Hawker Beechcraft is continuing to make adjustments to keep production at a low rate to help combat soft pricing that is resulting in loss-making aircraft, Hawker Beechcraft Chairman and CEO Bill Boisture told analysts Friday. Soft pricing contributed to an operating loss of $363 million for the company’s business and general aviation segment, and $173.9 million for the company overall in 2010.
Charter and management company Executive Jet Management (EJM), working with Jeppesen, secured FAA’s first approval for use of the iPad for aeronautical charting in all phases of flight. The approval followed three months of testing and 250 flight trials that included a successful rapid decompression test to 51,000 ft. and non-interference testing.
STEFAN BENZ was appointed vice president of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) sales for Jet Aviation’s Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and Asia group. Benz has an extensive background in the aerospace industry, most recently as general manager of sales, marketing and business development at Ruag Aerospace. He began his aviation career with Daimler-Benz Aerospace before holding a number of marketing and regional strategy positions with EADS. He also has served with MTU Maintenance Hannover.
MICHAEL LEDERER has joined TWC Aviation as director of aircraft sales and acquisition. Lederer has nearly 30 years of experience helping clients acquire and sell aircraft. He formerly was a sales executive at Bombardier Aerospace.
Hawker Beechcraft Corporation has named Jim Holcombe vice president of Beechcraft marketing. Holcombe will be responsible for global marketing and branding of the company’s Beechcraft products. He assumes the role alongside 21-year HBC veteran Ron Gunnarson, VP of Hawker marketing. He was previously executive VP of sales and marketing and COO for Piaggio America and the senior VP of marketing for Gulfstream.
FAA last week forecast that despite three years of decline, the general aviation market should experience slow but stable growth over the next 20 years, with the fleet size increasing 0.9% per year and operations climbing 2.2% per year over the forecast period.
The National Business Aviation Association’s 22nd Annual Schedulers & Dispatchers conference, held Feb. 9-11 in Savannah, Ga., drew 2,272 attendees versus 2,284 in 2010, who by all accounts gave the meeting high grades. The exhibit floor was pretty much sold out (more than 360 exhibitors), and exhibitors told Aviation Week that they were able to make the right contacts.
General aviation advocates are pleased the Obama administration’s budget request did not include user fees, even as it seeks to step up investment in the Next Generation air transportation system (NextGen). The administration last week unveiled an $18.66 billion fiscal 2012 budget request for FAA, including a boost in funding for NextGen modernization and a recommendation for the addition of 106 new safety inspectors and data analysts.
Feb. 21-23—MIU Events’ Second Annual Indian Business Aviation Expo, Shangri-La Hotel, New Delhi, +44 (218) 332-2211, www.miuevents.com Feb. 21-24—National Air Transportation Association Spring Training Week, Las Vegas, (703) 845-9000, www.nata.aero Feb. 23–24—National Business Aviation Association’s 19th Annual Leadership Conference, San Diego, (202) 783-9000, www.nbaa.org Feb. 24-26—22nd Annual Women in Aviation International Conference, Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, Nev., www.wai.org
JOHN BURNUM was named director of business development for Business Jet Access. Burnum, who has 22 years of aviation services experience, is responsible for sales and marketing for the aircraft maintenance services business. He formerly was regional sales manager for King Aerospace, and also has held management positions with Gulfstream Aerospace and the former K-C Aviation.
Embraer’s Phenom 100 and 300 executive jets have been certified by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation of Indonesia. Indonesia is now the first country in the Asia Pacific region to have the Phenom 300 light jet certified and increases the list of the Phenom 100 certificates to 21 agencies worldwide.
HAWKER BEECHCRAFT Model 400A and 400T airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2010-0954; Directorate Identifier 2010-NM-078-AD; Amendment 39-16596; AD 2011-03-12] – Conduct a detailed inspection for proper sealant of the left and right pylon firewall structures and take corrective actions before further flight, per the instructions of Hawker Beechcraft Mandatory Service Bulletin SB 54-3946, Rev. 2 (dated February 2010).
BOMBARDIER Regional Jet Series 100 and 440 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2010-1113; Directorate Identifier 2010-NM-121-AD; Amendment 39-16603; AD 2011-04-03] – Revise the “Airworthiness Limitations” section of the maintenance program by incorporating tasks that require a functional check of the wing leading edge thermal switches and an inspection of the wing anti-ice duct piccolo tubes.
DASSAULT Falcon 50 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2011-0042; Directorate Identifier 2010-NM-267-AD] – This proposed AD would require operators to paint the pipe ends of the emergency brake system No. 2 and related unions, in accordance with the instructions of Dassault Service Bulletin F50-515 (dated Oct. 12, 2010). This proposed directive supersedes AD 2010-24-08 but retains its requirements, which are to ensure that emergency brake system number 2 is correctly installed before further flight.
Growth in European traffic in 2010 was driven in part by business aviation, which marked a 5.5% increase over 2009 operations. Business aviation’s increase was second only to low-cost carrier operations, which improved 6.9%. Traffic overall was up 0.8%, despite the economic downturn and weather and other natural disaster influences. “In 2010 we already saw the beginnings of growth and in 2011, we expect [a] further increase of at least 3.6% in the number of flights across Europe,” says David Marsh, head of forecasting at Eurocontrol.
Grand Junction, Colo.-based West Star Aviation is offering complete window repair from its in-house teams. Window repair is offered for most corporate aircraft, including Falcon, Hawker, Citation, Challenger, Learjet, Conquest, King Air, Embraer and Westwind.
The Helicopter Academy to Train by Simulation of Flying (HATSOFF), a Bangalore, India-based joint venture of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and CAE, has received a cockpit simulator for HAL Dhruv helicopter training. The unit, designed and built by CAE in Montreal, is the second to arrive at the HATSOFF training center and is slated to become operational in May following Level D certification by India’s Directorate General Civil Agency.
Canada’s Transportation Safety Board (TSB) is recommending changes to helicopter gearbox design and certification standards following the fatal March 2009 crash of a Sikorsky S-92A off the coast of Newfoundland. The TSB wants certification rules changed to require all S-92As to be able to fly for 30 min. after the loss of main gearbox oil, and for the FAA to assess whether a 30-min. run-dry requirement is adequate for rotorcraft operating in extreme environments.
DORNIER 228-100, -101, -200, -201, -202 and -212 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2010-1152; Directorate Identifier 2009-CE-026-AD; Amendment 39-16589; AD 2011-03-05] – Conduct recurrent visual inspections of fuselage Frame 19 for cracks, per the instructions of Dornier 228 RUAG Alert Service Bulletin No. ASB-228-266 (dated Dec. 1, 2006). If any cracks are found, repair the airplane before further flight.
JIŘÍ MATOUŠEK has become chairman of the Central European Private Aviation (CEPA) organization. Matoušek replaces CEPA founder Dagmar Grossman, who has held the position since the organization was founded in November 2009. Grossman stepped down to focus on development of Grossman Jet Service. Matoušek has worked with Grossman on a variety of CEPA projects and has spent 16 years with SAS.
BOMBARDIER DHC-8-400 series airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2011-0036; Directorate Identifier 2010-NM-230-AD] – This proposed AD would require operators to implement a series of fuel system modifications to mitigate unsafe conditions that could result in potential ignition sources within the fuel system. This proposal resulted from an MCAI originated by Transport Canada. FAA estimates that this proposed AD would affect 67 aircraft on the U.S. Registry and cost U.S. operators a total of $5.5 million, or $82,406 per airplane.
CHC Helicopter has signed a long-term agreement with Eurocopter that calls for the manufacturer to provide training at its new North Sea Service Center, which was inaugurated last week in Aberdeen, Scotland. The oil and gas sector remains a strong growth market for Eurocopter and an important business at a time of sustained weakness in the helicopter market in general. What’s more, the deal with CHC Helicopter underpins Eurocopter’s effort to generate revenue from services.
General aviation’s contribution to “saving thousands of lives in Haiti” and the Sikorsky X2 Technology Demonstrator team are among seven nominees announced by the National Aeronautic Association for the 100th presentation of the Robert J. Collier Trophy. Other nominees are: Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System; Fighter Risk-Reduction Program team; MC-12W Project Liberty team; Orion Launch Abort System Development team; Boeing Company C-17A Globemaster III team; and X-51A WaveRider team.
Gulfstream Aerospace has begun a series of icing tests on its new Gulfstream G250 super mid-sized aircraft as the business jet approaches certification, which is expected later this year. Serial Number 2001, which first flew in December 2009, completed tests with simulated ice shapes applied to non-heated areas such as the nose, tail, winglets and engine pylon. Gulfstream says these tests evaluate handling, stability and control in icing conditions.
