BUSINESS TURBINE ACCIDENTS DOWN SLIGHTLY IN 2004 - Despite several high-profile accidents involving prominent personalities in the final quarter, the number of accidents involving U.S. business jet and turboprop operators decreased slightly in 2004, according to data compiled by Robert E. Breiling Associates of Boca Raton, Fla. There were 64 accidents last year, 19 involving fatalities, that claimed 53 lives. That compares with 68 accidents, 26 fatal, and 58 deaths in 2003.
THALES' new Beijing air traffic control system was commissioned. Thales delivered the system to the Civil Aviation Administration of China in May and transitioned the system for operational use over the last six months. The system is part of a NESACC (North, East and Southern Area Control Centers for China) contract that Thales received in 2001. The contract calls for Thales to supply its integrated EUROCAT air traffic control systems for Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
BOMBARDIER Model CL-600-1A11 (CL-600), CL-600-2A12 (CL-601), CL-600-2B16 (CL-601-3A, CL-601-3R, and CL-604) Series airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2004-19862; Directorate Identifier 2004-NM-228-AD; Amendment 39-13907; AD 2004-25-19] -- requires revising the Airplane Flight Manual to provide the flightcrew with procedures and limitations for operating an airplane with out-of-tolerance angle of attack (AOA) transducers. This AD also requires repetitive linearity tests of the AOA transducers and corrective action if necessary.
ELLIOTT AVIATION completed paint jobs on a Challenger 600 and Falcon 50, the first paint work on those types of aircraft done by the company. Elliott Aviation opened its completions center in February 2003 and has since completed more than 70 paint projects. The facility is equipped with a 5,600-square-foot downdraft paint booth that can handle aircraft as large as a Falcon 900 or Challenger 604.
JEPPESEN and NetJets signed a four-year deal to expand Jeppesen's support of the fractional aircraft provider's operations. NetJets began using Jeppesen's international trip planning service in January 2000. A team of Jeppesen employees is stationed at NetJets' Columbus, Ohio flight operations center and provides 24/7 customized trip handling for nearly all international trips the company flies. Under the new agreement, Jeppesen will expand its in-house team at NetJets to include the fractional provider's international operation near Hilton Head, S.C.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT Beech Models 45 (YT-34), A45 (T-34A, B-45), and D45 (T-34B) airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2004-19896; Directorate Identifier 2004-CE-44-AD; Amendment 39-13913; AD 2004-25-51] -- requires an inspection and/or modification program approved specifically for this AD by the FAA Wichita Aircraft Certification Office (ACO). This AD is the result of a total of three accidents involving the affected airplanes, including a recent accident in which the wing separated from the airplane in flight.
GULFSTREAM AEROSPACE delivered the 100th G200 business jet to fractional aircraft operator NetJets. The aircraft was handed over at Gulfstream's outfitting center in Dallas, Texas. "We are pleased to take delivery of G200, Serial Number 100 for our growing fleet of NetJets aircraft," said Bill Boisture, president of NetJets Aviation. "The G200 has proven to be an aircraft we can rely on time and time again.
PETROLEUM HELICOPTERS INC. (PHI) accepted its second Sikorsky S-92 helicopter last month. The aircraft was flown to PHI's Lafayette, La. facility to join the other S-92 in supporting deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. Sikorsky has offered a variant of the S-92 for the presidential helicopter competition, which is expected to be decided this month.
Eight years after launching its Hawker Horizon program, Raytheon Aircraft Company (RAC) said it won provisional FAA approval for the new business jet two days before Christmas. The Hawker Horizon is the third composite-fuselage model to be built by RAC/Beech Aircraft. Positioned at the top of the RAC product line, the new aircraft is designed to compete against other transcontinental business jets, such as the Bombardier Challenger 300, Cessna Citation X, Dassault Falcon 50EX, Gulfstream 200, Embraer Legacy and Falcon 2000.
ACCESS and security also rank high on NBAA's 2005 agenda, Bolen said. NBAA plans to closely watch the reservation system at Chicago O'Hare to ensure that it does not become a permanent feature of that airport and that this system does not spread to other airports. Bolen was encouraged that NBAA's other access plan -- the TSA Access Certificate (TSAAC) -- is moving forward this year. See article below.
NATIONAL BUSINESS AVIATION ASSOCIATION is gearing up for what it expects will be a "significant battle" over FAA funding this year, NBAA President Ed Bolen said. He noted that major airlines continue to sag and that Air Transport Association President Jim May has been leading a charge to persuade Congress to take a new look at FAA funding sources -- including taxes on business aviation. Bolen, however, does not expect Congress will push through any bills this year that would make dramatic changes to FAA funding.
The National Business Aviation Association's efforts to persuade the Transportation Security Administration to expand the TSA Access Certificate (TSAAC) program received a major boost last week when TSA issued a press release promising to move forward on the program in partnership with the association. TSA, in the press release, called TSAAC "a cooperative effort that enhances security by ensuring appropriate security procedures are in place, while at the same time allowing increased access to our nation's airspace."
Law enforcement officials are continuing to investigate the growing number of reports by pilots that laser beams have been directed into aircraft cockpits during critical phases of flights. Recent incidents included a Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Sikorsky helicopter, which encountered a laser beam Dec. 31 but landed safely. The helicopter was on a mission to investigate another report of a laser encounter on Dec. 29 involving a Cessna Citation carrying 13 people on approach to Teterboro, N.J. airport.
Honeywell Aerospace is investing development dollars and management time in a range of new technologies designed for both new and retrofit applications. During a meeting with McGraw-Hill/Aviation Week editors last month, Honeywell executives described an array of products that could generate billions of dollars for the aerospace manufacturer over coming decades.
PAUL TELLIER may have been pushed out as chief executive of Bombardier, Inc., but his contributions to the Canadian railroad industry have not been forgotten. Canadian National (CN) Railroad, which Tellier headed and where he earned a reputation as a turnaround artist, has renamed the underwater railroad tunnel between Canada and the U.S. the Paul M. Tellier Tunnel. Opened in 1995 as the St. Clair Tunnel, it runs under the St. Clair River between Sarnia, Ontario and Port Huron, Mich.
SHORT BROTHERS Model SD3-60, SD3-SHERPA, and SD3-60 SHERPA series airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2004-18661; Directorate Identifier 2003-NM-273-AD; Amendment 39-13901; AD 2004-25-13] -- supersedes an existing AD that currently requires a one-time inspection to detect cracks and/or corrosion of the gland nut on the shock absorber of the main landing gear (MLG), and follow-on actions. That AD also requires repair or replacement of any cracked/corroded gland nut with a new nut.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT Model 390, Premier 1 airplanes [Docket No. FAA 2004-19119; Directorate Identifier 2004-CE-26-AD; Amendment 39-13903; AD 2004-25-15] -- requires inspecting the routing and security of the left and right main landing gear (MLG) squat switch wire harness installations for damage, repairing any damage or replacing components, and reinstalling the squat switch wire harness.
AVIATION PARTNERS was awarded FAA supplemental type certification for the company's Blended Winglet system on the Hawker 800XP. FAA already had certificated the winglets on the Hawker 800 (BA, Sept. 20/128). The winglets extend the Hawker 800XP range from 2,600 nautical miles to 2,780 nm and improve climb, cruise speed and fuel burn, Aviation Partners said. Aviation Partners priced the modification at $395,000 for the 800 and $425,000 for the 800XP, including installation. Aviation Partners appointed West Star Aviation in Grand Junction, Colo.
MARK NIEHAUS was appointed general manager of Stevens Aviation's service center in Denver. Niehaus will manage day-to-day operations along with growing the business. He joins the facility from Bombardier Business Aviation Services, where he was director of service sales support and engine programs. A 24-year aviation veteran, Niehaus also has served with KC Aviation/Gulfstream Aircraft Services and AlliedSignal.
JOAN SULLIVAN GARRETT, chair and chief executive of MedAire, Inc., was named vice chair of the Flight Safety Foundation board of governors. Garrett has served on the board of governors since 2002. She has served on the foundation's Corporate Advisory Committee and Fatigue Countermeasure Committee and chaired the Oxygen Committee. FSF recognized her in 1997 with its Business Aviation Meritorious Award for her "dedication and management of remote medical emergencies."
NATIONAIR INSURANCE AGENCIES expanded its presence in the Northeast with the purchase of Nashua, N.H.-based Aero Insurance. Aero Insurance, which Jan. 1 began operating as NationAir, provides insurance to corporate flight departments, regional airlines, helicopters and fixed-base operators. The company was founded in 1990. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
BOMBARDIER said Chinese officials have permitted operators of the Bombardier CRJ200 to resume flights of those aircraft in scheduled passenger service in the country. CRJ200 flights were suspended in late November by the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC) following a China Eastern CRJ200 crash after takeoff from Baotou, Inner Mongolia (BA, Nov. 29/243).
GREEN BAY AVIATION LLC won approval from the Pease Development Authority board of directors to conduct Part 135 charter flight operations at the Pease, N.H. International Airport. Green Bay is using a Learjet 60 and has an arrangement with Mid Atlantic Aviation of Atlantic City, N.J. that gives it access to Mid Atlantic's three Learjets and one Beech King Air.
