Dennis Phillips was promoted to the newly created position of manager of avionics engineering and sales. Dan Od-lum succeeds him in his former position of avionics manager.
Los Angeles TV anchorman-pilot Hal Fishman said it best: ``Clay Lacy was born to fly.'' During the 55 years since he first flew, the Van Nuys, Calif., FBO operator and former United Airlines captain has amassed nearly 50,000 hours aloft. That total equates to more than half a decade in the air, or an average of almost 900 hours per year since his first airplane ride at age 12. Lacy has accumulated stick time in nearly every facet of aviation -- from airline operations, corporate flying and military aviation to aerial photography, test piloting and air racing.
A proposal from the Council Bluffs Airport Authority may save Iowa Western Community College's aviation maintenance program. The authority will seek funding to build a new facility to house flight training and aviation maintenance classes
The association elected officers and board members as follows: Officers are Charlie Priester, president and CEO of Priester Aviation, chairman of the board; Linda Barker, vice president of Business Aviation, vice chairman; and Rob Wells, formerly executive vice president of Piedmont Hawthorne Aviation, treasurer. New board members include Jim Christiansen, president of Wayfarer Aviation; Don Campion, president of Banyan Aviation; and Glenn Ray, president of Million Air Long Beach.
Edited by Paul RichfieldFred George, in Atlanta FAA Loosens TAWS Mandate
The FAA has altered its Terrain Awareness and Warning System (TAWS) requirement in an effort to make the equipment more affordable for general aviation operators. Publication of a notice of proposed rulemaking (NRPM) reflecting the change was imminent at press time. The move is a response to criticism from small turbine aircraft users, who say the cost of the current generation of TAWS equipment ($68,000 for AlliedSignal's EGPWS) is prohibitive.
Pittsburgh's Allegheny General Hospital has taken delivery of this Sikorsky S-76A helicopter, for use as an air ambulance in single-pilot IFR operations. The interior features two patient litters, with one capable of 360-degree rotation. The aircraft also is equipped with a Spectrolab SX5 searchlight, and a 10-liter medical oxygen system in the rear baggage compartment. Keystone Helicopters manages Allegheny's LifeFlight program.
New Piper Aircraft claims 101 orders for its new Malibu Meridian turboprop, with the latest two coming from Flightline Group, a newly appointed Piper dealer in Tallahassee, Fla. U.S. customers account for 82 Meridian orders, with an additional 19 orders coming from foreign operators. The $1.3 million aircraft is on schedule for mid-2000 certification, and entered the flight-test phase in August of 1998, ten days ahead of schedule.
Edited by Paul RichfieldPaul Richfield, in Paris Regional Airline Deals Highlight Paris Show
The regional airline business was highly visible during the 43rd Paris Air Show, which saw the revelation of several milestone deals and at least one landmark manufacturing partnership. Swiss regional Crossair ordered $4.9 billion in new Embraer aircraft, marking the product launch of the 70-seat EMB-170 and 108-seat EMB-190. The airline placed firm orders for 30 EMB-170s, 30 EMB-190-200s and 15 EMB-145 50-seaters. Crossair retains options on 25 EMB-145s and 100 of the two new models.
A Washington, D.C. law firm -- GKMG -- is spearheading an effort to bring regional jet service to small communities. Its ``Proposition RJ Coalition'' says current scope-clause provisions are not only harmful to communities, but to the mainline pilots whose jobs they are designed to protect. According to GKMG's study, RJ proliferation increases mainline pilot jobs, by freeing up mainline aircraft for long-haul expansion.
A 60/40 percent mix of corporate operators and vendors, respectively -- 51 in all -- attended the first NBAA Aircraft Resourcing Options Workshop in Orlando on June 10.
A total of 4,887 business aircraft worth $62.4 billion will be built between now and 2008, according to The Teal Group, a Virginia-based market analysis firm. Unveiled at the Paris Air Show, Teal's annual market forecast predicts 539 business aircraft deliveries this year, with Bombardier reaping the largest part of the market. Gulfstream, Cessna, Dassault and Raytheon will follow in succession, with Raytheon receiving a lift from new models after 2000, the group says.
More than $8 billion in new business and regional aircraft sales were made at the 43rd Paris Air Show, held June 12-20 in Le Bourget, France. Embraer launched its new family of large regional jets with an order from Swiss regional Crossair, NetJets ordered 50 Hawker Horizons and Fairchild Aerospace sold 25 Envoy 7 business jets to Cleveland-based Corporate Wings. See pages 28 and 29 for details.
AlliedSignal has agreed to acquire Honeywell in a stock swap worth $14 billion. The new company will be called Honeywell International, and will be based at AlliedSignal's Morristown, N.J., headquarters. Honeywell's Minneapolis headquarters will be closed. AlliedSignal Chairman Lawrence Bossidy will serve as chairman of the combined company until his April 1, 2000 retirement. Honeywell Chairman Michael Bonsignore will be chief executive, and will become chairman upon Bossidy's departure.
The FAA and Transport Canada have approved an increase in the Bell 407's maximum speed from 100 knots to 130 knots, easing a restriction imposed in the wake of three tail-rotor boom strikes. To use the higher speed, operators must install a redesigned tail-rotor system and mechanical stops that prevent sudden movement of the anti-torque pedals -- changes already incorporated at the 407's Mirabel, Quebec production line.
Citing Lufthansa's annual burn rate of 26,000 tonnes of fuel in holding patterns, Lufthansa Chairman and CEO Jurgen Weber has called for immediate improvements to European air traffic control. Speaking to the International Aviation Club in Washington, D.C., Weber echoed a major concern of business aircraft operators transiting European airspace. ``It's a senseless waste of resources,'' he said. ``Air traffic control's shortcomings are to blame for a third of all flight delays.''
Bell and Agusta finally took the wraps off their new AB139 medium twin at the Paris Air Show. Priced at approximately $6 million in a basic VFR configuration, the helicopter will seat up to 15 in high-density configuration. A three-screen Honeywell Epic avionics system is standard, with a fourth screen available as an option. A pair of Pratt&Whitney Canada PT6C-67Cs will provide Category A engine-out performance at the helicopter's 13,227-pound MTOW. First flight is expected in late 2000 with certification in 2002
The FAA says it will begin to enforce rules mandating scheduled rest periods for pilots on reserve status, and apply FAR Part 121 flight and duty time limitations to carriers operating aircraft with 30 seats or less. Aggressive lobbying by the major airline pilots' unions is likely to have triggered the action, which comes nearly a decade after the rules were first written into the public record.
The FAA has asked the Central Intelligence Agency to assess the ``civil jamming threat'' to GPS navigation signals. The action stems from a study by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, which explored the viability of GPS as the nation's sole means of air navigation.
To hang on to your best pilots, it's more important than ever to create a great place to work. And if you don't know how, you've got to learn how. In corporate America, the number of employees per company has been downsized (or ``right-sized''), but the workload that staff must carry has increased. Likewise, the value of great employees who shoulder significant responsibilities for businesses has soared.
Boeing and Aviation Partners Inc. (API) are expected to develop new-technology ``blended winglets'' for a number of Boeing 700-series aircraft. API winglets already have been selected for the Boeing Business Jet, increasing its range by around six percent, API claims. Other potential applications include the 747-400, the 777-300 and other Next Generation 737 variants.
Pottstown Municipal Airport of Montgomery County, Pa., is considering several proposals for an FBO lessee to take over the Basco Flying Service facility. ``Now that the current manager is making plans to retire, we're looking for a continuation of good service,'' said David Forrest, assistant borough manager. The FBO's facilities include two hangars -- 13,000 square feet and 3,750 square feet -- and 1,468 square feet of office space. The borough plans to build additional hangars, and hopes to initiate aircraft charter and flight training.
