CHRISTIAN SCHLEIFER of Austria was appointed to a one-year term as president of the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Air Navigation Commission (ANC), effective Jan. 1. Schleifer has served as ANC commissioner since 2009, and this year he was elected as first vice president. He has an engineering background and has spent 13 years with the Austrian Civil Aviation Authority in the department of certification and airworthiness.
Industry leaders are hoping the White House moves quickly to find a permanent successor to former FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt, saying the uncertainties the industry is facing in 2012 make strong leadership at the agency even more pressing. At the same time, however, they believe Babbitt has built a strong foundation and set a solid direction for the agency that should continue at least in the short term under acting Administrator Michael Huerta.
The Piper Cherokee carrying the Oklahoma State women’s head basketball coach and three others appeared to have been making turns before entering into a steep nose-low descent and slamming into the ground near Perryville, Ark., according to preliminary information released last week by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The Cirrus SR20 is the newest addition to the training fleet of the largest flight school in China. The Civil Aviation Flight University of China (CAFUC), which has more than 8,000 full-time students, has purchased 20 of the Cirrus airplanes for pilot and maintenance technician training at its Luoyang campus. Headquartered in Guanghan City, Sichuan Province, CAFUC comprises four colleges that operate more than 200 aircraft.
House and Senate leaders are near a final deal on comprehensive reauthorization legislation, and some lawmakers are hopeful that an agreement could be reached shortly. Negotiations on the bill reached the highest levels of Congress—Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) met with House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on the FAA bill last week. And while committee-level leaders are focused on passing a reauthorization bill by the end of the year, Reid notes that Congress still has until the end of January before the current authorization expires.
Embraer has sold 15 Embraer 190s to BOC Aviation, a Singapore-based aircraft leasing company. Deliveries will begin in the fourth quarter of 2012 and extend through 2014. Embraer’s newest aircraft leasing customer has placed aircraft with more than 40 airlines worldwide and claims to have one of the youngest fleets in the leasing business, with an average aircraft age of less than four years.
Travel Management Co. is installing Gogo Biz high-speed Internet service on all its mid-size charter aircraft. Installations are underway and are to be completed in the spring of 2012. The deal involves 21 firm orders, plus options for as many as 30 systems for deployment on additional aircraft. Gogo Biz enables passengers and flight crews to use their Wi-Fi enabled laptops, tablets, electronic flight bags, smartphones and other mobile devices at altitudes above 10,000 ft. in the Continental U.S. and portions of Alaska.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) last week became the latest lawmaker to urge President Obama to drop his proposal for a $100 per-flight fee. In a Nov. 28 letter to the president, Murkowski says the fee would obstruct Alaskan transportation and harm the U.S. economy. “While I agree that our nation’s debt must be reduced, increasing taxes on general aviation aircraft through new user fees could stifle economic recovery,” Murkowski says.
Bell Helicopter has received European Aviation Safety Agency certification of its 407GX. FAA and Transport Canada approved the single-engine helicopter earlier this year. Bell is holding more than 60 orders for the Rolls Royce 250-C47B-powered rotorcraft, and initial deliveries are anticipated later this year. The 407GX is equipped with Garmin’s G1000H integrated glass flight deck, which features two 10.4-inch, high-resolution LCD displays, synthetic vision and a terrain avoidance warning system.
European business-aircraft advocates voiced strong opposition to the European Commission’s draft regulation for airport slot allocation, saying the proposal will lead to privileging one category of airspace users over others and have grave implications for local and regional community economies. The European Commission (EC) released its plan to tighten airport takeoff and landing slot use-it-or-lose-it rules as part of a much anticipated airport policy.
PETER LEWIS was appointed senior manager of Jet Aviation Abu Dhabi’s new operations at Al Bateen Executive Airport. Lewis will oversee operations at the facility. He is a 30-year business aviation veteran with experience in maintenance, project management and quality.
Avions De Transport Régional has sold a total of seven ATR 42-600s to Russia’s NordStar Airlines. The carrier, which had placed two orders and two options for the twin turboprops earlier this year, has purchased another three -600s. NordStar, which will be the first operator of the -600 series in the Russian Federation, already flies four ATR 42-500s in the Krasnoyarsk region and Russia’s Far North. A total of 38 ATR aircraft are in service in Russia and the affiliated CIS countries.
CAE will place a new full-flight simulator near Melbourne, Australia during the first half of 2012. The unit will provide pilot and maintenance technician training for operators of Hawker Beechcraft King Air 350i aircraft equipped with Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics. The CAE 5000 series simulator, which will be qualified to Level D by the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority, will be used by both business and military operators in the region. Melbourne will become one of 10 CAE locations worldwide for business aviation training.
Safety investigators are looking into another incident involving a lithium battery overheating aboard an aircraft, this time involving an iPhone 4 carried aboard an Australian Regional Express Airline (Rex) Saab 340B. The most recent incident occurred Nov. 25 aboard Rex Flight ZL319 shortly after the aircraft landed in Sydney, following a flight from Lismore. The airline reported that an iPhone “started emitting a significant amount of dense smoke, accompanied by a red glow, and was dropped to the cabin floor.”
FAA has rescinded its controversial policy that essentially dismantled the Block Aircraft Registration Request (BARR) program. In a statement released Dec. 2, FAA says that, effective immediately, general aviation and charter operators will be able to request that their aircraft registration numbers be withheld from near real-time flight tracking programs without submitting a certified security concern.
The Hawker 200 is the latest victim of the prolonged economic downturn in the business jet industry. On Friday, Hawker Beechcraft Chairman and CEO Bill Boisture informed employees that the firm has decided “to slow the pace of completion of the Hawker 200 certification program” until the economy improves and the light-jet market segment improves. The announcement follows communiqués to vendors last month telling them to cease deliveries of parts for the Hawker 200.
Saudia Private Aviation, the private aviation arm of Saudi Arabian Airlines, will become the world’s largest owner of the Dassault Falcon 7X business jet when it takes delivery of its fourth 7X shortly. Saudi Arabian Airlines already is a Dassault authorized service center.
U.S. groups are concerned about a new European Commission regulation that harmonizes pilot qualification and medical requirements for member states, but imposes a series of requirements for pilots who train and obtain licenses outside the European Union (EU). But general aviation groups are hoping to address those concerns through ongoing bilateral discussions between the U.S. and Europe.
Teal Group VP Richard Aboulafia notes that the business aircraft market is completely “torn in half.” The cyclical market, he says, once was valued at more than $26 billion, more than one-third the size of air transport. Now, Aboulafia said during the Dec. 1 National Aeronautic Association lunch, the top half of the market is growing while the bottom half is suffering its worst downturn in decades. Companies are making profits but not spending, he adds.
Dec. 15—The Wings Club Luncheon featuring Gary Kelly, Chairman, President & CEO, Southwest Airlines, The Yale Club, New York, (212) 867-1770, [email protected] Jan. 11-13, 2012—Airports Council International-NA Insurance & Risk Management Conference, New Orleans, www.aci-na.org/conferences/ Jan. 19, 2012—The Wings Club Luncheon featuring Louis Chenevert, Chairman & CEO, United Technologies Corp., The Yale Club, New York, (212) 867-1770, [email protected]
PATS Aircraft Systems has completed a financial restructuring that formally establishes the Georgetown, Del. supplier and services company as a fully capitalized, stand-alone company with a reduced debt-load, the company says. Under the restructuring, holders of PATS’ senior debt received 100% of the available equity in exchange for reducing their debt amount.
The largest trade organization for U.S. airlines is changing its name from Air Transport Association of America to Airlines For America, a filing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office shows. The association held an event on Nov. 30 to unveil and explain the change. It filed its application for the trademark on Sept. 28. It also has registered the domain name airlinesforamerica.org, according to Godaddy.com, which shows the creation date as Sept. 6. The association came under new leadership this year, with Nick Calio succeeding James May as president and CEO on Jan. 1.
Landmark Aviation added its first location in the San Francisco Bay area and its 12th facility this year with the grand opening of its fixed-base operation (FBO) at Oakland International Airport. As part of a multi-million-dollar renovation, Landmark has upgraded the FBO terminal and is beginning hangar and property improvements. “The last 12 months have been busy for Landmark, with investments nearing $100 million to acquire, expand, upgrade and transition FBO facilities,” says Landmark President and CEO Dan Bucaro.
SIKORSKY S-92A helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2011-1115; Directorate Identifier 2010-SW-011-AD] – This proposed AD would require operators to revise the “Operating Limitations” section of the Rotorcraft Flight Manual. This proposal was prompted by the discovery that engine data was inaccurate in dealing with available above-specification engine-power margin. This proposed AD is intended to prevent the use of inaccurate engine-performance data in calculating maximum gross weight. FAA estimates that this proposal would affect 37 helicopters on the U.S. Registry and cost U.S.
Indonesia is close to making the big leap forward to performance-based navigation (PBN). The country is on air safety blacklists, but is hoping PBN will improve safety, particularly at terrain-constrained airports, as well as ease airport congestion and provide fuel savings for airlines, thanks to more precise and efficient flight paths.
