StandardAero has added four mobile service teams (MSTs) to its existing business aviation support network, for a total of nine. The new MSTs will be located in Little Rock, Ark.; Van Nuys, Calif.; San Jose, Calif.; and Dallas, Texas. The company also opened a Mobile Operation Center (MOC), operating 24 hr. a day, seven days per week, 365 days per year.
Sometimes no news is just that: no news. Snecma’s Silvercrest engine was originally launched as a 9,500- to 12,000-lb-thrust motivator for large and long-range jets — read: Gulfstream, Bombardier, Dassault. The company announced an 80-hr. test run on a developmental prototype that reportedly exceeded expectations, and the engine was poised to appear in service in 2012, Snecma said. Of course, that was back in 2008, when the business aviation world slid into an economic abyss, and now the premiere date has slid to 2014 but with no application airframe named yet.
Thanks to the recent issuance of a series of FAA STCs, a number of in-service Dassault and Gulfstream aircraft equipped with Rockwell Collins Pro Line 4 and Pro Line 21 avionics can be upgraded to provide Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) Localizer Performance with Vertical guidance (LPV).
Raisbeck Engineering will provide its Ram Air Recovery System (RARS) for the new Beechcraft King Air 250. The system boosts performance throughout the flight envelope by reducing engine inlet turbine temperature by about 20°C, Raisbeck says. The effects include increased flat-rating for operation at hot, high-altitude airports; increased climb capability; increased cruise speeds; and a more efficient engine. The system is installed as a retrofit on Super King Air 200s and B200s, and more than 1,000 systems have been installed on King Airs since 1982.
The super-midsize class has been one of the hottest selling segments of business aircraft in recent years. These versatile aircraft can fly eight passengers nonstop between East Coast and West Coast North American cities at true jetliner speeds. They also can fly nonstop across the North Atlantic eastbound. Almost all can fly westbound from England or Ireland to the U.S. East Coast. To fly from virtually any city in Europe to any destination in North America, they need no more than one refueling stop.
Weststar Aviation Services of Malaysia has taken delivery of its first of nine AgustaWestland AW139 medium twin-engine helicopters. The helicopters will be used to perform transport missions supporting offshore oil and gas industry operations in Malaysia. Weststar Aviation Services is currently the largest commercial customer for the AW139 in the Asia Pacific region. The remaining eight aircraft will be delivered through March of this year. Pilot and technician training services and a comprehensive support package are being provided by AgustaWestland Malaysia Sdn Bhd.
Thanks to an amended STC, StandardAero is now offering to upgrade Dassault Falcon 20s that have undergone the Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 major retrofit. New features offered through the upgrade include dual multifunction displays, an integrated engine indication system and the ability to view video on the system’s multifunction display. Also, the integrated flight information system now includes XM Satellite weather Version 6.0, which offers winds aloft, satellite imagery, lightning data and temporary flight restrictions (TFR) information.
In the first quarter of this year, the Falcon 900LX is slated to be the first Falcon Jet equipped with second-generation EASy II avionics. All Falcon 900LX aircraft on the assembly line are being upgraded with second-generation advanced graphics modules with more processing power to handle an optional synthetic vision system function that will be part of EASy II.
Falcon 2000 owners can opt for a new cabin interior next time their aircraft visits Basel for major maintenance or a new paint job. Jet Aviation Basel, a designated Dassault Falcon completions center, launched its “Jet Falcon” cabin interior refurbishment program at MEBA 2010. The program offers three cabin interior designs — Classic, Style and Fashion, with standardized sets of designs and modular processes to keep downtime and costs to a minimum.
Lufthansa Technik and Panasonic Avionics Corp. are establishing a joint venture for the development, manufacture and sale of inflight entertainment (IFE) and cabin management systems (CMS) for VIP aircraft. Officials from the two companies say their new systems will be based on a combination of the technologies used in Panasonic’s X Series airline IFE system, Panasonic’s Global Communications Suite (eXConnect and eXPhone) and the “nice” CMS/IFE system developed by Lufthansa Technik’s Innovation Business Unit.
Sikorsky has begun final assembly of the first production S-76D, with delivery scheduled for 2012. Czech manufacturer Aero Vodochody delivered the first production fuselage to Sikorsky Global Helicopters in Coatesville, Pa., in mid-November. The upgraded S-76D — with composite rotor blades, dual-speed rotor, active vibration control, Thales integrated flight deck and Pratt & Whitney Canada PW210S engines — is Sikorsky’s response to increased competition in the intermediate helicopter market.
Gulfstream is not just staying put, but expanding in Savannah. The company announced a $500 million, seven-year expansion plan that will add about 1,000 employees a 15% increase over the current Savannah employment level of approximately 5,500 employees. “With our own sales trends and market forecasts suggesting an upturn over the next decade, we want to ensure Gulfstream is well-positioned to meet the demand in terms of products and services,” said Gulfstream President Joe Lombardo, “We are already beginning to see signs of a modest recovery.
Avro Business Jets (ABJ) has launched the third of five planned business aircraft versions of the Avro RJ/BAe 146 regional jet. ABJ is targeting the VIP, corporate and corporate shuttle markets, but company vice president Stewart Cordner points out that the donor RJ series airframes — with their voluminous cabin area, near-short takeoff and landing performance and ability to operate from unimproved runways — offer a range of possibilities.
Political pundits can find an infinite number of ways to slice and dice election results to pinpoint key voting blocs that led to election or rejection of a particular candidate. But those pundits would be hard-pressed to find a more successful group of candidates than those who share membership in the Senate and House General Aviation Caucuses.
This past April, the FAA began to consider special issuance of medical certificates to pilots with mild-to-moderate depression who have been treated for at least 12 months on one of four antidepressant medications: fluoxetine (Prozac), sertraline (Zoloft), citalopram (Celexa) and escitalopram (Lexapro).
Jet Support Services introduced two new engine programs and a new coverage enhancement to meet the growing maintenance and service requirements of its clients. The Platinum Engine Maintenance Program is designed specifically for owners and operators of large-cabin aircraft. The new program covers Rolls-Royce BR710, Tay 611-8, 611-8C and AE3007A1E engines, as well as GE-CF34-1A, 3A, 3A1, 3A2, 3B and 10E7 engines.
Who at BCA determined its readers would be interested in a story on animal cruelty simply because the abuser holds a pilot license (“A Different Kind of Ag-Cat,” October 2010, page 100)? As a reader of BCA since its inception, I was shocked that you would publish such drivel. I’ll be even more shocked if this gets published.
Nextant Aerospace of Richmond Heights, Ohio, has secured its first fleet order for the 400XT, a 40-aircraft, $150 million purchase by Cleveland-based fractional provider Flight Options. The upgraded Beechjet 400A/XP airplanes, which will be delivered over the next five years, include Nextant’s power-by-the-hour engine and tip-to-tail aircraft maintenance warranty. Eight of the aircraft are to be delivered to Flight Options in 2011 following FAA certification of the upgraded Beechjet.
I was sitting at a well-appointed dining table, gazing out upon Times Square, the Empire State Building, lower Manhattan and the harbor beyond from my perch 50 stories above it all and wondering about Frank Perdue and his chicken feet.
Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACFT), Alexandria, Va., announced that William F. Haberstock, president and CEO of Million Air Aviation, was elected vice chairman for 2011. John Grillo, president of Executive Fliteways, was selected as the new treasurer. Aircraft Technical Publishers (ATP), Brisbane, Calif., has selected William Mermelstein as the company’s new vice president of sales and marketing for compliance and safety solutions.
General aviation airplane shipments fell 14.5%, from 1,588 units in 2009 to 1,357 units in the first nine months of this year. 2010, GAMA reported. Billings for general aviation airplanes totaled $13.47 billion in the first nine months, down 2.5%. “Despite another drop in total shipments and billings, we believe that the longer-term outlook for general aviation is positive,” said Pete Bunce, GAMA’s president and CEO. Piston-powered airplane shipments totaled 634 units compared to 679 units delivered in the first nine months of 2009, a 6.6% decrease.
New approaches to lending have created an interesting financing dichotomy that could potentially affect every used business jet buyer, says general aviation analyst Brian Foley. During a recent interview with BCA sister publication The Weekly of Business Aviation, Foley said, “On the one hand, with 2009’s credit crisis now abated, banks are back in the game and ready to lend — or so they say. On the other hand, pre-owned aircraft brokers complain their client’s loans are often not approved. Why?”
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is no longer sending letters of admonition to pilots who fail to submit a passenger manifest and arrival/departure notification to CBP using the Electronic Advance Passenger Information System (eAPIS) at least 60 min. prior to leaving or entering the United States, or enter erroneous data. Fines are being imposed. For the first violation it’s a $5,000 fine, $10,000 for subsequent violations.
Milestone aircraft are always worth noting, and Bombardier marked two Nov. 12, when it delivered its 1,000th Dash 8/Q-Series regional turboprop and its 400th Global business jet. The event took place at the company’s Toronto facility at Downsview Airport, where both series are manufactured, along with Learjet wings. The Downsview plant began building airplanes in World War II, when Britain’s de Havilland Aircraft moved Mosquito production there to be out of reach of German bombers.
Jet Aviation and Landmark Aviation have made donations to Able Flight Inc., a national non-profit organization that provides flight training scholarships to people with disabilities. The awards, which will fund scholarships for 2011, were presented to Charles Stites, executive director of Able Flight, Oct. 20 at NBAA.
