The NBAA's Bill Stine, director of international operations, defines a VLJ as an FAR Part 23 turbofan aircraft weighing 10,000 pounds or less and certified for single-pilot operations. Most have advanced cockpit automation, automated engine and systems management, and an integrated flight guidance system. Virtually all VLJs will be fitted with multiple large-format flat-panel displays furnished by Avidyne or Garmin. Pratt & Whitney Canada and Williams are the most popular engine suppliers.
In its effort to prevent runway incursions, the FAA has directed its air traffic control towers at all airports to review whether they need to use a procedure that allows aircraft to taxi onto a runway and hold while awaiting clearance. Meanwhile, the controllers' union has criticized the agency's move. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association said tower personnel would waste time meeting a deadline to prove that they need to use the procedure and the agency should instead have examined each airport to see if changes are needed.
Business aircraft will be a major component of Dubai 2005, scheduled for Nov.19-24, including a one-day business aviation conference led by B&CA Executive Briefing columnist and former NBAA President John Olcott. Business aircraft manufacturers represented at the show include Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier, Cessna, Dassault, Embraer, Gulfstream, Pilatus and Raytheon. International and regional charter operators such as National Air Service of Saudi Arabia, Jet Aviation and Bexair of Bahrain, and International Air Charter have also committed to the event.
Two Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65B engines, flat-rated at 1,100 shp to ISA+35.5C for takeoff, power the Skytruck. These engines produce 1,000 shp for cruise up to ISA+27.5, so they're not pushed hard in everyday operation. Hot section inspections are slated for 2,000-hour periods and TBOs are slated for 6,000-hour intervals.
One of the oldest optical companies in the United States, American Optical Eyewear, is now offering its Skymaster Series of sunglasses exclusively through Sporty's. The glasses offer protection against UV rays, distortion-free true color lenses, and sturdy, adjustable temple tips for custom comfort. The lenses are chemically hardened for impact resistance. The sunglasses are available in two styles: ``Pilot'' and ``Aviator.'' Each style is available in either 52 mm or 57 mm size, with black, chrome or gold frames. Price: $69.00
The AOPA is opposing the FAA proposal to create National Defense Airspace over Washington, D.C. ``The AOPA recognizes the necessity to protect the national assets in the nation's capital. The 15-nm-radius flight restricted zone does that,'' said AOPA President Phil Boyer.
Few folks, outside of a top secret cadre of Eclipse Aviation engineers, know that the Eclipse 500 has suffered more than 125 nacelle fires during its development. All these conflagrations were intentionally set by those same engineers at a covert engine test stand facility near Eclipse's Albuquerque International Sunport Airport headquarters.
The FAA is trying to improve its oversight of domestic and foreign aircraft repair stations. But according to a report by the DOT's inspector general, progress has been slow and the agency is far from implementing all the changes he recommended two years ago. The report was done at the request of Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.). DOT IG Kenneth Mead said his office issued nine recommendations in July 2003 to improve repair station oversight that the FAA planned to put into place by this month.
Aerosonic Corp. has teamed with Mid-Continent Instruments to produce and market a standby instrument package for general aviation aircraft. Wichita-based Mid-Continent will supply its new two-inch artificial horizon indicator while Aerosonic of Clearwater, Fla., will provide its two-inch mechanical altimeter and airspeed indicators for the package. The agreement also calls for combined marketing of an upgrade package that will replace mechanical altimeter and airspeed instruments with Aerosonic's new digital instruments.
Adam Aircraft displayed its first flying A700 at AirVenture, promising customers certification of that model will go much smoother than the process for its sister A500, which was the company's first type certification endeavor. Joe Walker, a veteran aircraft sales and marketing executive who spent years at Cessna and Gulfstream before taking over as president of Adam Aircraft in March 2004, expressed confidence in the company's ability to win type certification of the A700 by the end of 2006.
Hillsborough County Aviation Authority is building a new facility to house U.S. Customs between Tampa International Jet Center (TIJC) and Raytheon Aircraft Services (RAS). The facility formerly was in the Raytheon FBO. Customs has moved into a temporary facility where it will operate until the new facility is completed in the next 18 to 24 months. ``Tampa International Airport is making a great effort to provide our GA customers with easy access to U.S. Customs by moving the Customs facility to a new centralized and stand-alone site,'' said TIJC President Mike Azzarelli.
Bombardier Aerospace is expanding in the Asia-Pacific region with the appointment of a new field service representative in Singapore, and new regional sales offices and personnel in Singapore and New Delhi. Also, within the coming year, new line maintenance facilities in India and China will be announced to provide drop-in and AOG service to Bombardier business jets. The new stations will augment Bombardier's authorized service facilities in Sendai, Singapore and Sydney, which provide full-scale maintenance and support for Challenger, Learjet and Global product lines.
When Terry White was a high schooler in the 1950s he rented a garage and opened a motorcycle repair business. Two years later he moved into building fiberglass custom bodies for hot rods and then into overhauling foreign sports cars. ``In those days,'' White recalls, ``the only real sports cars were foreign, mostly British -- Jags, MGs and Triumphs.'' The business grew. He began buying wrecks and salvaging the parts to create a rebuilt or refurbished car for resale. At the peak, he owned 3,500 cars. But he wanted more.
Lista International's shadowed Foam Drawer insert liners make empty tool compartments easy to spot, and protect tools or inventory from movement and contact with other objects in the drawer. The liner uses a two-layer insert system: The upper blue foam cushions and protects tools and components in shaped cutouts, while the bottom yellow foam liner makes it easy to spot missing items. The foam drawer liners meet the specification for FOD/FOE Tool Control Programs. Each liner can be customized to hold specific tools.
I WENT TO CALIFORNIA to study aerobatics with Randy Gagne, the Canadian national champion, and a member of the U.S. Aerobatics Team. We met at Van Nuys Airport to fly his Pitts Special. After flying with Randy for a week, I came to know him as a modest master. He never did anything to show off, but only to make a point that might help to open my perceptions.
New Piper Aircraft delivered only 76 new airplanes in the second half of 2004 because operations were severely disrupted by hurricane damage to the company's manufacturing facility in Vero Beach, Fla., last summer. New Piper lost some 300,000 square feet of manufacturing space in last year's storms, but has now relocated manufacturing into 200,000 square feet of space in older buildings, much of which had previously been used for storage. New Piper President Chuck Suma said production is back up to 25 aircraft per month.
Air-taxi Linear Air has launched service between Westchester County Airport (HPN), White Plains, N.Y., and Nantucket. Linear Air says it kicked off per-seat private charter service from HPN to Nantucket Friday evenings at 6 p.m. beginning Aug. 12. Return flights occur on Sundays at 2:30 p.m. A one-way ticket costs $349. The company also plans to offer regular weekday business service between White Plains and Hanscom Field in Bedford, Mass. In business one year, Linear Air has grown from two employees to 25 workers.
COMPANY MANAGEMENT HAS no higher responsibility than establishing an environment in which employees can do their best work and be their most productive. An inefficient workplace takes its toll on workers and robs a company from obtaining maximum benefit from its most important asset -- the people who produce its products or services. All business leaders, from board chairman to department head, contribute to that atmosphere, and all company shareholders reap the rewards or disappointments that result.
In August 1990, a Boeing 737 was on approach to landing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), when the crew discovered that the landing gear would not extend. After several failed attempts to drop the gear, the crew concluded they'd have to put the airliner down on its belly. The ensuing arrival did substantial damage to the aircraft, but no one was injured in the ugly process. During post-arrival examination of the aircraft, technicians discovered a three-cell flashlight jammed in the landing gear linkage.
WHEN IN 1964, while trying to identify illegal ``obscenity,'' U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart stated, ``I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced . . . but I know it when I see it . . .''
While enthusiasm about the rebound in the market for previously owned aircraft seems to be spreading among brokers and dealers, ``This is a decidedly different situation than the late 1990s,'' declared the summer 2005 edition of the Aircraft Bluebook Price Digest's Marketline newsletter.
Mayo Aviation, based at Englewood, Colo. (APA) has added a Hawker 800 to its managed charter fleet. The Web site is at www.mayoaviation.com. A French customer has ordered an Avanti II from Piaggio Aero and Boutsen Aviation for January 2008 delivery. The same customer had taken delivery of a P180 Avanti just a few months earlier, and added the Avanti II to support the company's growth.
Remember the Mooney 301? It was a pressurized piston single that never made it to production. That's because in the mid-1980s, Alec Couvelaire led a French group that purchased Mooney Aircraft, of which he became president. While he had aspirations of building a six-seat pressurized single capable of flying in excess of 250 KTAS, he thought that the 301 was too slow.
How to Use the Charts Aircraft Operating Costs are presented in a format that separates the data into seven separate areas: Mission Costs, Variable Costs, Fixed Annual Costs, Periodic Costs, Personnel Costs, Training Costs and Facilities Costs. Aircraft Category
European Commission Vice President Jacques Barrot has committed Europe's air transport lawmakers to producing impact assessments for all future proposed regulations. Mike Ambrose, the European Region's Airline Association (ERA) director general, sees this sea-change attitude as a direct result of dissenting French and Dutch voters giving their governments and the EU a vote of "no confidence" in the recent constitutional referendum.
