Finmeccanica, AgustaWestland and the Libyan Company for Aviation Industry (LCAI) agreed to form a joint-venture Libyan Italian Advanced Technology Co. (LIATEC) to provide the basis of a new national aeronautical complex. With headquarters in Tripoli, LIATEC will be 50 percent owned by the LCAI, with Finmeccanica and AgustaWestland holding 25 percent each. The two Italian partners will provide know-how, training, technology and equipment, while the Libyan shareholder will mainly invest in infrastructure, plant and local marketing activities.
LONDON -- The Commons Defense Committee criticized a Ministry of Defense plan to transfer aircraft maintenance. The MoD previously reported moves to transfer technical support for RAF BAE Harrier GR9 and Tornado GR4 fast-jets from its Defence Aviation Repair Agency (DARA) to RAF main operating bases, while moving service helicopter support to DARA Fleetlands, Hampshire.
SAS Technical Services at Arlanda is installing Contour flatbeds in seven Airbus A340, which should be finished by March 31, and in four Airbus 330 between October and December.
MYTRAVEL U.K. has taken full ownership of its maintenance hangar at Manchester Airport, formerly run by MyTravel Engineering, a joint venture with FLS Aerospace (now SR Technics U.K.). The facility is now operated by MyTravel Aircraft Engineering, a wholly owned subsidiary of MyTravel Airways.
General Dynamics Aviation Services' facility in Westfield, Mass., achieved Star status from the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Voluntary Protection Program.
More recommendations have stemmed from the U.K. government's investigation into a February 2005 Virgin Atlantic flight that diverted due to fuel level indicators problems. During the Airbus A340's pre-flight there was a single failure on each fuel control monitoring computer (FCMC 2, FCMC 1), but the crew reset the computers. Shortly after takeoff, the aircraft's electronic centralized aircraft monitor (ECAM) showed a FCMC 2 fault. Once at cruise, the crew unsuccessfully tried to reset the computer.
The inexorable link between technical documentation and technician performance is taking on new dimensions within the U.S. Navy as it moves toward a paperless state.
High above Iraq's sandy surface, an unmanned aerial vehicle pivots its forward-looking infrared (FLIR) camera toward a possible target. In real time, the image is down-linked to the "rover" television screen carried by a U.S. Army platoon leader in the field. Instead of sending his men into harm's way, he sees what's behind the building 100 meters in front of him. Instead of waiting for an Air Force "fast mover," an A-10, to take out the target, the platoon leader calls on the unmanned UAV's pilot thousands of miles away in the U.S. to launch a Hellfire missile.
Japan Airlines ordered a CAE Maintenance Training Simulator System for Boeing 737NG aircraft for the carrier's training center at Tokyo Haneda Airport.
The Department of National Defense is seeking increased effectiveness and efficiency of Canadian Forces' in-service support management from two long-term contracts totaling CAD961.1 million ($828.7 million) with IMP Group and L-3 Electronic Systems, both of Enfield, Nova Scotia. These will provide optimized weapon system support for the CAF's Lockheed Martin CP-140 Aurora maritime patrol aircraft, supplying complete fleet life-cycle minimum-cost maintenance and support services.
L-3 Communications WESCAM (L-3 WESCAM), a wholly owned subsidiary of L-3 Communications, announced in October that it has been selected by Poland's PZL-Mielec to supply MX-15i EO/IR vital imaging sensors needed for the Indonesian Navy's fully integrated airborne surveillance solution. The contract includes seven MX-15 electro-optical and infrared imaging turrets, with ongoing deliveries scheduled through September 2006, for installation in some of Indonesia's 11 Antonov/PZL M28 Skytruck twin-turboprop maritime patrol aircraft.
Pratt & Whitney plans soon to open a 15,000-square-foot logistics hub at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) as part of its recently announced deal to handle all materials management for United Airlines' fleet of well over 300 PW4000 powerplants. The contract with United, announced in October, is the largest logistical support contract Pratt & Whitney has ever won on a specific engine family under its long-running Materials Management Program (MMP), the OEM said.
Repair station oversight was a hot topic inside the Washington, D.C., beltway for a few weeks as 2005 came to a close, starting with a Senate subcommittee hearing in mid-November and cresting with the release of a DOT Inspector General report on non-certificated repair facilities a month later. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee's aviation subcommittee convened on Nov. 17 for a hearing on aviation safety. Among the topics on the agenda -- "contract" maintenance.
All Nippon Airways plans to retire its last Boeing 747SR-100 on March 10 after 27 flying years. It first flew on Jan. 25, 1979 and was affectionately referred to as "Super Jumbo." The 747SR-100 was the world's first aircraft to carry 500 people in an all-economy configuration, and it became a new symbol of mass transportation. In 1989, ANA flew 23 Super Jumbos, which represented 22 percent of the airlines' entire fleet at the time. ANA sold its last 747SR-100 to Boeing.
The Saab Group is consolidating its civil and military overhaul and maintenance units into a new aftermarket support business called Saab Aerotech. The new organization will have five divisions: Ground Support Services, Aircraft Services, Electronic Systems Services, Metech Calibrations Services and MainPartner, which will include component support business Saab Aviocomp. This business also will handle logistics support, maintenance, support areas and be responsible for developing component repair infrastructure.
TAM Brazilian Airlines awarded GE a 15-year OnPoint Solutions agreement for the maintenance, repair and overhaul of its CFM56-5B engines. TAM also awarded GE a seven-year OnPoint Solutions contract for its 12 CF6-80E engines.
The U.K. Ministry of Defense is streamlining the Defense Aviation Repair Agency (DARA) and the Army Base Repair Organization (ABRO) to further modernize its military logistics support structure. Announcing this in November, Armed Forces Minister Adam Ingram said that rationalizations will further improve front-line support without affecting operational capabilities.
JetBlue Airways awarded Goodrich a contract to maintain components on up to 200 Airbus A320s. Components range from actuation and lighting to fuel and utility systems.
Third-party maintenance's next turn in the spotlight began on Dec. 15 with an IG report on airline usage of non-certificated repair stations. While the use of such facilities is a well-known and accepted part of aviation maintenance, the IG determined that "non-certificated repair facilities are now performing more significant work than anyone realized."
Basler Turbo Conversions in Oshkosh, Wisc., received a $7.1 million firm-fixed price FMS contract in November, via Ogden Air Logistics Center, Hill AFB, Utah, for additional P&WC PT-6 converted AC-47T Fantasma (Turbo Dakota) aircraft for the Colombian air force (FAC).
