A new rule — that applies to electrical and electronic systems installed on aircraft certificated under FAR Parts 23, 25, 27 and 29 — establishes two levels of lightning protection for aircraft systems based on the consequences of system function failure: catastrophic and hazaderous/major consequences. This regulation, which goes into effect Aug. 8, also addresses lightning protection for systems according to the aircraft's potential for lightning exposure.
Smyrna Air Center, near Nashville, Tenn., has completed its first engine upgrade of a Beech King Air E-90 with 750-shp GE Aviation M601E-11As. The switch from the original Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-28 turboprops was made for AeroMetric, which operates the King Air on geospatial survey work to develop digital elevation models and maps out of Anchorage, Alaska.
Business aviation is a valuable asset to New York's Westchester County, contributing to jobs and economic growth, Kevin J. Plunkett, Westchester's deputy county executive, told the audience at the general meeting at the NBAA's Regional Forum held June 8 in White Plains, N.Y. Plunkett noted that HPN alone is home to 80 businesses and 1,300 direct jobs — and that its aggregate airline and general aviation impact was worth over $600 million. The forum drew a record 1,918 registered attendees, featured 112 exhibitors and showcased 34 aircraft on static display.
“The future for DCA and general aviation is bright,” said the TSA's Douglas Hofsass (see above). General aviation has been allocated 24 arrival and 24 departure slots there each day, Hofsass said, and the TSA's goal is to fill each of those slots. Several improvements to the DCA Access Standard Security Program (DASSP) instituted in early March have begun to bear fruit, he said. As a result, operations have markedly increased. Before March, the number of general aviation operations averaged two to three a day. Now it is at eight to 10 a day.
These graphs are designed to illustrate the performance of the Dassault Falcon 2000S under a variety of range, payload, speed and density altitude conditions. Bill Miller, Dassault Falcon Jet's chief sales engineer, provided the data for the Range/Payload Profile. Data for the Specific Range chart were extracted from the Dassault Falcon 2000LX Performance Manual, adjusted for the projected basic operating weight and fuel capacity of the Falcon 2000S.
Honeywell is not the only company developing cockpit systems with active ingredients drawn from human factors sciences. Derek Jensen, senior engineering manager of flight deck user interfaces at Rockwell Collins, says his team engages customers early on and joins engineers, pilots, advisory groups and OEMs in evaluating functionality.
More than 15 years ago, the FAA chartered a human factors team to look into the causes of a spate of accidents that involved crews trying to function within highly automated cockpits that had been introduced by a new generation of aircraft. The Flight Safety Foundation published the results of that initiative in 1996 and noted in the report that one key issue centered on the disconnect between pilots and the airplane, often expressed by crew members as “Why did it do that?” or “What is it doing now?”
Development of new products always involves a decided end point at which the design will be frozen; once that point is reached, changes become more costly to make. Engineers therefore use a convenient tiered system to determine where the end point of a program will be. NASA and the Department of Defense, the government agencies aside from the FAA most closely involved in the aerospace sciences, provide a ready-made scale called the Technology Readiness Level to measure the maturity of a new technology.
Twenty-two years after the fall of the Berlin Wall — the pivotal event marking the sunset of the USSR — former Soviet satellite states have emerged from the shadows to claim their place in the new Europe.
Investigators from Ireland's Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU) are working with their peers from the U.K.'s AAIB, the American NTSB, Spain's CIAIAC and Israel's AIAI to determine the cause of the loss of a Fairchild Aircraft SA-227-BC Metro III on approach to Cork Airport on Feb. 10, 2011. Both pilots were killed as were four of the 10 passengers. The remaining passengers survived, some with serious injuries.
In the days when a time clock actually had hands, punching the clock was the universal marker for the beginning or end of the workday. Late arrival or early departure meant a skinny payday; or depending on your boss's mood, an assignment to clean the lav service cart. The time card was all-important and represented the portion of your life you exchanged for a paycheck. When the hangar was busy, overtime meant a sometimes welcome opportunity to earn more cash at the expense of family life.
The 24th Salon International de l'Aeronautique held in June featured old-fashioned biplanes contrasting with the sleek tailfins of high-speed fighters. This is typical of the Salon's unique blend of serious trade show and old-time aviation country fair — parachute jumps (one with live radio commentary by the free-falling 'chutist), helicopter races and the “baptism of the air” (first airplane ride) for lucky ticket holders. Truly, it's the kind of show only the French could produce.
Compiled By Jessica A. Salerno April 16 — A Cessna 172S (N1835U) was substantially damaged when it hit terrain following a touch-and-go landing at Payson Airport (PAN), Payson, Ariz. The private pilot, the sole person on board, received minor injuries. It was VFR for the instructional flight and no flight plan had been filed.
Pilots often characterize flying as “hours and hours of boredom, occasionally punctuated by moments of terror.” Modern cockpit automation increases the risk that pilots will be lulled into a dull state, unaware of subtle changes that may portend increasing risks.
Faced with a ludicrous plan by the FAA to dismantle a well-run joint government/industry program that helps ensure the safety of thousands of aircraft and their occupants, the leaders of the NBAA, AOPA and EAA have joined forces to contest the FAA's misguided efforts.
ACSS (an L-3 Communication and Thales company) Phoenix, named Kimberly Murdoch vice president of operations, responsible for manufacturing repair and overhaul and integrated supply chain management. She will report to Terry Flaishans, ACSS vice president and general manager. American Helicopter Society International (AHS), Alexandria, Va., has selected Michael J. Hirschberg to be its executive director. He replaces M.E. Rhett Flater, who served the Society for 20 years.
Quest Aircraft Co. said it is increasing the production rate for the its Kodiak turboprop. A recapitalization earlier this year plus new investor funding enabled the company to expand and invest in key areas, including production increases at its Sandpoint, Idaho facility. Quest began customer deliveries of the Kodiak in late 2007, and it has since been deployed in more than 10 countries around the world in a variety of applications. Kodiaks are in service with charter operators, small businesses, personal owners, skydiving operations, U.S.
Charles Edelstenne, chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation, unveiled the Falcon 2000S on the eve of EBACE 2011. In doing so, he dispelled any misconceptions about how and when the French firm would field a super-midsize business jet. Plainly put, it won't. Not now. Not anytime soon.
The Department of Labor has a useful website to help explain the various labor laws. Although they are very complex, and almost every situation has a unique way to interpret the rules, the website has helpful explanatory brochures and regulatory and interpretative materials. It is available on the Wage and Hour Division's website: www.dol.gov/whd/
Piaggio Aero, one of the oldest names in aviation, expressed faith in its future by breaking ground for a new, ultra-modern and super-efficient manufacturing plant at Villanova d'Albenga, Italy. The new plant, set to open in 2013, will manufacture parts and subassemblies for the P180 Avanti II turboprop as well as aircraft engines. If Piaggio goes ahead with its long-studied business jet, that would also be manufactured there. Meanwhile, the Avanti pusher will continue to be assembled and finished at the company's historic facility in Genoa.
The Air France 447 tragedy might have been avoided if the flight crew had a display of critical and rudimentary aerodynamic performance data. That is angle of attack (AoA), the geometric angle between the mean chord of the wing and the relative airflow.
A U.S. Air Force tactical airlift pilot during the Vietnam conflict, I crisscrossed the length and breadth of the war zone on a regular basis. My C-123K Provider was a 60,000-lb. workhorse whose curious pairing of two Pratt & Whitney R2800 radials and two General Electric J-85 wing-mounted turbojets made it surprisingly well-suited for its mission.
FinServe Aviation Insurance, a European business aviation insurance broker, has developed a new insurance program — FinServe European Business Aviation Placement (F-EBAP) — that is designed to cover a broader range of risks associated with owning and operating business aircraft in Europe. “Most policies are very limited, covering the aircraft only,” says FinServe CEO Guy Broddin.
