Jet Aviation Dallas is planning a major expansion of its transient ramp, doubling the amount of space available to accommodate additional and larger aircraft. The FBO will add 55,000 square feet of ramp space, for a total of 185,000 square feet, which will "enable us to increase our customer base by providing fuel services and additional maintenance to numerous aircraft types," said Thomas Rimmi, senior vice president and general manager of the facility.
Pease Development Authority (PDA) board of directors formally accepted fee title and appurtenant rights to approximately 2,535 acres of the former Pease Air Force Base near Portsmouth, N.H. as part of a public benefit transfer from the Department of the Air Force. Previously, the PDA had been developing the Pease International Tradeport under a 55-year lease with the USAF, but under the terms of the Oct. 17 transfer, the PDA now owns the property.
Lancair certified the last of the equipment for the all-electric Columbia 350, clearing the way for aircraft deliveries to begin this week. The S-TEC autopilot and the Avidyne FlightMax Entegra primary and multi-function glass cockpit displays were the final systems to be certified for installation on the Columbia 350. Lancair has been building the aircraft since July and the company plans to deliver five this week with three or more deliveries each week after this one.
Raisbeck Engineering unveiled a new ZR Technology that will help increase the range and speed of the Learjet 35. The ZR Technology package includes super-critical, double delta inboard wing leading edge gloves, reflexed extended trailing edge flaps and horizontal winglets. The goal of the technology is a 10 percent reduction in drag at the aircraft's high-speed cruise of Mach .81. Raisbeck has been developing the upgrade for three years and has accrued more than 300 hours of test and certification flights.
Jet Aviation is offering customers a special incentive for visiting its U.S. fixed-base facilities in Bedford, Mass., Dallas, Teterboro and West Palm Beach during the next 45 days. The company is distributing copies of Medal of Honor Portraits of Valor Beyond the Call of Duty. The 255-page, heavily illustrated hardcover book profiles the lives and actions of 116 individual Medal of Honor recipients, and includes photos of the recipients during their service days and more recently, wearing the Medal of Honor.
AGUSTA Model A109E helicopters (Docket No. 2003-SW-28-AD) - proposes to require modifying each passenger compartment sliding door by applying a kit to replace the levers and links. This proposal is prompted by instances of a door inadvertently opening during flight due to the unstable configuration of the door. The actions specified by this proposed AD are intended to prevent the inadvertent opening of a door during flight and loss of a passenger or other objects from the cabin. FAA estimates that this proposed AD would affect 34 helicopters on the U.S.
The Federal Aviation Administration will publish a final rule on the implementation of domestic reduced vertical separation minimum (DRVSM) today (Oct. 27), officially kicking off a 14-month race for operators to complete necessary aircraft equipment updates by the time the rule goes into effect Jan. 20, 2005.
Raytheon Aircraft Company certified the AirCell ST 3100 Iridium-based Satcom system on the Hawker 800XP business jet and is offering the system as a factory option. The AirCell system also is being offered as an option on the Hawker 400XP (formerly the Beechjet 400) and as the standard airborne telecommunications system on Raytheon's Flight Options fractional aircraft ownership fleet.
Embraer Aircraft Corp. said an Embraer 170 flight simulator won FAA and JAA Interim Level C approval, permitting cockpit crew training to begin immediately. The simulator was developed in a joint program with Canadian simulator manufacturer CAE, Inc.
RTI International Metals said United Steelworkers of America employees at its RMI Titanium Company were scheduled to vote Oct. 25 on a new labor agreement. The previous contract had been scheduled to expire Oct. 15, but the agreement was extended while talks between the parties continued.
Cessna Aircraft says it remains on schedule for a November 2004 grand opening of its new Citation Service Center in Wichita. The 447,259-square-foot building will be one of the largest general aviation/business jet aircraft maintenance facilities in the world. To date, the apron, taxiway and run-up areas have been completed with over 800,000 square feet of nine-inch-thick concrete. Work is under way on steel framing of the buildings, laying underground utilities and completing a fuel farm.
Gulfstream's parent company General Dynamics last week painted a cautious, conservative outlook for next year in announcing improved GDearnings in the third quarter and predicting that Gulfstream will benefit from an aggressive reduction in costs and elimination of used inventory.
With just under two months of shopping time left before the holidays, The Christmas Book from Neiman Marcus is in circulation featuring a full-page photo of a Learjet 45XR on the ramp as an attractive young woman disembarks. Neiman Marcus is offering the full Learjet line - from the 40 through the 60 - at B/CA-equipped prices ranging from $7.73 million to $12.74 million.
ECLIPSE STANDS DOWN FIRST TEST AIRCRAFT - Eclipse Aviation, which has been flight testing a version of its Eclipse 500 entry level business jet with substitute powerplants, said it has completed that flight test program.
Jet Aviation's Basel, Switzerland facility recently completed its eighth Boeing Business Jet, a head-of-state aircraft configured to a VIP airliner style. The aircraft seats up to 44 passengers and five crewmembers. The BBJ is configured with a first-class seating area, forward and aft club seating areas, and a forward lounge. The cabin management and entertainment system includes a six-channel SATCOM system with CD, DVD, VCR and Airshow 400 capabilities.
Marconi Corp. won a five-year contract from FAA to deliver equipment and service to provide primary and backup power for air-to-ground communications systems. The contract, which has a minimum value of $6.7 million, covers deployment of Marconi's Vortex DC power platform. The Marconi system will be installed at numerous FAA facilities, including remote transmitter/receiver sites, remote communications air/ground sites, remote communications outlets, backup emergency communications and Level 1 and Level 2 air traffic control towers.
Lee Aerospace appointed Aviation Solutions, Inc. (ASI) in Mississauga, Ontario as its exclusive Canadian distributor. ASI will be a stocking distributor of Lee's full line of aircraft cabin and cockpit windows for aircraft such as King Airs, Learjets, Beechjets, Beech 1900s and Challengers. For more information, contact ASI General Manager Danny Di Vincenzo at (905) 405-1546.
Mesaba Airlines, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn., contracted all heavy maintenance (C-checks) on its Saab 340 and Avro RJ85 fleet to Triad International Maintenance Corp., effective Oct. 22. The move eliminates 65 jobs at Mesaba's maintenance bases at Central Wisconsin and Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky airports, the airline said. Both bases will remain open for line and overnight maintenance.
FAA PROPOSES NEW RULEMAKING FOR AIR TOUR SAFETY - General aviation groups are alarmed about a sweeping FAA proposal to revise national air tour operational standards that could put hundreds of sightseeing operations out of business and end many charitable flights.
The Mexican Navy bought two Eurocopter Panther helicopters and took options for eight more. The helicopters will be operated from boats for coastal patrols, surveillance, search and rescue, anti-drug operations and troop transport, the company said. The Panthers will be delivered in 2005 and will be powered by twin Turbomeca Arriel 2C engines.
The slowdown in fractional aircraft sales is evident by the latest pilot hiring figures from AIR, Inc. of Atlanta, Ga. During September, only one fractional operator was hiring, adding 10 pilots. For the first nine months of 2003, fractionals added 148 pilots, a fraction of the 997 hired during the same period last year.
National Transportation Safety Board has scheduled a hearing at its headquarters Nov. 18 into the Oct. 25, 2002 crash of a Beech King Air 100 that claimed the lives of Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.), five other passengers and both pilots. The aircraft was flying from St. Paul to Eveleth, Minn., where it crashed during a low visibility approach to the Eveleth-Virginia Airport. The meeting will begin at 1 p.m. in NTSB's Board Room/Conference Center in Washington, D.C.
The Bush Administration is reported to be considering another round of military base closings that could make some prime military airports available to the public. The Arlington, Va.-based Lexington Institute said this month that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld wants to close 25 percent of existing U.S. military bases in a single round of base closures beginning in 2005.
