Business Aviation

Cirrus Aircraft has released its first interactive in flight training manual, —the Interactive Flight Operations Manual — a multi-touch iBook for use on the iPhone, iPad and Apple computer platforms. It will give pilots personalized mobile access to Cirrus SR20, SR22 and SR22T flight procedures, standards and techniques, and complements the airframer’s “Cirrus Approach” online learning program.

Four California law enforcement agencies have taken delivery of new Airbus Helicopters H125AStars. The California Highway Patrol took delivery of its fourth and fifth H125 aircraft, part of a five-year contract to upgrade its fleet. The LA Police Department took delivery of its second H125, part of a multi-year contract to upgrade its fleet of AS350 B2. The Ontario Police Department took delivery of its first H125, an addition to its fleet of two AS350 B2s. And the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office has taken delivery of two H125s.

FAA certification has been delayed on the Cirrus Aircraft Vision SF50 personal jet until the first half of this year, the company said. It was previously expected by the end of 2015. “2015 was a pretty aggressive goal” for certification, said Matthew Bergwall, Cirrus Aircraft Vision SF50 product manager. “We were full steam ready to go, but honestly two things . . . played into this.” One was that work on the aircraft’s parachute took longer than expected, Bergwall said. The other was “the overall quality of the product.

Viking Air is marketing a $6 million (USD) float-equipped version of its upgraded Twin Otter 400. The British Columbia manufacturer says the new 400S is designed for short to medium flights and has a breakeven load factor of around eight passengers under typical operating conditions. The aircraft features a Honeywell “Super-Lite” integrated digital avionics suite adapted for VFR operations, and comes equipped with 17-passenger seats. The Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-27 engines turn platinum-coated CT blades.

Already the world’s largest FBO network, Signature Flight Support added another 62 bases to its fold on Feb. 5 when BBA Aviation, its British parent company, closed on the acquisition of Landmark Aviation from the Carlyle Group for $2.065 billion. The combined network now includes 195 locations in North America, Europe, South America, the Caribbean, Africa and Asia, all under the Signature name, and added 3,000 Landmark employees to Signature’s payroll.

With the addition of some 30 aircraft based in Brazil and Mexico, Global Jet Capital has completed its acquisition of General Electric’s fixed-wing corporate aircraft financing portfolio in the Americas. While the majority of the aircraft financed by the firm are large-cabin, long-range models based in the U.S. and Canada, the company says there’s strong growth potential in international markets.

Inside a hangar at South Australia’s Adelaide Airport, Cobham Aviation Services is modifying four former business jets. Cobham is integrating advanced sensor equipment and mission systems onto four Bombardier Challenger CL-604 aircraft in South Australia on behalf of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority. Under a 12-year, $640 million contract, Cobham will own, operate and maintain the Challengers for AMSA from bases in Perth, Cairns and Melbourne.

Canada’s backing of Bombardier shows governments are willing to do what it takes in the aerospace arena to keep home-grown champions in the game.

Bell’s 525 Relentless is second-to-none for safety and mission optimization, but will the market respond with firm orders?

New rules will in theory make passenger flights safer—assuming battery makers and shippers follow the rules.

Gulfstream Aerospace Corp.’s G600 iron bird completed its first simulated flight to demonstrate the growing maturity of its G600 aircraft program, the company said.

FAA and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore have signed the first set of maintenance implementation procedures (MIP) between the U.S. agency and an Asian counterpart.

Bombardier Business Aircraft delivered its 75th Learjet 75 light business jet on Feb. 24, two years after the first Learjet 75 entered service.

With its definition of small UAVs covering weights up to a fairly hefty 55 lb., and under pressure to treat lighter or “micro” UAVs differently, the FAA has chartered an aviation rulemaking committee (ARC) to recommend how such vehicles should be regulated.

Delays in development of Safran’s Silvercrest engine cost the company a one-time €654 million ($720 million) charge last year, helping drive operating profit for 2015 down more than 12% to €1.7 billion.

Gulfstream Aerospace has announced that the Gulfstream G600 iron bird has completed its “first flight”.

Zodiac Aerospace will not meet its 2015-16 target of close to 10% operating profit margin, and its planned recovery from a crisis in its aircraft seats and interiors business will take longer than the 18 months initially predicted, the company’s chief executive said.

Worldwide business and general aviation avionics sales last year totaled more than $2.4 billion, a 4.4% decrease compared to 2014, according to just-released data from the Aircraft Electronics Association.

A network of low-level IFR routes and anti-icing-equipped helicopters may represent the future of air ambulance operations.

The NTSB recently opened its investigation docket on the Dec. 8, 2014, loss of an Embraer Phenom 100 (N100EQ) — an accident that renewed community worries and complaints about operations at Montgomery County Airpark (KGAI) in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

The NTSB said its investigators have learned that the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation is conducting an investigation into an accident involving an Embraer EMB-500 on Feb. 15, 2013 (BFU interim report No. CX001-13), at Berlin-Schönefeld Airport (SXF), Germany. The interim report of the accident stated that the airplane rolled to the left during the landing flare resulting in the left wing contacting the ground. Investigators found ice accretions up to 10 mm in thickness on the airplane’s nose, wing leading edges and horizontal stabilizer.

The following NTSB information is preliminary about these selected accidents and Incidents in January 2016 and December 2015.

Every technician has been there, standing face to face with an agitated pilot who opens a conversation with, “It happened again.” This is often accompanied with the same look of disappointment mothers give when their child present a less than stellar report card. Technical problems that appear and disappear are exceptionally frustrating. The lack of a definitive resolution can cause a corrosive environment in your team dynamic. Pilots need to trust their technician’s ability to hunt and trap these types of problems, and their return erodes that faith.

On May 31, 2012, during cruise flight at FL 220 in a Cessna 560, the captain’s windscreen cracked and the flightcrew made an immediate descent and landing. Engineering inspection revealed the source of the problem was a damaged seal. It had let water enter, which then froze during flight.

A good cleaning should be just that. But often is quite not. “A great many expensive repairs are made to windows which have been subject to improper cleaning techniques,” says Tim Snipes of Aviation Window Services in Boulder, Colorado. Among tools of destruction he cites are stiff brushes, soiled or abrasive cloths, and improper cleaning agents.