New guidance for developing safety management systems (SMS) is available from Transport Canada, offering sample manuals, program basics and answers to other frequently asked questions. The advisory circular issued in February, available at http://www.tc.gc.ca/civilaviation/IMSdoc/ACs/100/107-001-toc.htm, updates a six-year-old document and offers useful information on SMS for both seasoned practitioners and newbies.
DAE Engineering divested its Landmark Aviation FBO network, comprised of 34 FBOs and small MRO shops associated with them, to private equity investment firm GTCR. It also rebranded Standard Aero, which it acquired along with Landmark in August 2007, and brought Associated Air Center under the Standard Aero brand. Another recent acquisition, TSS Aviation, will be absorbed into Standard Aero as its Component R&O division.
HOUSTON -- Operators of aging helicopters have new options for maintaining and upgrading their aircraft, thanks to manufacturers who are capitalizing on the rise in demand. Helicopter OEMs also are catching on to the fleet maintenance trend, and they're taking an increasingly global approach to service and support. Many of these new options for helicopter MRO and mods were touted at Heli-Expo, the Helicopter Association International's (HAI) annual gathering.
François Planaud was named Snecma vice president and general manager commercial engine division in October 2007. Since 2003, Planaud had served as CFM56 engines program director and executive vice president of CFM International. He talked with O&M about the challenges and opportunities of launching new business jet and regional aircraft engine programs, PMA parts and the CFM56 engine. Edited for length and clarity.
Aertec and SNLPA merged under the name Aertec, as of Feb. 1. The newly formed company groups all of the Aertec Group's activity covered under Part 145 certification into three sectors: maintenance of aircraft cabin equipment (seats and luggage compartments), surf ace treatment and painting, and aeronautical construction.
Lufthansa Technical Training and City University, London, now offer a Master's degree in Aircraft Maintenance Management. The new degree program, based on existing LTT courses offered with other modules at City University, is intended for mid-career professionals and is offered part-time in London, Dubai, Germany and elsewhere, LTT said.
Timco promoted Jeff Luedeke to vice president of sales & marketing from his previous position as director of sales and marketing for Timco Aerosystems. Luedeke now will be responsible for both Timco Aerosystems and the Brice Manufacturing Co. brands, and will report directly to Gene House, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Timco.
Turkish Airlines took delivery of the second of three Airbus A310-300F aircraft converted at EADS EFW's facility in Dresden, Germany. The third aircraft conversion is to begin in July.
StarterGenerator.com launched a newly redesigned website, aimed at simplifying the purchasing process for customers. It now features the StarterGenerator.com RFQ Grid, which displays a matrix of Unison starter generator part numbers from the company's exchange and upgrade pool. The new website also should provide simpler access to quote details, according to StarterGenerator.com.
ExecuJet Aviation Group set up its first maintenance base in Asia at Seletar Airport, Singapore, about 20 km outside Singapore City. The 2,800-square meter facility, located on the former military airfield, provides hangar space and local maintenance support capabilities for five widebody business jets, ExecuJet said.
A Qantas 747-400 en route to Bangkok on Jan. 7 suddenly lost alternate current electrical power. Thanks to backup batteries, the aircraft made a safe landing. According to a preliminary report issued on Feb. 19 by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, the probable cause appears to be water from a forward galley, which ultimately penetrated a crack in the main equipment center drip shields located above the electrical component rack. The investigation is continuing.
COVER STORY: MRO Spending, Unit Costs To Rise Sharply The value of the worldwide commercial jet transport MRO market is forecast to jump a surprising 10 percent or more this year to $45.1, but more modest growth is expected over the next decade. Military MRO Expenditures Increasing, 47 Departments From the Editor 4 Biznet 9 Interview 14 François Planaud, Snecma Commercial Engines Safety & Regulatory News Washington in Action 19
The National Transportation Safety Board is concerned that certain GE Aviation CF34-3 turbofan engine fan blades are failing relatively early in their service life and is urging that the blades be removed well before their safety is compromised. The problem first came to light during the investigation of a July 27, 2006 incident involving a CRJ-200 operated by Spanish regional Air Nostrum, and less than a year later on an Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA) CRJ-200.
Northrop Grumman won an award from the U.S. Naval Aviation Systems Command for the phase two upgrade of its APR-39 radar warning receiver integration program for the Navy's CH-53K fleet.
Adobe made free downloads available on its website to upgrade 3D CAD translators for Acrobat 3D Version 8. With the upgrade, Acrobat 3D can support many major 3D CAD file formats. Atlas Air, Royal Jet and transavia.com implemented TRAX USA's EVO application, the latest version of its TRAX Maintenance software. transavia.com started implementing the software and is scheduled to complete it by early 2009, said Anthony Bustos of TRAX. With the Abu Dhabi-based Royal Jet agreement, 68 airlines now have implemented TRAX.
Structural netting provides a solution for bird exclusion, which is a serious safety concern for aircraft maintainers. Nixalite of America offers K-Net High Tensile Bird Netting, which is designed to be high-strength for architectural and structural applications. K-Net now is available in a stone color as well as black. Nixalite of America, 1025 16th Ave., East Moline, IL 61244.
General Dynamics Aviation Services named Brian Waymire general manager of its Las Vegas site. Waymire most recently served as operations manager for GDAS Las Vegas.
The General Aviation Manufacturers Association brought W. Casey Kinosz on board as manager of operations. Kinosz will support the organizations work in safety, risk analysis and accident investigation.
A new line of Stanley-Proto round head ratchets designed for delicate jobs in confined areas now is available. The new design features a compact circular head smaller than that of a pear head ratchet and a five-degree wing arc, the company said.
Delta TechOps promoted Tony Charaf to president. It also promoted John Laughter to senior vice president - maintenance operations, Neil Stronach to senior vice president - operations control and Jack Turnbill to vice president - sales and marketing. It added Gil West, formerly with Laidlaw Transit Services and TIMCO Aviation Services, as senior vice president - airport customer service.
A J Walter Aviation Singapore appointed Allan De Cruz vice president of sales for the Asia region. De Cruz joins A J Walter from The Memphis Group/GE Commercial Aviation Services.
MRO unit costs, which have been declining for the past several years, are expected to spike upward in 2008, driven by higher labor rates in many parts of the world, including China, and only moderate capacity growth. As a result of these and other factors, worldwide spending on commercial jet transport maintenance, repair and overhaul will increase a surprising 10.2 percent, from $41 billion in 2007 to $45.1 billion this year, according TeamSAI, the consultancy that produces O&M's annual MRO Forecast with fleet data provider Ascend, Ltd.
Cathay Pacific Airlines selected Stork subsidiary Fokker Aerotron to provide component support under a long-term cost per flight hour agreement. Fokker Aerotron will be responsible for repair services and inventory support of the Chapter 21 system components on Cathay's Boeing 747 Classic and 747-400 fleet.
APEM Components, a manufacturer of industrial switches, offers the MT series, recommended for applications requiring a sealed, ergonomic electrical interface, such as radio remote controls or other portable, hand-held devices. The series features an environmentally sealed toggle switch that can function as a rotary or rocker switch, APEM said.
