JEFF RYMAN was named aerospace specialist for Cadillac Plastic. Ryman, who previously worked for Nordam Manufacturing Division in Seattle, will be responsible for Cadillac Plastic's customer base of aircraft manufacturers and subcontractors.
American Eurocopter expects to receive approval this week for a modification to the vertical stabilizer of the tail boom of BK117 helicopters, the latest in a series of actions following a fatal accident involving a BK117 operated by Colgate-Palmolive Corp. (BA, April 21/176).
THE SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE directed FAA to exempt general aviation operations from fees the agency is charging for services for flights that transit through U.S. airspace without either taking off or landing in the U.S. The committee, which included the measure in an emergency supplemental appropriations bill it approved Wednesday, said a GA exemption is "consistent with the assurance that the committee received from FAA" when Congress authorized the collection of international overflight fees.
KENT SCOTT was named vice president and chief operating officer of Emery Worldwide Airlines. Scott, a former Boeing 747 captain, formerly was chief executive officer of the start-up AirSpace International Airlines of Carson, Calif.
NATIONAL BUSINESS AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION will hold a flight attendant conference June 6-7 in Chicago, Ill. The conference will discuss issues facing corporate flight attendants and include presentations from the National Transportation Safety Board, Department of Defense, flight department management and safety experts. For more information, contact NBAA at (202) 783-9000.
SINO SWEARINGEN AIRCRAFT COMPANY had logged 75 flight hours as of last week with its stretched proto-type SJ30-2 aircraft. The company reconfigured the original SJ30-1 prototype by stretching the fuselage nearly five feet and adding three feet to the wing span. The prototype currently is powered by the original 1,900-pound- thrust Williams FJ44-1 powerplants, but flight testing will be suspended briefly next month for installation of the 2,300- pound-thrust FJ44-2 engines that will power production models of the SJ30- 2.
SAAB Model 2000 series airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-221-AD) - proposes to require replacing the Abex alternating current electric motor with a new modified Abex AC electric motor having an improved fan. This proposal is prompted by reports indicating that the integrated hydraulic package stopped functioning during flight because the fan on the AC electric motor came into contact with the housing of the motor due to inadequate clearances.
FRANK HOPKINS was appointed avionics/modification coordinator, Aircraft Services Division for Atlantic Aviation. Hopkins has 16 years of aviation experience, holding positions with Alliance Avionics, Page Avjet and KC Aviation.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT Chairman Art Wegner told an audience at the SAE "top management" panel in Wichita last week that adoption of a bunch of new user fees "will seriously hurt general aviation" and warned that such a system "will create a whole new bureaucracy to collect fees." Wegner also took aim at a proposal by European officials to impose a 120-minute ETOPS limitation on commercial business jet operations. The idea "makes no sense," Wegner said, adding that "FAA must put a stop to this nonsense." See related article on Page 202 of the hard copy of this issue.
BELL Model 206L, L-1, L-3 and L-4 helicopters (Docket No. 95-SW-36-AD; Amdt. 39-9981; AD 97-07-07) - requires creation of a component history card using a Retirement Index Number (RIN) system, establishing a system for tracking increases to the accumulated RIN, and a maximum accumulated RIN for certain main rotor masts and main rotor trunnions.
While the White House has not made it official, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) last week indicated he would move quickly on a nomination of acting Federal Highway Administrator Jane Garvey for the top post at the Federal Aviation Administration. Garvey has been widely reported as the White House choice for FAA Administrator and the nomination is said to be held up only by the standard background check (BA, April 28/187). Speaking to reporters last week in Washington, D.C., McCain said, "I hope that [the nomination] comes over soon.
CESSNA FINANCE CORPORATION named Gregory Renna regional sales manager of its Wichita, Kan. branch office. Renna, who was a flight instructor at the University of North Dakota and operated an airport shuttle business, will be responsible for sales activity throughout Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
RAYTHEON Model BAe 125-1000A and Hawker 1000 series airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-180-AD; Amdt. 39-1001; AD 97-09-05) - requires various modifications to increase the size of certain existing pressure venting areas and to add additional venting areas. This amendment is prompted by results of a design review of the requirements for certification of the cabin pressurization system.
JETSTREAM Model 4101 airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-131-AD; Amdt. 39-9982; AD 97-07-08) - requires the replacement of weight limitation placards in the aft main baggage bay and in the aft right stowage compartment with new placards indicating lower maximum weight limits. It also requires a revision of the airplane flight manual to delete references to the current higher weight limits for these areas.
CITY OF LOS ANGELES finally agreed to return more than $30.3 million to Los Angeles International Airport that had been diverted to the city's general funds at the end of September. FAA's Office of Airport Safety and Standards issued a determination in March concluding that all but $786,628 of the $31.1 transfer was diverted illegally. The city had been under strong pressure from Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, to return the disputed funds to the airport.
ATLANTIC AVIATION FLIGHT SERVICES added a Hawker 700 to its managed fleet. The aircraft, based in Teterboro, N.J., will be available for charter in early August.
Citing "a total disregard for the rulemaking process," the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and National Air Transportation Association last week reiterated demands for the Federal Aviation Administration to withdraw a proposal calling for the replacement of 10,000 crankshafts in Teledyne Continental engines.
PERFORMANCE REVIEW INSTITUTE, an affiliate of the Society of Automotive Engineers, named Rose Koronkiewicz as ISO Registrar program manager. Koronkiewicz will manage all Quality Registrar Programs, including ISO 9000, QS-9000 and ISO 14000. She previously was a business unit manager for FMC Corporation, where SAE officials said "she was recognized for exceptional performance as champion of the ISO 9001 certification process."
DAVID HINSON, former FAA Administrator, was named chairman of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Air Safety Foundation Board of Visitors. He succeeds Najeeb Halaby, the second FAA Administrator. The board of visitors comprises distinguished aviators or aviation professionals who volunteer their knowledge and experience to enhance the mission and funding of the non-profit foundation.
K-C AVIATION completed the first reduced vertical separation minimum (RVSM) certification for a Canadair Challenger 604. "We now have the proper guidance to complete the certification of RVSM equipped aircraft," said Chuck Swartz, director of avionics sales for K-C. "This should help speed up the process as we look to complete future RVSM certification for factory-new aircraft, as well as older aircraft which need to be modified in order to meet RVSM requirements."
PARKS COLLEGE of Saint Louis University is incorporating flight instruction fees in its standard tuition costs. Beginning in August, the college will offer qualified aviation science/professional pilot students flight instruction at no additional cost.
A series of acquisitions and strong performance by existing business units pushed revenues at Precision Castparts Corp. to nearly $1 billion in the fiscal year ended March 30, 1997.
BALLISTIC RECOVERY SYSTEMS (BRS), which is developing a parachute as standard equipment for the Cirrus SR20, successfully deployed the parachute canopy. BRS engineers dropped four 55-gallon drums filled with 3,600 pounds of wet sand, 700 pounds above the SR20's gross weight, from a C-123 cargo plane. The canopy deployed as designed with a descent rate of 31 feet per second. The tests were designed to prove the strength of the canopy construction.
THE TEXAS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES late last month approved a comprehensive tax bill, including the four-cents-per-gallon tax on jet fuel (BA, April 14). The legislation adopted, however, excluded earlier proposals to lift the commercial aviation exemptions from the state sales taxes on aircraft, parts and labor. The tax legislation now heads to the Texas Senate, where some sources expect the new fuel tax will be dropped altogether.
Shareholders of Sino Swearingen, Inc. elected company President and Chief Executive Jack Braly to the firm's board of directors, along with George Liu, president of Taiwan Aerospace. In addition, the board subsequently elected Jack Sun, chairman of Sino Aerospace Investment Corp., to serve as chairman of Sino Swearingen for a two-year term that began April 22. Ed Swearingen, who had been chairman of Sino Swearingen, was re-elected to the board of directors and will serve as vice chairman for the next two years.
