SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY, June 25 - 27, "were definitely a challenging few days," according to the staff of NBAA's GA Desk at the ATC System Command Center, as heavy, persistent rains caused significant flight delays throughout the Northeast. Controllers and Command Center personnel did their best to move traffic as fast as possible, a GA Desk spokesman said, but the rolling lines of weather - which included thunderstorms and torrential rains - limited options for everyone involved.
BOMBARDIER sold a Global Express XRS to London Air Services in Vancouver, Canada. The charter operator currently flies four Bombardier Learjet 45 XR jets and two Challenger 604 aircraft. London Air Services expects to take delivery of its newest Bombardier jet in 2008.
FAA ADMINISTRATOR Marion Blakey called aviation trade association leaders recently to say she does not believe the agency will formally propose a new funding mechanism for FAA this year. Blakey had hoped to present a proposal to Congress this spring to begin the debate on FAA funding, and both FAA and Transportation Department officials had said on a number of occasions that they believed the proposal would be released by the end of June.
The Federal Aviation Administration is slated to release a proposal within days requiring special training for pilots who fly under visual flight rules within 100 nautical miles of the Washington, D.C. Air Defense Identification Zone. The Office of Management and Budget approved the proposal June 28 and publication could come as soon as this week.
Canada Model 222, 222B, 222U, 230, and 430 helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2006-25098; Directorate Identifier 2006-SW-12-AD; Amendment 39-14667; AD 2006-13-14] - Requires initial and repetitive inspections of each tail rotor counterweight bellcrank with a specified part number and serial number. If external damage, a crack, roughness, or looseness between the bearing set and bellcrank is found or if bearing set axial play exceeds 0.015 inch, this action requires replacing the bellcrank with an airworthy bellcrank with two prefix letters in the serial number.
July 24-30 - Experimental Aircraft Association AirVenture Oshkosh 2006, Oshkosh, Wis., (920) 426-4800 October 17-19 - National Business Aviation Association 59th Annual Meeting & Convention, Orlando, Fla., (202) 783-9000 November 9-11 - Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Expo 2006, Palm Springs Convention Center, Palm Springs, Calif., (301) 695-2000, www.aopa.org/expo April 17-23, 2007 - Experimental Aircraft Association Sun 'n' Fun Fly-In, Lakeland Linder Regional Airport, Lakeland, Fla., (920) 426-4800
The crew of an Embraer EMB-170 executed a successful emergency landing at Dulles International Airport late last month after the aircraft's nose gear could not be lowered. The Shuttle America Corp. airplane, N651RW, operating as United Express Flight 7512, departed George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas on May 30 bound for Dulles. During the climbout, the first officer was unable to raise the landing gear handle to retract the landing gear.
The general aviation community Friday agreed that the Department of Transportation will lose a wealth of knowledge about aviation, and general aviation in particular, when Secretary Norm Mineta steps down July 7. Mineta wrote to President Bush in a June 20 letter released Friday by the White House that "it is time for me to move on to other challenges.
Buyers of some five dozen new Columbia Aircraft airplanes will have to wait weeks or months longer than expected to take delivery because of damage the aircraft sustained during an intense hailstorm at the company's plant in Bend, Ore. June 12.
Model GA8 Airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-24955; Directorate Identifier 2006-CE-31-AD] - Requires relocating the seat stops for the pilot and second occupant seats, per mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) issued by the Australian Civil Aviation Authority. The MCAI states that the aircraft manufacturer has determined the current location of the pilot and second occupant seat stops is such that, at either seat's most forward position, aft movement of the control column can be restricted by the seat structure.
Named director of aviation aftermarket sales at Garmin International. Casey will be responsible for expanding Garmin's aviation sales and working with the company's avionics distributors on marketing and sales campaigns. A 15-year Garmin veteran, Casey also has filled senior roles with Northstar Avionics.
The National Air Transportation Association urged the Environmental Protection Agency to release a final rule clearing up lingering concerns about spill prevention requirements, saying the slow progress is leaving industry in limbo. NATA President James Coyne wrote EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson last week that the agency's slow progress "is disappointing, at best." The concerns stem from changes EPA released four years ago to Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasures (SPCC) requirements that required refueler trucks to have sized-secondary containment.
Federal Aviation Administration selected Terry Allard to run the agency's human factors research and engineering program. Allard will be help set national and international aviation standards and oversee researchers at FAA headquarters in Washington, D.C. as well as at the agency's William J. Hughes Technical Center in Atlantic City, N.J. Allard joins FAA from NASA, where he was associate director for human system research and technology in the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate.
Model ERJ 170 Airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-24523; Directorate Identifier 2006-NM-057-AD; Amendment 39-14654; AD 2006-13-02] - Requires inspecting for excess sealant applied to the attachment bolts of the negative pressure relief valve, and performing corrective actions if necessary. This AD results from reports that excess sealant was applied to the attachment bolts of the negative pressure relief valve, which interfered with the valve's movable diaphragm.
The Joint Planning and Development Office will have an opportunity to display its vision for the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NGATS) Wednesday before the Senate during a "NGATS Day on Capitol Hill/U.S.
A trio of pilots has joined forces to found Century CRM, LLC, which they say is "the first, and only, Part 141 flight school dedicated solely to Crew Resource Management (CRM)." The company recently obtained FAA Part 141 certification for the school, which officials said was "developed specifically for business aviation and [which] also meets the CRM training requirements for all Part 91, 121, 125 and 135 flight operators." Century's three co-founders - Gary Rower, Steve Hopkins and Carl Carmichael - have more than 100 years of operational experience and have logged mor
Goodrich Corporation broke ground last week on a 300,000-square-foot expansion of its nacelle/thrust reverser maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility in Singapore. Slated for completion in December 2007, the project will more than double the size of the 230,000-square-foot Goodrich Aerostructures Service Center - Asia. The company also will relocate its Customer Services and Aircraft Interior Products service center in Singapore to the new facility.
Actuator Nut Assembly for the Right Main Landing Gear Installed on Certain Raytheon Aircraft Company (Formerly Beech) Airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2005-23334; Directorate Identifier 2005-CE-53-AD; Amendment 39-14651; AD 2006-12-25] - Requires determining by maintenance records check and/or inspection whether any actuator nut assembly, P/N GMD115-810029-17 or P/N GMD115-810029-23, is installed on the right main MLG actuator, and, if installed, requires replacing it with a new actuator nut assembly, P/N GMD115-810029-23B or FAA-approved equivalent P/N.
Named senior director of aviation marketing and sales for Garmin International. Wolf will be responsible for both OEM and aftermarket aviation marketing and sales. Wolf, who joined Garmin four years ago, previously held management positions at Bendix/King.
Model CL-600-2B19 (Regional Jet Series 100 & 440) Airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2005-22481; Directorate Identifier 2004-NM-176-AD; Amendment 39-14647; AD 2006-12-21] - Supersedes an existing airworthiness directive (AD), which applies to certain Bombardier Model CL-600-2B19 (Regional Jet Series 100) airplanes. That AD currently requires revising the Airplane Flight Manual (AFM) to provide the flightcrew with revised procedures for checking the flap system.
Sukhoi Civil Aircraft (SCAC) signed a strategic partnership with Alenia Aeronautica for the Russian Regional Jet program, which involves the design, development, production and marketing of a new generation of regional jet. Alenia will acquire a 25 percent stake in SCAC, subject to Russian government approvals and the formation of a joint venture in Europe to provide sales and technical support.
Honeywell Aerospace has reorganized its communications team. Kyle Hultquist, the company's vice president of aerospace communications, announced the promotion of former TV newsman and Honeywell public affairs veteran Bill Reavis to director of media relations. Michelle Calcagni and Kathie Crauwels were named director of air transport and regional communications, and director of business and general aviation communications, respectively, responsible for trade shows and marketing communications for their business units.
