JOHN E. GROB joined Aviation Insurance Services as senior vice president in the Las Vegas, Nev. headquarters office. Grob was formerly vice president and West Coast regional manager for AIG Aviation. MIKE HULLEY was appointed global leader for the transportation industry practice at EDS. He will focus on the development of global transportation industry practice, working with regional and portfolio management executives. Hulley was most recently vice president and general manager of IBM's worldwide travel and transportation industry unit.
CHANGING EMPLOYMENT STATUS MAY FORCE NBAA CHAIRMAN TO STEP DOWN - Donald E. Baldwin, who was installed as chairman of the National Business Aviation Association in October, may have to step down from that post because of an upcoming change in his employment status.
CAE won Level D certification for its Gulfstream IV-SP and Hawker 800/800XP full-flight simulators, located at the Emirates-CAE Flight Training center in Dubai. The simulators use CAE Sim XXI, the next generation technology with modular design, based on the Windows PC platform.
DAIMLERCHRYSLER SELLS MTU TO KKR - After months of negotiations, DaimlerChrysler agreed to sell its MTU Aero Engines unit to private equity investors Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR). KKR will take over the company for EUR1.4 billion (US$1.6 billion), according to industry sources, but neither side confirmed the price paid.
BOMBARDIER Model DHC-8-401 and -402 airplanes (Docket No. 2002-NM-120-AD) - proposes to adopt a new AD that would require modification of the wiring of the rudder trim switch, inspecting all wiring on the back of the aileron/rudder trim control panel for chafing, and replacing any chafed wiring with new wiring. This action is necessary to prevent a short circuit on the aileron/rudder trim control panel that could cause a runaway condition of the rudder trim actuator, which could result in reduced controllability of the airplane.
ICING STUDY UNDER WAY IN MONTREAL USING MIXED FLEET OF RESEARCH AIRCRAFT - More than 50 researchers from four nations are cooperating in a study aimed at providing better understanding of aircraft icing and hazardous winter weather.
In case someone wasn't paying attention earlier, the new head of FAA's Air Traffic Organization made it clear just before Thanksgiving that the industry will be facing a series of painful choices under his regime (BA, Nov. 24/229). Russ Chew, the new chief operating officer of FAA's ATO, told the Aero Club of Washington Tuesday that FAA is facing serious reductions in funding because of long-term declines in passenger ticket revenues due to traffic declines and lower fares.
An economic study of the Greeley-Weld County Airport (GXY) in Greeley, Colo. identified more than $90 million in economic activity in the Greeley and Weld County community attributable to the airport. The study, conducted by HNTB Corporation under contract to the Colorado Aeronautics Division, said the airport also helps support 1,631 jobs. Statewide, the HNTB study said aviation contributes $23.4 billion to the Colorado economy.
FAA UNION VOTES TO ACCEPT CONTRACT DEAL - FAA's flight service station employees last week ratified a deal that concludes five years of contract negotiations with the agency. The National Association of Air Traffic Specialists (NAATS) approved the five-year agreement by an 86 percent margin. The NAATS contract is one of four that FAA Administrator Marion Blakey is trying to settle quickly.
Chew said the FAA has been showing all the signs of an organization that has lost its focus, including budget problems, cost overruns, delayed decisions and so on. A key part of Chew's plan for the new ATO is to make small segments of the organization responsible for their budgets by pushing spending decisions down to individual offices and facilities.
Regent Aviation, St. Paul, Minn., was awarded Honeywell's Service Targeted Authorization and Approval Ratings (S.T.A.A.R.) for its TFE731 line service center. The S.T.A.A.R. rating program, initiated in September 2002, sets performance standards and requires quarterly performance reports, including favorable customer surveys, to insure quality.
House of Representatives approved legislation reauthorizing the National Transportation Safety Board. The bill, S.579, includes a provision requiring the Secretary of Transportation to submit an annual report, through 2008, on the status of each recommendation on NTSB's list of "Most Wanted" safety recommendations. The bill also requires NTSB to notify aircraft operators of their right to appeal an NTSB employee's decision to characterize an event involving their airplane as an "accident."
Jet Aviation's European, Middle and Far Eastern aircraft management and charter divisions based in Zurich, Switzerland were recognized with the Operational Excellence Award 2003 by AIG Aviation, Inc. The insurance company said the objective of the award program is to "recognize our clients who have developed quality operational and safety procedures, which are reflected in their loss record and their commitment to the highest safety standards.
The National Air Transportation Association complained that issuing directives without a clear understanding of how the industry functions "proves to be a great disservice to the carriers and public. Unfortunately, the TSA is reluctant to conduct industry outreach to determine how security objectives can be best implemented within this crucial transportation segment."
BAE Systems is donating $100,000 to sponsor a new course in embedded controls at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, N.Y. Engineers from BAE Systems of Nashua, N.H., several of whom are RPI alumni, will work with RPI professors to help students to design an embedded control system for an 11.5-foot blimp. A spokesperson for BAE Systems said the sponsorship was part of an effort to foster future engineers.
SUMMARY: Pursuant to FAA's rulemaking provisions governing the application, processing, and disposition of petitions for exemption (14 CFR Part 11), this notice contains a summary of certain petitions seeking relief from specified requirements of the Federal Aviation Regulations (14 CFR Chapter I), dispositions of certain petitions previously received, and corrections. The purpose of this notice is to improve the public's awareness of, and participation in, this aspect of FAA's regulatory activities.
ASTM FORMS STANDARDS COMMITTEE ON UAV SAFETY AND PERFORMANCE - The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International has formed a new committee that will develop safety and performance standards for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems, ASTM announced Nov. 24. The committee includes manufacturers of UAVs and their components, federal agencies, design professionals, professional societies, maintenance professionals, trade associations, financial organizations and academia, according to ASTM.
BOLLINGER NAMED PRESIDENT OF ATCA - Paul P. (Bo) Bollinger, Jr., a veteran airport industry executive, was named president of the Air Traffic Control Association last month, succeeding Gabe Hartl, who retired after 29 years of service with the organization. Bollinger began his aviation career as a line service worker for Central American Airways at Bowman Field in Louisville, Ky. and worked as a management intern while attending the University of Kentucky.
NTSB SAYS COLGAN BEECH 1900D HAD ELEVATOR TRIM PROBLEMS - Investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board into an Aug. 26 crash of a Colgan Air Raytheon Beech 1900D at Yarmouth, Mass., revealed problems with the aircraft's elevator trim system, and the agency continues to scrutinize the system's installation. The fatal flight was the first after technicians replaced both elevator trim actuators and the forward elevator trim cable.
January 11-15, 2004 - AAAE Aviation Issues Conference; Hyatt Regency Kauai Resort, Kauai, Hawaii, (703) 820-1395 March 2-3, 2004 - ASME International (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) Aero Engine Life Management Conference, Thistle Royal Horseguards Hotel, London, England, (404) 847-0072; [email protected] or www.asme.org.igti March 15-17, 2004 - Helicopter Association International Heli-Expo 2004, Las Vegas, Nev., (703) 683-4646
EMBRAER FORECASTS MODEL 170 DELIVERY INCREASE IN 2005 - Although delays in certification of the Embraer 170 will affect delivery numbers for 2004, the Brazilian manufacturer projected that sales for the 170 family and the Legacy will increase in 2005 while 145 family sales will decline slightly.
