Jeppesen&Co., the Frankfurt affiliate of Denver-based Jeppesen, announced a new online service that calculates international navigation charges. The new service, Enroute Navigation Charge, is available as a subscription or on an as-needed basis. Jeppesen said the service permits users to input data, such as route and aircraft weight, and receive a detailed statement of specific navigation charges in less than a minute.
Raytheon Aircraft introduced the first home-grown business jet in company history last week, a $4 million airplane that officials promised is only the first of several new models it will unveil over the next several years.
SAAB AIRCRAFT will deliver three corporate shuttle versions of its Saab 2000 turboprop to General Motors beginning this fall. The aircraft will replace Convair CV-580s that GM has operated for more than 25 years. GM will use the corporate shuttles to transport GM managers between various facilities. The aircraft will have a 36-seat configuration in a stand-up cabin nearly 55 feet long.
FAIRCHILD SA226 and SA227 series airplanes (Docket No. 95-CE-58-AD; Amdt. 39-9369; AD 95-19-07) - requires repetitive inspection, using ultrasonic methods, of certain left-hand and right-hand main and nose landing gear yokes for stress corrosion cracking, and if any cracked yokes are found that exceed certain limits, either replacement of the cracked yoke, the yoke/cylinder combination or the affected landing gear. This action is prompted by several reports of failures of the affected landing gears.
MILLION AIR DALLAS added a third Gulfstream - a G-III - to its charter fleet. The company, which expects to receive worldwide certification from the Federal Aviation Administration this month, plans to operate its Gulfstreams for international charter service. Million also operates a G- II and G-IIB along with two Falcon 20s, a King Air C90 and Learjet 55, 35A and 25D model aircraft.
GULFSTREAM'S new service center under construction in Savannah is nearing completion with initial maintenance and service operations to begin in the facility in January 1996, Gulfstream officials said last week. The more than 200,000-square-foot center will have two hangars, a customer service center with conference rooms, offices and storage space. The facility will accommodate up to 12 Gulfstream V aircraft simultaneously.
French plane-maker Aerospatiale General Aviation has increased its operations in Grand Prairie, Texas with the addition of an in-house parts distribution operation and service center. The parts center will be responsible for North American sales and distribution of spares and parts for AGA's TBM 700 single-engine turboprop and Caribbean series of single- engine piston aircraft, the Tampico Club, Tobago and Trinidad.
EXECUTIVE AIRCRAFT CORPORATION will remodel its Wichita, Kan. based fixed- base operation beginning in October. EAC, which purchased the FBO on Mid- Continent Airport in January 1994, plans to redesign the line service area, customer lounge and eating area. Following the renovation, plans call for the addition of a hangar to expand the FBO's existing 45,000-square-foot space, EAC officials said. In addition, EAC said it recently expanded its parts department to include complete Challenger, Jetstar and Sabreliner inventories for sale or rental.
ELREY B. JEPPESEN was presented with the 29th Edward Warner Award by Assad Kotaite, president of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Jeppesen was recognized for his contribution to international civil aviation through improvement of air navigation techniques.
AFTER YEARS of contentious debate within NBAA's ranks about whether Las Vegas is a proper venue for the organization's annual meeting, there's now no question about the city's ability to attract the business jet set. Preliminary figures show NBAA's first-ever Las Vegas outing last week drew 24,884 registrants, an increase of nearly 40 percent over the previous record of 17,986 set last year in New Orleans.
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION adopted new security regulations requiring 10-year employment history background checks of individuals seeking authorization for unescorted access to secure areas of airports. The new rules, which will go into effect in 120 days, will disqualify applicants who have been convicted of certain crimes within the past 10 years. Employers will be required to review an applicant's job history for unexplained gaps in employment or other information indicating a possible conviction.
JETSTREAM Model ATP airplanes (Docket No. 94-NM-212-AD) - proposes to require inspections and tests for damage to the engine power cables, and replacement of any damaged cable with a new cable. This proposal is prompted by a report of failure of an engine power cable, which could cause loss of function of the power control levers on the console. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to prevent loss of function of the levers on the console and subsequent loss of normal control of engine power. Comments must be sent in triplicate before Oct.
U.S. PAINT is offering its Alum/Grip High Solids Urethane Coating Systems, which lowers solvent emissions. The new line has high impact and chip resistance, higher gloss retention, better flow control and flexibility of application, U.S. Paint officials said.
HOAC AUSTRIAL GmbH HK 36R Super Dimona gliders (Docket No. 94-CE-36- AD; Amdt. 39-9360- AD 95-18-13) - requires inspection of the exhaust system for corrosion, replacement of the exhaust system if corrosion is found, and installation of a carbon monoxide detector. This action is prompted by reports of severe exhaust system corrosion. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent carbon monoxide leakage, which could lead to passenger injuries.
Israel Aircraft Industries, promising a first flight of its Astra Galaxy in the fourth quarter of 1996, has shifted production of the initial aircraft from the Saratov plant in Russia to IAI's facility in Israel. IAI originally had an agreement with the Yakovlev Design Bureau in Moscow under which the fuselage would be built in the Saratov plant, but IAI President and CEO Moshe Keret said the IAI board of directors recently approved in- house construction of four Astra Galaxy prototypes to be used for certification.
SAM WILLIAMS, chief executive of Williams International of Walled Lake, Mich., will receive the National Medal of Technology from President Clinton this month. The citation will acknowledge Williams "for his unequaled achievements as a gifted inventor, tenacious entrepreneur, risk-taker and engineering genius in making the U.S. number one in small gas turbine engine technology and competitiveness, and for his phenomenal leadership in helping to revive the depressed U.S.
Daimler-Benz Aerospace (DASA) said it is in talks with Alenia exploring ways to benefit from the Italian manufacturer's lower production costs. The talks come amid mounting financial pressures on DASA to reverse heavy losses of the last two years and signals from the German government that its maneuvering room to help the ailing aeronautics group is limited.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT, which introduced its first all-new business jet at last week's National Business Aircraft Association convention in Las Vegas (BA, Sept. 25/129), plans to unveil at least one new model annually for the next several years. Next up will be a revamped version of the Hawker 1000 that Raytheon acquired from British Aerospace two years ago (BA, Aug. 9, 1993/54), followed by the Premier II and Premier III in subsequent years.
BOMBARDIER last week provided a Challenger to transport NBAA President Jack Olcott and AlliedSignal Engines President James Robinson from the convention in Las Vegas to Washington, D.C. to testify at a hearing before the Senate aviation subcommittee on Sen. John McCain's FAA reform bill. The Challenger, also carrying General Aviation Manufacturers Association President Ed Stimpson and NBAA and GAMA Vice Presidents Pete West and Ed Bolen, departed from McCarran International Airport Tuesday afternoon for Washington, D.C. and returned the following day.
AlliedSignal Aerospace issued its annual business aviation forecast last week, a rosy report that projects continued growth in the number of business jets and business jet operators worldwide. Bob Choulet, AlliedSignal's senior vice president of business strategy, said nearly 25 new or derivative business jets are in development, adding that company analysts anticipate delivery of 3,500 new business jets valued at $42 billion over the next decade.
FOKKER Model F28 Mark 0100 series airplanes (Docket No. 94-NM-232-AD; Amdt. 39-9356; AD 95-18-09) - requires modification of the rear spar-to- fuselage attachment. This amendment is prompted by a report indicating that, during full-scale fatigue tests, cracking was found in the coupling plate and web plate of the rear spar end fitting at the attachment to the main frame at fuselage station 17011 due to fatigue-related stress.
Some of the failures that occur at FAA's air route traffic control centers cause "system degradation to a level that can have adverse safety implications," a National Transportation Safety Board official told the House aviation subcommittee Tuesday. Bernard Loeb, director of NTSB's Office of Aviation Safety, told a subcommittee field hearing at the Chicago ARTCC that system outages are caused by "unique failure modes that continue to occur," and he called for a mixture of hardware, procedure and personnel improvements.
JETSTREAM Model 4101 airplanes (Docket No. 94-NM-237-AD) - proposes to supersede an existing AD that requires repetitive purging of the hydraulic system and installation of a certified spoiler actuator. That AD was prompted by a report of damage to the locking mechanisms on some pistons of the spoiler actuators. The actions specified by the AD are intended to prevent uncommanded extension of the lift spoiler in the event of loss of hydraulic pressure in the spoiler actuator.
