Flexjet has used the recession to concentrate its fleet and focus on owner retention, says Bruce Peddle, vice president of sales and marketing. Flexjet’s fleet, which numbered 113 aircraft in 2008, has been whittled down to 84 aircraft. This has come mostly through retirement, Peddle says, enabling Flexjet to keep the average age of aircraft in its fleet at 4.5 years. While Flexjet has remained profitable during the past couple of years and sales are up 120% year-to-date, the company is going to continue its path of fleet replacement rather than significant growth.
BOMBARDIER DHC-8-102, -103, -106, -201, -202, -301, -311 and -315 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2011-0479; Directorate Identifier 2010-NM-154-AD; Amendment 39-16827; AD 2011-21-04] – Rework the cockpit door striker plate and replace the latch block, per the instructions of Bombardier Service Bulletin 8-52-61 (dated Oct. 20, 2006). This AD, which supersedes an existing directive (AD 2006-12-16) and resulted from an MCAI originated by Transport Canada, is intended to ensure that the cockpit door can be removed to permit emergency egress.
DIAMOND AIRCRAFT INDUSTRIES DA 40 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2011-0687; Directorate Identifier 2011-CE-017-AD; Amendment 39-16833; AD 2011-21-10] – For airplanes equipped with a cabin air-conditioning vapor cycle system (VCS) STCed by Premier Aircraft Services, deactivate the system, remove the VCS compressor and bracket, and revise the aircraft’s weight and balance chart. This AD was prompted by reports of damage around the VCS compressor mounting areas. FAA estimates that this directive will affect 11 airplanes on the U.S. Registry and cost U.S.
Ruag’s Do 228NG has begun a three-week road show that will take it from the National Business Aviation Association’s annual conference in Las Vegas to California, Texas and Florida before being paraded at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, and then on to Canada. Currently, 15 classic Do 228s are operating in the U.S., according to FAA data. The NG is manufactured under EASA certification, and the improvements that make it an NG – such as avionics, engines, five-bladed propellers and 300 other enhancements – are STC’d by that agency.
Jon Anne Doty was named vice president of sales and marketing for North Carolina-based charter operator Renaissance Jet. She will manage the company’s social media and traditional marketing campaigns. She came from aviation startup Social Flights, where she also handled the traditional marketing efforts and the social media presence of Corporate Flight Management as charter sales manager.
BOMBARDIER Challenger 300 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2011-1064; Directorate Identifier 2011-NM-075-AD] – This proposed AD would require operators to revise the approved maintenance schedule to include two new tasks — a functional test of the Horizontal Stabilizer Trim Actuator (HSTA) No Back and a functional test of the HSTA Brake System — to ensure that a dormant failure of either component is detected and corrected.
Cessna President and CEO Scott Ernest acknowledges a number of internal changes have occurred within Cessna since he took the reins in late May. Bringing a 29-year GE management background to Cessna, Ernest tells Aviation Week he is hoping to apply some of the lessons learned over the years, including process efficiencies and streamlined leadership. “We’re reorganized into a product management structure,” he says, focused on what the next product will be in three to five years.
FlightSafety has received FAA regulatory approval for its corporate cabin attendant training program. The company can now deliver Part 135 records of training with approval from the operator’s principal operations inspector. The training meets the majority of domestic and international regulatory requirements, including FAA 14 CFR Part 135.331, as well as International Civil Aviation Organization and International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations recommendations. FlightSafety’s corporate cabin attendant training is now available at the Long Beach Learning Center.
Gulfstream Aerospace has introduced its PlaneBook app, an electronic document management system for iPad. The app provides pilots easy and immediate access to critical flight information and aircraft-specific documents, such as the Airplane Flight Manual, Operating Manual, pilot checklist and the Quick Reference Handbook (QRH). The electronic version of the QRH, which includes emergency flight procedures, serves as the master document that links to all other documents for easy cross-referencing.
The first Embraer aircraft to be assembled at the company’s U.S. plant in Melbourne, Fla., is in the final stages and on schedule for delivery by the end of the year. The Phenom 100 is currently having its interior installed and is expected to go to the paint hangar at the Melbourne plant in the first week in November, five months after the manufacturer delivered the aircraft’s fuselage and wing parts. The wing mate on the facility’s second Phenom 100 is also complete, and subassemblies for a third jet are now on site.
Signature Flight Support UK has created a dedicated customer support team and hotline to handle the influx of private aircraft during the Summer Olympic Games in London next year. Signature has locations at airports encircling the Olympic venues, and its 24-hr. hotline will assist customers in arranging slots, handling, drop and go and long-stay parking at Signature remote reliever sites, as well as offering access to an extensive U.K.-wide hotel network, dedicated general aviation caterers, crew accommodations, rental cars and competitive fuel pricing.
26,077: The National Business Aviation Association’s (NBAA) 64th Annual Meeting and Convention drew 26,077 attendees last week in Las Vegas. “What we are seeing is that the show is providing real value to the business aviation community, even in these challenging economic times,” says NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen, calling the three-day event “a highly successful show.” Attendance was up 7% from last year’s convention in Atlanta.
Hawker Beechcraft’s super-midsize Hawker 4000 business jet has received Brazilian type certification from the National Civil Aviation Agency of Brazil (ANAC). The Hawker 4000 is the first composite-fuselage aircraft to receive Brazilian certification. The aircraft has won certification from Europe, Bermuda, China, Honduras, India, the Isle of Man, New Zealand, Nigeria, South Africa, Turkey, UAE and the U.S.
Mike Bunney was named senior vice president of Nordam. Bunney will oversee Nordam’s supply chain, information technology and human resource departments. He has 34 years of aviation experience, having served with McDonnell Douglas and Boeing, including director of logistics for Boeing in Seattle. Most recently, he was chief economic officer for the city of Tulsa, Okla.
Stan Younger was appointed to lead Bombardier’s aircraft service center network. Younger succeeds Michael McQuay, who is retiring in May after a 40-year career in aviation. Younger and McQuay will work closely together during a transitional period. Younger joins Bombardier with more than 20 years of experience in aircraft product support. He most recently was head of Cessna’s 10 company-owned service facilities.
Lord Corporation’s engine mount for the new Embraer 450 /500 business jet recently passed the critical design review stage. The Fluidlastic engine mounts are an integral part of the performance of the new jet. Fluidlastic mounts provide a minimum dynamic stiffness at the key engine driving frequency for optimal engine vibration attenuation that is very important for high-end business jets like the Embraer Legacy 450 and Legacy 500.
National Business Aviation Association President and CEO Ed Bolen remains encouraged that the business aviation community continues to gain allies on Capitol Hill as it continues its fight to combat the Obama administration’s proposals for a $100 per-flight user fee and other additional taxes on business aircraft. “Our industry is beginning to make its size and strength felt on Capitol Hill, and that’s important because the challenges are not going away,” Bolen says.
Oct 17-19—Air Medical Transport Conference, St. Louis, Mo. Oct. 17-20—Lockheed Martin Corp.’s 2011 Hercules Operators Conference, Renaissance Waverly Hotel, Atlanta, www.lockheedmartinpackers.com Oct. 19-20—Heli Power 2011, Five at Farnborough, England, www.shephard.co.uk Oct. 19-21—Seventh Annual International Air Transport Association’s Maintenance Cost Conference, Mandarin Orchard Hotel, Singapore, www.iata.org
All Nippon Helicopter (ANH) is expected to take delivery of the first of two AW139s equipped for electronic news gathering (ENG) and the first of the type to enter Japan’s civil helicopter fleet before the end of the year. The helicopter is already operating in Japan in government roles such as law enforcement and coast guard missions.
Fred George, senior editor at Business & Commercial Aviation magazine, is this year’s recipient of the NBAA David W. Ewald Platinum Wing Award for lifetime achievement and excellence in journalism. The award was presented last week during the National Business Aviation Association annual meeting and convention.
Hawker Beechcraft Global Customer Support (GCS) broke ground on a new 48,000-sq.-ft., company-owned factory service center at the General Mariano Escobedo International Airport in Monterrey, Mexico. The facility, scheduled to open in the spring, will include a 13,400-sq.-ft. paint hangar in addition to a 24,000-sq.-ft. maintenance hangar and 10,700 sq. ft. of office and customer hospitality space. The new facility will join the previously announced Hawker Beechcraft Services facility in Wilmington, Del.
Piaggio Aero obtained China Civil Aviation Authority (CAAC) approval for its P.180 Avanti and Avanti II aircraft. The approval, which culminates a process that began in 2010, clears the Avanti/Avanti II to be legally registered and operated throughout China and Hong Kong. The certification follows similar recent approvals in Brazil and Russian and Indian certification two years ago.
Wall Street analysts attending last week’s National Business Aviation Association’s (NBAA) annual convention offered differing opinions on the future prospects of the industry. As demand for large-cabin business jets continues to outpace that for small- and medium-cabin aircraft, everyone is still waiting for the glimmer of hope that those segments have turned the corner, but the evidence is not yet there on any metric, says a new Bank of America/Merrill Lynch report.
Although substantial progress has been made in the past six months, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is working on two potential pilot programs to address a pair of the biggest impediments for operators to fly into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), says Doug Hofsass, TSA deputy assistant administrator for transportation sector network management.
