VARIOUS SIKORSKY MANUFACTURED AND RESTRICTED CATEGORY Sikorsky Model S-61A, D, E, L, N, NM (serial number 61454), R, and V; Croman Corporation Model SH-3H, Carson Helicopters, Inc., Model S-61L; Glacier Helicopters, Inc. Model CH-3E; Robinson Air Crane, Inc. Model CH-3E, CH-3C, HH-3C, and HH-3E; and Siller Helicopters Model CH-3E and SH-3A helicopters. [Docket No.
ARINC Direct this summer is planning to begin delivery of its new Xplore device, a portable unit that is designed to bring ACARS services typically found only on large business jets and airliners to a range of aircraft. The Xplore unit combines four capabilities in a portable box – ACARS messaging services, SMS and instant messaging, voice services and BlackBerry email. The device can be attached by Velcro or thumb screws to a panel mount.
Beechcraft executives are having “several conversations” about the sale of the Premier and Hawker 4000 programs, said Shawn Vick, president of Beechcraft International Services Co., during last week’s European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition in Geneva, but he was cautious about a timeline for an agreement. Those talks are proceeding along a “structured cadence” that Vick hopes will conclude this year.
Gulfstream recently added two G150s to its Field and Airborne Support Teams (FAST) operations, replacing the G100s that were in the fleet. Gulfstream will maintain a G100 as a backup for airborne maintenance service. The aircraft are used to transport technicians and parts across the U.S., Canada, Central American and the Caribbean. The fleet upgrade is part of a number of initiatives to expand and enhance its FAST program. Gulfstream is adding a third shift of pilots and named a new chief pilot, Tenille Cromwell, for the program.
Most manufacturer executives attending last week’s European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva agreed that the European market is continuing to lag. “Across the show we heard a consistent lament – potential business jet customers have the money, but many are not stepping up to buy new jets,” RBC Capital Markets analyst Robert Stallard notes. But it was not all bad news, Stallard says.
A year after Jet Aviation’s completions woes had “blemished” an otherwise strong financial performance at parent company General Dynamics, Jet Aviation President Dan Clare says the business has put new systems and processes in place and that customers have been happy with the results.
FlightSafety International has received European Aviation Safety Agency approval for 49 of its practical maintenance training courses under Regulation 1149/2011 so far. The regulation calls for all previously approved practical maintenance training courses to comply with a training needs analysis requirement by Aug. 1. FlightSafety has made the requisite changes to the remainder of its practical maintenance training courses and has submitted them to EASA for approval. The training specialist expects to receive approval for the remaining courses before the Aug.
The White House has announced it will nominated Michael Whitaker, an airline industry veteran, to fill the deputy FAA administrator role left vacant by Michael Huerta’s Jan. 1 appointment as head of the agency. Whitaker, who currently works for the air transport division of Indian conglomerate InterGlobe Enterprises, has more than 20 years of experience in the airline industry, first with Trans World Airlines and then at United, where he worked for 15 years.
Dubai-based United Aviation Services (UAS) has begun offering free trip planning services for business aviation customers. UAS had dedicated a team of professionals to work with customers on details of flight operation, weather briefings, fuel and travel scheduling. This includes full route planning, trip cost estimates, fuel stop planning, airport briefs, information on equipment and handling, general information, customs advisory services and security/risk assessment.
As illegal charters and shoddy customer service practices chase away prospective customers from business aviation, Jens Henry Dreyer, managing director of charter brokerage Aviation Broker, is developing a forum to encourage community discussions on solving the issue. Charter practices are highly regulated in the U.S., Dreyer says. Controls on European operations are more lax, leaving open the way to all sorts of problems and little to no passenger rights. “The system is not clean,” Dreyer says.
EUROCOPTER DEUTSCHLAND Model MBB-BK 117 C2 helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2012-0773; Directorate Identifier 2009-SW-71-AD; Amendment 39-17352; AD 2013-03-18] – requires inspecting the long tail rotor drive shaft assembly for blind rivets, and if any blind rivets are installed, replacing that shaft assembly. This AD was prompted by the discovery that some helicopters have blind rivets installed in the place of solid rivets in the long tail rotor drive shaft.
Cessna’s slowdown of light jet production is just that and not a suspension, President and CEO Scott Ernest noted at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva. “You don’t stop a production line,” says the executive, who spent nearly three decades overseeing supply chain matters with GE Aviation before taking the reins at the Wichita plane maker in 2011.
BELL Model 204B and 205A-1 helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2013-0379; Directorate Identifier 2009-SW-26-AD] – supersedes an AD for helicopters with a certain tail rotor pitch control chain installed. The existing AD requires visually inspecting the chain to detect a crack in the link segments and, for affected Model 205A-1 helicopters, replacing the tail rotor chain and cable control system with a push-pull control system. Since issuing that AD, FAA has determined the need to apply the requirements to a newly-produced, similarly-designed chain with a different part number.
June 6—National Business Aviation Association Business Aviation Regional Forum, White Plains, N.Y., (703) 783-9000, www.nbaa.org 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
EUROCOPTER FRANCE Model AS350B, BA, B1, B2, B3, and D, and Model AS355E, F, F1, F2, and N helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2013-0351; Directorate Identifier 2009-SW-049-AD] – proposes, for affected helicopters with certain tail rotor (T/R) blades, installing additional rivets to secure each T/R blade trailing edge tab, and inspecting for evidence of debonding of the tab after the rivets are installed. This proposed AD is prompted by reports of T/R blade tab debonding.
Fresh from January’s acquisition of the former Jet Aviation facility at London Biggin Hill, the 328 Group has developed a new dedicated business jet arm known as JETS. Under the 328 brand sits 328 Support Services GmbH, the type certificate holder for all Dornier Do 328 aircraft, plus 328 Design GmbH. The JETS brand covers a range of VIP and business aircraft support services in Germany and the U.K. The Biggin Hill buy also means that JETS now has the group’s first-ever fixed-base operation (FBO).
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit vacated a lawsuit combining claims by airports groups and local communities against the FAA over continuation of the contract air traffic control tower program, as the groups seek a permanent legislative fix.
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and Experimental Aircraft Association are concerned that FAA’s plan to charge the EAA for air traffic controller expenses during AirVenture in late July is another step for the agency to seek new revenue flows to offset its costs.
Pilatus Aircraft Ltd finally unveiled the PC-24 on May 21, outlining a single-pilot, clean-sheet turbofan aircraft that will offer the short, soft-field versatility of the PC-12, the cabin volume of a midsize aircraft and the cruise speed of a light jet. The aircraft, the first Pilatus jet in decades, will be priced at $8.9 million in 2017 U.S. dollars, and its closest direct competitor will be the Embraer Phenom 300.
Sheltair is working with international travelers transiting through its Ronkonkoma, N.Y., fixed-base operation to prepare for new Customs services coming to Long Island MacArthur Airport (KISP). These include Global Entry, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) program that permits expedited clearance for pre-approved travelers entering the U.S. In addition, the airport is building a new CBP facility and is expected to be able to accept non-U.S. citizen general aviation international arrivals soon.
Beechcraft is upping its product development spending by 300% as the company studies potential for a new single-engine turboprop, derivative diesel variants of its Beechcraft Bonanza and Baron aircraft and upgrades and/or derivatives of its King Air and other models, says Shawn Vick, president of Beechcraft International Services Co.
Honda Aircraft has begun flying its fifth conforming HondaJet aircraft, but its certification is likely still more than a year away. GE Honda pushed back certification of the HF120 engine that will power the HondaJet until later this year, which means most certification flight trials cannot begin until that point. Honda Aircraft continues to fly the aircraft, and President and CEO Michimasa Fujino says some of the work accomplished will count toward certification, but most of the certification flights will begin after engine certification.
ExcelAire received approval to operate its fleet of Embraer Legacy 600 business jets into London City Airport (LCY). ExcelAire has five Legacy 600s in its fleet. The approval requires special certification and training for London City operations.
ROBINSON R22, R22 Alpha, R22 Beta, and R22 Mariner helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2013-0380; Directorate Identifier 2012-SW-067-AD] – proposes to require for helicopters with certain fuel shutoff valves installed, replacing the fuel shutoff valve with a newer design fuel shutoff valve. This proposed AD is prompted by three accidents that occurred because the fuel shutoff valve was inadvertently moved to the “off” position.
European officials, who joined European Business Aviation Association and National Business Aviation Association leaders to kick off the 13th annual European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition on May 21, are underscoring the need to work together to shape the future of the air traffic control system and ensure that business aviation has fair and equitable treatment.
