Bombardier delivered the 2,000th Learjet -- a Model 45 -- to Parkin Hannifin Corp. at October's NBAA Convention. On hand for the ceremony was Moya Lear, 84, widow of Learjet creator William P. Lear. Also in Atlanta, Cessna delivered its 3,000th Citation business jet. Russ Meyer made his last NBAA appearance as Cessna's CEO; he is due to step down at the end of the year after 25 years with the company, 24 as CEO.
Edited by Paul RichfieldBy David Rimmer, in Pontiac, Mich.
In an age when corporate mergers can lead to the downsizing, elimination or outsourcing of flight departments, DaimlerChrysler Aviation Inc. is expanding its facilities, fleet and staff. At the company's Pontiac, Mich., headquarters, construction has begun on a strengthened ramp, new kitchen, expanded parking and an enlarged hangar to accommodate a growing fleet.
Business aircraft operations are increasing in number and becoming more diverse, according to a recent study by J.D. Power and Associates, a market research firm. While the transport of key employees remained the most frequent use of business aircraft, other common uses included customer visits, emergency customer service, customer trips, and market expansion planning and implementation, the study indicated.
Edited by Paul RichfieldBy Paul Richfield, in Atlanta
Raisbeck Engineering is requesting customer input to help it develop an aft fuselage baggage locker for Bombardier Challenger 601 and 604 aircraft. Interested parties obtained copies of a related questionnaire at the NBAA Convention in Atlanta last month, and around 400 Challenger operators in the United States, Canada and Mexico already have received the survey by mail.
VisionAire is seeking $150 million to fund production of its redesigned Vantage single-engine business jet. The Ames, Iowa-based company has enlisted the services of Tunstall Consulting, a Florida firm that specializes in raising capital for emerging businesses. The original Vantage prototype cost $60 million to develop, and company Chairman James O.
Saying there are ``no easy answers,'' FAA Administrator Jane Garvey established a new Fractional Ownership Aviation Rulemaking Committee (FOARC) to determine the best plan for regulating fractional ownership companies. As fractionals have grown, so, too, has the debate over whether they should continue to be governed by FAR Part 91 regulations, or the more stringent Part 135.
Highlights of the NBAA's 52nd Annual Meeting and Convention in Atlanta included: -- Warren Buffett predicts ``heavy demand'' for fractional ownership of supersonic business jets. -- Gulfstream Aerospace and partner Lockheed Martin promise a sonic-boom-free SBJ demonstrator before 2005 and production by 2010. -- First NBAA looks at the Boeing Business Jet, Raytheon Premier I and New Piper Malibu Meridian. -- FAA administrator promises a (relatively) quick decision on fractional ownership regulation.
Rolls-Royce Canada has signed a 10-year/10,000-hour contract to maintain the BMW/Rolls-Royce BR710 engines that will power Executive Jet's fleet of 12 ordered Gulfstream V aircraft. Based on a fixed price per flying hour per engine, the $45 million deal covers all shop maintenance, with the work to be done at Rolls-Royce Canada's Montreal facility. ``This is a full fleet maintenance support contract designed to provide continuous BR710 support,'' says Richard G. Smith III, Executive Jet's executive vice president.
Despite increased awareness, wake turbulence continues to be a problem. For example, NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System Wake Turbulence Database Report was updated on August 20 with 31 new reports from flight crews who encountered, or were affected by, turbojet wake turbulence. These report narratives displaced alike number of older records and underscore the fact that wake turbulence encounters continue to be a deadly threat to aviation.
Given faithful periodic inspections, corrosion control, aging aircraft repairs, and an uninterrupted supply of critical parts, airframes can go on flying almost indefinitely. Many, like the Douglas DC-8-60 series, Lockheed JetStar, BAe Hawker 600 and Dassault Falcon 20, achieve entire second lives through engine retrofit programs, which exchange old-technology powerplants for modern fuel-efficient turbofans.
Schweizer Aircraft Corp. is expanding internationally with the appointments of Germany's Hahn Helicopter as a service center and Eli-Alpi of Italy as a distributor of its 300B, 300C and 330 helicopters.
Imagine flying with an instrument panel display system that produces a virtual VFR window to the outside world, one that provides a clear, daylight view of terrain and aircraft attitude in three-dimensional perspective.
Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) has agreed to design and build the fuselage and undertake final structural assembly of the new Fairchild Aerospace 428JET regional jet. The $600 million contract follows an $80 million deal signed by the two companies in June, which made IAI responsible for system engineering and integration, flight testing and certification support for the 428JET program.
North American Jet, an Air BP fuel dealer, plans to open an FBO location at Chicago's Palwaukee Airport with 22,000 square feet of hangar space and 60,000 square feet of ramp space with tiedowns. Services to be offered include aircraft positioning, cleaning and catering. Flight crew hospitality will include flight planning and weather terminals, access to crew showers, sleeping quarters and a private lounge. For passengers, there will be a luxury lounge area, conference room, private phone kiosks and rental car access with cars and a rental agent on site.
Syracuse Executive Air Service, Inc. has doubled its charter fleet with the addition of three Raytheon King Air aircraft -- a C90, C100 and C300. The New York operator also plans to add a Cessna CitationJet CJ2 in January 2000.
President and Mrs. Clinton's purchase of a home in Chappaqua, N.Y., is likely to instigate new restrictions for air traffic using nearby Westchester County Airport (HPN), though the exact details have yet to be determined. According to airport officials, options include the creation of a prohibited area or temporary flight restriction around the dwelling when the Clintons are home, or extending the airport's Class D boundaries to give HPN tower control of the airspace over the house. The Clinton residence is located 1.25 miles northeast of the Runway 16 outer marker.
Corporate Rotable and Supply and Auxilec have introduced a new brushless DC generator for Learjet 35, 36 and 55 series aircraft. The Model A3579-000, a direct replacement for the Bendix/AlliedSignal P/N 30B107-19A unit, features a 3,000-hour TBO, true 400 amps at ground-level operation and a two-year factory warranty. This product is compatible with the existing DC electrical system, including the Bendix/AlliedSignal and Phoenix Aerospace GCUs. Price: Target range is $25,000 to $30,000 Corporate Rotable and Supply, Inc.
Brockbank Insurance Services (BIS) will expand its general aviation insurance business through an arrangement with underwriter W. Brown and Associates. BIS's current specialty is large airline and aviation product liability.
Sens. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) and Robert Bennett (R-Utah) of the U.S. Senate's Special Y2K Committee have proposed granting the FAA authority to ground nearly 2,000 on-demand charter operators that failed to respond to a voluntary survey on Y2K preparedness. ``It's simple,'' Dodd said. ``If you don't comply, you don't fly . . .
The 1999-2000 Aviation Telephone Directory provides listings of FBOs, airports, products, services and special events that pilots might find interesting. White pages list firms alphabetically within the regions. Blue pages list airports and FBOs, arranged according to states within the region. Yellow Pages with approximately 1,300 headings feature classified ads representing all aviation products and services. A Special Features section lists NTSB regional safety offices and locations and telephone numbers for FAA regional offices.
Edited by Paul RichfieldBy Paul Richfield, in Tamiment, Pa.
Bell Helicopter Textron is considering Boston and Fort Worth for what it hopes will be the first of many heliports capable of handling its new Bell/Agusta BA609 civil tiltrotor.
Aviation tax expert Nel Sanders joins the consulting firm after leaving the NBAA where she was senior manager, tax issues. Sanders will specialize in business aviation tax, finance, accounting and cost issues for the firm.
British Telecom (BT) plans to provide high-speed Internet access to passengers aboard business and commercial flights. Using Inmarsat's digital 64 kb/s service (a form of satellite communications) as the link, passengers will be able to plug-in laptop computers and surf the Web with the same speed and reliability as ground-based service using traditional telephone lines, BT says. EMS Technologies will develop the airborne satcom hardware, which will be compatible with BT's Skyphone system.
