Lufthansa Bombardier Aviation Services completed its first retrofit on a Bombardier Learjet 31A business jet to meet JAR-OPS Part 1 requirements. JAR-OPS Part 1 establishes certification requirements for equipment and operation of civilian aircraft operating under a commercial Air Operator Certificate in European countries registered with the Joint Aviation Authorities.
Honeywell obtained FAA certification for two aviation radios with voice and data communication capability. The Honeywell XK 516D high frequency aviation voice/data radio for long range communication was certified for use on the Airbus A318, A319, A320, A321, A330 and A340 airliners. Additionally, the VDL Mode 2 version of Honeywell's RTA-44D very high frequency radio won manufacturing approval. The VDL Mode 2 radio will replace current generation Mode Zero voice/data VHF radios and can transmit data at 31.5 kilobits per second, Honeywell said.
Raytheon Aerospace LLC signed an agreement with Central Flying Service (CFS) of Little Rock, Ark. to lease a 19,000-square-foot aircraft hangar and office on the Little Rock Airport (LIT). Raytheon said the Little Rock facility will be used to service and maintain Beech 1900s under contract with Air Midwest. Raytheon expects the LIT base to employ about 30 aircraft specialists and operate seven days a week. Raytheon Aerospace is headquartered in Madison, Miss. near Jackson.
Some 15 aviation associations and companies lambasted FAA's proposal to make drug and alcohol testing requirements apply to all maintenance subcontractors, saying the rule is so open-ended that thousands of companies - including those not under FAA's purview - would be covered. See article below.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University launched its accelerated First Officer Flight Training program (FOFT). Offered through the university's Aviation&Space Technology Academy, the program is a 10- to 12-month course that "trains first officer candidates to regional airline and corporate fleet standards," giving candidates 550 hours of total flight experience and advanced jet simulator flight time, Embry-Riddle said. Training will take place at St. Augustine Airport in Florida.
Sikorsky expects to receive FAA type certification for the S/H-92 large-cabin helicopter at the end of the year. Three aircraft are taking part in the flight test program, which has logged 1,250 hours of a planned 1,500 hours of testing.
Gulfstream took delivery of the 1,000th PW300 series turbofan engine manufactured by Pratt&Whitney. The PW306A engine will be installed on a super mid-size Gulfstream 200 business jet later this year. Gulfstream 200 aircraft are powered by two of the 6,000-pound-thrust Pratt&Whitney engines. There are 44 G200 aircraft in service with a combined total of 17,370 flight hours. General Dynamics, Gulfstream's parent company, acquired the rights to build the G200 when it bought Galaxy Aerospace last year.
Honeywell obtained FAA certification for two aviation radios with voice and data communication capability. The Honeywell XK 516D high frequency aviation voice/data radio for long range communication was certified for use on the Airbus A318, A319, A320, A321, A330 and A340 airliners. Additionally, the VDL Mode 2 version of Honeywell's RTA-44D very high frequency radio won manufacturing approval. The VDL Mode 2 radio will replace current generation Mode Zero voice/data VHF radios and can transmit data at 31.5 kilobits per second, Honeywell said.
Dassault Falcon Jet officials "are still interested" in developing a supersonic business jet, but President Jean Rosanvallon believes it will be at least five years before the company can give the go-ahead for the program.A number of issues must still be resolved, including engine selection, how to mitigate the impact of sonic booms over land and determining a feasible size for the cabin. "If and when we go - and I hope we go," Rosanvallon told BA, Dassault also will want to team with U.S. partners to spread the risk of a supersonic program and ensure success.
Gulfstream Aerospace is offering the Honeywell/Thales HS-600 high-speed data system on its Gulfstream IV, IV-SP, V and V-SP models. The system, which can be retrofitted on aircraft through Gulfstream service centers, increases that data rate more than 25 times from 2.4 kilobits per second to up to 64. The HS-600 entered production in June and is the first airborne data system to use Inmarsat Corporation's Swift64 high-speed data service.
EMBRAER Model EMB-135 and -145 series airplanes (Docket No. 2002-NM-131-AD; Amendment 39-12825; AD 2002-14-25) - supersedes an existing AD that currently requires repetitive inspections of the actuator clutches of the primary and backup pitch trim systems of the horizontal stabilizer for proper pitch trim indications, and replacement of the actuator, if necessary. This amendment expands the applicability in the existing AD. This amendment is prompted by issuance of mandatory continuing airworthiness information by a civil airworthiness authority.
Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta confirmed to Congress last week that the Bush Administration "decided not to proceed with opening" Washington Reagan National Airport to general aviation flights (BA, July 22/31). That decision came after assessing recent "intelligence reports," Mineta told the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, adding that he cannot give a date when the GA ban will be lifted.
NEW BOMBARDIER REGIONAL JET APPEARS MORE LIKELY - Bombardier appears to be moving closer to a decision on whether to go ahead with a new large regional jet.
Gulfstream's first production GV-SP took to the skies for the first time July 18, completing a five-hour and one-minute flight from Savannah International Airport. The flight of Serial Number 5001 came 16 days after the 100th flight of the GV-SP test article. The GV-SP, Gulfstream's follow-on to its long-range G-V, can fly eight passengers and four crew 6,750 nautical miles, reaching speeds up to Mach .88 and altitudes of up to 51,000 feet. It incorporates Gulfsteam's new PlaneView cockpit, which includes an Enhanced Vision System.
Duncan Aviation is hosting an Intelli-Conference Symposium Oct. 1 and 2 at its Lincoln, Neb. headquarters. The symposium, in its sixth year, will include 19 workshops and technical sessions covering aging aircraft issues, troubleshooting, avionics and communications upgrades, aircraft acquisition, the used market, large completion and maintenance projects, parts tracking and human factors resource management. For more information, contact Duncan at (402) 475-2611 or visit www.DuncanAviation.com/Conference web site.
FAA Administrator Jane Garvey, making her last appearance before the Aero Club of Washington Tuesday, told an overflow audience - which included her successor, Marion Blakey - that the biggest challenge Blakey will face is staying focused on airspace modernization and safety in the face of new security concerns and requirements. Garvey received standing ovations before and after her speech. See excerpts below.
FlightSafety International's new Hawker 800XP simulator in Wichita, Kan. won FAA Level D certification. The Wichita installation is the third Hawker 800XP simulator built by the company, and FSI said several features of the new unit "qualify it as one of the most advanced in the world." The new simulator incorporates a Wintel or Pentium chip-based host computer, modular construction and a new-generation VITAL-9 visual system that surrounds the cockpit "with day and night scenes of unprecedented texture and clarity" through use of high-resolution technology.
Jet Aviation's West Palm Beach, Fla. facility recently received approval from Brazilian airworthiness officials to perform maintenance on aircraft registered in that country.
FAA Administrator Jane Garvey, making her last appearance before the Aero Club of Washington Tuesday, told an overflow audience - which included her successor, Marion Blakey - that the biggest challenge Blakey will face is staying focused on airspace modernization and safety in the face of new security concerns and requirements. Garvey received standing ovations before and after her speech. See excerpts below.
Despite production cutbacks by some of its competitors, Rosanvallon says Dassault Falcon Jet will continue to produce business jets at a rate of seven per month through 2002 and probably through 2003 as well. He noted that 2003 is an important year for the company as it begins delivery of the Falcon 900EX with the EASy cockpit avionics package and the first units of the Falcon 2000EX.
Stevens Aviation Nashville (BNA), signed a five-year lease extension with the airport that ensures the company's presence there until 2007. The Stevens facility opened in March 1981 and is an authorized Raytheon/Beechcraft service center. The service facility has 45 employees, a 30,000-square-foot hangar and 10,000 square feet of office space.
Keystone Helicopter's Flight Division signed a five-year agreement with Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock to provide flight management services for the hospital's intensive-care "Angel Flight" transport program. Keystone will employ nine pilots and three mechanics to support the program's two twin-engine helicopters. Keystone also is completing the outfitting of two new Sikorsky S76C+ helicopters that will be used to upgrade the hospital's fleet (BA, July 15/27).
