviation user fees. See article below
Model TBM 700 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-26234 Directorate Identifier 2006-CE-64-AD; Amendment 39-14928; AD 2007-03-17] - Requires inspection for loose rivets on Frames C18 BIS and C19, and repair, if necessary. This AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information issued by a foreign aviation authority. Loose rivets on Frames C18 BIS and C19 could result in a reduced structural integrity of the tail area. FAA estimates the AD would affect 272 aircraft on the U.S. Registry at a cost of $131,920, or $485 per aircraft. The AD is effective March 15.
Soloy Aviation Solutions earned FAA approval to be an Organizational Designated Airworthiness Representative (ODAR). The ODAR will allow the Olympia, Wash.-based company to expedite its supplemental type certification/parts manufacturing approval process. ODAR designation will enable Soloy to place an aircraft in the experimental category to perform flight testing, conformity and type inspection authorization inspections. Soloy Aviation Solutions develops engine accessory and re-engine modifications for helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.
Pratt & Whitney agreed to purchase most of the assets of Volvo Aero Engines Services (VAES), which is located in Bromma, Sweden. P&W is buying the spare parts inventory and engine overhaul tooling and machinery for the PT8D, JT9D and PW4000 engines, all of which were built by the engine manufacturer. VAES announced in November that it planned to close the Bromma facility.
Named a regional sales manager for Kelly Aerospace, Inc. He will work out of the company's Turbine Rotables office in Wichita, Kan. and will represent the entire Kelly Aerospace product line in the Midwest. Ogden previously spent 15 years as a sales manager in Raytheon Aircraft Company's RAPID Parts Distribution Division.
Delta Connection Academy is partnering with Southern Aero Medical Institute (SAMI) to develop and operate high-altitude recovery training programs for pilots and flight attendants. The programs, designed to prepare crew members in case of cabin depressurization, will incorporate high-altitude physiological training and computer-based training. The course, initially offered exclusively to Delta Academy students, will be held at the SAMI campus in Melbourne, Fla.
The Aircraft Owners And Pilots Association is making plans to unleash a letter-writing blitz on Congress from the organization's 410,000 members, but the timing of that effort is still being fine-tuned. In a Web site message to members last week, President Phil Boyer said the AOPA battle plan is "much more sophisticated than just asking all of you to write your congressman or senator immediately.
FAA Deputy Administrator Bobby Sturgell will become the acting replacement for the agency's departing Chief Operating Officer-Air Traffic Organization Russ Chew when Chew departs at the end of the month (BA, Feb. 12/74). Sturgell has held the No. 2 job at FAA since March of 2003 and before that was a senior policy advisor to Marion Blakey when she chaired the National Transportation Safety Board and after she took over as FAA Administrator. A Naval Academy graduate, Sturgell earned a law degree from the University of Virginia.
