INTERNATIONAL AIRLINE SUPPORT GROUP entered into inventory consignment agreements with Express One and CCAIR. IASG will support Express One's DC-9 passenger charter service, including maintenance of certain parts inventory. IASG also signed a consignment agreement for CCAIR's excess spare parts.
S-TEC CORPORATION, Mineral Wells, Texas, received FAA supplemental type certificate approval for installation of its System 40, 50 and 52 as well as its new System Twenty, Thirty and ThirtyALT autopilots in the new Cessna 172R single-piston trainer. S-Tec produces a line of aircraft flight control systems and avionics for general aviation aircraft.
THE LEARJET 60 has received approval from the Federal Aviation Administration for compliance with the new reduced vertical separation minimum (RVSM) requirements. The approval allows operators to qualify to fly the Learjet 60 in airspace where RVSM restrictions apply. Learjet will issue a special RVSM service bulletin by the end of the month. The Learjet 60 is the second Bombardier aircraft to receive such approval. The Canadair Challenger received FAA RVSM approval in April.
ATLANTIC AVIATION completed Dassault Falcon Jet Service Bulletins 246 and 262 last month covering reduced vertical separation minimums on a Falcon 50 business jet. The Wilmington, Del.-based fixed-base operator and overhaul facility said the approval was one of the first accomplished by an independent FBO.
INTERACTIVE FLIGHT TECHNOLOGIES, Phoenix, Ariz., elected President and Chief Operating Officer Tom Metzler to the board of directors. Board members Adam Aron, Brian Barents, Alexander Haig, Michail Itkis, Yuri Itkis, John Pritzker and James Zukin were re-elected. The company adopted a 1997 stock option plan providing for issuance of up to 1.5 million shares of Class A common stock, 8.3 percent of outstanding shares, upon exercise of options.
JETSTREAM Model 4101 airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-85-AD; Amdt. 39- 10031; AD 97-11-02) - requires an inspection to determine the thickness of the intercostal that attaches the third crew member seat to the floor structure in the flight compartment, and replacement, if necessary. This amendment is prompted by a report from the manufacturer indicating that intercostals have been installed that are not of sufficient thickness (and consequent strength) to support the third crew member seat during emergency landing dynamic conditions.
AAR CORP. has staffed a 24-hour AOG desk in an effort to boost customer support. The AOG desk, located at the company's Wood Dale, Ill. facility, previously had been staffed during regular business hours. Customer service representatives now will be available 24 hours a day, every day. The desk supports a range of AAR products, including airframe rotables and expendables, engines and engine components. The AOG number is (888) 227- 2647.
BOMBARDIER Model CL-600-2B19 (Regional Jet Series 100) airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-271-AD) - proposes to require a one-time inspection of the direct current power distribution system for reliability, and correction or repair of any fuse holders and associated electrical wiring, if necessary. This proposal is prompted by a report indicating that a loose fuse holder caused the DC power distribution system to short circuit on one of the affected airplanes, which resulted in a burnt wire between circuit breaker panel CBP-2 and junction box JB7.
BOMBARDIER CL-44 series airplanes (Docket No. 97-NM-37-AD) - proposes to require revising the airplane flight manual to modify the limitation that prohibits the positioning of the power levers below the flight idle stop during flight, and to provide a statement of the consequences of positioning the power levers below the flight idle stop during flight. This proposal is prompted by incidents and accidents involving turboprop airplanes in which the propeller ground beta range was used improperly during flight.
JET AVIATION'S facilities in Dusseldorf, Germany, Zurich, Switzerland and Singapore were approved as authorized Citation service centers. Jet Aviation Dusseldorf and Jet Aviation Zurich previously were Citation service centers for certain models but have been approved for additional Citation models. Jet Maintenance in Singapore, receiving Citation service center authorization for the first time, has been approved for the entire Citation line.
DB AVIATION, INC., Waukegan, Ill., added a Falcon 20 with a Garrett 731 engine conversion to its charter fleet. The Falcon, which has been refurbished and repainted, is configured with six individual passenger seats and a three-place couch.
UNIVERSAL AVIONICS received FAA authorization for its latest software version, SCN 602, for its UNS-1B, -1C, -Csp, -1D, and -1K flight management systems. The new software supports Honeywell Primus 1000 and Collins Pro Line 4 electronic flight instrument systems as well as the AlliedSignal enhanced ground proximity warning system. The SCN 602 systems are certified for GPS operation in en route, terminal and approach phases of flight and can be approved under FAA notice 8110.60 for primary means of navigation in remote/oceanic airspace using GPS alone.
EUROPEAN ATC FEES have led Bombardier to offer a Challenger 604 with an optional lower maximum takeoff weight of 38,000 pounds, which the manufacturer said would "significantly reduce the navigation and landing costs in Europe." Transport Canada has confirmed the project's feasibility and Bombardier plans to issue a service bulletin this summer allowing operators to fly the aircraft under the current 47,600-pound MTOW for long- range missions and use the lower MTOW for intra-Europe trips.
Having watched its arch-rival Boeing make inroads in the very-long- range corporate jet market for the past year, European manufacturer Airbus joined the fray last week, announcing it would have a corporate version of its twin turbofan A319 airliner "available in early 1999." There was no immediate announcement of orders or customers for the new model and a price was not announced.
PIEDMONT AVIATION SERVICES, INC. was awarded a long-term lease by the Charlottesville-Albemarle, Va. Airport Authority to provide a full range of fixed-base services, including fueling, charter, maintenance, aircraft sales and airline services. The Charlottesville facility is Piedmont's seventh general aviation facility in the mid-Atlantic region.
SOME 8,190 ROTORCRAFT valued at $51.7 billion will be built worldwide in the 1997-2006 period, according to the Teal Group's first world rotorcraft forecast conference report, released at last week's Paris Air Show. The forecast predicts delivery of 4,635 aircraft valued at $10.9 billion to civil operators and 3,555 military rotorcraft valued at $40.8 billion to military operators. Continuing consolidation in the helicopter industry also is anticipated.
FOKKER F28 Mark 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 series airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-174-AD) - proposes to require a one-time visual inspection of the rear cargo door and luggage auxiliary structure for corrosion, repetitive boresope inspections of the rear cargo door and removal and repair of any corrosion found during the inspection. This proposal also would require drilling drain holes, applying a corrosion preventive and sealing compound inside the rear cargo door, and modifying the rear cargo door to aid in future routine borescope inspections.
SIMUFLITE TRAINING INTERNATIONAL upgraded its Challenger 601-3A/3R and Hawker 800/1000 simulators with the installation of Honeywell NZ-2000 navigation computers. The computer contains more memory and a faster processor that the NZ-920 computer previously installed in the simulators, SimuFlite said, adding that more operators are installing the NZ-2000 units in their aircraft. SimuFlite also plans to install the NZ-2000 in its Challenger avionics trainer this summer.
Buoyed by EMB-145 regional jet orders from Continental Express and now AMR Eagle, Embraer is continuing development of a long-range version of the aircraft.
BOMBARDIER now has "in excess of 60 orders" for the Global Express business jet and, because of market demand, plans to produce four more aircraft in 1998 than originally scheduled.
PHILIPPE DEBRUN was selected as chairman of the board of French aircraft manufacturer Socata, replacing Jean-Marc de Raffin Dourny, who held the top post since April 1993. Debrun joined Groupe Aerospatiale in 1985 and held a number of senior management positions including president of Barfield, the subsidiary of Sogerma-Socea in the U.S.
Fairchild Dornier, which decided earlier this year to go ahead with development of a jet version of its Do 328 regional turboprop, last week announced agreements with launch customers for the 328JET both in North America and Europe. Dallas-based Aspen Mountain Air placed four firm orders plus four options for the 328JET in a deal that also calls for eight Do 328 turboprops. French regional Proteus Airlines signed a purchase contract for six of the jet aircraft.
Seeking a mix of 50- and 70-passenger regional jets, American Eagle executives decided that the economic and logistical benefits of fleet commonality were outweighed by the significantly lower acquisition price offered by one manufacturer, and opted for a mixed fleet of regional jets manufactured by Embraer of Brazil and Bombardier of Canada.
KRISTI TOLLEFSON was appointed public relations account manager for The Avion Group. Tollefson most recently was with KSHB-TV in Kansas City, Mo. and, before that, served as communications director for the Minnesota Bankers Association. She also has served as treasurer of the Minnesota Aviation Trade Association and as a loan officer in the Aircraft Finance Department at American Bank in St. Paul, Minn.
