Adam Aircraft plans to open a 22,000-square-foot manufacturing and assembly operation at the Kemp Ogden Airport Gateway Center in Ogden, Utah. The center will be used to manufacture and assemble A500 and A700 aircraft. Adam expects to expand the site in phases. "Our company is fortunate to have a backlog in excess of two years on both the A500 centerline twin and the A700 AdamJet," said Adam CEO Rick Adam. "Ramping up production is a top priority and we believe Utah will be an excellent location for adding to our existing capacity in Colorado."
While many Washington aviation officials this month are focusing on FAA's future funding needs, the manager of FAA's Aircraft Maintenance Division expressed serious concerns about the agency's current budget situation. During remarks at the recent NATA convention in Las Vegas, Dave Cann outlined a host of programs that his division has put on the back burner because resources are so limited. See article below.
Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA) signed a five-year memorandum of understanding with Global Jet Services to offer avionics and maintenance training to AEA members. Under the agreement, Global Jet Services will offer a 15 percent discount on its aircraft and avionics course offerings, including Initial, Recurrent and Electrical Interface, Avionics for Line Maintenance Technicians, Advanced Avionics, RVSM/DRVSM-91.411/91.413, and Practical Aircraft Wiring and Avionics Interface.
Eclipse Aviation President Vern Raburn is pleased with the performance of the PW610F engines on Eclipse 500 test aircraft, telling BA that the Pratt & Whitney Canada powerplants "just keep running and running," even after sustaining foreign object damage. About two weeks ago, Raburn said one of the engines on N503EA sustained substantial damage to the fan after picking up a piece of reinforcing bar or a big bolt as the airplane was taking off for a test flight.
March 21-22 - American Association of Airport Executives and Airports Council International-North America, Spring Washington Conference, Washington, D.C., (202) 293-8500, e-mail [email protected], www.aci-na.aero March 31-April 2 - Latin America Business Aviation Convention and Exposition LABACE2005, Sao Paulo, Brazil, (202) 783-9000 April 12-18 - Sun 'N' Fun Fly-In, Lakeland, Fla., (863) 644-2431
GULFSTREAM Model Galaxy and Gulfstream 200 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2004-19564; Directorate Identifier 2004-NM-103-AD] - withdraws an NPRM requiring repetitive inspections for damage of the flexible supply lines of the pilot and copilot oxygen mask boxes, and eventual replacement of the lines with new rigid tubes. Since the proposed AD was issued, FAA received new data that 100 percent of the affected worldwide fleet has accomplished the hardware replacement in accordance with the service bulletin specified in the proposed AD. Accordingly, the proposed AD is withdrawn.
BOMBARDIER Model DHC-7 series airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2005-20595; Directorate Identifier 2004-NM-149-AD] - proposes to require revising the Airworthiness Limitations section of the Instructions of Continued Airworthiness to include a new lower life limit for lower wing skins. This proposed AD is prompted by the discovery that during the manufacture of the lower wing skins, score marks may have been accidentally inscribed around the edge of the lower wing skin doublers.
Wesley Clark was appointed to the board of directors of Adam Aircraft. Clark had a 34-year career in the U.S. Army, rising to the rank of four-star general and serving as NATO's supreme allied commander, Europe. He retired in 2000 and has since been an investment banker, author and commentator. In 2004 he staged an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.
A plan to gradually reopen Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to general aviation is being "tweaked" after the Transportation Security Administration presented the program to Department of Homeland Security leadership, including Secretary Michael Chertoff, NATA President James Coyne said last week. But Coyne added that TSA Chief David Stone is still confident the changes will not further delay the plan and that it should be presented to Congress by April 1.
Peter Jansen was reappointed as chief executive finance for Lufthansa Technik. The latest appointment covers a term through December 2010. Jansen was a science associate at the University of Cologne before joining Lufthansa in February 1984. He has held economics, maintenance training and controlling and auditing positions with the company. He was appointed a member of the Lufthansa Technik executive board in Hamburg in 2001.
Multi Service Corporation partnered with Perfectstop to provide an Internet-based platform that links aircraft operators with fixed-base operators. Perfectstop, based in Houston, developed the platform, which will enable online reservations, flight tracking, real-time service confirmations, detailed trip reporting and other functions.
Robert Freeman, former deputy chief of staff of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, joined the law firm of Sher & Blackwell in Washington, D.C. as a director of government relations.
EMBRAER REPORTS RECORD PROFITS, REVENUES - Brazilian aircraft manufacturer said sales soared 60 percent last year as the company began ramping up deliveries of a new family of large airplanes for the regional airline market.
ARINC moved its United Kingdom international sales and customer service operations to new offices in Crawley, U.K. The new offices cover 14,000 square feet and include a technical demonstration area for ARINC's aviation and communication systems work.
Many senior executives in the charter business would endorse the creation of standards for charter brokering, but believe that industry, not government, should set the standards. Avbase Flight Services Chairman John DePalma, agreeing with participants at a NATA panel, said charter brokering offers growth opportunities for operators but "at the same time creates challenges," and added, "It is time to set some standards." Mike Nichols, manager of tax and finances for NBAA, agreed, saying those standards should be a compilation of industry best practices.
FAA MANAGER SAYS FUNDING SHORTAGE IS CAUSE OF REDUCED SERVICES - A veteran Federal Aviation Administration official is calling this year's budget one of the toughest yet, forcing agency managers to re-evaluate and slow down a number of programs and cut industry services. Dave Cann, manager of FAA's Aircraft Maintenance Division in Flight Standards, said that during his time with the agency there have always been complaints of budget shortages, but he has "never seen it as bad as this." Flight Standards this year took a $25 million cut.
House legislators last week expressed concern that the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) ensure the safety of the laser warning system the agency is testing to alert aircraft that have strayed into restricted airspace in the Washington, D.C. area. "At a time when we are trying to prevent lasers from disrupting aviation operations, [the Department of Defense] has created a warning system that flashes laser beams onto aircraft that violate airspace surrounding the National Capital Region," said House aviation subcommittee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.).
Mark Serbenski was appointed chief operating officer of Northern Air, Inc. Serbenski joined Northern Air as director of maintenance in November 2001 and since has served as vice president, managing the maintenance division. Serbenski will continue in that role as well as adding the duties of COO. Before joining Northern Air, he was a service manager with Waco Classic Aircraft/Centennial Aircraft.
Aviation Technology Group is continuing to assemble a Javelin prototype and anticipates a first flight of the demonstrator aircraft in the second quarter. The company installed the main landing gear and rudder pedals in front and rear cockpits of the aircraft. ATG has completed bench testing of the avionics in preparation for installation and integrated the engine instruments and flight test data display with avionics and aircraft instrumentation in preparation for preliminary engine runs.
Senate Commerce Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) last week lauded the Capstone program in Alaska as "a model for quick transition to a modern national airspace system for the whole country." The program, which uses advanced broadcast surveillance (ADS-B) and the global positioning satellite system to guide properly equipped general aviation aircraft, has proved cost-effective and efficient, Stevens said, and called Capstone "a proven safety tool." Capstone, along with Alaska's "Medallion" safety initiative, has "done more for safety in our state than all the federal mand
GA SECURITY COMES UNDER PUBLIC SCRUTINY - General aviation security came under public scrutiny again last week after a government report on homeland security expressed concern that the unregulated nature of the general aviation sector might prove attractive to terrorists. The 24-page report was drafted by the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to give law enforcement officers an overview of aviation security and incidents since Sept. 11, 2001.
