Macquarie Infrastructure Co. (MIC) will become the second largest owner of fixed-base operations in the U.S. -- behind only Signature Flight Support -- when it completes the planned acquisition of 23 FBOs from Bryan, Texas-based Trajen Holdings later this year.
TEXTRON SAYS CESSNA HAD HIGHER EARNINGS - Cessna Aircraft posted higher sales and earnings during the first quarter, parent company Textron said Thursday.
FAA tapped Wilson Felder as the new director of the William J. Hughes Technical Center, the agency's aviation research, development and test and evaluation center based in Atlantic City, N.J. Felder succeeds Ronald Esposito, who retired after serving as acting director of the center since Jan. 3. Felder also will continue as executive sponsor for the FAA's National Center of Excellence in Operations Research.
Appointed director of operations for Acrohelipro Global Services' Dallas facility. Stubbs joined Acrohelipro in 1993 and most recently was director of sales and marketing.
MALIBU DAMAGED IN FORCED LANDING AFTER ENGINE LOSS - A Piper PA-46-350P Malibu Mirage was substantially damaged this month when the pilot had to make a forced landing on a highway after losing all engine power.
Model EMB-145XR airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-24440; Directorate Identifier 2006-NM-058-AD] - proposes to require replacement of certain segments of the passenger seat tracks with new, improved seat tracks. This proposed AD results from instances in which the shear plungers of the passenger seat legs were not adequately fastened. FAA is proposing this AD to prevent inadequate fastening of the seat leg shear plungers, which could result in failure of the passenger seat tracks during emergency landing conditions and consequent injury to passengers.
TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADMINISTRATION warned Thursday about a possible terrorist threat against U.S. business jets, based on an April 13 message in Arabic posted on a Web forum. The message, which explained how to identify private American jets, urged Muslims to "Destroy private American aircraft..." and mentioned several specific aircraft types. TSA reiterated a list of 10 precautions aircraft operators should take, including securing unattended aircraft and verifying the identification of crew and passengers before departure.
NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD will be down to only three members at the end of next month. Former Chairman Ellen Engleman Conners plans to resign at the end of May. See article on Page 186.
ONE OF THOSE R&D PROJECTS is aimed at developing a supersonic business jet. Gulfstream announced last month that it had hired Gerard Schkolnik, a 15-year veteran of NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, as director of the company's supersonic technology programs (BA, March 20/131). But Chabraja declined to provide significant details about any of the new models in the R&D process. Any new products will be designed to "fly farther, faster in greater cabin comfort," he told the analysts.
NBAA TAKES ISSUE WITH 'FREE RIDE' COMMENTS BY ATA LEADER -- National Business Aviation Association took issue last week with earlier comments by Air Transport Association President Jim May that business aviation operators are getting a "free ride" in the National Airspace System.
Germany's Bundestag passed a law that allows the government to sell a 75 percent stake in the nation's air traffic control service, DFS. The Air Navigation Services Act includes regulations for the capital privatization of DFS, with the German government retaining only a 25.1 percent share. Another significant feature of the legislation is the establishment of a separate oversight body, to be called the Federal Supervisory Authority for Air Navigation Services. This meets the requirements of Europe's Single Sky legislation.
FAA Administrator Marion Blakey does not expect air traffic controllers will engage in traffic slowdowns or other "job action" disruptions this summer even if FAA is successful in imposing a new labor contract that falls far short of what the controllers' union had been seeking.
Model 146 and Avro 146-RJ airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-23840; Directorate Identifier 2005-NM-232-AD; Amendment 39-14549; AD 2006-07-22] - requires modifying the control cable duct on the left bulkhead structure at Frame 12, and, for certain airplanes, the forward toilet bulkhead structure. This AD results from a structural analysis by the manufacturer, which revealed that rapid decompression of the flight compartment with the door closed could cause structural deformation of the left bulkhead structure at Frame 12, and of the attached cable duct structure.
Model ATR 42 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-23816; Directorate Identifier 2005-NM-247-AD; Amendment 39-14553; AD 2006-07-26] - requires one-time inspections to detect discrepancies (e.g., cracking, loose/sheared fasteners, distortion) of the upper skin and rib feet of the outer wing boxes, and repair if necessary. This AD results from a report of cracking on the upper skin and ribs of the outer wing box on an in-service airplane. FAA is issuing this AD to detect and correct these discrepancies, which could result in reduced structural integrity of the airplane.
THALES ATM signed a cooperative agreement with the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), the LFV Group (Sweden) and Naviair (Denmark) to upgrade their existing air traffic management systems through a joint procurement. The agreement calls for incremental upgrades tailored to requirements under the Single European Sky initiative. The three air navigation service providers will collaborate to "bring real benefits to airlines" by moving toward common systems. The agreement was structured to allow other air navigation service providers to join the cooperative effort later.
CONKLIN & DE DECKER will hold its Fourth Annual Commercial Operators and Management Tax Course in Dallas, Texas June 22-23. Registration fee is $895. For more information, contact Nel Sanders-Stubbs at (480) 922-8110 or [email protected].
BOEING named Tod Hullin, 62, senior vice president-public policy and communications and head of all U.S. federal, state and local government liaison operations from the Washington, D.C. office. Hullin replaces Rudy deLeon, who will retire June 30. Thomas Downey was named vice president-corporate communications and will relocate from Seattle to the company's corporate headquarters in Chicago.
THE INABILITY to reach agreement on a new contract with the National Air Traffic Controllers Association "was all about pay," FAA Administrator Marion Blakey told reporters last week. There was "simply too much money that separated us," Blakey said, adding later that the two sides were "billions of dollars" apart over the five-year term of the proposed contract.
FLIGHTSAFETY INTERNATIONAL, consistently one of the most profitable enterprises in the aviation industry, expects to achieve significant operational savings by reconfiguring its fleet of more than 230 aircraft simulators. The flight training provider is switching to electric motion and control loading instead of hydraulic systems. FSI has used the technology on military simulators for a number of years, but recently began operating the first such simulator for commercial use, a Level D Cessna Citation Sovereign, at FSI's Orlando, Fla. learning center.
Model EMB-135BJ airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2006-24366; Directorate Identifier 2006-NM-040-AD] - proposes to require inspecting for missing fire blocking material on the left- and right-hand partitions of the forward baggage compartment door; replacing the seal on both partitions; and performing corrective action if necessary. This proposed AD results from a report indicating that certain airplanes were delivered with the fire blocking material missing and the seal improperly installed on the partitions of the forward baggage compartment door.
The Port of Seattle has hired Robinson Aviation of Fairfax, Va., to control aircraft taxiing near the terminal at Seattle-Tacoma Airport starting April 13. Controllers from Robinson will manage arriving aircraft as they taxi to and park at their assigned gates, and departing aircraft as they push back from gates and taxi to runways. The ramp tower will operate in Sea-Tac's former FAA control tower, located above the airport's main terminal building. The three-year contract is valued at $3.6 million; the cost to convert the tower was about $1.3 million.
Named senior vice president and chief underwriting officer-North America for AIG Aviation. Lovett joined AIG Aviation in 1991 and has managed several product lines at the home office underwriting unit in Atlanta. He graduated with a bachelor of science degree in aeronautical science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 1991 and has been a pilot in the U.S. Army Reserve for 19 years.
