BILLY MITCHELL was appointed vice president of operations for OAS Aircraft Support and Alabama Aircraft Support. Mitchell has 10 years of maintenance, repair and overhaul experience, and most recently held technical and senior leadership positions for Vector Aerospace in Vancouver, British Columbia.
While the health of the business jet market is frequently tied to corporate profits, analyst Bernstein Research stresses that they are necessary, but not enough to turn the market. “If profits rise due to cost cutting, they do not create demand for business jets,” the analyst says. Bernstein points to the fact that corporate profits doubled from 1994 to 1995, but business jet deliveries remained below 1984 levels. “Now as then, profit growth was led by margin improvement supported by cost reduction,” Bernstein says, noting corporate profits have jumped 55% since 2008.
Jet Aviation was appointed the exclusive maintenance provider for the Art Aviation fleet of aircraft. Founded in 2012 with offices in Vienna and Moscow, Art Aviation operates two Bombardier Global XRS aircraft, two Global 6000s, a Boeing BBJ1, a Dassault Falcon 900Ex and a Falcon 7X. Jet Aviation will provide scheduled base maintenance from its facilities in Geneva and Basel, Switzerland, and line maintenance from its Moscow Vnukovo facility.
Thales is planning to make its touchscreen-driven avionics human interface system available for integration into aircraft and helicopters by 2020. The manufacturer’s “Avionics 2020” vision, which was unveiled at this week’s Paris air show, uses technologies developed from its Avionics 2030 ideas displayed in 2010.
StandardAero Business Aviation received approval as an authorized testing facility for the latest Honeywell TFE731 engine, the -50. StandardAero is offering the testing at its facility in Houston, the only facility outside of the manufacturer currently with TFE731-50 test capability. The approval comes as the fleet approaches its first scheduled, major periodic inspections. StandardAero estimates that more than 350 of the engines are currently in service. The TFE731-50 powers Hawker 900XP aircraft.
FAA took a concrete step toward replacing leaded aviation gasoline, asking fuel producers to submit proposals by July 1, 2014 for possible options to transition to an unleaded fuel. The agency released a request for proposals June 10 for data packages for potential replacement fuels that could be developed by 2018.
June 17-19—National Air Transportation Association 2013 Air Charter Summit, Marriott Dulles, Dulles, Va., 703-845-9000, www.nata.aero Jun 21–22—National Business Aviation Association Flight Attendants/Flight Technicians Conference, Washington, D.C., (703) 783-9000, www.nbaa.org July 11—National Business Aviation Association, Business Aviation Regional Forum, Denver, Colo., (703) 783-9000, www.nbaa.org July 29-Aug. 4—2013 EAA Airventure Oshkosh, Wittman Regional Airport, Oshkosh, Wis., www.airventure.org
The business aviation market remains shaky, according to a number of leading indicators. The inventory of in-production business jets for sale increased (40 bps) in May, while pricing marked the steepest decline (3.6%) since the first half of 2009, reports industry analyst J.P.Morgan. “A single month does not make a trend, but May used market data…suggest that business jet demand will remain weak.” The analyst calls pricing an “important ingredient for recovery” and says low residual values are holding back market improvements.
A group of 28 senators are appealing to FAA Administrator Michael Huerta to drop the agency’s plan to charge the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) for federal air traffic controller expenses during next month’s AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wis. In a June 6 letter, the senators say the plan marks a “shift in policy by the FAA to charge for air traffic services [that] is tantamount to an imposition of a new user fee on general aviation.”
Pilatus plans to establish a manufacturing facility in India, as the country looks at acquiring more aircraft from the Swiss aircraft maker. The facility will initially manufacture airframes for its single-engine turboprop PC-12 aircraft. “This will be our third support facility for PC-12 aircraft, the other two being in Portugal and Poland. It will be part of our offset commitment in India,” says Pilatus Vice President Jim Roche.
FlightSafety International held a groundbreaking last week to expand and renovate its Teterboro, N.J., facility. The expansion will increase the size of the center by 50%, providing space to accommodate up to eight full flight simulators and facilities for emergency training that requires a pool and other specialized equipment. The renovated center will include classrooms, aircraft cabin training facilities and office areas. The project is slated for completion in early 2014. The center offers training for a range of Dassault Falcon Jet models.
Renovations of the Jet Centre at London City Airport are now complete and a Border Force officer has been installed, supporting the facility’s pledge to whisk business aircraft passengers from plane to car within 60 sec. The airport-owned FBO now features an improved reception area, large passenger lounge, private meeting room, ground floor crew rest area and security screening area, as well as the border checking station. The privately-owned, single-runway, airline-served airport, located just 3 mi. from Canary Wharf and 7 mi.
Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association continues to expand its commercial service offerings, this time in the financing arena, which has been a significant drag on growth in some market niches. The association hopes to provide its members greater access to financing for both new purchases and upgrades through its newly launched brokerage: AOPA Aviation Finance Company (AAF).
BELL HELICOPTER TEXTRON Model 206A, 206B, 206L, 206L-1, 206L-3, 206L-4, 222, 222B, 222U, 230, 407, 427, and 430 helicopters. [Docket No. FAA-2013-0400; Directorate Identifier 2009-SW-48-AD] – proposes to require inspecting each bearing to determine if it has been properly staked and replacing the bearing or assembly if it has not been staked properly. This proposed AD is prompted by bearings not being staked as required and migrating out of their proper position, which may limit the functionality of the affected part.
The European Aviation Safety Agency has set a 2016 goal to rewrite regulations governing small aircraft, with the aim of incorporating many of the recommendations of the internationally-based Part 23 Reorganization Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC). EASA is one of several international communities working in concert to lay the groundwork for one of the most ambitious overhauls of certification regulations ever undertaken.
Dassault Falcon Jet is planning a $60 million expansion of its completion center in Little Rock, Ark. Already the largest facility in the Dassault company with 1 million sq. ft. under roof, the expansion will add another 250,000 sq. ft. under roof including an additional 300 x 800 sq ft hangar, which will be largely dedicated to a new Falcon model named SMS that is expected to be formally unveiled at the NBAA convention in October.
Beechcraft handed over its 4,000th Model 36 Bonanza single-engine aircraft, pushing the entire fleet of Model 35, 33 and 36 Bonanzas to more than 18,000. The 4,000th Model 36, a G36, was delivered to Segall Group, a retail brokerage firm based in Baltimore, Md. Segall will use the six-seat piston aircraft aircraft for site visits and client meetings for its real-estate deals in the mid-Atlantic region. The Bonanza line in Wichita, Kan., is the longest-running continuous production line of any aircraft, spanning 66 years. Beechcraft delivered its first Bonanzas in 1947.
Pilatus Aircraft sold a special mission PC-12 NG Spectre aircraft to the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) for use in supporting local agencies along the Texas-Mexico border. The aircraft, which Texas officials dubbed the “Bobby Doherty” after a Texas Ranger who was killed in the line of duty, also will used for disaster relief support, aerial observation and as an aerial command center. The single-engine turboprop, which can carry two pilots and seven passengers, was fitted with specific communications, mapping and surveillance systems for the missions.
DAVE ROSENBERG was appointed vice president of strategic planning and programs for Beechcraft. Rosenberg will oversee commercial product development programs, along with analyzing potential joint ventures and acquisitions. He joined the company in 2000 and since has held positions of increasing responsibility in financial planning, business management, strategic planning and operations. Rosenberg most recently was director of the Hawker 4000 product line and general manager of the piston product line.
TWIN COMMANDER Models 690, 690A,and 690B airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2013-0393; Directorate Identifier 2012-CE-025-AD; Amendment 39-17446; AD 2013-09-05] — requires inspection for cracking of the outer fuselage attachments, the lower wing main spar, the vertical channels, the upper picture window channels, aft cabin pressure web, external wing to fuselage fillets, and fasteners; repair or replacement of damaged parts as necessary; and modification of the structure with reinforced parts.
TAI EASON has joined TWC Aviation as director of sales and acquisition. Eason, who has 13 years of business aviation experience, founded and was president of Wealth Aviation, which specialized in the sales and acquisition of Gulfstream, Bombardier, Hawker, Cessna and Dassault aircraft. She also managed the West Coast office of Atlanta Jet and began her career at Mirage resorts, where she worked for the CEO as an executive assistant and flight attendant.
SyberJet is making plans to return the SJ30 light jet to production within two years with the selection of Cedar City, Utah, as the location of its headquarters and new assembly plant. MT LLC, which acquired the SJ30 program from bankruptcy in April 2011 and renamed the operation SyberJet, has since been updating and refining the aircraft with the hopes of bringing it back into production as the light business jet market improves.
LARRY PEET was named director of sales for Hangar Ten’s new aircraft sales program that is designed to focus on coaching. Peet, a 30-year aviation veteran, formerly was director of operations and aircraft sales for Port City Air in Portsmouth, N.H. He also has served as vice president of aircraft sales for Carolina Jet in New England, and spent nine years with in sales and marketing at Cessna.
