THE NIMBUS GROUP secured a financial commitment of up to $1.2 billion to help finance its dreams of building one of the world's largest air taxi services with a fleet of up to 1,000 Eclipse 500 jet aircraft. Formerly known as Take to Auction, Nimbus struck a deal with start-up jet manufacturer Eclipse Aviation for 1,000 of the "micro jets" and an equity stake in the company. The company got a financial commitment from Royal Bank of Scotland affiliate DAFIN Asset Finance for $1.2 billion to pay for the Eclipse aircraft.
CLIFTON R. BUKOWSKY was appointed vice president, sales and marketing for HeliFlite Shares' northeastern U.S. region. Bukowsky was most recently mid-Atlantic sales director for Bombardier Flexjet.
ROCKWELL COLLINS AVIATION SERVICES signed a Dispatch 100 contract with Atlantic Southeast Airlines of Atlanta, Ga. to provide service and support for Collins avionics on the airline's fleet of Canadair regional jets. Under the five-year agreement, Rockwell Collins' Atlanta service center will provide spares, logistics management, maintenance repair and support as well as technical training under a single per flight hour price.
PIAGGIO AERO INDUSTRIES Model P-180 airplanes (Docket No. 2002-CE-02-AD) - proposes to require replacing the four defective horizontal stabilizer hinge bushings. This proposed AD is the result of mandatory continuing airworthiness information issued by the airworthiness authority for Italy. The actions specified by this proposed AD are intended to replace defective bushings, which could result in reduced or loss of control of the aircraft. The proposed AD would affect an estimated two airplanes on the U.S.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT COMPANY President James Schuster has deferred action on the Hawker 450 business jet until at least the third quarter of the year as the Wichita-based aircraft manufacturer works through its financial problems, attempts to ramp up production of the Premier 1 and certificate the Hawker Horizon. Skeptics have questioned whether Raytheon would ever get around to building the Hawker 450 since the program was announced - with very few details - by former RAC President Hansel Tookes (BA, Oct. 16, 2000/177).
SOCATA Model TBM 700 airplanes (Docket No. 2002-CE-01-AD) - proposes to supersede AD 2001-05-03, which applies to certain SOCATA Model TBM 700 airplanes. AD 2001-05-03 currently requires the application of Loctite on attaching bolt/screw threads of inboard, central, and outboard carriages; increased tightening torques of associated hardware; and replacing central carriage attaching bolts.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration will go ahead with a sweeping modernization plan to address the nation's air transportation problems with technological solutions, according to a document released by the administration this month.
BUSINESS AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURERS appear poised to ride through the current recession relatively unscathed. Billings for new domestic aircraft set a record for the sixth consecutive year in 2001 at $8.65 billion, according to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association, while worldwide general aviation/business aviation billings for new aircraft rose to $14 billion. The value of 2002 deliveries may be relatively stable, but officials anticipate deliveries will turn upward in 2003.
KEITH RYAN was named president and chief executive officer for Aircraft Service International Group. He will be responsible for ASIG's commercial aviation services businesses in North America and the Caribbean. ASIG is part of BBA Aviation. Ryan has more than 22 years of aviation industry experience and was most recently senior vice president of operations for ASIG.
NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION ASSOCIATION last week formally launched its National Air Transportation Security Identification System, which uses biometric identification cards. The association began its push for biometric identification cards last fall, teaming with I/O Software and Microsoft to develop a system that both passengers and employees of aviation businesses can use (BA, Nov. 19/238). FlightSafety International will be the first to use the "smart" card for its students at its flight-training academy in Vero Beach, Fla.
Boosted by the strength of the business jet market, U.S. aircraft manufacturers posted their sixth consecutive year of record billings in 2001, despite a drop in shipments, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association said last week. Total shipments of general and business aviation planes worldwide dropped 4.5 percent, from 3,140 in 2000 to 2,999 units in 2001. Shipments by U.S. manufacturers dropped 6.6 percent, from 2,819 units in 2000 to 2,634 units in 2001.
As promised late last year, Bombardier has launched a new version of its business jet service in Europe, doing away with selling fractional shares in aircraft in favor of selling block charter on Bombardier-built aircraft flown by a number of European charter operators.
SKIP MADSEN was named president of Executive Aircraft Corporation in Wichita, Kan. Madsen was most recently executive vice president and chief operating officer of Duncan Aviation where he had worked for 22 years.
BOMBARDIER Model CL-215-1A10 and CL-215-6B11 series airplanes (Docket No. 2000-NM-398-AD) - proposes to supersede an existing AD that currently requires repetitive inspections to detect cracking on certain wing-to-fuselage frame angles; and repair, if necessary. This action would decrease the compliance time for the initial inspection to detect cracking on certain wing-to-fuselage frame angles and would decrease the interval between repetitive inspections.
MIKE FERGUSON was appointed northwest regional representative for the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. He will represent the interests of 39,000 pilots: Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana. Ferguson formerly served as an administrator of the Montana Aeronautics Division and holds a commercial pilot certificate with instrument and multi-engine ratings.
The Federal Aviation Administration last week released a Special Federal Aviation Regulation (SFAR) and two notices to airmen that clear Part 91 operations into the final three airports shut down since Sept. 11. The regulation outlines a series of strict procedures that operators must follow to fly into and out of College Park Airport (CGS), Potomac Airfield (VKX) and Washington Executive/Hyde Field (W32), all of which are in Maryland just outside of Washington, D.C.
FAA OFFICIALS testifying at the same meeting told commission members that FAA's Operational Evolution Plan is expected to cost FAA $11.5 billion through 2010, plus an equal or greater expense for the aviation community in new equipment. And, more disturbing, implementation of the plan is already behind budget. "We're short [on cash] now, and we will be short the next eight years," said Charles Keegan, FAA's program manager for the OEP. FAA shifted funds away from OEP in fiscal 2002 and will do so again in 2003, he said.
JET&PROPJET 2002, with listings of nearly 25,000 business turbine aircraft, was published this month by AvCom International of Wichita, Kan., an affiliate of AvData, Inc. The worldwide listings include 24,887 business turbine aircraft in operation with 13,371 flight departments in seven world areas and 141 countries. The 528-page book also includes listings for 1,463 military and government-operated business aircraft and information on another 2,727 aircraft that have been retired or written off.
NEARLY A YEAR LATE, FAA has finally completed its study of the air taxi industry and is expected to release the report, after it goes through final Department of Transportation review, within the next few weeks. In comprehensive aviation legislation enacted in April 2000, Congress mandated that FAA develop a report on the scope and nature of the on-demand industry, including size and type of aircraft fleet, hours flown, utilization rates, safety record by aircraft type, sales revenues and airports served.
GENERAL AVIATION MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION is concerned about a Federal Communications Commission ruling Thursday that clears the way for marketing and operation of certain types of new products incorporating ultra-wideband (UWB) technology, fearing the technology could interfere with Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) signals. The FCC said the UWB devices have great potential in applications like radar imaging of objects buried in the ground or behind walls and short-range, high-speed data transmissions.
REFLECTING continued strong demand for business aircraft, TAG Aviation said it added nine management and charter aircraft to its fleet during January, "a strong indicator that the business aviation recovery may be under way sooner than expected," the company said. The new aircraft include three Challengers, an Astra, two Citations and a Falcon 900EX. "While it is too early to associate January's activities with an economic recovery, the trend we have seen this past month is a very encouraging one," said Jake Cartwright, CEO of TAG Aviation USA.
PILATUS BN-2, BN-2A, BN-2B, and BN-2T series airplanes (Docket No. 2001-CE-38-AD; Amendment 39-12638; AD 2002-02-10) - requires repetitively inspecting the inboard brackets of the elevator outboard hinge for loose rivets, structural damage, or cracks and replacing any suspect bracket. This AD also requires replacement of the hinge bracket at a certain time period if no discrepancies are found. This replacement includes modifying this area and installing modified brackets. This replacement allows increasing the time period between inspections.
EUROCOPTER FRANCE Model AS332L and AS332L1 helicopters (Docket No. 2001-SW-46-AD) - proposes adding a supplement to the limitations section of the applicable Rotorcraft Flight Manual for helicopters with "SEFA" skis installed. This proposal is prompted by the need to limit the taxi and Vne speed of those helicopters with skis. The actions specified by this proposed AD are intended to prevent structural failure of a ski and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter. FAA estimates that this proposed AD would affect three helicopters on the U.S. Registry at a cost of $30.
