The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York is siding with union representatives in arguments that Hawker Beechcraft should not be permitted to distribute bonuses under a “key employee incentive plan” (KEIP). The court on Aug. 24 denied the company’s plan, saying Hawker Beechcraft failed to prove that KEIP is a incentive plan rather than a retention program.
Aviation industry groups are urging the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to increase pressure on the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to issue long-delayed foreign repair station certification rules. The TSA failed to meet a congressional mandate to develop security rules for repair stations by August 2004, and as a result the FAA has been prohibited from issuing new foreign repair station certificates until the rule is issued; the TSA says it plans to issue the rule by the end of this year.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has scheduled a meeting for today (Aug. 27) to discuss the probable cause of the Sept. 16, 2011 crash of an experimental, vintage P-51D Mustang during the National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nevada. NTSB last week opened the public docket containing the investigation files. The aircraft, The Galloping Ghost, crashed into a spectator box, killing the pilot and 10 people on the ground and injuring more than 60 others. The Mustang had experienced an upset while turning between pylons 8 and 9 on the race course.
EUROCOPTER FRANCE Model AS332C, L, and L1 helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2012-0795; Directorate Identifier 2008-SW-53-AD] – proposes to require a one-time inspection of the main rotor head (MRH) swash-plate upper bearing for a nonsmooth point (friction point). This proposed AD is prompted by a report of the premature deterioration of the MRH bearing of the rotating star installed on a Model AS332L1 helicopter.
RON LADNIER was appointed director of military business development for FlightSafety International’s Simulation facility in Tulsa, Okla. Ladnier joined FlightSafety after serving with the U.S. Air Force as a pilot, logistician and commander, obtaining the rank of major general. He has more than 4,700 hr. as a pilot and instructor flying C-141A/B, C-17A, KC-135R (Boeing 707) and C-21 (Learjet 35) aircraft.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) is looking at “see and be seen” practices for visual flight rules (VFR) as part of its investigation of the May 28 midair collision of a Hawker Beechcraft V35 Bonanza carrying a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) employee and a Piper PA-28-140 Cherokee flown by an FAA accident investigator employee near Warrenton, Va.
Aero Air, at the Portland-Hillsboro International Airport (HIO), broke ground on a new 30,000-sq.-ft. hangar that will provide additional space for the company’s maintenance and hangar lease business. The project also will include 3,000 sq. ft. of office space. The facility is slated to open in November. Aero Air currently occupies a 75,000-sq.-ft. facility at the airport and operates a Class IV repair station.
While the focus in Washington has remained on possible $1 trillion across-the-board budget cuts, business aviation advocates are concerned that negotiations to avoid those cuts could open the door to user fees, extended depreciation or other proposals.
BRET SAWYER was promoted to director, military programs for FlightSafety’s simulation facility. Sawyer joined FlightSafety in 1990 and has worked with the training company’s military programs, strategic planning and business development. He formerly served in the U.S. Air Force, specializing in electronic warfare systems.
ALPHA AVIATION Model R2160 Airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2012-0798; Directorate Identifier 2012-CE-023-AD] – proposes to require an inspection of air filters with P/N 57.34.00.010 to determine if a metallic mesh is fitted. The proposal is prompted by a report from the European Aviation Safety Agency that a nonconforming air filter was founded on an overseas aircraft during maintenance. Investigation revealed that certain air filters with P/N 57.34.00.010 supplied between June 2009 and April 2012 may not have the metallic mesh inside the filter.
FAA does not expect further extensions of the comment period for proposed repair station certification and classification requirements beyond the additional 90 days the agency has allotted for trade associations to review and address concerns with the proposed overhaul of Part 145 rules.
Jettech obtained FAA supplemental type certification (STC) for installation of Garmin’s touchscreen GTN 650/750 GPS/NAV/COM on Cessna Citation 500 series aircraft. The STC covers Models 500, 501, 550, 551, S550 and 560 business jets and includes the installation of Garmin GTX 33’s transponders, remote GMA35 audio panels, and GA35/37 antennas. In addition, the STC facilitates WAAS approvals.
FAA plans to seek public input on the weight limitations for helicopters under Part 27, but rejected a request by Bell Helicopter to boost the gross weight of the 429 helo beyond the 7,000-lb. threshold.
Business jet makers, still searching for global economic stability, are finding more solid footing in the Latin American market and have taken efforts to expand their presence in the region. The Latin American business jet fleet has grown by 10% in the past year, outpacing most regions worldwide, except Asia, analyst Brian Foley notes, citing JetNet data.
The University of North Dakota (UND) is getting ready to launch an unusual joint program with the Grand Forks County Sheriff’s Department that it hopes will establish a template for law enforcement use of small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). Planned to begin in early October, pending FAA approvals, the program will see UND Department of Aviation personnel operating up to four small fixed- and rotary-wing UAS in support of the police anywhere within 16 counties in northeast North Dakota.
The Pentagon recently agreed to a broad U.S. Navy plan to develop and buy presidential replacement helicopters, but some defense analysts say the program is still dragging. The U.S. Navy in May proposed a conceptual acquisition strategy to the Pentagon “that would use mature technology to satisfy user requirements,” says Navy Capt. Catherine Mueller.
Hawker Beechcraft Global Customer Support (GCS) has begun offering Blackhawk engine upgrades on Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21-equipped King Air 200 aircraft. The upgrade replaces the original Pratt & Whitney PT6A-41 or -42 engines with new PT6A-52 engines, along with a new-engine warranty (2,500 hr./5 years coverage on primary parts).
While industry groups push the Department of Homeland Security to release the long-awaited repair station security rule (see article on Page 3), the Transportation Trades Department (AFL-CIO) is asking that the proposal be strengthened before it is released. “We are concerned that the industry groups asking for swift completion of a final rule are not motivated by the need to enhance the security of contract repair stations, but rather by the desire to remove the current moratorium on the U.S.
Sino Jet Management Limited, the Hong Kong-based jet services provider that formed a marketing alliance with U.S.-based TWC Aviation earlier this year, has added a second aircraft to be operated under the alliance. Sino Jet is operating a 10-passenger Gulfstream G200 super midsize jet, which joins a Global Express already operated under the marketing alliance.
General Electric ’s decision to assume responsibility for the engine, nacelle and thrust reverser—rather than just the engine—for its Passport business jet engine project has worked so well that it hopes to replicate the approach in future programs, a GE Aviation executive tells Aviation Week.
Embraer Executive Jets has milled the first part for its mid-light Legacy 450 executive jet, marking the beginning of fabrication for the new aircraft. Embraer Executive Jets President Ernest Edwards calls the first metal cut a significant milestone that brings the second of the company’s two new business jets “to reality.”
With the prospect of unmanned aircraft owned by one country flying through airspace controlled by another, as manned aircraft routinely do today, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is working to develop global standards for their certification and operation. The first package of standards for what ICAO calls remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) will become applicable on Nov. 15. “This is the tip of a complete regulatory framework,” says Leslie Cary, secretary of ICAO’s unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) study group.
EUROCOPTER FRANCE Model EC155B1 helicopters with a certain automated flight control system installed [Docket No. FAA-2012-0766; Directorate Identifier 2012-SW-056-AD; Amendment 39-17133; AD 2012-15-04] – requires changing the minimum required crew for instrument flight rules (IFR) operations from one pilot to two. This AD is prompted by a report that an EC155B1 helicopter experienced significant intermittent roll oscillations while coupled to the autopilot.
