Alliance Air has decided to establish a second MRO base for Fokker 70/100s, in Adelaide, where it performs Fokker 50 checks. The Australian carrier already does heavy checks for Fokker 70/100s at its base in Brisbane. “Another 10 engineers will be hired by Alliance to provide added maintenance capability in Adelaide, taking to 84 the number of staff employed by the airline in the South Australian capital,” it says. Two Fokker 100 aircraft arrived in Adelaide from Europe in early August to undergo major maintenance checks prior to service entry.
Metro Aviation, issued STCs to install optional equipment and emergency medical systems on Eurocopter France EC 130 B4 helicopters, STC SR09587RC and SR09586RC
AAR appointed Andrew J. Schmidt as senior VP, supply chain, AAR Allen Asset Management. His duties will involve providing strategy, business planning and operational leadership for the division. This position adds to Schmidt's 25-year aviation career, which has included leadership positions at Oliver Wyman, Macquaire Capital and Taurus Aerospace. Matt Eaton has also joined AAR as VP of sales and marketing for its MRO segment.
AeroStar named Greg Guzman general manager and executive VP of marketing and sales for the company and will oversee its strategic direction. Gordon Smart, VP of operations for Star Aviation, will assume the role of executive VP of operations for Aerostar and will assist the company as a managing partner.
Are British Airways Engineering and Iberia pursuing any component contracts together, like you did for Thomas Cook Airlines? Are you going after all types of operators that have a joint fleet?
As interior mods pick up, demand for aircraft exterior painting keeps pace. Many companies in the U.S., Europe and beyond want to expand their hangars to attract more paint work.
Southern Air is the first U.S. operator to use the Amos IT system for its MRO. Swiss Aviation Software manufactures Amos and Lufthansa Systems distributes the software. Southern Air chose to upgrade its MRO IT system with Amos as it adds Boeing 747 and Boeing 777F aircraft and increases its workforce.
Composite structures have been around for decades, but the last few years have seen explosive growth in their use and development. Forthcoming jets like the Airbus A350 and the Boeing 787 boast that at least half their airframes are constructed from these advanced materials, compared to with just 11% on the Boeing 777 or, to go way back, just 1% on the early 747-100. Composites have taken a foothold in large, primary structural areas—for instance, the Learjet 85 will have both its fuselage and wing built primarily from carbon composites, the first business jet to do so.
AAR officially opened its Miami wheel and brake services facility in August. It will offer commercial, military and regional aviation customers with wheel and brake repair, rebuilding and inspection for all major aircraft types. “We've grown our wheel and brake services business from fewer than ten employees only a year ago to 30 employees today,” says Pastor Lopez, GM of AAR Landing Gear Services.
TAM MRO, TAM Airlines' MRO unit has received EASA accreditation for line maintenance services of Airbus A3330-200 and A330-300 aircraft. TAM MRO will conduct the repairs in the Brazilian cities of Porto Alegre, Recife, Salvador and Fortaleza. The accreditation will cover ETOPS pre-flight inspections, transit checks and daily checks. TAM MRO is in the process of requesting the same line maintenance services in the Brazilian cities of Sao Paulo, Campinas and Brasilia.
The GH-3100 electronic standby instrument System from L-3 Communications Avionics Systems comprises the GH-3100 indicator and DCM-3100 configuration module. The GH-3100 indicator provides a visual display of attitude with slip and skid information thanks to an internal three-axis sensor cluster. Pitot and static inputs give air data information for barometer-corrected altitude, air speed, Mach number and vertical speed. Inertial reference units display heading information on a color active matrix liquid crystal display. www.l-3com.com
Pemco World Air Services will convert Boeing 737-400 passenger aircraft into a combi configuration for the U.S. Dept. of the Interior. Pemco finished the first configuration at its Dothan, Ala. facility in May and expects it to enter service this fall. The aircraft accommodates two flight crew members, 66 passengers and 4.5 pallets of freight with a range of more than 3,000 miles. The National Nuclear Security Administration will operate the aircraft.
Continuum Applied Technology has announced the release of version 10 of its Corridor Aviation Service Software. It offers more than 200 enhanced features including compliance and work order integration and quoting and an archiving scheduler.
International Lease Finance Corp. will acquire AerCap's AeroTurbine business for $228 million. The agreement for ILFC to take over the business that leases aircraft components and engines still needs regulatory approval and should close “in the coming months,” AerCap says. AerCap CEO Aengus Kelly says the company is divesting AeroTurbine because its core leasing business has changed since it acquired the unit in 2006. At the time, it wanted the expertise in managing older aircraft.
American Airlines is becoming the first carrier to install automatic identification technology (AIT) on civilian aircraft by attaching contact memory buttons on replaceable structural components, such as doors, stabilizers, rudders and elevators. Doing this will allows the carrier to more efficiently monitor the components' individual history because the high memory capacity buttons, about the size of a dime, automate data collection, which can save labor costs and improve data accuracy.
Turkish Technik signed a five-year, total APU support agreement with SunExpress Deutschland for its fleet of Boeing 737-800 aircraft. The contract includes spare APU support, repair and overhaul and field service. The maintenance will be done at Turkish Technic's Istanbul maintenance facility. SunExpress Deutschland started operations in June with three Boeing 737-800s and plans to receive three more in 2011.
Enhance Aero opened a new site in Trieste, Italy to accompany its existing facilities the Clermont-Ferrand and Le Castellet airports in France. The 11,500 sq.-ft. facility opened on May 30, and will allow Enhance Aero to develop a new training center. Enhance Aero also announced that it has formed a new company, Enhance Aero Logistics. The new venture has started operating a logistics center near Paris Charles De Gaulle airport with 24-hour access.
The recent trend to modify older cabin interiors signals not only that the aftermarket is growing, but also that the airline industry is getting back on its feet. Carriers, inspired by next-generation aircraft, are moving beyond the cost savings of performing only required maintenance to paying renewed attention to their narrowbody fleets. Multiplying Modifications
S-TEC Corp., reissued STC to install HeliSAS stability augmentation system and autopilot on Eurocopter France EC 130 B4 and AS-350B, B1, B2, B3, BA and D helicopters, STC SR02345LA
You can't drive the speed limit if you don't know how fast you're going. That's Rayner Hutchinson's analogy for trying to improve safety and reduce human error without a 360-degree, data-rich view of your maintenance organization. Hutchinson, VP quality and safety at AAR Corp., has a good point: if you don't know where you stand today, you can't possibly know how to achieve measurable gains in safety.
Metro Aviation, issued STCs to install optional equipment and emergency medical systems on Eurocopter France EC 130 B4 helicopters, STC SR09587RC and SR09586RC
