The U.S. Marine Corps is expected to show off its MV-22 Osprey next month at the 2006 Farnborough air show in Britain after flying two of the tilt-rotor aircraft across the North Atlantic. Crews from Marine Tilt-rotor Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron (VMX-22) successfully completed two nonstop, transcontinental flights last week with a pair of Ospreys. The squadron launched the MV-22s from their home base at Marine Corps Air Station New River, N.C., landing at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif., nine hours and 2,100 nautical miles later.
Models AT-802 and AT-802A Airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-24710; Directorate Identifier 2006-CE-29-AD] - Proposes to require repetitively inspecting the attach angles on the firewall mounted hopper rinse tank shelf for damage and/or cracks and replacing damaged and/or cracked attach angles. Replacing the attach angles with steel attach angles would terminate the proposed repetitive inspection requirement. Reports of an uncommanded change in the engine power setting caused by separation of the hopper rinse tank shelf from the firewall prompted this proposed AD.
Arnoni Aviation Services, Inc. and three other firms formed the Hawker 125 Vendor Committee to provide a forum "to listen and document operators' concerns and potentially find solutions" to problems encountered by operators of aging HS125 business jets. In addition to Arnoni - a Houston, Texas company that has been manufacturing, overhauling and repairing Hawker 125 components since 1990 - participants include All West Aviation Services Inc., AVMETS and WECO Aerospace Systems. The group met for the first time at the 2006 Hawker Operators Conference in Wichita, Kan.
ATR sold two new ATR 72-500 regional turboprops to TransAsia Airways of Taiwan. The contract is valued at $53.7 million, including an option for an additional ATR 72. The aircraft on firm order are slated for delivery in 2007. TransAsia operates a fleet of 10 ATR 72 aircraft.
Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta surprised just about everyone in Washington, D.C. Friday when the White House released his letter of resignation. Mineta's imminent departure from DOT immediately touched off speculation about who might be selected to succeed him. See article below.
Appointed a principal for insurance and risk management firm Integro. Rolfe will manage Integro's New York aviation practice. She formerly was senior vice president and head of general aviation in New York for Marsh, Inc. She has more than 17 years of aviation insurance experience.
National Air Transportation Association expanded its Safety 1st Program management team with the addition of Russ Lawton as director of safety and security. Lawton will work with NATA's Amy Koranda to lead the program, which includes rolling out the Safety Management System for air charter. He joins the association with nearly three decades of aviation safety experience and most recently was director of operations and lead field auditor for Wyvern Consulting.
London Air Services, a charter operator based in Vancouver, British Columbia, signed a contract to buy a Bombardier Global Express XRS from the manufacturer. The aircraft will be used primarily to fly missions between North America and northern Asia. The XRS is scheduled for delivery in 2008. The charter provider, established in 1999, currently operates four Learjet 45 XR and two Challenger 604 business jets.
AirShares Elite New England added a base at T.F. Green Airport in Providence, R.I. for its shared aircraft ownership program. AirShares offers shares in Cirrus SR22 single-engine aircraft. AirShares established a presence at Horizon Aviation at the northwest ramp. Under the AirShares program, pilots pay for the time they expect to use the aircraft. Maintenance and fuel costs are included in the fees.
Witnesses interviewed by National Transportation Safety Board investigators say there was heavy low-level fog on the afternoon of June 2 when a chartered Model 35A Learjet crashed into Long Island Sound while on final approach for landing at the Groton-New London, Conn. Airport (GON).
Fractional helicopter provider Heliflite added another Bell 430 twin-engine aircraft to its fleet. The company, headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, now operates four Bell 430s and one Sikorsky S-76B. The new 430 will operate out of the Newark, N.J. International Airport.
Milwaukee's General Mitchell International Airport (MKE) has been cleared as a "gateway" airport that can link approved business aircraft to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). The Transportation Security Administration announced in May that MKE, Dallas Love Field (DAL) and Memphis International Airport (MEM) would be added to a list of 12 airports that can serve as gateways for DCA-bound flights (BA, May 15/219). TSA is still going through the approval process for DAL and MEM.
Gulfstream Aerospace is adding three enhancements to its CMP.net computerized aircraft maintenance tracking program. The Work Order Module tracks day-to-day hangar floor activities to help manage costs, the Inventory/Purchase Order Module integrates inventory and parts management with purchasing and Smart Cards were designed to save customers time by replacing traditional handwritten CMP task cards with an electronic version.
Named general manager of Landmark Aviation's Greensboro, N.C. fixed-base operation. James, who has 13 years of aviation management experience, had served as general manager of Landmark's facility in Albany, Ga. since 2000. Earlier he was business manager for the company's FBO in Norfolk, Va.
Named vice president and general manager of Landmark Aviation's Springfield, Ill., maintenance, repair and overhaul operation. Candler has more than 30 years of corporate and general aviation experience, most recently as director of operations for Bombardier Business Aircraft's Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Denver service centers. He also held sales and customer support management positions for Bombardier. Candler has corporate flight department experience and worked for CTS Aviation Services in Seattle.
The Government Accountability Office and the Transportation Inspector General praised progress by the JPDO during a House aviation subcommittee hearing last week, but noted that the organization still faces a number of challenges. The JPDO has made considerable inroads in establishing a framework to coordinate plans for the NGATS, but GAO notes that JPDO is just a planning and coordinating body and lacks the human and technological resources to implement those plans.
National Transportation Safety Board will hold a hearing in July focusing on air transportation of hazardous materials. The board scheduled the hearing as a result of its continuing investigation of a Feb. 8 incident in which a UPS DC-8 flight made an emergency landing at Philadelphia International Airport after a fire broke out on board. See article below
A Cessna 172 carrying three members of an Air Force Junior ROTC program crashed Thursday in western Maine, killing all four people on board. The aircraft was being flown by a 24-year-old flight instructor who picked up the students at the Bethel airport about an hour before the crash. Initial reports said the aircraft was being operated by Twin Cities Air Service of Auburn, Maine.
Gov. Christine Gregoire of Washington headed a list of dignitaries at the dedication Wednesday of a new 18,500-square-foot, $1.58 million hangar at the Spokane International Airport. The aircraft maintenance and avionics hangar is leased to XN Air LLC, which installs and repairs avionics equipment and performs aircraft maintenance and modifications for private operators. XN Air, a subsidiary of XN Technologies of Cheney, Wash., also will conduct applied research on aircraft avionics equipment, software and electronics being developed by the parent company.
William Voss, a veteran FAA executive who most recently held a senior post with the International Civil Aviation Organization in Montreal, was named last week to succeed Stuart Matthews as president and CEO of the Flight Safety Foundation later this year.
The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a two-day hearing next month to explore concerns about the carriage of hazardous materials on cargo aircraft.
A Dornier 328-300 aircraft was substantially damaged this month when it ran off the end of a runway at the Manassas, Va. Regional Airport (HEF) while the crew was attempting to abort the takeoff.
Aviation Safety in Alaska will come under scrutiny at a field hearing scheduled by Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) for July 5 in Anchorage. The hearing will discuss infrastructure, funding and the technology needed to keep up with safety regulation.
