An enhanced memorandum of understanding signed in late August by the civil aviation authorities of Hong Kong and Singapore will allow for mutual recognition and approval of aircraft and engine maintenance. A previous MoU signed in December 2004 recognized aircraft component maintenance. The two authorities estimate more than 75 MRO companies will benefit from the enhanced agreement.
LONDON—Soaring oil prices might be taking a huge toll on airlines, but, according to Mark King, president of civil aerospace at Rolls-Royce, they also present opportunities for engine maintenance providers to really add value to a customer’s fleet through engine MRO. The high price of oil will have a huge impact on the trade-off between maintenance costs, fuel burn and engine time-on-wing, King said, which is why Rolls has started to develop additions to its TotalCare packages to be “more and more focused on a world of high oil prices.”
Subject: Airworthiness Directives 1) FAA should retain the right to ground any plane not in compliance with an AD. Inspectors should not be required or expected to conduct any type of risk-assessment before taking action; 2) FAA should provide timely information about new AD requirements, in advance of compliance dates, to all relevant FAA field offices, and work with airlines to iron out questions. Subject: Voluntary Disclosure Programs
: Boeing announced the successful first flight of a McDonnell Douglas (K)DC-10 enhanced with Boeing’s twin flat-panel Cockpit Upgrade Program (CUP). A flight crew from the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF), Boeing and Fokker Services completed the four-hour inaugural sortie of the aircraft at the Fokker facility in Holland on July 22. The RNLAF has a May 2005 contract with Fokker Services and Boeing to upgrade three aircraft: two (K)DC-10 air-refueling tankers and one DC-10 transport. Delivery of the first aircraft is scheduled this fall.
BAE Systems Regional Aircraft will house spares for Saab Aerotech under a three-year, £1.5 million ($2.7 million) contract covering Saab 340 and Saab 2000 regional turboprops. About 6,500 line items, one million parts, will be housed at BAE’s Spares Logistics Center at Weybridge in Surrey, U.K.
ExelTech Aerospace founding CEO Derek Nice resigned from the company in early September, and was replaced on an indefinite interim basis by veteran MRO executive Robin Wohnsigl. Nice was chairman and CEO at the time of his resignation, and he previously had been president and CEO, as well as a director. He founded the company in March 2000 in a management buyout of the maintenance business of InterCanadian Airlines. CFO Roland Blais also planned to leave ExcelTech at the end of September.
AeroMech, amended STC for group Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum approval for Israel Aircraft Industries 1125 Westwind Astra aircraft, STC ST01141SE Aero Union, amended and reissued STCs to install a 2,000-gallon fire retardant system on Erickson Air-Crane S-65E, S-64E and CH-54A helicopters, STCs SR01192LA and SR01192LA Aircraft Technical Development dba Aerocon Engineering, to install a cabin interior noise reduction kit on Boeing 757-200 series aircraft, STC ST02157LA
Composites are paving the way for weight savings in the aviation industry, a hot topic at the moment given fuel prices. Ranging from small and thin components, such as wiring, to the backbones of large modules like lavatories and galleys, manufacturers make use of various composite formulas to take weight off the aircraft. Weight saved serves as a valuable marketing tool, and advances in composite technology are keeping pace with the price-per-barrel.
Northrop Grumman named John A. Macel, Jr. VP of international operations for its technical services sector. Macel comes to Northrop Grumman from ITT’s systems division, where he served as VP of international business development. It also named John J. Chino VP of programs to succeed David H. Barakat, who plans to retire later this year. Chino has been with Northrop Grumman since 1971, and most recently served as deputy, SVP and general manager of its electronic systems sector. He was to assume the new role Sept. 15, reporting to Wes Bush, company president and COO.
Tdata released IApproach Pro OnDemand Regulatory Service, the latest in a line of complete FAA regulatory libraries on CD-ROM. Tdata’s OnDemand service provides customers four update CDs per year, delivered at the operator’s discretion. Customers can simply request their update CDs by phone, mail, fax or at Tdata.com, the company says. Tdata, Inc., 60 Grace Dr., Powell, OH 43065
For shipping share parts and other valuable mobile assets, Storopack developed FOAMplus, an integrated system that produces custom-sized, protective foam packing material. The system’s central machine, the FOAMplus Bager, measures about 80 cm-by-80 cm at its base and is 200 cm tall. It attaches to two 200-liter metal barrels, which contain polyol and an isocyanate. The machine can be preprogrammed so that the dose of foam components it dispenses fits perfectly into a film bag.
Northstar Network received a follow-on order from Lockheed Martin Aeronautics for 28 shipsets under the P-3 Service Life Extension Program, supplementing the initial award for six ship sets for the six Norwegian Planes. Northstar says the follow-on award will be worth about $4 million in additional revenue over the next year.
SH&E added Andreas Britz and David Hinderland as new principals. Britz joins the aviation consultancy’s technical services area in New York, following 25 years at Lufthansa Technik. Hinderland, who spent 19 years with Southwest Airlines, will join SH&E’s Boston office.
Virgin Blue signed a six-year GE OnPoint agreement to cover the maintenance and overhaul of all CFM56-7B engines it operates, along with those of its international carrier Pacific Blue. The agreement is valued at up to $300 million.
Three Lockheed Martin C-5M Super Galaxy RERP test aircraft successfully completed developmental flight tests, which paves the way for redelivering the three aircraft (one former C-5A and two C-5Bs) to the U.S. Air Force in support of operational test and evaluation, due to begin in late 2009. The three heavy-lift transports participating in the U.S. Air Force’s Reliability Enhancement and Re-engining Program (RERP) underwent tests for performance verification of the propulsion system, utilities and sub-systems, flight controls, airframe and avionics systems.
Flightparts is establishing a facility in Xiamen, China . Flightparts Xiamen Component Services is to have full capabilities to overhaul narrowbody landing gear, hydraulic, pneumatic and flap components for Boeing and Airbus aircraft. It should receive China Civil Aviation Authority approval by December, and expects to receive U.S. FAA approval by the second quarter of 2009.
Northrop Grumman received a U.S. Navy contract on Aug. 12 to upgrade Grumman E-2C AEW&C aircraft for Egypt’s Hawkeye foreign military sales program. Under this $38 million contract, the six Egyptian Air Force E-2Cs will be refurbished and upgraded to Hawkeye 2000 (HE2K) configuration, with upgrades to the radar, mission computer, tactical mission-system displays and navigation systems. Aircraft modification work will be performed at Northrop Grumman’s St.
Boeing’s San Antonio military aircraft maintenance, modification and upgrade facility earned an ISO 14001 certification, and is the company’s first Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) site in 2008 to validate its environmental management system. Boeing is working to have all of its major manufacturing facilities certified to the ISO 14001 standard by the end of the year. Four other Boeing facilities—Exmouth in Australia; Everett, Wash.; Portland, Ore.; and Salt Lake City—already have achieved the certification.
Maintaining the Boeing F/A-18 represents a $100 million product line this year for the Fleet Readiness Center Southwest, which plans to churn out about 110 Hornets, including 45 planned maintenance intervals (PMIs), 15 center barrel replacements and 10 crash or battle damaged repairs—the rest will be field site repairs and modifications.
Embraer’s new spare parts warehouse in China was certified by the ANAC , Brazil’s civil aviation authority. The certification enables technicians at the facility to issue spare part airworthiness certificates through the facility’s own quality system. The facility is expected to decrease supply chain turntimes in the region.
Greenwich AeroGroup named Gerald Goguen EVP in mid-September. Goguen will be responsible for developing and implementing the company’s strategic initiatives, both in the U.S. and internationally, to drive organic growth and acquisitions. He joins Greenwich from Dassault Falcon, where he most recently served as SVP of global customer relations and business strategy.
: Boeing received an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity, fixed price U.S. Department of Defense contract totaling $42 million in August. This will provide the Radar System Improvement Program capability to be installed in the five Royal Saudi Air Force Boeing E-3A AWACS airborne early-warning jet aircraft. This effort supports foreign military sales to Saudi Arabia, for which $27.3 million has so far been obligated.
For those of you operating in the U.K., the CAA mandates that all AOC operators and associated approved maintenance organizations have a Safety Management System (SMS) in place from Jan.1, 2009, forward. Baines Simmons is holding a three-day course on developing, implementing, measuring and managing an SMS. Baines Simmons says the course is to cover: • Identifying and mitigating unwanted business losses; • Performing meaningful Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment;
ST Aerospace completed its MD-11 passenger-to-freighter conversion program for UPS with the Sept. 3 delivery of the 38th MD-11 BCF. ST Aviation Services (SASCO) carried out the conversion program, which began in April 2001, for UPS. SASCO has redelivered 58 MD-11 BCF aircraft to various airlines to date.
