Cessna obtained Brazilian approval for the Citation CJ4. The ANAC approval follows FAA certification in March 2010. The European Aviation Safety Agency and Isle of Man also have approved the aircraft, and Cessna is expecting similar certifications from Canada and South Africa by year’s end. Cessna delivered 19 CJ4s in 2010 and 16 through the first half of the year. The Wichita plane maker expects to ship the first CJ4 to a Brazilian customer later this year.
LightSquared is digging in its heels, blaming GPS manufacturers for poorly designed equipment that makes it susceptible to interference from LightSquared’s proposed high-power broadband transmitters that use a frequency adjacent to the spectrum used by GPS. “The GPS industry’s failure to comply with the Department of Defense’s (DOD) filtering standards is the root cause of potential interference issues involving LightSquared’s proposed broadband wireless network,” the company contends.
Mitsubishi Aircraft’s regional jet is on schedule for its first flight next year. The aircraft maker’s vice president of sales and marketing, Hitoshi Iwasa, says the manufacture of subassemblies started in April and that final assembly of the first MRJ will begin “probably at the end of this year or beginning of next year.” This will give Mitsubishi Aircraft sufficient time for the first rollout and first flight in 2012 as planned, notes Iwasa, adding that the manufacturer is confident it can have first flight soon after the rollout ceremony.
Burbank, Calif.-based cargo carrier Ameriflight is challenging alleged drug and alcohol testing violations and a proposed $262,000 civil penalty. FAA announced the proposed penalty Friday, alleging that Ameriflight conducted the required tests, but did not wait to receive verified negative test results before hiring 14 people to perform safety-sensitive flight and maintenance duties. The violations occurred between March 2009 and March 2010, the agency says.
Inc. magazine ranked Palm Springs, Calif.-based aircraft management and charter company Desert Jet number 296 on its 30th annual Inc. 500, a ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. Desert Jet was founded in 2007 by pilot and entrepreneur Denise Wilson to help individuals and corporations use business jets to fulfill their corporate and personal travel needs.
Avic International, the international sales and marketing arm of Chinese aerospace conglomerate Avic, appears set to secure a back-door listing on the Singapore stock exchange. Reports in Singapore, quoting from financial advisors for defunct Singapore-listed company Sino-Environment Technologies (SET), say SET’s shareholders have been offered one share in Avic International Investments for every 250 shares in SET. Avic International Investments is a Singapore registered company that China’s Avic International has established.
Gulfstream has enrolled its 50th customer in the company’s PlaneParts cost-per-hour maintenance program that it launched last fall. The customer is a Brazilian operator who expects to take delivery of a Gulfstream G550 in September. PlaneParts provides replacement components for parts removed due to failure, life limit or wear, in exchange for monthly payments based on the aircraft’s model and age.
Abu Dhabi Airports Company has launched Abu Dhabi Air Expo, a dedicated exhibition for general aviation in the Middle East. The exhibition will be held at Al Bateen Executive Airport, the region’s only dedicated private aircraft airport, in March 2012. The event will include nearly 70,000 sq. meters of exhibition space and will showcase more than 100 aircraft and bring together nearly 300 distributors.
KEN KAPLAN was appointed managing director of Vaughn College’s newly created Aviation Outreach Initiative, which is designed to improve learning opportunities through strategic aviation partnerships. Kaplan will launch a flight training program, along with distance and “hybrid” educational initiatives. Kaplan has served as a publisher and trade show producer, and was CEO of World Expo Corp. He also was CEO of Federal Computer Week and president of Ubiquity. Most recently, he was senior vice president of sales and marketing with King Schools.
GARY PORTERFIELD was promoted to manager of FlightSafety International’s Learjet learning center in Wichita. Porterfield joined FlightSafety in April 2003 as a Learjet 55 instructor at the company’s West Palm Beach, Fla. facility. He subsequently was promoted to program manager of the Learjet 55 and Piaggio Avanti programs. Most recently he was assistant manager. Before joining FlightSafety, Porterfield spent six years with the U.S. Air Force and then became a pilot for American Eagle. He also flew business aircraft.
Hawker Beechcraft is opening a new regional headquarters in Beijing to capitalize on a rapidly expanding market in North Asia. The office will cover sales in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Korea and Japan. Hawker Beechcraft has named James Wang director of marketing and communications for the North Asia region. Wang will promote Hawker and Beechcraft brands in the region. Noting the expansion in Asia, Jeff Anastas, vice president of China, North Asia for Hawker Beechcraft, says the market “is of great importance for our overall growth strategy.”
Aug. 29-Sept. 1—Airports Council International-NA Public Safety & Security Fall Conference, Washington, D.C., www.aci-na.org/conferences/ Aug. 30-Sept. 1—Unmanned Aircraft Systems Conference, Paris Las Vegas Hotel, Paris, (310) 563-1210, fax (310) 563-1220, www.ttcus.com Sept. 8-9—Second Annual European Corporate Aviation Summit, Swedish Air Force Museum, Linkoping, www.aeropodium.com Sept. 13-14—Transport Security Expo & Conference, Olympia Exhibition Center, London, www.transec.com
SimCom’s latest acquisition of 14 simulators from FlightSafety will position the company as a dominant player in the light business aircraft simulation flight training business, with 59 trainers stationed at five centers in the U.S. Details of the acquisition, announced last week, were not disclosed. With the agreement, FlightSafety is divesting most of its older-model propeller aircraft trainers with the exception of some Beech King Air models, a move the company says enables it to concentrate on current and next-generation aircraft.
Wichita State University, home of the National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR), was ranked second among the nation’s universities for aeronautical research and development (R&D) expenditures, according to the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. In fiscal 2009, Wichita State had $50 million in aeronautical R&D expenditures, compared with $32.9 million in 2008, when it was ranked fourth.
PATRICK MOULEY was appointed managing director for commercial business for the Europe and Russia regions at Bell Helicopter. He comes to Bell Helicopter from Eurocopter, where he served as vice president for marketing and sales in Southeast Asia. Mouley will be based at Bell Helicopter’s facility in Prague.
Calgary, Alberta-based AirSprint has begun to build a second base in Scottsdale, Ariz., believing the Southwest is an ideal location to expand its Pilatus PC-12 fractional ownership business. AirSprint US, Inc. obtained FAA clearance in June for the operation and has positioned two PC-12s in Scottsdale initially. The company is looking to acquire a third aircraft for that location. In addition, the company expects to have a staff of 20 in Scottsdale by year’s end, with sales offices also in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Aviation Fabricators (AvFab) has received supplemental type certification (STC) for its Beechcraft 400A two-place divan. The STC enables installation of the seat in all Beechjet and Hawker Beechcraft 400A series aircraft, along with the 400 series. The installation involves removing existing seats and locking the divan into seat tracks. AvFab says no airframe modifications are necessary. The divan is offered with the option of closeout panels and comes with shoulder harnesses mounted to the frame.
The Office of Management and Budget is telling federal agencies to craft fiscal 2013 budget proposals at both 5% and 10% below 2011 enacted discretionary appropriations – unless the White House already has told them otherwise. “By providing budgets pegged to these two scenarios, you will provide the president with the information to make the tough choices necessary to meet the hard spending targets in place and the needs of the nation,” OMB Director Jacob Lew said in an Aug. 17 memo.
AgustaWestland has signed an agreement with Aviasur to become the company’s independent sales representatives for Chile and Peru. The agreement follows the entry into the market of the AW119Ke single-engine helicopter and AW109 Power and GrandNew twin-engine helicopters in 2010. The agreement was signed at the recent Latin American Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition in Sao Paolo, Brazil.
Thrush Aircraft added Statewide Aviation of Australia as its newest factory authorized service and support facility in the Southern Hemisphere. “This appointment will significantly improve the availability of parts, provisioning and service to our customers in this increasingly vibrant region,” says Thrush President Payne Hughes.
Aug. 23-24—NATA & Conklin & de Decker Commercial Operators Tax Seminar, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., (800) 808-6282, www.nata.aero/taxseminar Aug. 24-26— EBAA Safety Management System Workshop, Park Inn Zurich Airport, Switzerland, www.ebaa.org/ Aug. 26-28—Maine Air Show and Business Aviation Expo, Brunswick Executive Airport, 207-798-6512, www.greatstateofmaineairshow.us Aug. 27-28—Roskilde Air Show, Roskilde Airport, Copenhagen, www.airshow.dk/eng_index.html
SOCATA TBM 700 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2011-0868; Directorate Identifier 2011-CE-027-AD] – This proposed AD would require operators to install a protection fuse on the electrical wire at the standby compass connector, per the instructions of TBM Mandatory Service Bulletin SB 70-192 (dated April 2011). This proposal, which resulted from an MCAI originated by the European Aviation Safety Agency, is intended to prevent failure of both essential bus bars and the loss of a number of instruments and navigation systems.
Boeing confirms it officially completed flight testing for type certification of the Rolls-Royce powered 787-8 on Aug. 13. The manufacturer hopes to achieve joint FAA/European EASA certification by the end of August, clearing the way for the first delivery to launch customer All Nippon in late September. The final flight involved ZA102, the ninth 787 to be built. Boeing says “Capt. Mike Carriker, chief pilot for the 787 program, brought ZA102 back to its home base at Paine Field in Everett, Wash., at 1:58 p.m. (Pacific time) following a 90-min.
Embraer was recognized by Florida Trend Magazine as one of the “Best Companies to Work for,” ranking 28th in the large-company category. To be rated, companies or government entities had to employ at least 15 workers in Florida and be at least a year old. For a complete list, visit www.FloridaTrend.com/BestCompanies.
More Chinese airspace is opening up to general aviation, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) and non-government sources in the country. “It is a big step forward for all GA interests,” says Jason Liao, the National Business Aviation Association’s chief representative in Asia. “It almost certainly means China will become the second-largest market in the world [after the U.S.] for GA aircraft like helicopters and turboprops.” Until recently, almost all Chinese airspace had been tightly controlled by the military.
