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.
January 9-13 - American Association of Airport Executives Aviation Issues Conference, Hapuna Beach, Prince Hotel, Kona, Hawaii, (703) 824-0504 February 6-8 - Helicopter Association International Heli-Expo 2005, Anaheim, Calif., (703) 683-4646 February 12-16 - 16th Annual National Business Aviation Association Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference, Reno, Nev., (202) 783-9000
Cessna Aircraft continued preparations to build the new Citation Mustang very light business jet at its Independence, Kan., plant, breaking ground last month on a $20.4 million expansion project at the site. The Independence project includes a 90,000-square-foot flight/delivery building and an 11,000-square-foot aircraft completions building. Cessna also is expanding its customer delivery center in Independence by 11,000 square feet. The project is slated to be completed by the end of the year.
EVERGREEN HELICOPTERS received the first of three Bell/Agusta AB139 twin-engine helicopters that the McMinnville, Ore.-based helicopter services company has on order. Evergreen will use the aircraft in a variety of missions, Evergreen International Aviation Chairman Delford Smith said. "The AB139's exceptional power-to-weight ratio and high-speed capability make the AB139 ideally suited for offshore, EMS, search and rescue and VIP operations," he said.
BAE SYSTEMS Model BAe 146 and Avro 146-RJ series airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2004-18678; Directorate Identifier 2001-NM-312-AD] - revises a proposal that would have required repetitive detailed inspections of the rear fuselage upper skin to detect cracking due to fatigue, and repair if necessary. The original proposal was prompted by evidence of fatigue cracking along the edges of certain chemi-etched pockets in the rear fuselage upper skin. This new action revises the area of inspection specified in the original proposal.
The Federal Aviation Administration will face an increasingly tighter budget as it fights for valuable resources to fund its plan to hire 1,200 controllers in fiscal 2005 and as many as 12,500 controllers over the next 10 years. The agency late last month predicted that more than 11,000 controllers would retire through 2014 and unveiled a 10-year strategy to ensure continuity of the nation's air traffic control system. FAA Administrator Marion Blakey announced the plan Dec.
Slightly more than two years after dumping Williams International as the engine provider for its new entry-level personal jet, Eclipse Aviation conducted successful first flights of the Eclipse 500 powered by twin Pratt & Whitney PW610F turbofans.
BOMBARDIER FLEXJET decided to waive repositioning charges and ferry fees for owners who fly to the Caribbean region, including the Greater, Lesser and Netherlands Antilles, Trinidad and Tobago and Bermuda, beginning in February. Noting that it is common practice for fractional aircraft ownership providers to charge such fees for most destinations outside the U.S., Bombardier said waiving the fees could save owners of the Bombardier Challenger 604 up to $9,900 for roundtrips between New York and Bermuda.
In accordance with the White House's new policy on the Global Positioning System (GPS), the Transportation Department will take a larger role in planning and paying for enhancements to the system's civil services (BA, Dec. 20/271).
NATIONAL BUSINESS AVIATION ASSOCIATION issued a call for nominations for its Meritorious Service to Aviation Award and the John P. 'Jack' Doswell Award. Nominations for the awards are due Feb. 25 and the winners will be recognized during the NBAA's 58th Annual Meeting & Convention in November.
