MILLER AVIATION, Johnson City, N.Y., was selected to provide its FBO Management Information System (FBO.MIS) software package to Banyan Air Service of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. and Downtown Airpark of Oklahoma City, Okla. The software offers interactive accounting, inventory, and point of sale information for general aviation businesses. Miller has supplied its FBO.MIS system to more than 70 fixed-base locations nationwide.
FLIGHTSAFETY INTERNATIONAL sold its interest in PowerSafety International, Inc., a company providing training programs and equipment to the power and utility industry, to Babcock&Wilcox, an operating unit of McDermott International, Inc. FSI said it divested itself of its PowerSafety interest "to focus on its core businesses." Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
A lengthy and hotly contested competition by the Japanese Air Self- Defense Force has finally concluded with the selection of Gulfstream Aerospace to provide nine Gulfstream IV business jets that will be used for a variety of missions. Gulfstream's selection follows nearly four years of intense competition that pitted Gulfstream against Dassault Aviation of France (which was bidding the Falcon 900B) and Canadair (which was offering the Challenger 601) for the U-X contract to provide a fleet of long-range, multi-mission aircraft.
DORNIER received an order from Lone Star Airlines for four Do 328 high- speed commuter turboprops with options for an additional four. The first will enter scheduled service this month between Dallas/Fort Worth and Chihuahua, Mexico. The Lone Star order brings to 76 the number of firm orders for the 328 plus 75 options from 17 customers. Eighteen have been delivered.
A coalition of 22 associations representing most segments of the aviation community has endorsed a five-point position paper it hopes will frame the discussion in the upcoming congressional debate over proposed changes in the structure of the Federal Aviation Administration and the operation of the nation's air traffic control system.
Cessna Aircraft Chairman Russ Meyer said the company expects to break ground in April for a new single-engine aircraft assembly plant in Independence, Kan., where Cessna officials were warmly welcomed Dec. 21 when they announced the new plant would be built in that southeastern Kansas community (BA, Dec. 12/253). Independence was selected over four other Kansas cities - Emporia, Hays, Manhattan and Pittsburg - that were in the final running to become the site of the new plant.
FAA is proposing to impose special certification conditions for the Dassault Falcon 2000 automatic takeoff thrust control system (ATTCS). FAA regulations do not contain adequate safety standards for approach climb performance using ATTCS and the additional conditions would establish an appropriate level of safety, the agency said. For more information on the special conditions, contact Stephen Slotte in the FAA standardization branch at (206) 227-2797. $end 10 AIRWORTHINESS DIRECTIVES
Cessna Aircraft has sold four modified Citation Ultras to Korean Air Lines for crew training. The contract calls for the first Ultra to be delivered in second quarter 1995. "The Citation Ultras will provide KAL with a step-up aircraft between their piston-engine and turboprop fleet and their airliners," said Gary Hay, Cessna senior vice president of marketing and product support.
FOKKER AIRCRAFT received an order from Air UK, Great Britain, for a Fokker 50 regional turboprop and delivered an F100 jet to TAM of Brazil. Air UK, which placed eight F50s into service this year, will take delivery of its ninth in March. The 50 will replace an F27 MK200. TAM, which is based in Sao Paulo, recently took delivery of an F100, its 15th Fokker aircraft. TAM originally began operating the F100 in 1990.
Peacock Aerospace, Norwalk, Conn., will be sold to Derlan, Inc., of Santa Ana, Calif., for $2.5 million, according to Peacock's parent company, Struthers Industries. R. Michael Still, president and chief executive of Tulsa, Okla.-based Struthers, said, "The disposal of Peacock will eliminate a drain on Struthers' earnings." Peacock makes landing gears, cylinders, pistons and engine mounts. Derlan's products include aircraft external fuel tanks and electronic pods, pylons and launch vehicle structural components.
Federal Aviation Administration is soliciting help to develop innovative financing concepts for airport development. FAA specifically is seeking information on loans of federal funds, federal guarantees for loan repayment, Airport Improvement Program (AIP) or federal funding of loan insurance and AIP funding for debt service reserves. FAA also asked for other ideas for airport financing as well as the identification of "federal policy impediments" to private investment in airport development. FAA asked that responses to be sent before Jan.
JOHN DORENBECHER has joined The CIT Group/Industrial Financing's Business Aircraft Division as district manager. Dorenbecher, who will be based in San Francisco, will oversee financing of corporate jet aircraft and turbine helicopters in the West and Northwest.
The Federal Aviation Administration last month imposed special operating procedures during icing conditions for all Beech Model 400, 400A, 400T and MU-300 aircraft. FAA said the special operating procedures are necessary because tests demonstrated that ice accumulation on the horizontal stabilizer may cause the airplane to pitch down at certain flap settings. Additionally, the agency received a report of tailplane icing occurring during a maintenance flight of a Model 400A airplane.
Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association filed a Freedom of Information Act request asking FAA to release records, reports and studies used in developing a comprehensive proposal of airman medical standards. FAA in late October issued the proposal that would change standards for first-, second- and third-class airman medical certificates. Those changes address everything from extending the duration of third-class airman medical certificates for pilots under age 40 to requiring an electrocardiogram for second-class medical applicants 35 years and older.
WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC's MR-3000 weather radar received certification for airline use. Westinghouse expects to receive a supplemental type certificate for the radar as a predictive windshear system on its BAC-111 this month. The radar, designed to detect and map weather and predict windshears, draws on techniques developed for military radars and uses Doppler processing technology. Another version, the MR-4000, has been in production for two years for military applications.
RAYTHEON CORPORATE JETS Model BH/HS 125-600A and -700A series airplanes (Docket No. 94-NM-74-AD; Amdt. 39-9079; AD 94-24-06) - requires installation of two new circuit breakers in the six-volt output circuits of the flight deck lighting transformers on electrical Panel RY, below the right pilot's seat. This amendment is prompted by a report of smoke in the flight deck due to a lighting transformer six-volt output circuit short circuiting to ground.
AIRPORT SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL has signed an agreement with Interstate Electronics Corp. for joint development and marketing of ground-based aircraft landing systems using Global Positioning System satellite signals. The landing system will calculate corrections to the basic GPS signal and transmit them to aircraft on final approach. Airport Systems will market the product to civil aviation authorities and Interstate Electronics will focus on domestic and international military customers.
GE CAPITAL named Denis Nayden president and chief operating officer. Nayden will report to Gary Wendt, chairman and chief executive officer. He was president and chief operating officer of Kidder, Peabody until Dec. 16, when it was sold to Paine Webber.
Flight International, the Newport News, Va. aviation services company that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February, received approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Eastern Virginia for a joint plan of reorganization. Under the plan, existing common stock of The Flight International Group, Inc. will be canceled and one million shares of new common stock will be issued. Shareholders of record on Dec. 20 will receive 10 percent of the new common stock and 51 percent of the new common stock will be issued to unsecured creditors owed more than $2,000.
CESSNA AIRCRAFT appointed Avemex Ventas S.A. de C.V. of Mexico City an authorized sales representative for the Caravan utility turboprop. Avemex has served as the authorized sales representative for Cessna Citations since 1984. Avemex, which employs 150, also is a Citation Service Center.
The Federal Aviation Administration published a final rule giving operators of aircraft with 10 to 30 seats only until Dec. 31, 1995, to install TCAS I (traffic alert and collision avoidance system) units. The rule, published in the Dec. 29 Federal Register, gives operators of these aircraft very little compliance time considering they had been led to believe the deadline would be extended into 1997, according to Walter Coleman, president of the Regional Airline Association.
FLIGHTSAFETY INTERNATIONAL is co-sponsoring four MU-2 seminars early this year with Mitsubishi. The Pilot's Review of Proficiency Seminars will cover topics such as cockpit resource management, icing conditions, auto- pilot/flight control systems and general operating tips. The seminars, being offered at no charge, will be held Jan. 21 in Salt Lake City, Utah, Feb. 11 in Newark, N.J., Feb. 28 in Tulsa, Okla. and March 11 in Augusta, Ga. For more information or to register, contact June Spence at the FlightSafety Houston learning center at (800) 927-1521.
Officials from FAA, the National Transportation Safety Board and Avions de Transport Regional met Thursday and Friday to review the results of icing tests the company conducted last month to determine whether to lift a ban on flying the ATR-42 and ATR-72 in forecast or known icing conditions. See article below. The Association of Flight Attendants (AFA), saying it represents "hundreds of flight attendants working on ATR aircraft," is urging DOT Secretary Federico Pena to make sure that FAA does not rescind the ban.
DIABETICS might be permitted to obtain an airman medical certificate under a policy change being considered by FAA. Under current regulations, individuals who take insulin or any other hypoglycemic drug to control diabetes are prohibited from holding an airman medical certificate.
RAYTHEON CORPORATE JETS Model BAe 125-1000A and Hawker 1000 series airplanes (Docket No. 94-NM-77-AD; Amdt. 39-9081; AD 94-24-08) - requires the installation of additional vent areas in the central fuselage. This amendment is prompted by an analysis that indicated an explosive decompression could not be vented adequately with the currently installed floor venting system. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent collapse of the floor and subsequent injury to passengers and crew in the event of an explosive decompression of the fuselage.
