AirCell Business Aviation Services, amended STC to install AirCell's AXXCESS II airborne satcom system on Dassault Falcon 2000 series aircraft, STC ST01388WI-D
Delta TechOps secured more than $200 million in extended work for Global Aviation Holdings subsidiaries World Airways and North American Airlines. This is the third such service extension with the two airlines, TechOps says. The contracts cover component repair, inventory exchange programs, drop-in A and C check inspections, time and material engine maintenance for World’s Pratt & Whitney PW4000 and GE CF6-80C2 engines, and exclusive provision of repairs for North American’s Honeywell 331-200 APUs.
StandardAero appointed Chris Swan VP/general manager of its component services operation in Cincinnati. Swan joins the DAE company from GE Aviation, where he served as regional director, Americas for commercial field service among other roles. Airframes
Alaska Airlines, surrendered STC to install Primus-90 weather radar with standard black and white or color display on Boeing 727 series aircraft, STC SA490NW
A £450 million ($632.25 million) contract for five-year maintenance and support of the RAF’s Typhoon combat aircraft was announced by Quentin Davies, Minister for Defense Equipment and Support, in early March. The contract was placed with BAE Systems for initial delivery, plus further development of the Typhoon Availability Service (TAS). It aims to enhance partnering arrangements with BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce for both aircraft and engines.
Lufthansa Technik officially opened its new Cabin Innovation Center in Hamburg on March 31. The company has moved its existing office of airworthiness and IP-management staff to the new center, which LHT says should speed up agreements and decision making processes. The €10 million building features state-of-the-art test labs, exhibition areas and offices.
Safety Storage manufactures prefabricated, moveable steel buildings designed for the safe storage, handling and use of hazardous materials. Its storage structures often are designed to support lean and efficient chemical management processes, while considering compliance and sustainability.
All airlines with a Benin operating certificate, along with several other carriers, have been added to the European Union’s airline blacklist. The EU says the decision on Benin came after an audit by the International Civil Aviation Organization highlighted problems.
PremiAir’s Oxford Airport facility gained authorized dealer status from Raisbeck Engineering to carry out a range of performance enhancing upgrades. PremiAir moved into the Oxford facility in the last quarter of 2008. The Oxford location is EASA Part 145 approved for base maintenance on the full Beechcraft range, and it supplies and installs a range of Raisbeck products for the King Air family, including four-blade quiet fan propellers, ram air recovery systems, enhanced performance leading edges, dual aft body strakes and crown wing locker systems.
Precise Flight, to install high intensity discharge aviation lighting and the L3 infrared camera system on various Bell 206 and 407 models, STC SR01980SE
The Bell Helicopter Training Academy launched its first online course for customer service facilities that maintain Bell 412 products. The 412-CSF field maintenance refresher course, available through Bell’s Learning Management System, allows technicians to complete refresher training requirements and earn full Bell Achievement Ranking System training credits online. IT
Sabreliner Corp. named D.J. “Jim” Meier SVP, government and subcontracting services from his former position as VP, government services. Gene Harbula became SVP, strategic development. Both Meier and Harbula report to F. Holmes Lamoreux, chairman and CEO. The company also promoted Cindy Tekeser to director, contracts, reporting to Meier. Mark Weir, VP of Sabreliner’s Ste. Genevieve, Mo., operations, now also oversees management of the company’s Ste. Genevieve engineering, Southeast Missouri tooling manufacturing and Ste. Genevieve facilities.
Jet Aviation COO of EMEA & Asia operations Andre Wall decided to step down as of this month. The group appointed Charles Celli head of completions for EMEA and Asia, and general manager of Jet Aviation Basel, effective in April. It also restructured management so that its EMEA & Asia senior staff, including the aircraft management and charter divisions, as well as MRO and FBO businesses, now report directly to Peter Edwards, president of the Jet Aviation Group.
Duncan Aviation received an STC for dual installation of Universal Avionics’ UNS-1Ew WAAS-SBAS-capable flight management system in Lear 45 aircraft. The STC also includes localizer performance with vertical guidance capability and compliance with FAA AC 90-105, which allows pilots to fly barometric VNAV approach guidance to the published decision altitude, for Lear 40 and 45 models.
Women engineering majors make up only 20% of undergraduate students in the U.S., and the dropout rate among women, especially freshmen women, far outweighs the rate among male students. According to National Academies of Engineering data, only 40-60% of entering engineering students go on to earn an engineering degree—and women tend to fall on the lower end of that range. To support women engineering students, new programs provide tutoring and academic support, extracurricular and internship opportunities, and scholarship funding.
ST Aerospace and Xiamen Aviation Industry Co. broke ground April 8 on their joint venture engine MRO facility near Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport. ST Aerospace Technologies (Xiamen) Co. Ltd. (STATCO), representative of a $78 million investment, should be complete and operational by mid-2010. It will focus on MRO and total support services for CFM56-5B and CFM56-7B engines, with an expected capacity of 300 engines per year and a test cell rated to 90,000 pounds thrust.
Vector Aerospace Helicopter Services Fleetlands returned a Sea King MK4 ZF115 to the U.K. Ministry of Defense , following repairs and modifications to rectify airframe structural damage from a November 2001 accident. Under a contract awarded in June 2007, Vector’s Fleetlands operation completed 30,000 man-hours of work on the aircraft, incorporating more than 250 modifications to bring it up to the latest modification standard, according to the MRO.
Air India extended its engine maintenance contract with SR Technics to include CFM56-5B engines for its Airbus A320 fleet, which currently consists of 27 of the type but should grow to 43 by 2010. SR Technics has been maintaining Air India Express’ CFM56-7B engines that power the carrier’s Boeing 737-800 fleet since May 2007 under a three-year contract. The extended contract expires in May 2010 but contains an extension clause for two additional years. SR Technics is maintaining the engines at its Zurich facility.
I look forward every year to AVIATION WEEK’S MRO Americas and MRO Military conferences in the spring as opportunities to get a sense of the industry’s mood and direction. This year’s event was one of conflicting signals.
We start, appropriately enough for a mystery, with a riddle: Q: What do you get when you cross Murphy’s Law (“Whatever can go wrong, will”) with Lance’s Law (“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”)? A: You get No Fault Found, something that seems broke but isn’t—or is…sometimes—or was, but not any more and no one knows why.
Air France KLM completed its acquisition of a 25% stake in Alitalia through a reserved share subscription worth some €323 million ($439.1 million). The airline announced its partnership with the Italian carrier in January, but needed approval from competition authorities. The Franco-Dutch carrier said the stake would provide it greater access to the Italian market. Facilities
