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.
AgustaWestland's unveiling of a full-scale mock-up of its new A109S Grand development of the earlier A109 series helicopter is aimed at filling a niche by stretching the basic design into the intermediate segment.
August 24 - National Business Aviation Association Business Aviation Regional Forum, Seattle, Wash., (202) 783-9000 September 19-21 - National Association of State Aviation Officials, 73rd Annual Convention and Trade Show, Radisson Riverfront Hotel, St. Paul, Minn., (301) 588-0587 October 10-11 - National Business Aviation Association 13th Annual Tax Conference, Las Vegas, Nev., (202) 783-9000 October 12-14 - National Business Aviation Association 57th Annual Meeting and Convention, Las Vegas, Nev., (202) 783-9000
BOMBARDIER AEROSPACE flew one of its new Global 5000 business jets nonstop from San Francisco, Calif. to the Farnborough Aerodrome outside London, England, a distance of 4,816 nautical miles, in 10 hours 29 minutes at speeds of up to Mach .85. The aircraft, S/N A11-002-9130, is a flight-test aircraft that had been recently equipped with a complete cabin interior. The manufacturer said the airplane carried a crew of three and "the equivalent of an eight-passenger, 1,600-pound payload," that resulted in a maximum takeoff weight of 87,700 pounds.
General aviation manufacturers delivered 19 fewer aircraft in the first half of 2004 than in the first half of 2003 despite posting nearly a 17 percent increase in billings, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association reported Thursday. GA plane-makers shipped 1,123 aircraft in the first half of the year, compared with 1,142 aircraft through the first six months of 2003. Billings, however, rose from $4.22 billion in the first half of 2003 to $4.92 billion in the first half of 2004.
Bombardier's regional aircraft order book continued to grow with a 20-aircraft deal valued at $512.6 million for the 50-seat CRJ200 from Spanish carrier Air Nostrum. Under the contract, Air Nostrum can convert the orders to other Bombardier aircraft, including the CRJ900 and CRJ700 regional jets or the Q400 turboprop. The contract is a follow-on to an earlier Air Nostrum order for 31 CRJ200s. Air Nostrum has taken delivery of the first 25 of that order. The latest order will boost the carrier's fleet of Bombardier aircraft to 70.
The crew of a Model 55 Learjet that overran the runway while landing at the Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. Executive Airport was instructed to land on a different runway than the pilots had anticipated and then encountered heavy rain after the airplane touched down, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report on the July 19 accident.
Safire Aircraft, the Opa Locka, Fla. firm that has been developing the entry-level Safire Jet, appeared last week to be close to seeking bankruptcy protection or liquidating.
ISRAEL AIRCRAFT INDUSTRIES Lahav Division developed a mid-air collision avoidance system for helicopters. The company said its Tactical Mid-Air Collision Avoidance (TMACA) system "is a proven solution to prevent collisions during helicopter tactical mission and formation flights." Helicopters equipped with TMACA "are netted to each other in a system envelope arrangement," IAI said.
