The General Electric Honda HF120 engine for the HA-420 HondaJet light business aircraft has received FAA Part 33 engine certification, clearing the way for the start of full-scale production.
PIAGGIO Model P-180 [Docket No. FAA-2013-0964; Directorate Identifier 2013-CE-035-AD] – proposes to require accomplishment of a one-time measurement of the actual clearance between the elevator horn and the horizontal stabilizer tip rib, and depending on findings, restoration of the required minimum clearance value.
Air Tractor signed an agreement with Pratt & Whitney Canada covering the acquisition of PT6A-15AG, -34AG, -60AG, -65AG, -67AG and -67F engines. Pratt & Whitney engines have powered Air Tractor aircraft since 1979, beginning with the AT-400. Since then, more than 2,100 PT-6 engines have been installed on Air Tractor aircraft. The agriculture market accounts for nearly one-quarter of PT6A deliveries. Separately, Air Tractor announced a new airframe and engine warranty policy.
BETH MCCLURG was appointed director of real estate for Gulfstream Aerospace. McClurg will be responsible for Gulfstream’s development and construction projects, lease transactions and property acquisitions worldwide. She will develop and execute a long-range strategic real estate plan. She was previously vice president of corporate real estate for Capital One in McLean, Va., and has also served as vice president of corporate real estate for NCR Corp. in Duluth, Ga.
The 11th Annual Living Legends of Aviation Awards, scheduled Jan. 17, will honor FedEx founder and CEO Frederick Smith with the Legends Lifetime Aviation Entrepreneur Award. Bruce Whitman, chairman and CEO of FlightSafety International, was selected as the recipient of the Lifetime Aviation Industry Award. Also being recognized are Major Gen. Patrick Brady, a Congressional Medal of Honor recipient, with the Freedom of Flight Award, and Col. Bud Day, posthumously, will be honored with a Bob Hoover medallion.
Despite growing opposition and a bill pending in Congress, the Federal Air Surgeon is staying on course with his plan to require pilots and controllers with a body mass index (BMI) of at least 40 to undergo testing for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and seek treatment, if necessary.
AGUSTAWESTLAND Model A109C, A109E, A109K2, and A119 helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2013-0943; Directorate Identifier 2013-SW-001-AD] – proposes to require recurring visual inspections of the tail rotor (T/R) blade retaining bolts (bolts) for a crack, corrosion, damage, or missing cadmium plating in the central part of the bolt. If a crack is not detected by the initial visual inspection, then this proposed AD would require a liquid penetrant inspection. Replacing a cracked or damaged bolt would be required before further flight.
RANDY ANNETT was promoted to manager of FlightSafety International’s learning center in Tucson, Ariz. Annett joined FlightSafety in 2011 at the Hawker Beechcraft training facility in Wichita, and served as instructor, program manager and assistant director of training there. Most recently he was assistant manager of FlightSafety’s Cessna learning center, also in Wichita. He formerly served as a pilot for Air Wisconsin Airlines and TMC Transportation.
Spirit AeroSystems is “deep” into the process of selling its Tulsa, Okla. production facility, a move that should mean significant bottom-line improvement as the supplier shifts focus to growing airliner programs and tackles issues uncovered in a sweeping strategic review, say analysts at Canaccord Genuity.
Business aviation groups are encouraging the Department of Transportation to establish a registry for air charter brokers as part of a larger regulation to improve air charter consumer protections.
FAA is advising operators of various Hawker 750s, 800s, 900s and 1000s to check the aircraft aileron and aileron tab assemblies for potential problems that could cause oscillations at high altitudes. The agency issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) in late November encouraging the checks, saying it had received reports of wing/aileron oscillations from operators of Hawker 800XP and 850XP airplanes at altitudes above 33,000 ft. and at speeds of more than 0.73 Mach.
Turbomeca and China’s Avic Engine have completed the first test bench runs of the new Ardiden 3C turboshaft that is destined for use on the Chinese version of the Eurocopter EC175. The tests, completed at Turbomeca’s Bordes facility in France, confirmed what the company called “good aeromechanical behavior and performance,” and allow the manufacturer to proceed to the test and certification phase of the engine’s development program. The trial is a major milestone in the development of the Ardiden 3C, which will be called the WZ16 by Avic.
NATCA National Air Traffic Controllers Association CFS: Communicating For Safety National Aviation Leaders Come Together Join Aviation leaders at Planet Hollywood, Las Vegas, March 24-26, 2014 for Communicating for Safety. Hosted annually by the national Air Traffic Controllers Association, this three-day conference focuses on safety, technology and building industry relationships.
Dec. 9-11—2013 ACI-NA/ACC Airport Planning & NEPA Workshop, Washington, D.C., www.aci-na.org/event/1039 Dec. 9-13—ICAO Air Services Negotiation Conference, Durbana International Convention Center, and Arena, Durban, South Africa , http://www.icao.int/Meetings/ICAN2013/Pages/default.aspx Jan. 14-17, 2014—National Business Aviation Association Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference, New Orleans, La., www.nbaa.org Jan. 21-22, 2014—MRO Latin America, Windsor Atlantica, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, www.aviationweek.com/events
RAYMOND JONES was named senior vice president, sales, marketing and asset management for Bombardier Commercial Aircraft. Jones was previously vice president, worldwide strategic accounts for Bombardier Business Aircraft. He has spent the past 10 years in business jet sales for Bombardier, also holding the titles of regional vice president for Europe and vice president of international sales.
ALAIN CHAMPONNOIS was appointed vice president and general manager of Jet Aviation Saudi Arabia. In his new role, Champonnois will oversee fixed-base operations and line maintenance operations in Jeddah, Riyadh and Medina, Saudi Arabia, effective Jan. 1. He succeeds Hardy Butschi, who was recently named vice president and general manager of Jet Aviation Dubai. Champonnois has 20 years of industry experience, most recently serving as vice president of sales and business development for Skyservice Business Aviation.
Shell has become the latest company, and the first of the major oil companies, to declare it has developed an unleaded replacement for aviation gasoline. The launch of the formula follows a 10-year research and development program that included testing of Lycoming engines and a recent test flight of a Piper Saratoga. Shell must still undergo a testing program to obtain regulatory approvals from FAA and the European Aviation Safety Agency, along with ASTM specification for the fuel.
BELL Model 206A, 206B, 206L, 206L-1, 206L-3, 206L-4, and 407 helicopters [Docket No. FAA-2013-0481; Directorate Identifier 2011-SW-003-AD; Amendment 39-17653; AD 2013-22-21] – requires, for helicopters with Apical emergency float kit installed, inspecting, labeling, and replacing the float inflation hoses. This AD was prompted by an incident in which the floats installed on a helicopter failed to deploy. FAA is issuing this AD to prevent failure of the emergency flotation gear to deploy during an emergency event.
Cessna Aircraft received approval from the Brazilian Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil for its new TTx single-piston aircraft. Cessna began shipping the aircraft to customers in Brazil last month. Brazilian approval follows U.S. FAA type certification in June, which marked the return of a new, improved version of the original Corvalis after a more than two-year hiatus. The newly improved TTx incorporates a touchscreen Garmin G2000 Intrinzic flight deck. It is also offered with an optional flight into known icing system.
Directional Aviation Capital completed its acquisition of Dallas-based fractional ownership provider Flexjet from Bombardier for about $195 million and an agreement to buy up to $5.6 billion in Bombardier business jets. The deal closed a little less than three months after the companies announced plans for Bombardier to sell its homegrown fractional ownership business.
