BILL DALEY, brother of Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, was nominated as Commerce Secretary Friday by President Clinton. There had been speculation in some circles that Daley would be named DOT Secretary, but Clinton did not make any announcement Friday about who will get the DOT job. Friday's Washington Post speculated that Rodney Slater, head of the Federal Highway Administration and longtime Clinton political aide and campaign worker from Arkansas, will get the top DOT job (BA, Nov. 18/227).
Fokker's talks with Samsung of South Korea have failed, and Dutch authorities will consider participating in the Airbus program in an attempt to maintain aircraft manufacturing activity in The Netherlands.
SCHWEIZER Model 269A, 269A-1, 269B, 269C, 269D, and TH-55A series helicopters (Docket No. 96-SW-10-AD) - proposes to require a visual inspection of the bond line between the main rotor blade abrasion strip and the blade for voids, separation or lifting of the abrasion strip.
U.S. GENERAL AVIATION MANUFACTURERS are expected to deliver just over 1,100 aircraft this year valued at $2.9 billion, according to information compiled by the Aerospace Industries Association. Those totals would represent increases of approximately three percent in both units and dollars over 1995 totals. While 1996's increases will be relatively modest, unit shipments are expected to show strong growth in 1997 and billings are expected to increase markedly as manufacturers begin deliveries of a number of new business jet models.
MITSUBISHI MU-2B series airplanes (Docket No. 96-CE-45-AD) - proposes to require removing the vent check valve assembly from the bulkhead between the fuel tanks. The proposed action results from an incident in which both engines on an affected airplane failed during the end of a flight. The incident is attributed to the fuel filler caps on the top of the wings not sealing correctly.
WARNING of a looming fiscal crisis that "threatens aviation safety," the National Association of State Aviation Officials called last week for quick passage of legislation to reinstate aviation excise taxes, which will expire Dec. 31. See articles below and on Page 272.
THE GRAND CANYON proposal is only one of several government initiatives the air tour industry is facing. FAA also has proposed an outright ban on air tour operations over Rocky Mountain National Park, with the comment period for that proposal closing Dec. 23 (BA, Nov. 25/246), and plans to address air tour operations over all national parks in a third proposal, now expected out in early spring. A fourth proposal dealing with air tour standards also is on the horizon.
GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE last week estimated that if the aviation excise taxes are not extended beyond Dec. 31, the Airport and Airway Trust Fund balance will reach $0 by early July. GAO noted that Congress's Joint Committee on Taxation estimated the trust fund would not run out of money until next fall (BA, Dec. 2/251), but said the committee did not distinguish between cash available for outstanding commitments and for new commitments. "In contrast, FAA's estimates, which are used in our analysis, distinguish between these cash balances," GAO said.
BOMBARDIER Model CL-600-2B19 (Regional Jet Series 100 and 200) airplanes (Docket No. 96-NM-208-AD; Amdt. 39-9803; AD 96-22-14) - requires repetitive inspections to detect discrepancies of the shock strut end caps and attachment pins of the main landing gear and replacement of discrepant parts with new parts. It also requires a check for and replacement of certain pins that may be installed on some airplanes.
FOKKER Model F28 Mark 0100 and 0070 series airplanes (Docket No. 95- NM-94-AD) - proposes to require modification of the hook and latch engagement assemblies of the engine cowl doors, measurement of the aerodynamic mismatch between the fixed cowl and lower cowl door, and repair, if necessary. This proposal is prompted by reports of operational experience indicating that an aerodynamic mismatch may exist between the fixed engine cowl and the lower cowl door and may be the result of one or more hooks of the engagement assemblies not engaging adequately.
ARNAV SYSTEMS, INC. is marketing a color, active-matrix liquid crystal multi-function display designed for installation in light aircraft. The company said its MFD 5200 consists of a 2.5-pound remote-mounted symbol generator and a 2.7-pound color LCD control-display unit. The sunlight- readable five-inch diagonal display provides situational awareness from onboard systems including navigation, air data, engine and airframe, along with weather data.
The Federal Aviation Administration and Raytheon are meeting daily in an effort to avoid what could be a schedule slip in the $1.5 billion Standard Terminal Automation replacement System (STARS) program. The program has veered into trouble because of differences between the agency and the contractor regarding interpretation of high-level functional specifications, sources said. For the record, a Raytheon spokesman said, "There are no contract or schedule changes."
KEYSTONE AVIATION, West Chester, Pa., named as vice presidents two company veterans and a recent addition. John Loney, who has been with Keystone since 1974, started as an engine mechanic and has been division manager of Keystone Engine Services. Rick Hinkle, who joined the company in 1985, is director of sales and marketing. Dave Ford, who came to Keystone in February, is division manager of Keystone Helicopter Services, the unit responsible for providing maintenance, overhaul and completions.
NATIONAL BUSINESS AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION Friday named C. Dennis Wright vice president of international affairs following his appointment as director general of the International Business Aviation Council. Wright, who has served with NBAA for more than 10 years, previously was vice president operations. William Stine, senior manager of international and flight technologies for NBAA, was appointed IBAC corporate secretary. NBAA also promoted Joe Ponte to vice president of membership and David Almy to vice president of communications.
ELLIOTT HUTTON was appointed sales manager of Eventide Inc.'s Avionics Division. Hutton has a 15-year background in aviation and is an active instrument-rated pilot. Before joining Eventide, he served as director of sales for a marine communications company.
GREG MILLER was promoted to director of service operations for K-C Aviation's Appleton facility. Miller has served with K-C Aviation for 21 years, most recently as Falcon program supervisor.
ERIC STEINER was elected chief operating officer and executive vice president for The Fairchild Corporation. Steiner had served as senior vice president operations for the company since 1992 and previously was vice president, business and planning. Steiner also will remain as president and chief executive officer of Fairchild Fasteners.
DESPITE THE 45-DAY EXTENSION of the comment period for the Federal Aviation Administration's proposal to sharply curtail air tour operations over Grand Canyon National Park, the agency still appears poised to issue a final rule by the end of the month. The comment period ended Nov. 14, which means FAA will have to sift through thousands of comments, finish the rule, receive Department of Transportation, Office of Management and Budget and, ostensibly, Department of Interior approval - all within just six weeks - to meet the yearend deadline.
ALLIEDSIGNAL ALF502 and LF507 series turbofan engines (Docket No. 96- ANE-26) - proposes to require initial and repetitive on-wing eddy current or shop fluorescent penetrant inspections of fuel manifold assemblies for cracks, and replacement, if necessary, with serviceable parts. In addition, this AD presents an optional terminating action to the repetitive inspections by replacing the fuel manifold assembly with an improved assembly. This proposal is prompted by reports of cracking of the fuel manifold assembly at the No. 5 and 6 scallop location.
AERO INTERNATIONAL (REGIONAL) AI(R) named Paolo Revelli-Beaumont, 46, general secretary. A veteran of the ATR program, he was responsible for the sales financing department from 1986-1989 and senior vice president of marketing and sales from 1989-1994. AI(R) is a joint venture company comprising three partners: Aerospatiale, Alenia-Finmeccanica and British Aerospace. Francesco Paolo Giobbe, who had been general secretary, was named to head a new legal directorate within the company.
Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration has announced the names of nine companies that will receive licenses to conduct commercial helicopter operations. A CAA spokesman said three of the nine companies already own helicopters and will be able to begin flying as soon as they pass security checks and complete flight tests. Any company that does not begin flight operations within one year will have its license revoked.
FAA'S claims that it needs $59 billion over the next seven years but will likely receive $12 billion less from Congress are based on "unrealistic assumptions" that appear "to be intended solely to help justify the projected funding crisis" used in arguments for aviation user fees, according to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.
ALLISON ENGINE COMPANY said FAA certified its AE 3007A turbofan engine on the Embraer EMB-145 regional airliner. The 8,600-pound thrust class AE 3007 is derated to 7,442 pounds thrust on the Brazilian-built, 50-passenger airliner, which Allison said will provide "high reliability and maintainability through an on-condition maintenance program." Embraer has four aircraft in flight test that have accumulated 1,800 hours. The EMB- 145 is scheduled to win FAA certification before the end of the year.
