Eric Byer, who served as vice president of government and industry affairs for the National Air Transportation Association (NATA), was named senior vice president of Obadal, Filler, MacLeod & Klein, where he will help expand the firm’s association management practice and its internal and external communication activities. In his new role, Byer will also serve as vice president of communications, policy and planning for the Aeronautical Repair Station Association.
Cessna continues to progress on its plan to bring six new or updated aircraft to market this year, rolling out the new Citation Sovereign and completing the first flight of a production TTx single-piston aircraft. The Sovereign, which sports new avionics and winglets similar to the new Citation X, comes off the assembly line just four months after Cessna unveiled the follow-on business jet at the National Business Aviation Association’s annual meeting and convention in Orlando, Fla. last fall.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which has kept general aviation safety on its Most Wanted List since 2011, is meeting this week to discuss five key areas aimed at reducing the number of GA accidents: reduced-visual reference; aerodynamic stalls at low altitude; pilot inattention to indications of mechanical problems; risk management of aviation maintenance technicians and risk management for pilots. The safety board will consider the issuance of five safety alerts on these areas.
JASON WEISS was appointed vice president of operations for Flexjet. Weiss has more than 13 years of aviation experience, including five as vice president, crew resource planning for NetJets. He also has served in senior operations positions at Air Wisconsin and Atlas Air. In his new role, Weiss will manage Flexjet’s flight operations, training, technical operations, operations analysis and fleet management, the owner operations center and procurement.
MARK WILSON has joined West Star Aviation as Gulfstream/Challenger technical sales manager at its East Alton, Ill. base. Wilson has more than 30 years of aviation industry experience both in manufacturing and maintenance. He has held technician, lead, manager and supervisor roles for companies including Boeing, Gulfstream and Lockheed Martin.
EMBRAER Model ERJ 170 and ERJ 190 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2013-0092; Directorate Identifier 2012-NM-067-AD] – proposes to require a detailed inspection for damage to the insulation and inner conductors of the auxiliary (APU) electronic start controller (ESC) power cables, installing new grommet support in the tail cone firewall, and corrective actions if necessary. This proposed AD was prompted by reports of chafing between the APU ESC power cables and the airplane tail cone firewall.
Gulfstream continues to rack up city-pair speed records with its new aircraft models, the latest involving a nonstop G650 flight between Melbourne and Abu Dhabi. The trip was the longest duration nonstop for Gulfstream’s demonstrator aircraft since it entered service in late 2012. The aircraft completed the 6,329-nm flight from Melbourne International Airport to Abu Dhabi Al Bateen Executive Airport in 13 hr. and 5 min., averaging a speed of Mach 0.87. The previous longest flight for the demonstrator G650 was a 6,102-nm trip between Doha, Qatar and Teterboro, N.J.
Beechcraft delivered the 800th T-6 turboprop, nearly 13 years after the aircraft first entered service. The milestone aircraft was one of two Beechcraft T-6Bs delivered to the U.S. Navy’s Training Air Wing 4 at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas. The Training Air Wing 4 is scheduled to take a total of 98 T-6Bs to replace its aging T-34 fleet. Beechcraft has delivered 16 of the aircraft to the Wing 4 so far. Beechcraft began delivery of the first T-6 – which is based on the Pilatus PC-9 – in 2000 after it was selected for the U.S.
Quest Aircraft Company has announced that it has named SkyQuest International as an authorised Kodiak dealer to represent the company's sales activities in Africa.
Airport executives are appealing to Congress for a legislative solution that would avert the closure of nearly half of the nation’s air traffic control towers that FAA has planned, beginning next month as part of the sequester budget cuts. The American Association of Airport Executives is hoping legislation, such as the short-term government-wide funding bill, may open an avenue for relief.
India’s burgeoning maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) industry received a much-needed boost after the government announced tax concessions on the import of spare parts and testing equipment. The government also extended the period for required installation of the parts and equipment to one year from three months. “The MRO sector is at a nascent stage. Encouraging the industry will generate employment besides other benefits,” Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said in a budget presentation to parliament.
Part 135 is a fast growing segment to adopt Aviation Safety Action Programs (ASAPs), says Chris MacWhorter, senior technical advisor for FAA’s Flight Standards Service. Currently, 19 Part 135 operators and eight Part 135/91K operators have the programs in place, which provides a means for employees to voluntarily report safety issues and events. The Air Charter Safety Foundation has begun a program that would enable smaller operators to participate, and ACSF Director of Safety Russ Lawton says four operators are on board with more in the works.
Signature Flight Support parent BBA Aviation is preparing for another flat year in the business and general aviation sector but will continue to make strategic acquisitions in anticipation of market growth in the medium and long term, CEO Simon Pryce says.
SIMON MORRIS was named vice president for ICF International’s aviation practice, SH&E. Morris has more than 20 years of experience, with a background in airport transactions. He formerly was principal of A.T. Kearney’s airport practice and also has served as director for LeighFisher’s European airport practice. He will work with business and strategic planning for airports and lead the London Airport team in projects.
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association is launching a search for a new president and CEO following the decision of Craig Fuller to step down from the office he has held since January 2009. Fuller, who had succeeded longtime president Phil Boyer, is only the fourth president at AOPA since the association’s inception 75 years ago.
New FAA guidance is providing Part 121, 135 and 91K operators an alternate means to demonstrate compliance with initial training requirements for their contract instructors and check airmen. The guidance, effective last month, was released after the agency met with industry groups, which were concerned that the training requirements were forcing some Part 142 training centers to pull authorizations of their inspectors and check airman.
ROLLS-ROYCE DEUTSCHLAND BR700-710A1-10 and BR700-710A2-20 turbofan engines, and certain BR700-710C4-11 engines [Docket No. FAA-2012-1055; Directorate Identifier 2012-NE-33-AD; Amendment 39-17351; AD 2013-03-17] -- requires reducing the life limits for certain high-pressure turbine (HPT) Stage 1 and Stage 2 discs. This AD was prompted by RRD performing an evaluation that determined that certain HPT Stage 1 and Stage 2 discs from a specific supplier may contain steel inclusions that may cause the discs to fail before they reach their current life limits.
Sierra Nevada, with team member Embraer, has once again defeated Beechcraft for the U.S. Air Force’s Light Air Support aircraft contract for the fledgling Afghan defense forces. The winning team, offering a variant of Embraer’s A-29 Super Tucano, originally beat out Beechcraft’s AT-6 proposal in December 2011. But the Air Force was quickly forced to stop work on the contract after Beechcraft protested the source selection. Findings of government auditors prompted the Air Force to redo the competition, leading to the Feb. 27 announcement.
Diamond Aircraft continues to struggle with the ongoing general aviation market malaise, temporarily laying off the majority of its workforce at its London, Ontario-based operation and suspending development of the D-Jet single-jet program. The company cites “continuing low piston aircraft sales, especially in the North American market, and the significant burden of its cost-intensive D-Jet development program” for the latest actions.
Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) have introduced a pair of climate-change bills that could significantly raise the cost of fuel. The bills are similar to legislation introduced by Reps. Henry Waxman (D-Ore.) and Edward Markey (D-Mass.) in 2010 in that they would impose a carbon-dioxide tax on fuel and other substances whose use creates greenhouse gas emissions. The bills will next be considered by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, which Boxer chairs.
Jet Aviation’s facility in Dubai obtained FAA approval to provide line and base maintenance for the Gulfstream 650 aircraft. Dubai is among the initial service centers authorized to service Gulfstream’s newest aircraft. The center was established in May 2005 as a joint venture with the Al Mulla Group.
