Over 8,000 visitors, nearly 400 exhibitors and at least 150 helicopters combined to make October's Helitech '97 "the most successful in the event's 11-year history," according to show organizers Spearhead Exhibitions Ltd. of New Malden, England.
Financially plagued Mahalo Air will not likely fly again. The Honolulu-based regional has been under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection since July 25 and shut down since September 2. It failed in late October to come up with a new financial plan and the bankruptcy court was holding it out of Chapter 7 liquidation in hopes that its operating certificate could be sold for as much as $1 million.
Mitre Corp., the Bedford, Mass. company specializing in ATC systems analysis, is working to help resolve a bitter dispute between the FAA and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association over alleged human factors defects in Raytheon's Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System (STARS). The system is a major element of the long-overdue program to modernize ATC equipment. The dispute threatens to delay STARS implementation, scheduled initially for Boston in December 1998 and, subsequently, at about 170 other ATC facilities (November 1996, page 17).
Eurocopter Canada will be the distributor of emergency floats for AS 350 helicopters, pending the product's certification this fall. The floats are activated by a mechanical valve (to eliminate electrical wiring problems). In addition to water landings, the floats are designed to take hard-surface landings without damage. Kit price for a pair of floats: $42,000, which includes skid extension tubes, floats, inflation system, cylinders, stirrup steps and an instructional video. Eurocopter Canada, 1100 Gilmore Rd., Fort Erie, Ontario L2A 5M9 Canada.
We're past the fashionable stage now and into the hard facts. Cockpit resource management captured a lot of people's imaginations in the 1980s when safety managers and training facilities saw it as a revolutionary approach to safety enhancement in aviation. Everyone piled on and it simply wasn't acceptable to seriously criticize the concept of CRM. CRM was the thing. It had to be right.
International business aircraft operators are reminded that January 1, 1998 is the deadline for upgrading VHF communication and navigation receivers to meet improved FM immunity performance standards. The standards took effect January 1 for newly manufactured VHF radios. But operators will want to determine if currently installed radios need to be modified. The standards are not mandatory internationally across the board, but are being implemented on a country-by-country basis, so operators should check with their handling agents (June 1995, page 32).
An enhanced Professional Line Service Training (PLST) program recently released by the Aviation Training Institute features a new customer service module. The complete program recorded on nine videotapes has been redeveloped and updated since the original production of the PLST. Full-motion videos show line service personnel step-by-step techniques and safety procedures for refueling, towing and servicing turbine and piston airplanes and helicopters. The customer service module highlights interpersonal skills, etiquette and service training.
Indianapolis Airport Authority submitted a bid to take over the long-term lease on the city's heliport to ensure it remains open to the public. The authority already owns the land under the heliport, but an insurance company has a lease hold on the heliport itself, a parking structure and attached offices. Because the offer falls outside the airport authority's normal budget and requires special approval, it likely will take several months to close the deal.
Operators will be asked to share flight data recorder information under a new FAA program dubbed Flight Operations Quality Assurance. The agency, which has been testing the theory for some time (December 1996, page 18), believes that checking routine FDR data could catch safety problems before they cause an accident. The FAA plans to issue regulations to shield operators from FAA enforcement actions and public disclosure.
Fairchild Dornier is closing in on its target date of early 1998 for the first flight of the 328JET regional/corporate shuttle aircraft. A corporate configured 328JET can accommodate up to 19 passengers and will carry a price of $11.9 million. The aircraft will be powered by two Pratt&Whitney Canada PW306B turbofans, flat-rated at 6,050 pounds of thrust for takeoff up to ISA+20C.
John H. Shaffer, 78, of Frederick, Md., FAA administrator under President Richard Nixon from 1969 until 1973, died September 14 after a lingering illness. Shaffer was serving as corporate vice president of customer requirements for TRW when he was tapped for the top FAA post. Previously, he flew 46 combat missions during World War II and later directed the Air Force B-50 and B-47 aircraft programs. He was widely regarded as a friend of the aviation community.
Elliott Aviation and Rosemount Aerospace are jointly marketing a new STCed Advisory Ice Detection System for King Airs. System components include a sensor with a short, metal, heated probe that is mounted on the nose of the aircraft. Inside the cockpit, the far left light on an annunciator unit will illuminate to alert flightcrew members to the presence of ice. (The other two lights on the panel are a push-to-test light and a system fail light.) Kit price: $9,700. Elliott Aviation, Quad-City Airport, P.O. Box 100, Moline, Ill. 61266.
Wood Dale, Ill.-based AAR Corp. has purchased ATR International of Clearwater, Fla. ATR supplies fasteners, composite parts and interior furnishings for large business jets.
The TU Series utility tractors from Eagle Industrial Truck Manufacturing are both cargo vehicles and towing tractors. With an 8,000-pound deck capacity, TU tractors can change roles on the ramp from cargo/ baggage transfer carriers to concession trucks or fresh water and lavatory service equipment. Decks are available in standard sizes from 50 inches wide by various lengths up to 88 inches. The TU Series can tow wheeled auxiliary equipment such as baggage trailers, GPUs and deicers.
This month, Sabreliner Corp. opens a newly-built aircraft storage and maintenance hangar that the St. Louis-based company says will increase operations by approximately 25 percent. (573) 543-2212.
NTSB investigators believe the Scenic Airlines Cessna Caravan that crashed in Colorado in October impacted the ground after a ``severe vertical descent in a flat attitude.'' The pilot and the eight Interior Department employees aboard were killed. The single-engine turboprop was producing power at the time of the crash, the Safety Board said.
Edited By GORDON A. GILBERTLinda L. Martin/Kerry Lynch
Now before U.S. senators is the final report from the National Civil Aviation Review Commission (NCARC), the product of a caldron of conflicting views on future funding sources for the FAA. The NCARC's proposal, drafted by a 21-member group with one lone member representing the general aviation community (Linda Barker, part-owner of a Sioux Falls, S.D. FBO), drew most- ly praise from GA trade organizations. The provisions, first given to the DOT for its review in September, are:
A new modification from Midcoast Aviation for all corporate jets that have pocket doors is an interior pneumatic door that closes off areas of the cabin at the push of a button. The open/close mechanism is powered by low-pressure compressed air released through a cylinder installed within the door system. Price: Depends upon type of aircraft and existing equipment. Midcoast Aviation, St. Louis Downtown-Parks Airport, #8 Archview Dr., Cahokia, Ill. 62206. (618) 337-2100; fax: (618) 332-3676.
If you are a Citation operator, expect to hear from Cessna headquarters about volunteering your aircraft and pilots for the company's Special Olympics airlift, June 26 through July 4, 1999 in Raleigh, N.C. This will be the fourth airlift organized by Cessna. In the last one, in 1995, 215 Citations carried 1,600 athletes to Hartford, Conn.
General aviation operations at California's Long Beach Airport have grown 11 percent in the past five years while maintaining a good relationship with its neighbors and users, thanks to the General Aviation Noise Committee. GANC's members include operators, aircraft owners and aviation businesses. The alliance is considered a model program.
Falcon 900 operators will have another choice for simulator training at SimuFlite International--but not for two years. SimuFlite said it plans to acquire a Falcon 900B/EX simulator equipped with a HUD, obtain FAA Level D approval and start classes in fall 1999. Separately, SimuFlite has introduced a ``Human Factors in Aircraft Maintenance'' course, which can be scheduled at SimuFlite or at a customer's location. This course will be taught by Grey Owl Aviation Consultants, a Canada-based firm.
