Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites scheduled SpaceShipOne for its first competition flight in pursuit of the $10 million Ansari X Prize Sept. 29 from Mojave Airport Civilian Aerospace Test Center in Mojave, Calif. To win the prize, SpaceShipOne will need to make a second flight by Oct. 13. Rutan developed SpaceShipOne with financial backing from Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, and the vehicle performed the first private manned suborbital space flight June 21, drawing thousands of spectators to Mojave and generating international interest.
Raytheon Aircraft Company (RAC), which has struggled through years of financial difficulties, nearly doubled its second quarter operating profit and expects to be in the black for the entire year.
TOM RIDGE, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, plans to resign his post following the election, according to numerous reports Friday. Ridge is said to have told associates he wants to return to the private sector so he can earn enough money to cover college costs for his children.
STEVENS AVIATION received Transport Canada approval to install three safety systems on the Piaggio Avanti. The approval covers a Bendix/King 980 multi-hazard awareness system, a Bendix/King KGP 560 GA Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System (EGPWS) and a SkyWatch HP899 traffic advisory system. The multi-hazard awareness system is designed to help prevent controlled flight into terrain accidents by providing alerts and displaying terrain relative to lateral and vertical positions of the aircraft.
CIRRUS has begun offering the Honeywell Bendix/King KGP 560 Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System as a factory-installed option on the SR series aircraft. The system combines look-ahead algorithms with a comprehensive terrain and obstacle database in a compact unit designed for general aviation aircraft.
JET AVIATION TETERBORO has begun offering a new service, called "NewspaperDirect," which delivers same-day, on-demand print versions of nearly 200 newspapers worldwide to customers who request them. The papers, exact reproductions of original newspaper editions but in a more portable version (usually an 11"x17" format), are delivered to passengers on-board before departure.
KEYSTONE HELICOPTER CORP., West Chester, Pa., won a third consecutive contract to provide on-site maintenance for U.S. Park Police Aviation Unit helicopters in the Washington, D.C. area. Keystone has been supporting the Park Police Aviation Unit, which currently operates two Bell 412s and a Bell 206L3, since 1989.
AMERIFLIGHT, the Burbank, Calif.-based FAR Part 135 cargo carrier, moved a number of its senior executives into new assignments. David Fitzpatrick, who joined the company in May as director of maintenance, was promoted to vice president/director of maintenance. Fitzpatrick succeeded Ernie Doerksen, Ameriflight's veteran director of maintenance, who retired. Stuart Schrock, who had been serving as vice president-flight on an interim basis, returned to his regular post, director of safety.
THE 9/11 COMMISSION'S warning that "major vulnerabilities still exist in cargo and general aviation security," (BA, July 26/35) got the attention of general aviation officials, but it is not a major source of concern. Jim Schuster, the president of Raytheon Aircraft who serves as chairman of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association's Security Committee, said industry officials are "obviously paying a lot of attention" to the commission's warning.
Flight Options, the Cleveland, Ohio-based fractional aircraft provider in which Raytheon holds a controlling interest, launched its JetPass last week, a program that provides access to the Flight Options fleet of business jets in 25-hour increments that bypass the complexities of buying a fractional share in a particular aircraft.
Despite a congressional recess that runs until early September, several legislators last week continued to pressure the Department of Homeland Security to issue security guidelines that would enable general aviation to access Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).
HONEYWELL won FAA certification for its KI 825 electronic horizontal situation indicator, which is designed to facilitate use of night vision goggles. The system combines traditional heading and navigation functions with a moving map display and is visible in darkness or bright daylight. Honeywell called the instrument ideal for military and law enforcement organizations. The system can be installed in helicopters, piston and turbine aircraft.
Corporate Aviation Analysis & Planning (CAAP) combined operations with Wings Aviation International to create a new firm, Leading Edge Aviation Solutions, that will provide analytical, transactional, technical, operational and human resource services for the business aviation industry. The new firm, which company executives say is one of the largest consulting and transaction providers in the business aviation industry, will be headquartered in Grapevine, Texas and have offices in New Jersey, Maryland, Connecticut and Kansas.
FAA ADMINISTRATORS traditionally make an appearance at the Experimental Aircraft Association's annual AirVenture convention and fly-in every summer in Oshkosh, Wis., sometimes incurring pointed questioning from EAA members. In the wake of her recent sign-off of new sport-pilot regulations -- a cause that EAA had championed for years -- Administrator Marion Blakey was treated like a celebrity last week in Oshkosh. She celebrated her trip to the EAA show with a 20-minute flight as a passenger in a two-seat Quicksilver ultralight.
NEW PIPER AIRCRAFT sold a fleet of 13 Piper Warrior III aircraft to the University of Oklahoma Aviation Department. The aircraft will be delivered in early 2005. Two of the aircraft will be equipped with the new Avidyne Entegra integrated flight deck, which will enable the university to train new pilots using GPS and glass cockpit technology. The order is one of several training contracts New Piper has received.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT plans to add Garmin glass cockpit avionics to its venerable Beechcraft Bonanza A36 and Baron 58 aircraft. Both models will have the Garmin G1000 integrated avionics system as standard equipment for the 2006 model year, and Raytheon said the first aircraft with the new avionics packages should be available in mid-2005. The dual-display G1000 system will be integrated with Garmin's GFC 700 autopilot. In addition, the Baron will be equipped with Garmin's new GWX 68 weather radar system.
ATLANTIC AVIATION FLIGHT SERVICES expanded its charter fleet with five more aircraft. The flight services company added three Beechjet 400s and a Hawker 800XP based in Plymouth, Mass., and a Citation Excel based in New Haven, Conn. The latest additions increase Atlantic Aviation's national fleet to 21 aircraft.
LUKE TIAHRT, the 16-year-old son of Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.) was found dead July 24 in the family's home in Fairfax, Va., an apparent suicide. Rep. Tiahrt's district includes the Wichita area. In addition to his parents, Luke Tiahrt's survivors include an older brother and sister.
FRANK DEFELICE was appointed general manager of the Gulfstream Service Center at London Luton Airport in England. Most recently, DeFelice had been manager of service center scheduling at the Gulfstream Service Center in Savannah, Ga., where the headquarters of the business jet manufacturer are located. DeFelice has more than 20 years' experience in the aviation industry, beginning with four years in the U.S. Air Force. He subsequently worked for Empire Airways in Phoenix, Ariz. where he oversaw the maintenance of FedEx Corporation's aircraft fleet.
The Federal Aviation Administration is developing technical standard orders that would establish the minimum requirements for cockpit imaging recording data, but the agency has not yet decided whether it will move forward on a rulemaking at the urging of the National Transportation Safety Board to mandate cockpit imaging recorders (CIRs) on commercial aircraft, including those used in Part 135. NTSB last week held a two-day hearing to highlight its recommendations and examine the feasibility and issues surrounding the use of CIRs.
JIMSAIR CHARTER AND MANAGEMENT added a Beech King Air 350 to its charter fleet. The aircraft is based at Jimsair's facility at San Diego International Airport.
IT'S BEEN FOUR MONTHS since the National Business Aviation Association's board of directors decided to cut their losses and replace Shelley Longmuir as president, but no replacement has been named (BA, April 5/149). Asked about the outlook for finding a new president, Ken Emerick, NBAA's vice chairman who heads the search committee, told BA Friday, "We've made a lot of progress. I believe we're very close."
L-3 AVIONICS SYSTEMS' SkyWatch collision avoidance and Stormscope lightning detection systems will be offered as an option on avionics packages for Raytheon Aircraft's Beechcraft Bonanza A36 and Baron 58 models
An Agusta A119 Koala was "substantially damaged" when it hit mountainous terrain during a sales demonstration flight near Big Bear City, Calif. last month, but none of the seven people on board was injured.
