Airbus has won an order from a Middle East customer for an Airbus ACJ320. The aircraft, which is being managed by Aviation Link of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, will be outfitted with a VVIP interior with seating for 30 passengers. “As the operator of the largest fleet of privately owned Airbus aircraft in the Middle East, Aviation Link is the natural choice for clients seeking a large-cabin solution for their flight requirements,” says President and CEO Abdulaziz Al Rowaished. Aviation Link already manages two Airbus ACJ319s and an ACJ320 for Middle East clients.
AgustaWestland has announced an order by Kaan Air for one AW139 intermediate twin-engine helicopter and one AW189 super medium twin-engine helicopter. Both helicopters will be fitted out with VIP passenger transport interiors and will be operated in Turkey. The contract expands the presence of the AW139 in Turkey and marks the entrance of the AW189 into the Turkish helicopter market. Additionally, this is the first VIP-configured AW189 ordered in Europe where the type has already enjoyed a considerable success in the offshore and SAR markets.
Embraer’s Phenom 300 has received certification from EASA for steep-approach operation, which enables increased descent angles of up to 5.5 deg. “This certification enhances the Phenom 300’s operational flexibility,” said Marco Túlio Pellegrini, president and CEO, Embraer Executive Jets.
Daher-Socata yesterday announced the first sale of a TBM 900 to a European customer, Badenwings, a subsidiary of Schmitt & Eger Holding. The company is based at Baden-Baden airport, Germany, where it will operate the airplane. This is the first TBM 900 sold to a final customer in Europe and the first sold by Rheinland Air Service (RAS), TBM distributor for Germany and Austria. “We selected the new TBM 900 for its flexibility to carry small freight or passengers for private internal flights of our holding company,” commented Nielsen Bott, CEO of Badenwings.
Buying or leasing a $2.4 million Nextant C90XT or $5 million 400XTi just became easier with the introduction of Nextant Financing, a new division of the Cleveland-based Nextant Aerospace. The plunge in used-aircraft values, coupled with restrictive conventional financing for used aircraft, has made it difficult for many buyers to finance or lease aircraft in the $2 million to $10 million range, even if they’re fully remanufactured.
Air Hamburg signed a contract with Embraer yesterday for its third Legacy 600 aircraft. The company says that reaction to its two recently acquired Legacy 600s has been “amazing” with both aircraft averaging nearly 100 hours per month. “We are certain it is the right decision to invest and expand in this segment,” says Air Hamburg CEO Floris Helmers. The contract was signed by Air Hamburg’s main investor Simon Ebert at the Embraer booth. Delivery of the aircraft is scheduled for May 2015 in Brazil.
Bombardier’s unveiling of the Global 7000 mock-up has generated strong traffic flows through the exhibit. The thrust of the marketing campaign is more quality of lifestyle than pure business use.
When Embraer’s Legacy 450 “mid-light”-cabin aircraft reaches market next year, the Brazilian manufacturer will have nearly achieved its ambitious goal set to have an aircraft in every market niche. The one exception remains the ultra-long-range niche that is filled or will be filled by aircraft such as Gulfstream’s G650 and Bombardier’s Global 7000/8000 program.
Marshall Aviation Services (MAS) based at Broughton, North Wales, and part of the Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, recently completed a significant avionics upgrade with the installation of a Garmin G1000 full glass cockpit aboard a Beechcraft King Air 300. The aircraft, for an undisclosed European operator, made its post-retrofit maiden flight on April 24, flying to Berne.
Luma Technologies’ Lumatech TM 45-station integrated LED caution warning display will be standard equipment on Nextant Aerospace’s King Air G90XT, which is scheduled for certification later this year. “Nextant and Luma have enjoyed a good working relationship since the beginning of the 400XTi program,” says Luma president Bruce Maxwell. “It’s a natural extension for them to carry the 400XTi’s reliable LED technology over to the G90XT.
Following a “fast and furious” 10 months from launch, Wheels Up’s membership program has expanded into three U.S. regions with a fleet of nearly 20 King Airs, and company founder Kenny Dichter expects to reach into other U.S. regions this year and Europe in early 2015. Dichter, the founder of the Marquis Jet membership program, formally unveiled plans for Wheels Up August 1 with an order for 105 King Air 350i and a vision of building a membership-based company that provide services for any private air travel need.
Honeywell has named the first business aviation customer for its JetWave Wi-Fi connectivity system employing Jet ConneX, the Inmarsat Global Xpress–powered service. Honeywell has an MoU with Haitec Aircraft Maintenance to deliver the system for two ACJ319s operated by Tyrolean Jet Services, a Haitec customer. “Once it comes online in the first half of 2015, it will deliver passengers and operators fast, global inflight Wi-Fi across land and sea,” Honeywell says.
Pilatus Aircraft opened its order book here yesterday for the PC-24 utility jet, and by the end of the first day of EBACE had announced sales of 76. Every sale was proudly proclaimed on a scoreboard, and often named the customer as well. Launch customers included: Falcon Aviation Services, UAE: two PC-24s; Jetfly, Luxembourg: four aircraft; PlaneSense, USA: six PC-24s; Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (Western Operations): three plus an option for a fourth; and U-Haul International, USA: two.
EBAA CEO Fabio Gamba is upbeat that this year’s EBACE is reflecting signs that the business aviation market in European may be stabilizing. “It’s been a tough period,” he says, but he told Tuesday’s opening ceremony that “indicators point to 2014 being a year of positive rebound.” EBAA, working with NBAA here, is “trying to be proactive” in anticipation of an improving market, with more educational sessions and announcements on access, infrastructure, runway use, flight and duty time and more.
Flying by the seat of your pants has a new meaning at Lufthansa Technik, which yesterday unveiled a new concept for the main passenger-cabin interface – the chair.
Why buy when you can lease? Why tie up $50 million in a jet – a depreciating asset – when you can lease the jet, dress it as your own, fly it as your own, yet not have it on your balance sheet? Those are the questions being asked here by Colin Steven, formerly of Embraer, who is launching Veling Tayara with partners including former Embraer Executive Jets president Ernie Edwards. “In today’s environment, there are smarter ways to invest your capital than in a depreciating asset,” the company says.
A futuristic interior for a VIP helicopter is being unveiled here this week by AgustaWestland. A mockup of the design for the AW169, by fashion studio Lanzavecchia+Wai, can be seen at EBACE. After working with the most famous and prestigious fashion houses, such as Versace and Lagerfeld, on the GrandNew and AW139 helicopters, AgustaWestland decided to do something different and avant garde for the AW169, which is to be certified this year.
Rolls-Royce’s CorporateCare engine maintenance program is growing by leaps and bounds and is making a real difference to aircraft resale values, says Stephen Friedrich, VP, Sales and Marketing, Civil Small and Medium Engines. “We now have 1,500-plus aircraft signed up, and more than 70% of all new Rolls-Royce deliveries are enrolled,” he says. “We’re no longer seeing market acceptance but market demand.” Indeed, the sign-up rate exceeds the number of new deliveries as used aircraft five, 10 or even 20 years old are enrolled.
“We wanted to match the values of AgustaWestland, and felt that helicopter interiors were not a mirror of their outsides,” says Francesca Lanzavecchia of design studio Lanzavecchia+Wai, whose unique Stream design concept for an AW169 passenger cabin is displayed in model form at the manufacturer’s Booth 6629.
Mahjong in the sky? Sure. But the Chinese owner of a BBJ2 currently being outfitted by BizJet International will have bragging rights to the first fully STC’d built-in digital board for the 500-year-old game. “It will be the first of its kind,” says sales VP Ed Harris of JBRND (the former Jeff Bonner R&D), which is exhibiting here at Booth 5339.
Isle of Man, Bermuda and Cayman Islands operators are among those likely to be affected by new changes to EASA operations rules, says Aoife O’Sullivan, international aviation expert and partner at the UK-based Kennedys international law firm. The changes are a hot issue for non-EU operators, she says, who could find themselves required to meet EU Air Operators Certificate standards even if they’re not doing AOC business.
TV screens got wider, so why not bizjet windows? Boeing and Fokker Services join forces in Geneva to offer a new perk to passengers. You might wonder why someone has not done it before… but they have. The section of the Boeing Business Jet cabin at Booth 3223 incorporates the latest feature from Fokker Services: a 54.5-inch (138 cm) panoramic window created by “knocking-through” three of the standard-spacing windows.
EBAA, says president Brian Humpries, continues to fight proposed bad or poor legislation and bring logic and common sense answers to European business aviation legislation. New flight duty time limitations have been issued to commercial airlines but the EBAA is still working on an alternative for business aviation, air taxi, public transport and emergency services aircraft.
Based in Switzerland, ExecuJet has a global reach and an expanding fleet of business aircraft in Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. As might be expected on home territory – it is based in Zurich, despite the worldwide nature of its operations – ExecuJet Aviation Group is present in force at Booth 5629. Company officials are on hand to discuss the full suite of business aviation services, which include aircraft management, charter, fixed-based operations (FBO), maintenance and completions consulting.
