AFTER YEARS OF DECLINE in the number of new students beginning pilot training, GA Team 2000 officials say student starts were up more than six percent in the first seven months of 1997. See article below.
21ST CENTURY JET CORP. established a site on the World Wide Web designed to provide pilots, aviation department managers and executives with business jet analysis. The site is located at www.bizjets.com/
STACEY MOYE was promoted to director of special projects for the National Association of State Aviation Officials. Moye joined NASAO in June as manager of special projects and before that, supervised the online regulatory and statutory law services for LEGI-SLATE, a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company.
Reliance on satellites for navigation, communications or surveillance "has the potential for vastly increased delay or total shutdown of the ATC system," former FAA Administrator Langhorne Bond told the Air Traffic Control Association's annual meeting last week in Washington, D.C. Bond questioned the value of the Wide Area Augmentation System, predicting that WAAS will be abandoned because no one will need it, and accused responsible government officials of refusing to address the vulnerability of the Global Positioning System.
BOMBARDIER AEROSPACE selected UND Aerospace at the University of North Dakota to provide aerospace physiology training to cockpit crews of Global Express and Challenger 604 business jet customers. The physiology training will become part of the standard crew training package for new aircraft customers. The two-day Aviation Physiology course focuses on the physiological phenomena that may occur in flight and addresses hypoxia and other effects of pressure change.
BRITISH AEROSPACE Model HS 748 series airplanes (Docket No. 97-NM-218- AD; Amdt. 39-10143; AD 97-20-05) - requires installation of a modified aileron cable pulley guard and rubbing strips. This amendment is proposed by issuance of mandatory continuing airworthiness information by a foreign civil airworthiness authority. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent jamming or restricting of the aileron cable, which could lead to the loss of aircraft roll control.
TRIMBLE received Federal Aviation Administration and U.K. Civil Aviation Authority certifications for its three new Plus products. Trimble introduced the 2101 I/O Approach Plus navigation system for primary remote and oceanic navigation, 2101 Approach Plus for IFR operation, and 2000 Approach Plus for IFR supplemental en route, terminal and non-precision approaches.
G.E. (Jerry) Schlesinger, who joined First Aviation Services three months ago (BA, July 21/29), was named president of its parts distribution subsidiary, Aircraft Parts International (API). Schlesinger, who will continue to serve as senior vice president of First Aviation in addition to his new duties, will replace Peter LaSalle, who resigned the presidency of API to pursue other interests.
Mercury Air Group won approval from the Burbank Glendale Pasadena Airport Authority to begin construction of a new fixed-base operation at the Burbank, Calif. Airport (BUR) that will include a unique architectural design and offer a wide range of amenities for customers. The $5 million, 16-acre facility "will be designed in a 1930s Hollywood style art deco in recognition of the area's strong ties to the motion picture and TV industries," the company said, noting that Burbank is home to Disney, Warner Brothers and the NBC studios.
NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD dispatched an accident investigation "go team" to Colorado Thursday even before the wreckage of a Scenic Airlines Cessna Caravan was found about 20 miles west of Montrose, Colo. The charter flight was being flown by one pilot and carrying eight Interior Department employees, and all perished. The aircraft was on a flight from western Colorado to Page, Ariz. when the accident occurred.
2000 series airplanes (Docket No. 97-NM-126-AD) - proposes to require an inspection of the two-way check valve on the engine fire extinguishing system for discrepancies, and corrective action, if necessary. This proposal is prompted by issuance of mandatory continued airworthiness information by a foreign civil airworthiness authority. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to prevent discrepancies of the check valve, which could result in improper functioning of the engine fire extinguishing system.
Model F-28A, F-28C, 280 and 280C helicopters (Docket No. 96- SW-31-AD; Amdt. 39-10142; AD 97-20-04) - requires an inspection of the voltage control system and an owner/operator cockpit check of the amperage of the electrical system. If certain Prestolite-manufactured components are installed, additional tests and actions are required before further flight and at each pre-flight run-up and annual inspection thereafter. This action also provides a terminating action by replacing the existing voltage control system with a transistorized system.
The National Air Transportation Association and the United States Air Tour Association sent letters to House and Senate leaders last week voicing their strenuous opposition to a proposal to ban helicopter sightseeing tours within the District of Columbia.
Model 214ST helicopters (Docket No. 94-SW-28-AD; Amdt. 39-10129; AD 97-19-09) - requires creation of a component history card or equivalent recording using a Retirement Index Number (RIN) system; establishes a system for tracking increases to the accumulated RIN; and establishes a maximum accumulated RIN for the pillow block bearing bolts.
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION apparently is no longer a lofty enough target for AlliedSignal executives. Robert D. Johnson, just named president of a newly consolidated avionics and electronics unit, said in a prepared statement announcing the organizational changes that, "Our ability to delight our customers will greatly improve with this shift from internally focused product enterprises to externally focused business enterprises." See article below.
ROHR, INC. said a lawsuit was filed against the company, its board of directors and The BFGoodrich Co., arising from the recently announced merger agreement between the two companies (BA, Sept. 29/135). Rohr said the class action suit was filed in California Superior Court in San Diego and alleges that Rohr and its board breached their fiduciary duties by entering into the merger agreement. Rohr said it believes the lawsuit is "without merit" and plans to defend the action "vigorously."
ASSOCIATED AVIATION UNDERWRITERS is offering a new insurance product, ManagAir, for fractional ownership and managed aircraft operators. "The success of new alternatives for aircraft ownership and operation has created the need for a new program to satisfy both risk management and business requirements, and to reward safety," said Daniel Izard, president and chief executive of AAU.
Detroit Metropolitan will be the first U.S. airport to receive the full scale development (FSD) version of Northrop Grumman's Airport Movement Area Safety System (AMASS). The company's Norden Systems has delivered subsystems to the airport authority for the first FSD version of the automated conflict alerting system. The system is designed to monitor airport surface traffic continuously and alert controllers automatically to potential conflicts.
Innotech Aviation, Montreal, will acquire Pacific Avionics and Instruments Ltd., Vancouver, British Columbia, and operate it as a division of its western base, also in Vancouver, the company said. Pacific provides avionics installation, integration and support services to corporate, regional and military operators, and Innotech believes the acquisition will broaden its own avionics design and installation capabilities and complement its alliance with Airpro Interior Products of Abbotsford, B.C.
UPS's Independent Pilots Association rejected the company's "last, best, final" contract offer Wednesday by a vote of 1,861 to 39. UPS said it was disappointed with the vote but would be ready to resume talks next year with a federal mediator or submit remaining issues to binding arbitration. IPA said it is not interested in starting negotiations again in 1998.
TIM ARCHER was appointed vice president-sales and marketing for Electrosystems. Archer, who will be based in Fort Deposit, Ala., will be responsible for sales, marketing and advertising. He formerly was senior director of marketing at Teledyne Continental Motors.
Two days after AlliedSignal announced a company-wide restructuring, the corporation said it is combining its avionics and electronics businesses into a single operating unit with headquarters in Olathe, Kan. The new business unit, called AlliedSignal Electronics and Avionics Systems (EAS), will generate about $1.3 billion in revenues annually, the company said.
Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, soon to merge, are teaming up to pursue FAA's new Air Traffic Control Beacon Interrogator (ATCBI-6) contract, for which the agency is expected to issue a request for proposals early this month. The agency plans to issue a contract in mid-1998. FAA has identified a need for 127 monopulse secondary surveillance radars (MSSRs) with selective interrogation capabilities to replace 25-year-old beacon interrogator equipment.
FAA IS DELAYING until March 1 the imposition of overflight fees for flights between points in Canada that transit U.S. airspace. The fees were to be charged starting Oct. 1. FAA said the change is necessary to avoid disruptions of air traffic patterns along the U.S.-Canadian border and to "preserve current operational control relationships with Canadian air traffic authorities."
