RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT COMPANY, in celebration of 2007 as the 75th anniversary of Beechcraft and the 60th anniversary of the Beechcraft Bonanza, announced price cuts for 2007 models of the single-engine Bonanza and the twin-engine Beech Baron. The company said the price reductions are possible because of "strategic sourcing plans and gains in production efficiency," and said those savings are being passed on to customers. The Wichita manufacturer said the 2006 Bonanza G36 suggested selling price (SSP) was $667,000 while the 2007 SSP will be $574,000.
ARINC, based in Annapolis, Md., secured a patent for a process to improve access to operational data from electronic systems on aircraft, including selective monitoring, display of parameters in near real-time, data collection and storage and transmission of the data to the ground. The ARINC process connects three growing technologies - Electronic Flight Bags (EFBs), Quick Access Recorders (QARs) and integrated communications capabilities.
FLORIDA'S Kissimmee Gateway Airport (ISM) reported a record number of corporate-jet visits (4,421) in 2006, a 21 percent jump from the 3,514 jets that used the airport in 2005. Total aircraft operations at ISM were up slightly more than two percent last year to 153,992. Fuel sales were up nine percent to 2.3 million gallons. Airport officials attributed the rises in traffic and fuel sales to increased numbers of convention and business visitors coming to southwest Florida and Osceola County.
A FATAL CESSNA CITATION 560 crash nearly two years ago in Pueblo, Colo. will be the subject of a public meeting before the members of the National Transportation Safety Board tomorrow (Jan. 23). The Feb. 16, 2005 crash claimed both pilots and all six passengers. The aircraft was one of two Citations owned by Circuit City Stores that were attempting to land in Pueblo for fuel. The pilots of the second Citation, which landed safely, reported light to moderate icing in the area (BA, Feb. 21, 2005/86).
BRETT FORRESTER was promoted to sales manager for General Aviation Services, L.L.C. Forrester, who joined GAS in 1994 as a market researcher, most recently headed the aircraft acquisitions department.
THE GENERAL AVIATION MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION retained APCO Worldwide, an international communications consultancy, to provide analytical, information and strategic services in Europe. Paul Feldman, a director in APCO's Brussels office, will serve as the primary representative for GAMA and provide information and strategic advice on general aviation regulatory and policy issues. Feldman joined APCO with a background in international regulatory agency experience. He was formerly FAA's regional director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, where he led U.S.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT COMPANY, in celebration of 2007 as the 75th anniversary of Beechcraft and the 60th anniversary of the Beechcraft Bonanza, announced price cuts for 2007 models of the single-engine Bonanza and the twin-engine Beech Baron. The company said the price reductions are possible because of "strategic sourcing plans and gains in production efficiency," and said those savings are being passed on to customers. The Wichita manufacturer said the 2006 Bonanza G36 suggested selling price (SSP) was $667,000 while the 2007 SSP will be $574,000.
Fractional operator NetJets, which already operates the world's largest fleet of Raytheon Aircraft Company (RAC) Hawker business jets with 119, has doubled the size of an existing order for the new Hawker 750 and 900XL.
HELICOPTER ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL named Bell Helicopter's Scott Baxter to receive the Joe Mashman Safety Award. Baxter is being recognized for his role in promoting the use of night vision goggles in the civil helicopter industry. An instructor at Bell Helicopter Training Academy, he developed and introduced the first Part 141-approved training course on night vision goggles, a course he worked on for more than three years.
January 25 - Coping With Crisis 101 - Managing an Aviation Disaster, Alexis Park Resort, Las Vegas, Nev. Register at www.thecommunicationsworkshop.com February 6-7 - NBAA: Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (ABACE) 2007, Hong Kong. Contact Linda Peters at (202) 783-9000, email: [email protected], www.abace.aero. February 15-17 - Women in Aviation International Conference, Orlando, Fla. Contact Connie Lawrence, WAI, (937) 839-4647.
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) this month to alert owners of thousands of Cessna Aircraft piston-powered airplanes and maintenance technicians who work on them about "the possibility of cracks in plastic or non-metallic control wheels." The airplanes in question were built between 1960 and 1964. The issue of cracks in the control wheels was addressed in Cessna Service Letter No. 64-8, dated Feb. 14, 1964.
HELICOPTER ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL named Bell Helicopter's Scott Baxter to receive the Joe Mashman Safety Award. Baxter is being recognized for his role in promoting the use of night vision goggles in the civil helicopter industry. An instructor at Bell Helicopter Training Academy, he developed and introduced the first Part 141-approved training course on night vision goggles, a course he worked on for more than three years.
FLORIDA'S Kissimmee Gateway Airport (ISM) reported a record number of corporate-jet visits (4,421) in 2006, a 21 percent jump from the 3,514 jets that used the airport in 2005. Total aircraft operations at ISM were up slightly more than two percent last year to 153,992. Fuel sales were up nine percent to 2.3 million gallons. Airport officials attributed the rises in traffic and fuel sales to increased numbers of convention and business visitors coming to southwest Florida and Osceola County.
Grand Prairie Accessory Services, LLC of Grand Prairie, Texas, which provides engine and airframe overhaul for a variety of powerplants, was acquired by Triumph Group. The Texas firm, which has 90 employees, will be renamed Triumph Accessory Services - Grand Prairie and will operate as part of the Triumph Aftermarket Services Group. Triumph, headquartered in Wayne, Pa., said it believes the acquisition will add about $7 million in revenue during the last three months of Triumph's fiscal year "with revenue growth in excess of 15 percent expected for fiscal 2008."
Models M.S. 760, M.S. 760 A, and M.S. 760 B airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-26489; Directorate Identifier 2006-CE-74-AD] -- Proposes to require, prior to the next flight after the effective date of this AD, inserting a copy of this AD into the Limitations Section of the Airplane Flight Manual (AFM) to incorporate the following: (i) Takeoff with frost, ice, snow, or slush on the wing, control surfaces, horizontal tail, and air intakes, and flight into icing conditions are prohibited.
House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee leaders last week organized the committee's structure, naming Rep. Jerry Costello (D-Ill.) chairman of the aviation subcommittee. Rep. Thomas Petri (R-Wis.) is the ranking Republican on the committee. The aviation subcommittee, which will be crafting a major FAA reauthorization bill in the next several months, is the largest of the T&I subcommittees with 48 members. Costello, an 11-term congressman, formerly served as the ranking Democrat on the committee and was expected to take the chairmanship.
BOMBARDIER'S Bob Agostino will be the opening speaker at the Greater Washington Business Aviation Association's Safety Standdown March 8 at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Agostino has been the driving force behind the successful safety standdown hosted each year by Bombardier/Learjet in Wichita, Kan. The DCA event also will feature presentations by government and industry experts on fatigue training, flight attendant training, accident prevention and security regulations. For more information, contact GWBAA President Bob Blouin at [email protected].
BOMBARDIER continued to expand its service capabilities with the addition of Mather Aviation LLC in Sacramento, Calif. as an authorized line maintenance facility for Learjet aircraft. Mather is the second California facility appointed in the past year. Bombardier named Landmark Aviation an authorized center in February 2006. More than 1,500 Learjets are based in the U.S., including more than 90 in California, Bombardier said. Mather also is the seventh authorized service center Bombardier has named worldwide in the past 12 months.
The Transportation Security Administration is working on a "more robust" plan to ensure increased security for large general aviation aircraft, TSA Director Kip Hawley told Congress last week. Appearing before the Senate Commerce Committee Wednesday during a hearing on the 9/11 Commission recommendations, Hawley said that general aviation security "is something we take very seriously," and that Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff "made it an unmistakable priority for me and my colleagues at other [Department of Homeland Security] entities.
Models M.S. 760, M.S. 760 A, and M.S. 760 B airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-26489; Directorate Identifier 2006-CE-74-AD] -- Proposes to require, prior to the next flight after the effective date of this AD, inserting a copy of this AD into the Limitations Section of the Airplane Flight Manual (AFM) to incorporate the following: (i) Takeoff with frost, ice, snow, or slush on the wing, control surfaces, horizontal tail, and air intakes, and flight into icing conditions are prohibited.
BOMBARDIER continued to expand its service capabilities with the addition of Mather Aviation LLC in Sacramento, Calif. as an authorized line maintenance facility for Learjet aircraft. Mather is the second California facility appointed in the past year. Bombardier named Landmark Aviation an authorized center in February 2006. More than 1,500 Learjets are based in the U.S., including more than 90 in California, Bombardier said. Mather also is the seventh authorized service center Bombardier has named worldwide in the past 12 months.
TAT Technologies Ltd. of Gedera, Israel and the Dutch company Stork N.V. said they were unable to reach a final agreement with respect to the previously proposed joint venture in which Stork had planned to acquire substantial stakes in two U.S. aviation repair and maintenance firms.
COLUMBIA AIRCRAFT said it managed to deliver a record number of new aircraft last year despite obstacles presented by certification delays and Mother Nature. "No doubt we endured more than our fair share of challenges in the first half of 2006," said Randy Bolinger, vice president of marketing and business development, noting delays early in 2006 in getting the Garmin G1000 glass panel avionics suites certificated and then a freak hailstorm that damaged 60 aircraft parked outside the Bend, Ore. factory, making it necessary to refinish them (BA, June 26/285).
