West Star Aviation, East Alton, Ill., named Debi Cunningham vice president of Marketing and Interior Design. She started her career in business aviation in 1983 and has been with West Star since 2002.
Congressmen Sam Graves (R-Mo.) and Todd Rokita (R-Ind.), chair and member, respectively, are sponsoring a bill to eliminate the third-class medical requirements for pilots who operate aircraft of 6,000 lb. or less, under visual flight rules, at speeds below 250 kt. and altitudes below 14,000 ft. Under the bill, pilots must have a valid pilot's license and must not fly for compensation.
Turbomeca and China's Avic Engine have completed the first test bench runs of the new Ardiden 3C turboshaft that is destined for use on the Chinese version of the Eurocopter EC175. The tests, completed at Turbomeca's Bordes facility in France, confirmed what the company called “good aeromechanical behavior and performance,” and allow the manufacturer to proceed to the test and certification phase of the engine's development program. The trial is a major milestone in the development of the Ardiden 3C, which will be called the WZ16 by Avic.
Wheels Up, the recently established and rapidly growing private membership and aviation services company, is teaming with Cessna's CitationAir operation to offer flights on Cessna Citation Excel and Sovereign jets. Details of the agreement announced Dec. 13 must still be hashed out, but Wheels Up will market flights aboard the Cessna business jets, while CitationAir will operate them. The aircraft will be outfitted with the Wheels Up blue and white livery and have refurbished interiors.
Inmarsat confirmed that Dec. 8 was the launch for the first of its Global Xpress (GX) satellites, the Inmarsat-5 F1 (I-5 F1). Built by Boeing Satellite Systems International, the satellite was to have launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The satellite is the first of three that will be used for Inmarsat's Global Xpress Ka-band. Inmarsat teamed with Honeywell to bring its planned GX Aviation inflight connectivity services to the business aviation market. The service is expected to be rolled out to the business aviation community in early 2015.
You're 25 times more likely to suffer a controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) crash if you're flying a circling approach rather than a straight-in procedure, according to accident statistics compiled by the Flight Safety Foundation. As such, IFR circling approaches are among the highest risk maneuvers attempted by pilots.
Aviation Search Group, an executive recruiting firm for the aerospace and aviation industries, formed a new recruiting department dedicated to business aviation clientele. Grayson Barrows, director sales, says that hiring demand in the business aviation segment has grown significantly recently. Aviation Search Group works with manufacturers, airlines, service providers, business and general aviation businesses and airports.
Signature Flight Support, continuing on an ambitious capital expenditure program for new and upgraded facilities, is opening a new private aviation terminal at its Newark Liberty International Airport location in New Jersey. The company had a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony on Dec. 13.
Despite news of a resurging U.S. manufacturing industry, U.S. export competitiveness in manufacturing continues to decline, according to a new report by the Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation. In 2000, Europe and the U.S. remained atop the world's exporters, with Japan trailing the U.S. by a little more than one-third the total exports. Since that time, China has leapfrogged both the U.S. and Europe. U.S. exports, in terms of dollar value, have grown 70% since 2000, marking the third slowest growth among the world's top 11 exporters.
Piper's PA-46-500TP Meridian made its debut in September 2000 as a 2001 model. It was the lowest priced pressurized, single-engine new production turboprop and it has retained that distinction. Piper created the Meridian by swapping a P&WC PT6A for the 350-hp piston engine of the PA-46 Malibu Mirage and modifying the airframe to handle the extra weight and speed. Everything about this project was designed to keep development costs low and that's reflected in the final product.
The crash of a Hawker 800 at Owatonna, Minn., on July 31, 2008, that killed all eight persons aboard involved acute sleep loss, cumulative sleep debt and early start time for both the captain and first officer. The captain's health required excessive sleep and the first officer was suffering from insomnia, as well as self-medicating with prescriptive medicines for sleep.
The Middle East Business Aviation Association (MEBAA) is working with regional governments to introduce regulations and policies that lay a foundation for business aviation and curb illegal operations. Addressing illegal operations is one of the higher priorities for the European Business Aviation Association, and MEBAA is hoping its next conference, to be held in Dubai, will serve as a springboard to address the issue in the Middle East. “The conference will tackle the issue of the gray market, and we need a mechanism to fight this . . .
The General Electric Honda HF120 engine The General Electric Honda HF120 engine for the HA-420 HondaJet has received FAA Part 33 engine certification, clearing the way for the start of full-scale production. The certification of the 2,095 lb.-thrust engine comes nine years after the formation of the joint venture and four years later than originally planned when the program was launched in 2006.
TWC Aviation, Los Angeles, announced the Jason Berg has joined the company as chief aviation officer. He will oversee TWC's flight operations, safety and maintenance departments, and play a key role in the firm's new environmental initiative.
Jet Aviation, Zurich, appointed Alain Champonnois as the new vice president and general manager of the company's FBO and line maintenance operations in Jeddah, Riyadh and Medina, Saudi Arabia. He reports to Stefan Benz, vice president of MRO and FBO operations in EMEA and Asia. Champonnois succeeds Hardy Butschi, who was recently appointed vice president and general manager of Jet Aviation Dubai.
Aerostar Aircraft Corp. of Hayden Lake, Idaho, is developing a turbofan-powered version of the speedy twin. A fully conforming pressurized model, with Pratt & Whitney Canada PW615s slung below each wing, has been flying since July 25 when it lifted off the runway at Coeur d'Alene Airport, Aerostar's home field. The aircraft is expected to have a cruise speed in excess of 400 kt. The aircraft's designer, the late Ted Smith, had contemplated fitting it with jet engines either under the wings or mounted on the empennage, but that didn't come to pass until now.
Astronics Corporation's Max-Viz Enhanced Vision System was selected as standard equipment aboard the Simplex Aerospace SkyCannon and Fire Attack systems. The SkyCannon is a helicopter-mounted system for firefighters. The Max-Viz system will enable operators of Simplex firefighting equipment to see through smoke while fighting high-rise fires. The Fire Attack system supports data acquisition of door operation, hover pump activation and foam pump activation, all correlated with aircraft GPS position.
As could have been expected, the FAA's new emphasis on identifying pilots with sleep issues, and with obstructive sleep apnea in particular, has drawn considerable opposition and commentary from a variety of pilot and aviation organizations, including the AOPA, NBAA, and Air Line Pilots Association.
One of the first common screening tests used to determine if a patient is suffering from sleep apnea is done in bed using a blood oxygen sensor attached to one of your fingers. This “Overnight Oximetry on Room Air” records your pulse and blood oxygen saturation level throughout the night. The automated data analysis subsequently reports how many times your blood oxygen saturation level fell below certain levels. It is an easy and convenient test to take, and the advantage is that you get to sleep in your own home.
Nov. 19 — At 1956 EST, a Learjet 35, Mexican registration XA-USD, operated by Aero JL SA de CV, was destroyed when it crashed in the Atlantic Ocean after takeoff from Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport (FLL), Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The commercial pilot and a physician on board were lost and presumed fatally injured. The copilot and a flight nurse were fatally injured. An IFR flight plan was filed for the positioning flight from FLL to Cozumel, Mexico.
Rockwell Collins announced a series of enhancements to its Pro Line Fusion avionics. The primary update is Required Navigation Performance Authorization Required (RNP AR) 0.3. This enhancement provides obstacle clearance and clearly defined fight paths in congested airspace and at terrain-challenged airports.
