AIRCRAFT BRAKING SYSTEMS CORP. was selected by Bombardier to develop and build the complete braking system for the Canadair Regional Jet Series 700 aircraft. Under a subcontract with landing gear supplier Menasco Aerospace, ABSC will provide the Series 700's nose and main gear wheels, brakes and brake control systems for the 70-seat airliner.
SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG (D-N.J.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, last week disagreed with the Administration view that the Federal Aviation Administration should be 100 percent user-funded. But Transportation Department Deputy Secretary Mortimer Downey reiterated that the Clinton Administration hopes to phase out the general fund portion of FAA's budget, which currently covers about 25 percent of the agency's annual expenditures, and replace that revenue with new user fees.
ALAN DIETRICH was named vice president of government operations and marketing for AlliedSignal Aerospace, where he will be responsible for the company's Washington, D.C. office, congressional affairs and international relations. Pat Hurley will succeed Dietrich as vice president and general manager of the Communications Systems business of the Electronic Systems division.
DOWNEY also last week called "inappropriate" a measure contained in the Senate version of an emergency supplemental appropriations bill (S.672) to exempt most of general aviation from FAA's plans to charge for flights that transit through U.S. airspace, but neither take off nor land in the U.S.
Mercury Air Group, the Los Angeles, Calif. chain of fixed-base operations and provider of aviation services, reported record income and revenues for the nine months ended March 31 and said it is looking for additional bases to add to the chain. Revenues for the nine months jumped 31.1 percent to a record $215.7 million, compared with $164.5 million a year ago. Net income was up 10.5 percent to a record $3.8 million. For the quarter ended March 31, revenues were up 26.6 percent to $72.4 million while net income rose 29.3 percent to $1.1 million.
Airport Systems International, Inc., Overland Park, Kan., said it is "evaluating strategic alternatives to enhance shareholder value. Among the alternatives being explored are joint venture, mergers, acquisitions and strategic alliances," according to a statement issued Tuesday.
The Federal Aviation Administration published its FAA Inflight Aircraft Icing Plan that includes rulemaking, development and revision of advisory material to increase safety of flight crews who find themselves operating in icing conditions.
SAAB Model 2000 series airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-167-AD) - proposes to require replacement of the existing fire, tailpipe, and bleed-air overheat detector control units with new, improved units. This proposal is prompted by reports indicating that false engine and auxiliary power unit fire warnings were issued from the fire detector control units due to moisture or induced voltages of the detector control unit.
COLTEC INDUSTRIES named Peter Challinor a group president with responsibility for the company's landing gear and flight control operations. These include Menasco Aerosystems, Euless, Texas; Menasco Aerospace, Oakville, Ontario, Canada; Menasco Aerospace Washington, Everett, Wash.; and, Menasco Krosno, Krosno, Poland. Challinor, 48, reports to John M. Cybulski, senior vice president-aerospace, and will succeed Pablo Prieto, who retired at the end of April. Challinor had been heading Coltec's Walbar metals business.
CONTINENTAL EXPRESS took delivery of its seventh EMB-145, Embraer said. The carrier operates -145s from its main hub in Cleveland to Greensboro, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Newark, Hartford and Milwaukee. Embraer now claims 65 firm orders and 194 options for its regional jet.
NEW APPROVALS for the AlliedSignal Aerospace Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System will permit the units to be installed on Gulfstream V, Falcon 900, Canadair Challenger 601-3R and -3A business jets and Beech King Air C-90 turboprops. The system, previously approved for use on several Airbus and Boeing models, includes a proprietary worldwide terrain database that permits warnings to be issued when an aircraft is 60 seconds away from terrain, compared with 10- to 30-second warnings available with conventional GPWS, AlliedSignal said.
AIRCRAFT OWNERS AND PILOTS ASSOCIATION, meanwhile, has threatened to take legal action if FAA implements the "international" general aviation user fees as planned May 19. AOPA, which has adamantly opposed the fees, said last week, "These overflight fees are a threat to safety and an accounting boondoggle. If FAA persists in ignoring public comments and the clearly expressed will of Congress, we'll see them in court."
Dassault Falcon Jet Corp. promoted six members in its Teterboro, N.J. Flight Operations Department. Jerry Tritt was appointed chief pilot- technical, responsible for technical and regulatory matters, including head-up guidance, reduced vertical separation minimums and other avionics and navigational equipment advances. J. David DeAngelis was named chief pilot-operations, responsible for safety, standardization, and the flight operations manual. In addition, DeAngelis manages and assigns collateral duties to pilots and flight attendants.
VISIONAIRE CORP. began high-speed, high-altitude flight testing of its Vantage composite, single-jet aircraft. The aircraft, slated for certification in second quarter 1999, will be certified for altitudes up to 41,000 feet and 350 knots true airspeed. The proof-of-concept article first flew in November and completed more than 15 hours of low-altitude, low-speed testing. The company activated the landing gear retraction system in March, and the proof-of-concept aircraft since has reached altitudes of 35,000 feet and speeds in excess of 350 KTAS.
TWO AVIATION CONSULTING FIRMS, Morten Beyer and Associates and Agnew&Associates, have merged to form Morten Beyer&Agnew (MBA). Beyer will be chairman and chief executive and Robert Agnew will be president. The company will have its headquarters in McLean, Va., with offices in Miami, Fla., Tucson, Ariz., and Berlin, Germany. Beyer said the companies are talking further about growing their merged businesses, and an additional announcement is expected in the next several weeks.
DEDICATION CEREMONIES for the new control tower and terminal radar approach control facility at Washington National Airport will be held today (May 12) at 10 a.m. with DOT Secretary Rodney Slater presiding. Controllers began operating from the new tower a number of weeks ago and the airport's new main terminal is scheduled to become operational this summer.
PATS, Inc., the Columbia, Md., designer and manufacturer of a wide range of aircraft systems and modifications, was selected to provide several enhancements to the U.S. Air Force's fleet of Boeing 757 aircraft. The service recently selected a mix C-132s (757s) and C-37s (Gulfstream Vs) to replace its aging fleet of C-137s (Boeing 707s) (BA, May 5/202).
DOW-UNITED TECHNOLOGIES Composites Products Inc. won a contract to manufacture composite components for aircraft engines built by Allison Engine Co., Indianapolis, Ind. The company, based in Wallingford, Conn., will manufacture bypass vanes to funnel air in the front section of the Allison AE 3007 engine that powers the Cessna Citation X and the Embraer EMB-145 regional jet.
JENNIFER HERONEMA was named public relations manager for Atlantic Coast Airlines. Heronema previously served as a staff writer and editor for the Army Times Publishing Co. She also has served as a staff writer and conducted promotional activities for companies in the health care industry, including Dow Chemical Co. and Disability Research Systems.
Atlantic Coast Airlines, with help from the State of Virginia, the Loudoun County Industrial Development Authority and the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority (MWAA), will build an 85,000-square-foot aircraft maintenance facility at Washington Dulles Airport. The hangar, scheduled to be occupied in December, is the first airline maintenance facility to be located at Dulles, ACA said. The project was assisted by a $175,000 Governor's Opportunity Fund grant for Loudoun County. Investment support is being provided by the MWAA and the county.
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION issued an emergency order last week revoking the repair station certificate of D&C Airparts Corp., Hialeah, Fla. FAA said the company performed work on power supply units and emergency power supply appliances without being authorized to perform such work.
RAYTHEON Model DH 125-1A, -3A and -400A series airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-190-AD; Amdt. 39-10008; AD 96-09-12) - requires a one-time inspection for scoring of the upper fuselage skin around the periphery of the cockpit canopy blister interface and repair, if necessary. This amendment is prompted by reports indicating that scoring of the upper fuselage skin had been detected in that area. The actions specified by this AD are intended to detect and correct such scoring, which could reduce the structural integrity of the fuselage and cause cabin depressurization.
JETSTREAM Model BAe ATP series airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-100-AD; Amdt. 39-10006; AD 97-09-10) - requires modification of certain parts in the elevator flight control system and the propeller switch warning system. This amendment is prompted by a report indicating that these parts could interfere with the proper operation of these systems.
MULTI SERVICE CORP., Overland Park, Kan., was selected by Wright Express to provide credit card services for aviation customers in fulfillment of a General Services Administration contract. Multi Service will provide commercial credit card services to operators of 1,600 federal civilian government aircraft, beginning June 1, when it will issue new credit cards replacing U.S. government Fleet Card, SF 149 and SF 149A cards, the company said. The new co-branded cards will have both GSA Aviation and Multi Service logos.
