Rockwell International is consolidating its Collins commercial and government avionics business and its Communication Systems Division into one organization. Effective Oct. 1, the Collins Commercial Avionics (CCA) business and Collins Avionics and Communications Division (CACD), both based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and the Communications Systems Division (CSD), based in Dallas, Texas, will be joined in a new organization called Avionics and Communications, which will be based in Cedar Rapids.
The Royal Bank of Canada will arrange C$3 billion in financing for Nav Canada to acquire the Canadian civil air navigation system from the government and help finance ongoing needs, Nav Canada said. A three- tranche facility will provide the initial funding for the company until it phases in capital markets financing, Nav Canada said. Nav Canada, a non- share capital corporation, is expected to acquire the air traffic system assets at the end of October.
EMBRY-RIDDLE AERONAUTICAL UNIVERSITY won a contract from the Civil Aviation Authority of China to provide English language and technical training to more than 100 air traffic controllers. Embry-Riddle is training groups of 15 controllers, who visit the campus for eight weeks. The program, sponsored by several major airlines, will run through March 1997 and is intended to bring the air traffic controllers' skills up to ICAO standards and improve their English language skills.
Despite the protests of the Democratic leadership, the House Friday narrowly approved a comprehensive aviation package that would give the Federal Aviation Administration more autonomy from the Department of Transportation and establish a 21-member task force to study FAA needs and funding. The legislation, H.R.3539, the compromise package of the House and Senate FAA reauthorization bills, passed 218-198 over the objections of Reps.
Heico Corp., Hollywood, Fla., completed the acquisition of Trilectron Industries, Inc., a manufacturer of ground power, air conditioning and air starting equipment for civil and military aircraft, for $7 million. Trilectron also designs and manufactures certain military electronics.
PACAERO, the Burbank, Calif. subsidiary of Banner Aerospace, received exclusive distribution rights for Hysol products and was approved as a manufacturer of Teflon hoses for aerospace applications by Teleflex Aerospace Fluid Systems. Under the agreement with Hysol, PacAero will distribute aerospace composite adhesives and films for metal-to-metal, metal-to-honeycomb and composite-to-composite bonding. The distribution agreement covers Australia, New Zealand, South America and Central America.
KAMAN CORP. appointed David Long, a 23-year veteran of United Technologies Corp., manager, public relations. Long will be responsible for media relations, company publications, the company's home page on the Internet and special events. While with UTC, he held communications positions in several business units including UT Automotive, Pratt&Whitney, Hamilton Standard, United Technologies Research Center and UTC corporate headquarters.
Alliance Aviation this month began operation as a full service fixed- base operation at Fort Worth, Texas Alliance Airport. The FBO, managed by Alliance Aviation Services, Inc., will provide a variety of services for corporate and general aviation operators including aircraft fueling and ground support, maintenance, and flight planning. The FBO is an Exxon Avitat dealer.
AMR Combs, the nationwide chain of fixed-base operations, reached an agreement last week with Air/Lyon, Inc. to acquire the assets of that firm's aviation services business at John Wayne/Orange County Airport (SNA) in Santa Ana, Calif. If the deal is consummated, AMR Combs will acquire the fixed-base operation, the executive aviation hangar complex and the flight operation program at SNA that have been operated under the name Martin Aviation since 1923.
TXI AVIATION, INC., received a five-year contract from FAA to repair and overhaul landing gear units for its fleet of BAe 125-800 aircraft. TXI will perform the work at its facility at Love Field in Dallas, Texas.
JAMES PETERSON was named vice president, customer service for Sundstrand Aerospace. Peterson joined Sundstrand in 1975 as a quality assurance engineer and most recently was director, customer support operations.
JIMMY STAGGS was promoted to director, training services for SimuFlite Training International. Staggs, who has served with SimuFlite since 1985, most recently was senior manager, training services.
THE NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM formally opened its "How Things Fly" gallery last week, winning rave reviews from several hundred parents and children who attended an opening reception. The new interactive gallery features a restored Cessna 150 that allows visitors to use the yoke and rudder pedals to operate control surfaces, "fly" a scale model in a wind tunnel and operate more than 50 other devices and exhibits designed to explain the physics of flight.
HOUSE AND SENATE last week passed the conference agreement for the fiscal 1997 transportation appropriations legislation, which includes an $8.337 billion budget for the Federal Aviation Administration and assumes the collection of $75 million in fees for foreign aircraft overflights (BA, Sept. 16/126).
BANNER AEROSPACE opened a warehouse and sales office in Leicester, England, for five of its subsidiaries - Adams Industries, Aerospace Bearing Support, Burbank Aircraft Supply, Harco and PacAero. The location, along with Banner's facility in Hamburg, Germany, will serve Europe, providing bolts, aerospace fasteners, bearings, electrical components, chemical products and overhaul/repair services.
Mesa Air Group will pay a $500,000 civil penalty to FAA as a result of past inspection findings and "will make changes in the numbers of flight, maintenance and ground personnel, as well as changes to its training and internal audit programs," under a tentative agreement with FAA, the carrier said late Thursday.
Former FAA Administrator Don Engen will head an independent review of the Pentagon's executive air fleet, which supports President Clinton and other White House officials. Engen, the retired Navy vice admiral who was named director of the National Air and Space Museum this summer, was a member of the National Transportation Safety Board before heading FAA from 1984-1987.
ATLANTIC AVIATION, Wilmington, Del., renewed its customer support agreement as an authorized service center for Raytheon Hawker aircraft. Atlantic Aviation said it has been involved with Hawker service and support since the introduction of the DH125-1A in North America nearly 30 years ago.
ROBINSON Model R22 helicopters (Docket No. 96-SW-14-AD) - proposes superseding an existing AD that requires installation of an improved throttle governor, an adjustment to the low RPM warning unit threshold to increase the revolutions per minute at which the warning horn and caution light activate, and revisions to the rotorcraft flight manual that prohibit flight with the improved throttle governor selected off, except in certain situations.
DUNCAN AVIATION named John Slieter vice president of completions and modifications. Slieter, a 12-year veteran of the Lincoln, Neb. aviation service company, is now responsible for all of Duncan's interior and avionics installation production. He had been director of business development. Jeannine Falter will continue to be responsible for all marketing and sales activities for the group in her position as aircraft completions and installations marketing manager.
RUNWAY 4-22 at Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport, closed since June for construction of an $11 million extension to 11,000 feet from 8,250 feet, reopened Sept. 15. Officials said the extended length of the crosswind runway - now the airport's longest - will permit fully loaded widebody aircraft to operate long-haul flights without having to make an en route fuel stop.
AERO CORP., Lake City, Fla., is converting a Boeing 737-400 aircraft from airline configuration to a VIP/corporate layout. The modification and overhaul facility said the aircraft will be operating under Part 125, providing transportation for the New York Knicks and New York Rangers. The 737-400 is one of three Boeing-built VIP/special mission aircraft undergoing cabin conversion, refurbishment and auxiliary fuel tank installation at Aero's Lake City Airport headquarters.
DE HAVILLAND Model DHC-8-100 and -300 series airplanes (Docket No. 93- NM-194-AD) - revises an earlier proposal to supersede an AD requiring repetitive inspections for cracks of the nose landing gear and to verify tightness of the fitting attachment bolts. The proposal would have required the installation of a modification to terminate the repetitive inspections. This action revises the proposed rule by proposing to require a different modification. This action is prompted by data indicating that the previously proposed terminating modification is not effective.
SAAB Model SF340A and 340B series airplanes (Docket No. 95-NM-243-AD; Amdt. 39-9727; AD 96-18-03) - requires installation of an automatic flight idle stop on the control quadrant in the flight compartment. This amendment is prompted by several reports of one or both power levers being moved aft of the flight idle stop on approach. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent such movement of the power lever(s) during flight, which could result in the loss of power to one or both engines, as well as severe engine damage.
