The new south terminal at San Francisco is a substantial addition to the main terminal and represents a major stage of growth. Ten airlines will occupy the $14 million facility when it is fully operational. A ground speed indicator under development for several years is now being marketed by NARCO. Weighing 1.7 lb. and fitting into a standard 3 1/8-in. hole, the indicator costs $395 and attaches to any NARCO DME.
Bennett E. Taber (Manager, Bay Area Operations Dreamline Aviation LLC San Carlos, Calif. )
I enjoyed “Flying Among Robots” (September 2013, page 26), especially since I just had one zip by me the other day on its way to check out the Rim Fire. But I wanted to point out an error in syntax that one often finds when the author is not familiar with all things nautical: When speaking of a vessel, military or civilian, the vessel type should precede the vessel name, thus: The aircraft carrier Ford, not the Ford aircraft carrier;
“Truly Earning That Fourth Stripe” (February 2013, page 45) hits the nail on the head with what is required to be a commander of an aircraft. Many copilots who can fly an aircraft very well and think they should be in the left seat, yet display none of the other qualities you mention. I would agree that flying the aircraft is a given; that's the minimum we expect from them and only about 10% of the job in the changing world of business aviation.
Kenn Ricci is further cementing his status as a business aviation mogul with the acquisition of the Flexjet fractional aircraft operation from Bombardier. The $185 million deal, announced Sept. 5, includes a commitment to place orders and options for up to 245 Bombardier business aircraft valued at $5.2 billion. The sale, subject to regulatory approvals and other conditions, is expected to close by year's end. Directional Aviation Capital, the entity acquiring Flexjet, is headed by Ricci, an attorney and former charter pilot who founded Flight Options in 1998.
FlightSafety International has installed a Level D Citation XLS+ simulator with a Collins Pro Line 21 suite at its Orlando, Fla., training center. The facility now provides training for the full Citation XL series. Meanwhile,the company added Citation CJ2+ training with a dedicated simulator at its San Antonio, Tex., center, along with a new Level D Cessna Caravan simulator equipped with Garmin G600 suite at its Cessna Learning Center in Wichita.
JETS, part of Germany's 328 Group, is now an authorized Service Center for Dassault Aviation. They will undertake line maintenance on the Falcon 900 and 2000 at its expanding London Biggin Hill MRO facility and also support the company's European network. The company employs around 30 licensed engineers at Biggin and is actively recruiting for more to complement its MRO activity at Bournemouth Airport.
Executive AirShare has added three Cessna Citation CJ2+ aircraft to its fleet to complement its existing Embraer and Beechcraft products. All three are 2009 models year or newer with each having less than 800 hr. of flight time. “The CJ2+ offers the range, speed and seating our owners desire and is the aircraft we need to provide the comprehensive air service our customers expect,” said Keith Plumb, president and COO Executive AirShare.
Unloved and abandoned by its creator, the outcast Hawker 4000 is being embraced by Talon Air. The Farmingdale, N.Y.-based aircraft management and charter operator, now has nine of the super-midsize twins on its FAR Part 135 certificate making its fleet the largest by far. Paul St.
Jet Aviation Flight Services has added its first Gulfstream G650 onto its U.S. Part 135 air carrier certificate. It will be managed by the Van Nuys office. The G650 charter aircraft seats up to 13 passengers, sleeps five and includes a crew rest area. With a range of about 7,000 nm, its suitable for trips from Van Nuys to Madrid, Melbourne and Johannesburg.
Landmark Aviation's Aircraft Management & Charter division has been approved to operate to and from Washington's Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA). Landmark will now be able to provide both corporate aircraft management and FAR Part 135-non-scheduled air carrier services.
Moscow-based ViraZH is buying 79 Cessna 172s for use at various flight schools throughout western Russia. The aircraft, which feature a Garmin G1000 panel, are to be delivered by the third quarter of 2014. The order follows a purchase of 11 Skyhawks by the training company in 2011 and makes ViraZH's one of the largest fleets of the Cessna model in the world. The Skyhawk is the most populous single-engine aircraft in production.
The first Legacy 650 business jet assembled in China under a joint venture by Embraer and Aviation Industry Corporate of China (AVIC) took flight in late August. Guan Dongyuan, senior vice president of Embraer and president of Embraer China said the 2.5-hr. flight was “an important milestone not only in the Embraer-AVIC partnership, but also in the history of the Chinese executive aviation industry, as the jet is also the first large executive jet assembled by a joint venture in China.” Delivery of the aircraft is expected by year's end.
China's Avicopter will build cabins for the Sikorsky S-76D as a second-source supplier of the executive/transport helicopter. The work will be done by Avicopter's Changhe factory at Jingdezhen, which previously made eight cabins for the S-76C++. Czech supplier Aero Vodochody also makes S-76D fuselages. Avicopter will deliver its first cabins in 2016, according to the schedule. The cabins — fuselages forward of the tail booms — will be delivered to Sikorsky fully fitted with equipment.
AgustaWestland is flight testing several aerodynamic improvements expected to boost performance of its AW609 TiltRotor. The manufacturer has test flown the aircraft with a modified vertical tail fin at its Cascina Costa flight test facility in Italy. That alteration is part of a package of improvements including a more aerodynamic design for the engine exhaust nozzles and changes to the prop-rotor spinner cones. Together, the mods reportedly reduce the aircraft's drag factor by approximately 10% and result in a significant weight savings as well.
Gulfstream Aerospace has seen its Russia-based business-jet fleet grow more than six fold in the last six years, according to an announcement made by Gulfstream President Larry Flynn at the recent Jet Expo in Moscow. There are now 53 customer-operated aircraft in Russia and a combined 76 in Russia and the CIS. In 2007, those numbers were eight and 11, respectively. To support the fleet in Russia and the CIS, Gulfstream has more than $120 million in parts and materials inventory at Luton, Madrid and Basel.
ProJet Aviation will host the eight annual Aviation Education and Career Expo on Oct. 25 at the ProJet corporate hangar on the Leesburg Executive Airport. The event is attended by more than 500 students, educators and parents who will interact with more than 40 aviation vendors. It's free to attendees and features speakers, videos and demonstrations that will showcase the variety of career opportunities in aviation. Speakers include Jamail Larkins (right), pilot and entrepreneur; Lt. Meagan Flannigan who has accumulated over 1,250 hr. flying F-14Ds, and F/A-18s; and Capt.
Global Aviation has added a Bombardier Challenger 300 to charter fleet. The additional aircraft joins the company's Global Express XRS, Challenger 604 and Hawker 800SP. Global Aviation plans to further expand its fleet later this year with a Gulfstream GV and a Hawker 900XP. Its fleet is based in Portland, Ore.
Cirrus Aircraft has partnered with Lake Superior College to develop and implement an Aircraft Assembly Pre-employment Program, which is part of a Minnesota Job Skills Program Grant for workforce development aimed at recruiting, training and preparing low income individuals for assembly jobs at Cirrus. The grant will fund the program's curriculum development and enrollment for up to 60 participants. Contact SOAR Career Solutions at (218) 722-3126 or [email protected].
Cessna Aircraft completed the first international delivery of its TTx, handing over the fixed-gear single-engine aircraft to a customer in Thailand. Cessna received certification of the TTx in July, marking a return of the former Corvalis program that had suspended production in late 2010. The new TTx is the first aircraft to sport the Garmin G2000 avionics system with a glass cockpit and dual 14.1-in. high-definition displays and touch screen controls.
AVMATS Parts Support is the first company to part out an airworthy Gulfstream V, according to the company. This aircraft, s.n. 647, was recently purchased by AVMATS for the sole purpose of improving parts availability and reducing the cost of proprietary items. It widens the rotable pool and adds a needed new source for used and serviceable GV parts to the market.
Elliott Aviation has installed a Honeywell Primus Epic CDS/R Phase V and NZ-210 WAAS FMS upgrade in a Hawker 800XP. Elliott will obtain the STC for the FMS 6.1 version 03040 with Epic CDS/R and the legacy SPZ-8000 EFIS. In addition to the Honeywell installation, the aircraft will receive a 48-month inspection, full paint, full interior and structural inspections. The retrofit reduces the weight of the aircraft by 50 lb.
The aircraft electronics market softened a bit in the second quarter of 2013 with total sales reaching$1.62 billion, according to the Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA). The sales, reported by 20 aviation electronics manufacturers, were down about 5% from the $1.71 billion reported in the first three months of this year. AEA this year began reporting sales figures to provide a picture of the overall market and its contributions to the economy.
The repair station security rule continues to languish at the Office of Management Budget, where it has now been under review for six months — twice the typical 90-day review time for most rulemakings. While the repair station rule sits at the White House office, the resulting ban on FAA certifying any new foreign repair stations has passed the five-year mark. Congress prohibited FAA from certifying new foreign repair stations until the Transportation Security Administration releases the long-awaited security rule. That prohibition took effect in August 2008.
In August, Charter flights continue to be the bright spot of business aircraft flying activity, up 14.3% year-over-year overall. Small and midsize aircraft charter operations drove that increase, improving 21.6% and 19.2%, respectively. Counting all operations, however, year-over-year flights are relatively flat in North America, with just a 1% slide, according to the latest ARGUS data. However, ARGUS is finding a month-over-month strengthening, up 3.2% from July. All categories improved except turboprop fractional and large-cabin charter operations.
