Docket No.: 30161 Section of the 14 CFR Affected: 14 CFR Secs. 121.344a(f) and 135.152(k) Description of Relief Sought: To permit Chalk to operate its Grumman G-73T Turbine Mallard (G-73T) airplane under Parts 121 and 135 without the required digital flight data recorder (DFDR) until the FAA can amend Secs. 121.344a(f) and 131.152(k) to permanently exempt the G-73T airplane from the requirements of Secs. 121.344a(f) and 135.152(k).
MOST TRADE ASSOCIATIONS have been withholding official comment about the outcome of the presidential election until the court battles are resolved, but the United States Air Tour Association couldn't resist.USATA, which has been fighting a pitched battle with the Clinton-Gore Administration to prevent the imposition of onerous new restrictions on air tour flights, issued a statement Tuesday calling the Florida certification and "de facto election" of George W.
Models 99, 99A, 99A (FACH), A99A, B99, and C99 airplanes (Docket No. 2000-CE-27-AD) - proposes to require inspections of all main landing gear (MLG) hydraulic actuators to determine the end cap part number that is installed and replacement of any actuator that has a Part Number 4A125C32 end cap. The proposed AD is the result of the potential for fatigue cracks to develop on the MLG hydraulic actuator end caps. The actions specified by this proposed AD are intended to eliminate existing and prevent future fatigue cracks in the MLG hydraulic actuator end caps.
Docket No.: 29934 Section of the FAR Affected: 14 CFR 136.152(a) Description of Relief Sought/Disposition: To permit RLC to operate a mixed fleet of Bell 212 and 412 helicopters without those helicopters being equipped with an approved digital flight data recorder. Grant, Aug. 18, 2000, Exemption No. 7320
Docket No.: 30111 Section of the FAR Affected: 14 CFR 135.143(c)(2) Description of Relief Sought/Disposition: To permit Ketchum to operate certain aircraft under Part 135 without a TSO-C112 (Mode S) transponder installed in the aircraft. Grant, Aug. 2, 2000, Exemption No. 7300
QANTAS AIRLINES acquired two 50-seat Q300 turboprop airliners from Bombardier Aerospace in September and October, a deal valued at $29 million (U.S.). The aircraft are being operated by Eastern Australia Airlines, a regional subsidiary of Qantas.
National Air Transportation Association is concerned that proposed FAA guidance on approving product alterations is so vague that it could require operators seeking maintenance and minor alterations on their aircraft to obtain much more extensive modifications than they expected. The potential imposition of the requirements, NATA fears, already is deterring aircraft owners from installing new equipment in their aircraft.
Docket No.: 29309 Section of the FAR Affected: 14 CFR 133.19(a)(3) and 133.51 Description of Relief Sought/Disposition: To permit Hi-Lift to conduct external-load operations in the United States using Canadian-registered rotorcraft. Grant, Aug. 18, 2000, Exemption No.6814A
THE PLANNED SALE of Superior Air Parts to Aviall collapsed last week, and Superior officials told BA they've taken the company off the market and plan to continue operating as an independent manufacturer and distributor of aftermarket piston aircraft parts. See article below
Docket No.: CE160 Section of the FAR Affected: 14 CFR 23.3 Description of Relief Sought/Disposition: To permit Ayres Corporation to certificate the Model LM200 "Loadmaster" as a 19,000-pound maximum gross weight commuter category airplane with a novel and unique twin-engine, single-propeller propulsion system and limit seating to a maximum of nine passengers. Grant, Aug. 7, 2000, Exemption No. 7306
DOTTIE HALL was appointed vice president of marketing for Eclipse Aviation. Hall, who has served as acting vice president of marketing in a consulting capacity since January, will develop the company's business marketing strategy. Before joining Eclipse, she was president of a high-technology marketing consulting firm and also has held marketing management positions with Microsoft, Symantec and Slate Corp.
The Jackson Hole, Wyo. Airport Board, facing a formal Part 16 complaint, this month lifted a moratorium on scenic flights it had imposed on a new helicopter operator in a move that is one of the first tests of legislation governing air tours over national parks. The operator, Vortex Aviation Services, filed the complaint after the board in June prohibited it from making scenic flights out of Jackson Hole Airport, which is unique in that it lies completely within a national park. Vortex, which is based in San Diego, Calif.
KAMAN CORP. entered into a new $225 million unsecured revolving credit agreement with eight banks. The credit line will be used to finance working capital needs. The agreement consists of a five-year, $150 million revolving credit commitment and a 364-day, $75 million commitment that may be renewed annually. Fleet National Bank and The Bank of Nova Scotia led the syndication as co-lead arrangers.
CORPORATE JET SALES (CJS), Middleburg, Va., hired Dassault Falcon Jet (DFJ) veteran Tony Liotti as director of contracts. Liotti, who will be based in the CJS New Jersey office, will be responsible for preparation and negotiation of contracts for the purchase and sale of new and used corporate aircraft. Liotti spend 14 years as contracts administration manager for DFJ.
COMPASS AEROSPACE named Steve Smith vice president and general manager of the company's Northwest Region. His responsibilities include oversight of two Compass facilities, Barnes Machine, Inc. and Sea-Lect Products, Inc. Smith has more than 20 years of aerospace, engineering and business experience. He was a naval aviator and has held management and analyst positions with Rockwell International and Mobil Corp.
MESA AIRLINES plans to have 151 regional jets and turboprops in its fleet by 2002. At a Salomon Smith Barney conference this month, Mesa said it will divest five more Beech 1900s, three Jetstream 32s and two de Havilland Dash 8s and add 28 Embraer ERJ-145s. Prorate agreements will grow dramatically, eventually representing nearly three quarters of Mesa's code-share structure.
PREMIER TURBINES is continuing its expansion of MPI inspection operations with new equipment for TFE731 engines at its facility at St. Louis Downtown-Parks Airport. The company already has quadrupled shop space and invested more than $300,000 in tooling over the past two years in support of its MPI work.
ROMAN DAVALOZ was named supervisor of interior installations for McKinney Aerospace in McKinney, Texas, which designs and installs custom aircraft interiors in Challenger, Gulfstream, Falcon and Hawker business jets. Davaloz formerly was an interiors supervisor for Bombardier Aerospace in Tucson, Ariz., where he was involved in setting up and supervising the Global Express interior installation program. Before joining Bombardier, Davaloz was an interiors crew lead technician for Gulfstream Aerospace in Dallas, the former K-C Aviation facility.
Docket No.: 27001 Regulations Affected: 14 CFR Sec. 25.562(c)(5), 25.785(a) Description of Petition: To allow an extension of Exemption 5887F regarding the Head Injury Criteria for front row passenger seats on Jetstream Model 4100 airplanes.
LOCKHEED MARTIN AERONAUTICS COMPANY and Korea Aerospace Industry signed a joint marketing agreement this month on the T-50 advanced jet trainer. The T-50, currently in full-scale development with Lockheed Martin responsible for the wings, flight controls and avionics integration, is designed to prepare pilots to operate modern jet fighters. The Korean Air Force plans to replace its fleets of T-38, F-5 and A-37 aircraft with the T-50 and a derivative, the A-50, a fighter-lead-in-trainer and light attack aircraft.
Docket No.: 30070 Section of the 14 CFR Affected: 14 CFR 47.65 Description of Relief Sought/Disposition: To permit petitioner to obtain a Dealer's Aircraft Registration Certificate without meeting the U.S. citizenship requirements. Grant, Aug. 30, 2000, Exemption No. 7330
Model CL-600-2B16 (CL-604) series airplanes (Docket No. 2000-NM-315-AD; Amendment 39-11972; AD 2000-23-02) - requires, among other actions, a general visual inspection to detect gaps between the vane brackets and the adjacent skin; corrective actions, if necessary; and replacement of the six flap vane actuator beams with new beams.
FEDEX EXPRESS opened its world headquarters campus the week before Thanksgiving, a 1.1 million square-foot office complex set on 89 wooded acres in southeast Memphis, Tenn.
Docket No.: 30171 Section of the FAR Affected: 14 CFR 121.344(e) Description of Relief Sought/Disposition: To permit CA to operate seven newly manufactured EMB-145 airplanes delivered to Chautauqua prior to Jan. 31, 2001, without those airplanes being able to record data. Grant, Aug. 21, 2000, Exemption No. 7322
National Business Aviation Association and National Air Transportation Association last week called unlawful the Stage 2 aircraft ban that the Naples, Fla. Airport Authority adopted last month (BA, Nov. 20/231). NBAA President Jack Olcott wrote the authority that the ban was "unconstitutional and otherwise unlawful" and "absolutely unrelated to the real facts at the airport." He said the association would take every step it can to prevent the ban's implementation.
