ALLISON ENGINE COMPANY named Norman Egbert executive vice president of engineering and Terry Graham executive vice president of business operations. Egbert, who joined Allison in 1966, most recently served as chief engineer large engines with responsibility for the AE 2100A, AE 2100C, the AE 2100E3 and the AE 3007A engines. He succeeds S. Michael Hudson, who has acted as both Allison's executive vice president of engineering and president and chief operating officer for the past year.
ROGER WRIGHT was named president of Menasco Aerospace, a unit of Coltec Aerospace. Wright previously directed McDonnell Douglas' MD-95 program in Canada and before that was senior vice president, business development, for Dowty Canada.
KAMAN CORP., Bloomfield, Conn., said the U.S. Navy exercised an option for a follow-on 180-day demonstration of two of the company's K-Max helicopters for commercial replenishment of ships at sea. Two aircraft were deployed in Guam during May for the initial 30-day assessment, Kaman said. During the 180-day contract, the helicopters will operate from the USNS Niagara Falls and will perform service for ships in the Western Pacific and Arabian Gulf. The contract, from the Military Sealift Command, is valued at $5.7 million with options, Kaman said.
DALE DEMENT was promoted to manager, Jet Center sales for Dassault Falcon Jet at Little Rock, Ark. DeMent, who joined Dassault Falcon Jet in October 1979 as a warranty administrator in the commercial contracts department, most recently was a sales representative for the Jet Center.
DASSAULT AVIATION has submitted data to the Federal Aviation Administration for approval of all Falcon 900 business jets, including the 900EX, to operate under Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum requirements. Dassault already has submitted the necessary RVSM data for the Falcon 2000 and will next send information for the Falcon 50 and 50EX (BA, April 8/158). RVSM limits, scheduled for 1997, will reduce vertical separation between aircraft in the North Atlantic track system from 2,000 to 1,000 feet.
Two months after the fatal inflight breakup of a Bell 206L-1 and three weeks after the National Transportation Safety Board called for urgent inspections of the helicopters, the Federal Aviation Administration is still reviewing the issue, an agency spokesman told BA last week.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT acquired an 88,000-square-foot office building in Wichita last month that will house the company's Integrated Product Teams (IPT) working on research and development programs. The first IPT to occupy the facility will be working on the follow-on airplane to the Hawker 1000 business jet. The IPTs will bring together people from different disciplines to involve them in new product design from the beginning.
DUNLOP AIRCRAFT TIRES opened a new U.S. headquarters and distribution center in Crewe, Va. The new facility replaces the former Dunlop Aviation/Hawker Pacific operation in Miami, Fla. The facility is near the Norfolk, Va. base of Wilkerson Tire Co., an independent aircraft tire retread and distribution company that has a long-standing business relationship with Dunlop. Dunlop, based in Birmingham, England, produces more than 300 types and sizes of aircraft tires.
San Antonio, Texas-based Fairchild Aircraft has completed a transaction giving it a four-fifths share of a joint company containing Dornier Luftfahrt GmbH, with Daimler-Benz Aerospace retaining the other one-fifth of the joint company (BA, May 27/235). A Daimler-Benz Aerospace official said that management of Dornier Luftfahrt had been transferred to Fairchild Wednesday, but officials did not reveal the value of the transaction.
THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION requested authority to raise up to $150 million through a variety of aviation user fees, but House legislators plan to approve only $30 million in fees and only for foreign overflights (BA, March 25/133). The House transportation appropriations subcommittee Thursday approved the fiscal 1997 DOT appropriations bill, which assumes $30 million in user fees. On the same day, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee adopted a provision authorizing the collection of foreign overflight charges.
WHILE REINSTATEMENT of aviation excise taxes received a setback last week in the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, most observers are confident that the excise taxes will be renewed by the end of the fiscal year - just about when the aviation trust fund is expected to run out of money. Aviation excise tax renewal is expected to be included in one of several bills the House Ways and Means Committee will address in upcoming months, such as budget reconciliation.
ALLIEDSIGNAL TPE331 series turboprop engines (Docket No. 95-ANE-09; Amdt. 39-9548; AD 96-06-11) - establishes cyclic retirement lives for certain compressor components. This amendment is prompted by manufacturer's engine testing and analysis indicating that if these compressor components continue in service without an established retirement life, accumulative cyclic effects may result in a fatigue failure. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent fatigue failure of engine compressor components and an inflight engine shutdown.
CARL MENNE was named a field service representative in Singapore for Dassault Falcon Jet Corp. Menne, formerly based in Dallas for Dassault Falcon Jet, will support Falcon business jet operators throughout the Pacific Rim.
HARTZELL received type certificate approval from Indonesia's Directorate General of Air Communications for its four-bladed HC-E4A-3I propellers. The propellers, used on the Beech 1900D, are part of Hartzell's family of lightweight, high-performance composite propellers used in the regional airline industry.
After months of efforts by U.S. officials to win greater access to Japanese airports by business jet operators, FAA Administrator David Hinson said Japanese officials have agreed to provide two slots per day at Narita Airport outside Tokyo. Hinson, speaking at the American Bar Association's Forum on Air&Space in Washington, D.C. Thursday, said Japanese officials informed the U.S. a week ago that Japan will allow 14 new slots a week for business jets at the airport. Hinson called the action "a terrific concession for Japan" and a great gain for the U.S.
THE TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT might have delayed the AIP grants to Chicago as leverage to persuade Daley to keep Meigs operating as an airport, but the Clinton Administration wants to keep Daley on its side. Earlier, one of Daley's top legal aides was named FAA's Associate Administrator for Airports (BA, April 22/179) and last week's announcement quotes President Clinton as saying: "Investing in Chicago's transportation infrastructure is good economic news for the Chicago region.
EVEN THOUGH Chicago Mayor Richard Daley plans to close Meigs Field airport in the heart of downtown, the Transportation Department is continuing to provide Airport Improvement Program funds for projects at the city's other airports, O'Hare and Midway (BA, March 25/134). In one of a series of election-year announcements of airport grants, DOT Secretary Federico Pena said Midway will get $8.3 million for runway rehabilitation and lighting, while O'Hare will receive nearly $7 million for taxiway improvements.
COMAIR, the Cincinnati-based regional carrier, signed an agreement increasing its firm order for Canadair Regional Jets from 45 aircraft to 50. Comair operates 34 RJs, has 16 more scheduled for delivery through June 1997 and options for delivery of 25 more from 1997 through 1999.
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION published an advisory circular on supplier surveillance procedures. AC 21-20B provides guidance on proving compliance with FAR Part 21, which governs certification procedures for products and parts. Copies of AC 21-20B can be obtained from U.S. Department of Transportation, Subsequent Distribution Office, Ardmore East Business Center, 3341 75th Ave., Landover, Md. 20785.
ALLIEDSIGNAL LTS101 series turboshaft engines installed on Eurocopter France Model AS-350D and SA366G1 helicopters (Docket No. 95-ANE-21; Amdt. 39-9547; AD 96-06-10) - requires incorporation of design modifications to the power turbine (PT) rotor. This amendment is prompted by reports of PT disk failures after No. 3 bearing failures. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent an uncontained engine failure due to a PT disk failure.
ALLIEDSIGNAL LTS101-600 series turboshaft engines (Docket No. 95-ANE- 12; Amdt. 39-9609; AD 96-10-04) - requires installation of an improved design fuel control. This amendment is prompted by reports of the fuel control bearing failing before the recommended overhaul period. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent a fuel control failure and an uncommanded increase or decrease in engine power.
Cessna Aircraft finally received FAA certification for the Citation X, the fastest Citation business jet model ever produced, on the last day of May. FAA approval came five and one-half years after the program was announced by Cessna Chairman Russ Meyer at the 1990 National Business Aircraft Association convention (BA, Oct. 8, 1990/131).
MOONEY AIRCRAFT CORP. appointed Cloisall as the distributor in Egypt. A Hakim Nasser, the sole proprietor of Cloisall, will direct the distributorship. Nasser, who has a multi-engine rating, has been flying since 1975.
FAA is directed to "closely examine" the effects of its proposed new flight and duty time regulations on Part 135 on-demand air charters under report language approved last week for the fiscal 1997 transportation appropriations bill. The language, offered by Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas), said the transportation appropriations subcommittee is particularly concerned that the proposed restrictions could impair critical transportation services and "hamper safety and endanger lives if pilots are unable to respond quickly in an emergency."
BEECH Model BAe 125-800A and -1000A and Hawker 800 and 1000 series airplanes (Docket No. 95-NM-165-AD) - proposes to require modification of the TKS metering pump in the airframe ice protection system. This proposal is prompted by a report that the pump was found fitted with silver-plated wiring. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to ensure that silver plated wiring is removed from these pumps. Silver-plated wiring carrying a direct current can ignite the ice protection fluid (glycol) when exposed to it, which could result in a fire.
