INNOTECH/EXECAIRE AVIATION GROUP of Montreal, Quebec ordered two Citation Excels for delivery during the second quarter of 2000 - its second order for the Excel. The company ordered its first of the new Citations in 1994 and that aircraft is scheduled for delivery in May 1999. Innotech/Execaire is Cessna's authorized sales representative in Canada. Pratt&Whitney Canada, which manufactures the PW 545A turbofans that will power the Excel, and BC Tel also have placed orders for the Excel.
LEARJET Model 35 and 36 series airplanes modified by Raisbeck STC SA766NW (Docket No. 96-NM-63-AD) - proposes to require a reduction of the maximum operating limit speed to prevent encountering certain potentially hazardous conditions. This proposal is prompted by reports of incidents of aileron buffet or buzz experienced during high speed cruise. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to prevent aileron buffet or buzz conditions, which can result in the deterioration of the aircraft lateral control system characteristics to an unacceptable level.
Fokker, the Dutch aircraft maker that has been in bankruptcy since March, will build 15 more aircraft, keeping operations going another year. The court-appointed receivers of Fokker confirmed last week that they reached agreements with several airlines for additional airplanes. Most will go to KLM. Without the new orders, Fokker would have been forced to close its assembly line this month. KLM agreed, however, to purchase six Fokker 70 jets. The carrier already has received three of four F70s ordered earlier, giving it a net total of seven on order.
TechniFlite of America, Inc., the Denver, Colo. flight training company, is hoping to "revolutionize" the way airline and corporate operators are trained with its Mobile Training Facilities (MTF) - a semi- tractor trailer equipped with a full-motion, six-axis flight simulator and a classroom that can be driven to a customer's home base.
Efforts to reinstate aviation excise taxes stumbled last week when a House committee essentially killed a provision that would have re-enacted the taxes. At the same time, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee members expressed an interest in studying user fee proposals.
HOWELL INSTRUMENTS, Fort Worth, Texas, delivered its first JETCAL 2000 aircraft testing and diagnosis instrument to K-C Aviation in Dallas, Texas. The system will be used for ground tests and power assurance checks on Gulfstream II, III and IV, and Canadair Challenger CL601 aircraft. In addition, it will be used for other troubleshooting checks associated with specific aircraft/engine applications, such as thermocouple resistance checks and cockpit indicator checks.
Cessna Aircraft boosted the maximum cruise speed for its Citation Bravo business jet from 394 knots true air speed (KTAS) to 401 KTAS as a result of more than 500 hours of flight tests. Gary Hay, vice chairman, said "we can confirm that our original projections for the airplane were conservative. This combination of airframe and new Pratt&Whitney PW 530A turbofans offers customers a real workhorse - with some race horse mixed in."
DAVE SHEEHAN, who retired from Mobil Corp. after 30 years (BA, Jan. 15/22), stepped down as vice chairman of the National Business Aircraft Association. William Wagner of Townsend Engineering Company moved from treasurer to vice chairman and Tom Myers of Sears, Roebuck and Co. succeeded Wagner as treasurer
FLIGHT VISIONS, INC., Sugar Grove, Ill., opened an office in Prague, Czech Republic that will be headed by Jiri Brabec, a field engineer. Flight Visions, which manufactures and markets commercial and military head-up display systems for aircraft, said the new office will support customers in the Czech Republic, Tunisia, Egypt, Poland and Switzerland.
Wilcox Electric is challenging FAA's decision to award a single-source contract to Hughes Aircraft to build the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), the company said Tuesday. The same day, Wilcox announced that Bill Marberg, former senior vice president of navigation systems, was named president of the company succeeding Don Welde, who returned to parent company Thomson-CSF. Wilcox filed a protest letter with FAA's Office of Dispute Resolution.
NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION ASSOCIATION issued an action call last month warning members that the deadline for commenting on FAA's flight and duty time limitations proposal is June 19. NATA included a pamphlet telling members "Don't Quit Now...The FAA Could Put You Out Of Business." The pamphlet details NATA concerns and suggestions for action. For more information, contact Kris Estes, manager, government and industry affairs, at (800) 808-6282.
GULFSTREAM AEROSPACE is boosting the price of new Gulfstream IV-SP business jets by 2.9 percent. The price of a "green" aircraft will go up $700,000, to $24,625,000, effective for orders signed after July 1.
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION issued special conditions for the Turbomeca Arriel 2S1 turboshaft engine, which will contain new ratings that are not defined in current airworthiness regulations. The engine will include 30- second and two-minute one engine inoperative (OEI) ratings. The special conditions are intended to provide additional safety standards for those ratings. For more information, contact Chung Hsieh of FAA's Engine and Propeller Standards staff at (617) 238-7115.
CASA of Spain teamed with the overhaul, maintenance and support group of Air New Zealand to offer the CASA CN235 turboprop as a fully supported replacement for the Australia armed forces' Caribou light tactical airlifters.
LUCAS INDUSTRIES and Varity Corp. agreed to merge operations, forming a $6.7 billion aerospace, global automotive parts and diesel company, the companies said Friday in a joint statement (BA, May 13/222). The new venture, to be called LucasVarity plc, is expected to generate savings of at least $100 million through "significant synergies and operating efficiencies" by the second year following the merger.
THREE INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS Friday asked President Clinton to make clear to the American public "that the DOT Inspector General does not speak for the administration on aviation safety policy." In a letter to Clinton, the American Association of Airport Executives, Regional Airline Association and Airports Council International-North America said they were "very concerned" about the recent public statements of DOT Inspector General Mary Schiavo, such as, "I go out of my way to stay off commuter planes.
REFLECTONE INC. net income tripled from $466,000 in the first three months of 1995 to $1.44 million in the most recent quarter, the company said. Revenues were up 35 percent to $21.3 million. Richard G. Snyder, president and chief executive officer, said the improvement in operating profit resulted from "increased efficiencies in all segments of our business: products and services, military and commercial. Our emphasis is now on new business acquisition in order to sustain our revenue growth."
HUDSON GENERAL CORP. stockholders approved a transaction under which Lufthansa Airport and Ground Services (LAGS) GmbH will acquire a 26 percent interest in Hudson General LLC, a newly formed Hudson General subsidiary that will operate the company's aviation services business (BA, March 4/104). LAGS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, also will receive an option, which can be exercised until Oct. 1, 2000, to increase its interest in Hudson General LLC up to a maximum of 49 percent. The transaction is expected to close shortly.
UNC, Inc., the aviation services company, completed its acquisition of engine overhauler Garrett Aviation last week in a deal valued at $150 million that will result in a company with nearly $1 billion in annual revenues (BA, Jan. 22/29). UNC, headquartered in Annapolis, Md., and Garrett - the former AlliedSignal unit headquartered in Phoenix, Ariz. - will form the "world's largest independent aviation aftermarket services company," according to UNC.
AIR ROUTING INTERNATIONAL (CANADA), Royal Bank of Canada and the International Air Transport Association agreed to form the IATA Global Charge Program during last month's annual IATA ground handling conference. Air Routing said IATA endorsed the program "to facilitate the billing and payment process for ground handling companies, fuel suppliers and airports, in addition to charters, ad hoc and scheduled flights."
THE HOUSE AVIATION SUBCOMMITTEE last week moved forward legislation to prohibit children from piloting aircraft during record-setting flights (BA, April 22/181). The legislation, H.R.3267, stems from the crash of a Cessna 177B that killed seven-year-old Jessica Dubroff, her father and a flight instructor while they were attempting to set a record for the youngest person to fly across the U.S.
NEW PIPER PA24, PA28R, PA30, PA32R, PA34 and PA39 series airplanes (Docket No. 96-CE-09-AD) - proposes to supersede AD 95-20-07, which requires repetitive inspections of the main gear side brace and replacement of any cracked main gear side brace stud. The proposed action would retain the repetitive inspections, but remove airplanes with a certain main gear side brace assembly configuration from the applicability of the AD and would incorporate additional modification and replacement options.
AVIATION EQUIPMENT, INC., North Hollywood, Calif., acquired Pacifica Aerospace Corporation of Costa Mesa, Calif. Aviation Equipment manufactures, repairs and modifies nacelle components and exhaust systems for a variety of aircraft and manufactures brazable honeycomb core for many high temperature applications using alloys such as inconel and stainless steel. Pacifica fabricates composites, aluminum metal-to-metal and bonded honeycomb structures for control surfaces, cargo floor panels, fuel tanks and other low-temperature airframe parts.
MAULE Models M-4-210 and M-4-210C airplanes with dual exhaust system 5230F (Docket No. 95-CE-22-AD; Amdt. 39-9610; AD 96-10-05) - requires relocation of the gascolator and electric fuel pump away from the dual exhaust system. FAA recently became aware that the left-hand exhaust stack is routed almost directly below the fuel gascolator on aircraft with dual exhaust systems. FAA said the close proximity of the flammable fuel to the exhaust system presents an unsafe condition and violates regulations.
VISIONAIRE CORPORATION is planning a mid-year groundbreaking for its aircraft assembly facility in Ames, Iowa and hopes to have the 100,000- square-foot main building and two smaller structures completed by mid-1997. The company, currently headquartered in St. Louis, Mo., is developing an all-composite business jet powered by a single Pratt&Whitney JT15D-5 engine (BA, Aug. 14/69). First flight is expected this October.
