Boeing is engineering a strengthened wing access panel to cover DC-10 hydraulic lines and other key flight control components, and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) wants FAA to mandate installation of the improved part or require equivalent upgrades to shield the components from debris. Both moves were triggered by an eye-opening incident involving a Centurion Air Cargo Inc.
Keystone Helicopter will refurbish four Sikorsky S-76A helicopters for Metro Life Flight. It will take about one year to refurbish interiors, repaint and install new avionics.
CAE became one of 13 prime contractors eligible to bid on various U.S. Navy training programs over the next eight years. The Navy values the total training over this period to be $3 billion.
Stevens Aviation designed and installed a refreshment cabinet that doubles storage space in Piaggio Avanti aircraft. In addition, Stevens Aviation Dayton announced it now offers Hawker 700 and 800 maintenance, avionics, paint and interior refurbishment services.
B/E Aerospace cabin interior products will be featured in Northwest Airlines' new Airbus A330 business class and coach sections. Malaysia Airlines also selected B/E Aerospace to provide a turnkey cabin interior upgrade package for its first and business class seats in Boeing 747 and 777 aircraft.
The RAF's upgraded BAE Systems Harrier GR.9 prototype development aircraft (ZD320), a follow-on to GR.7/7A ground-attack fighter, made its initial flight from Warton in Lancashire, on May 30. Flown by BAE Systems test pilot John Lawson, ZD320 took off conventionally, for a successful 70-minute sortie, which included a short hover. The flight represented a significant milestone in a program that provides Harrier combat enhancements, with advanced mission system avionics, and smart weapons capabilities.
Rockwell Collins Aviation Services received a five-year contract from CSS Aerospace to provide avionics maintenance repair and support for a fleet of Jetstream 31/32s.
Triumph Group named Michael Meshay president of its Triumph Components subsidiary. He most recently served as president of Fairchild Dornier's aircraft components and services group.
KLM on Oct. 22 is set to take delivery of the first Electron-ic Flight Bag (EFB) that will be installed on a 777. The airline ordered 10 Jeppesen EFBs, which contain the documentation and forms for pilots, on its 777 fleet. KLM's EFBs will use a hard-mounted Class 3 version that includes Jeppesen software so pilots can access airport diagrams and see runways and taxiways to improve situational awareness. The EFB, which weighs about 10 lbs. (a 77-lb.
Dallas Airmotive celebrated the opening of its Boynton Beach, Fla., regional turbine center on Sept. 4. Marty Jones is managing the facility, which is a Honeywell-authorized major service center for the TFE731. The site also offers Pratt & Whitney Canada-authorized PT6A, PT6T and JT15D maintenance.
A major Boeing upgrade of 12 Egyptian Air Force (EAF) CH-47C Chinook heavy-lift helicopters to CH-47D standards reached an advanced stage in July with entry into service of three more modernized Chinooks at their main base of Kom Awshem, about 100 km south of Cairo. The three Chinooks, one of them delivered six weeks ahead of schedule, officially joined their new squadron on June 4, and began military missions and training operations almost immediately. A team of specialists from the EAF, Boeing and the U.S.
Smiths and Shaw Aero Devices teamed to provide onboard inert gas generating systems for transport aircraft to comply with SFAR 88. The system provides Nitrogen Enriched Air to fuel tanks to reduce oxygen in fuel vapors.
Jouve Aviation Solutions received a contract from Southwest Airlines to supply its AirGTI platform to support publishing and delivery of repair and maintenance information via the Internet to facilities maintaining Southwest's aircraft. They will deploy the service in the fourth quarter.
Honeywell announced that China-based AVIC I selected it and Parker Hannifin to jointly develop primary flight control systems for its new 70- to 90-seat ARJ21 airliner. The contract could be worth up to $200 million.
General Dynamics Aviation Services' West Palm Beach service center received FAA approval to maintain Hawker 800XPs. The center also is authorized on Challenger, Citation, Falcon, Gulfstream, Learjet and other business aircraft.
Boeing delivered on Sept. 5 the first F/A-18E/F with a redesigned forward fuselage, which should reduce life-cycle costs. In addition, ``The redesigned forward fuselage is key to the incorporation of spiral development systems in the F/A-18E/F Block II configuration,'' said Tony Parasida, vice president of the program.
O&M: Why did the Hirschman family decide not to sell Jet Aviation, and what impact has this had on your business? Staub: It's a family business, and there was no particular reason to sell the company. Obviously the reason they haven't sold the company was because of the market situation, and that they didn't get the price they wanted. O&M: Jet Aviation North America is restructuring its business into geographic regions and is expanding its maintenance capabilities. What is the motivation for these changes?
Both Honeywell and Rockwell Collins are delivering mature products to Bombardier for the Challenger 300. Honeywell's 8,000-lb.-thrust AS907 engine completed 26,000 hours of testing to prepare for its entry into service, which is three times more than other Honeywell engines entering service, said John Ricciardelli, Honeywell director of the AS900 product line. Honeywell enlisted an operators' advisory board and 20 mechanics from seven service centers from the program's first day to provide input into the engine.
IAI received $1.4 million from the Israeli government to perform advanced flight test of Elta's commercial aircraft Flight Guard protection system. After the system receives certification, Flight Guard is scheduled to be installed on Israeli airlines to protect against shoulder missiles.
Gulfstream Aerospace received a contract worth up to $473 million from Israel's Ministry of Defense to supply and support four Gulfstream G550s. Israel will use the aircraft as compact airborne early warning platforms. The contract includes a 10-year logistics support program worth up to $18 million.
