Edited by Paul RichfieldBy Mike Vines, in Langkawi, Malaysia
Out for its public debut, the flying star of the recent LIMA (Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace) show in Malaysia was a home-grown, rotary-wing water bomber. The modified MIL Mi-17 features a high-pressure water hose mounted at the end of a 35-foot boom. Built by Airod Corp. of Malaysia, the boom swings out 90 degrees from the aircraft's fuselage, enabling it to fight fires in high-rise buildings.
On December 6, 1999, a Miami jury found defunct maintenance contractor SabreTech guilty of nine of the 23 criminal charges stemming from the fatal May 1996 crash of ValuJet Flight 592. Two former SabreTech employees -- Director of Maintenance Daniel Gonzalez and mechanic Eugenio Florence -- were acquitted of all charges, including conspiracy and shipping hazardous materials. A third SabreTech employee charged in the case, Mauro Valenzuela, remains a fugitive.
The ``critical design review'' for Fairchild Aerospace's proposed 728JET has begun, bringing the 105-seat aircraft another step closer to reality. Fairchild says equipment for the new aircraft will include General Electric CF34 turbofan engines, Honeywell Primus Epic avionics, BFGoodrich tires and brakes, a Hamilton Sundstrand electrical system and an APU from AlliedSignal, now Honeywell.
One-time FAA Acting Administrator Barry Valentine has joined GAMA as senior vice president for international affairs. The group says Valentine will focus largely on foreign regulatory issues, including trade and certification barriers, although he'll do some work on domestic aviation issues, presumably leveraging his relationships at the FAA and other agencies. GAMA Chairman Ed Bolen said the trade group will benefit from Valentine's ``understanding of the industry and international regulations.''
Pan Am International Flight Academy (PAIFA) has acquired Florida-based Air Safety International (ASI) in a bid to expand its ab initio pilot training program. Plans call for ASI to be relocated to Fort Pierce, Fla., and expanded. Ab initio training puts pilots with no prior experience into the cockpits of commercial airliners in minimal time. Some foreign airlines have claimed good results with ab initio training, but no U.S. majors have adopted it. PAIFA recently bought Phoenix-based Westwind Aviation Academy, another ab initio school.
An Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) initiative designed to decrease the number of work-related injuries could have an impact on the aviation industry. Proposed rules would mandate employee education programs, ways for employees to report injuries, prompt access to health care and other details. The National Air Transportation Association (NATA) is against the so-called ``ergonomics standard'' proposal, saying it will raise costs, lower employee productivity and ``pit employees against employers.'' Public hearings on the issue begin in late February.
Sales of used turbine-powered aircraft apparently stalled as the year came to a close, due largely to the uncertainty surrounding the Year 2000 computer problem and its effect on the world's economy. Used business jet inventories have reached their highest levels in the past several quarters, with the largest price slippage among the Gulfstream IVs and Vs, Citation SIIs and Vs, and most older Learjets. According to the Aircraft Bluebook, the prices of Hawker 800s and DH-125s have slipped as well.
With a glut of available aviation jobs and a dearth of qualified candidates, companies are going to greater and more expensive lengths to attract new employees. While employers continue to use their own staff and local newspaper advertising to recruit employees, they're also turning increasingly to headhunters, career fairs and the Internet.
Hartzell Propeller is offering a new ``Top Prop'' STC kit that will reduce noise levels on Cessna 208, 208A and 208B Caravans. The four-blade, 96-inch propeller adds five inches of ground clearance and comes with a three-year/1,000-hour war- ranty. Top Prop STC kits are now available for over two dozen aircraft models from five manufacturers. Price: $18,900 without deice; $21,000 with electric deicing Hartzell Propeller Inc. One Propeller Pl. Piqua, Ohio 45356-2634 Phone: (937) 778-4200
Canada's 400 government pilots have ratified a new contract that includes a pay hike averaging 16 percent over 27 months. Affected are Civil Aviation Inspectors flying for Transport Canada, pilots for the Transportation Safety Board, Coast Guard helicopter pilots and engineering test pilots. Wayne Foy, a spokesman for the pilots' labor union, said that even with the agreement, pay for Canada's government pilots remains ``between 30 and 50 percent behind the aviation industry and other international bodies.''
The FAA plans to publish all future regulatory documents in ``plain English'' to help the aviation community better understand its rules and regulations. The initiative was one result of an FAA/University of Michigan survey of 260 randomly selected commercial pilots, the agency says. According to the survey's results, pilots gave the FAA high marks in the areas of air traffic services and pilot certification, but stressed the need for clarity and standardization of regulations and policies.
Latrobe, Pa.'s Vee Neal Aviation has refurbished and delivered two Jetstream 31s with corporate interiors. The 12-seat aircraft were delivered to Georgia Jet, an Atlanta-based FAR Part 135 operator. Vee Neal says it already has a firm contract for two more of the converted regional airliners.
``Partly cloudy should describe the weather, not your aircraft windows,'' says Robert Cupery, AP, IA and founder of Aircraft Window Repairs Co. (AWR). ``Crystal clear windows are essential for safety. The name of the game is to see and be seen in the crowded skies.'' Flight crewmembers and/or passengers need to inspect the windows while flying at altitude. Take time to look at a 45-degree angle to the surface of the window and determine if there are any bright speckles or lines across the windows that could indicate chemical or volcanic crazing.
Court Helicopters, a subsidiary of CHC Helicopter Corp., won a three-year contract to provide helicopter support for offshore oil exploration off the South African coast. The company will operate two Sikorsky 61N helicopters.
Continental Express has named James Ream as its new president, replacing David Siegel, who left the airline to become president and COO of the Budget Group. Ream most recently served as Continental's senior vice president-Asia.
Sikorsky Aircraft offered assistance to earthquake survivors in Turkey by sending 275 tents aboard a chartered Antonov AN-124 aircraft. Company President Dean C. Borgman personally presented the gift to Turkish relief officials.
Photograph: S-92A civil helicopter mockup Sikorsky Aircraft Sikorsky Aircraft says it intends to keep its flight test center in West Palm Beach, Fla., open, though plans to move S-76 testing to a new, undisclosed site will proceed. Work at West Palm now will focus on flight testing the new RAH-66 Comanche military helicopter and the 25,000-pound, dual-role S-92A.
The NBAA is exploring how to use its Web site to post a ``near real-time'' depiction of jet fuel prices nationwide, to help its members better manage their fuel purchases and tankering plans. The action stems from member concern that some fractional ownership businesses, management companies, and other fleet-type operators are getting preferential treatment at the pump.
The European Commission (EC) approved $350 million in government loan guarantees to Fairchild Aerospace for research and development of its new 728JET. The Bavarian and German federal governments are backing loans from a consortium of German banks, which are contingent upon Fairchild's ability to raise $300 million in additional financing. The manufacturer said an announcement on the additional financing was imminent. Fairchild Aerospace employs about 2,300 people at its factory in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany.
