Flight Options is adding an eighth aircraft type to its fleet -- the Cessna Citation V. Priced at $1.25 million for a quarter share, the Citation Vs are pre-owned as are all other aircraft in the Flight Options program. The Cleveland-based fractional company now operates 85 aircraft, including the Citation II and III, Beechjet 400A, Hawker 800, Falcon 50, Challenger 601 and Gulfstream IV. Flight Options recently won the Best Cabin Interior Award from a group of New York-area design companies judging fractional aircraft interiors for cabin comfort and aesthetic appeal.
The 11th annual Head in the Sand Awards lampooned manufacturers and government regulators for contributing to ``the denial, the discounting or the ignoring of significant aviation risks or opportunities.'' Top honors went to the FAA's Airspace and Rules Division for permitting construction in Anchorage of a 497-foot-tall tower in a special VFR corridor requiring flight below 600 feet msl.
Parks College of Engineering and Aviation, in St. Louis, has restructured its FAR Part 147 program to offer a certificate-only airframe and powerplant (A&P) curricula. Available starting in July, the new program will enable technicians to complete training in 13 months as compared to its original two-year program. In addition to a reduction of time, the new program also lowers the cost of training. The A&P program will be housed independent of the university's undergraduate facilities at Amelia Earhart Hall.
Aviation groups celebrated Congress' overturning of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's controversial Ergonomics Protection Standard, which was issued in November 2000 and took effect in mid-January. Critics complained that OSHA rushed through the rule, adopting it less than nine months after the comment period closed on the proposal. The bill was intended to protect against musculoskeletal disorders with a plan for some six million employers to design ergonomics programs that cover training, risk assessment, record-keeping and compensation.
Bombardier Aerospace, Montreal, Canada, reports that Chip Abbott, pilot for American International Aviation, is the 250th graduate of its Global Express pilot training program.
A proposed airworthiness directive would require repetitive inspections of more than 1,650 General Electric CF34 engines installed on Bombardier Challengers and regional jets. The problem was discovered in September 1999 when the failure of a number five bearing rotating air seal led to a fire in the cavity of the low-pressure turbine, resulting in over-temperature condition and the inflight shutdown of the engine.
Bombardier Aerospace delivered its 600th production Dash 8 aircraft, a Q300 model, to Air Nippon Co. Ltd. (ANK) of Tokyo, Japan on March 6. This milestone was reached just a few weeks short of 18 years from the original rollout on April 19, 1983. Both the Bombardier Canadair Regional Jet and Dash 8 Q100 already are in service with Japanese carriers, and in March, Japan's Civil Aviation Bureau certified the Q200 and Q300.
Newly operational fractional operator CitationShares says it expects to double its fleet by the end of the year. The Cessna/TAG Aviation partnership now flies 13 aircraft and plans to add about two aircraft per month beginning in June, including six Cessna CJ1s, six Bravos and the company's first Citation Excel. CitationShares CEO Steve O'Neil says pilot hiring is to progress at a fast pace through the end of the year, with plans for 50 to 60 new hires, more than doubling the present 45 pilot roster.
BAE Systems has signed up Atlantic Coast Airlines for its Material and Component Repair and Overhaul (MACRO) program. This makes it the first North American Jetstream 41 customer to sign up for the fixed-rate per flight hour program and covers the airline's entire 32-ship Jetstream 41 fleet. Tom Moore, Atlantic Coast president and chief operating officer, said, ``We appreciate the customer-focused approach BAE Systems has taken in the design of the MACRO program.
When David Bowling began to interview witnesses about the final moments of a King Air 200's takeoff roll, the story they told him sounded familiar. Bowling is an air safety investigator with the NTSB's North Central Regional office. He had been called to Meigs Field in Chicago shortly after 2020 CST on November 11, 1999 when the aircraft ran off the departure end of Runway 18 and sank into Lake Michigan with two pilots and a passenger aboard. The business flight was to have been a VFR leg from Meigs to South Bend, Ind.
General maintenance for the PA-46-500TP Meridian has been simplified by the bonding of the all-metal fuselage and multi-sectional wing. The process is performed in an autoclave and causes the ribs to permanently adhere to the structure. Advantages of this type of construction include decreased weight because of the lack of rivets and increased strength. The main drawback comes when any major structural repair is necessary.
AC-U-KWIK is offering FBOs real-time flight information through its Web site. The program enables ground service providers time to prepare for an incoming aircraft's arrival. Information can be accessed on any aircraft that has filed an IFR flight plan; individual flight details are displayed when viewers click on a specific aircraft icon. AC-U-KWIK also will place a subscribing FBO's icon on its Web site that will link to a form that when submitted alerts the FBO to service requirements of arriving aircraft.
The European Commission has delayed General Electric's planned Honeywell acquisition, at least temporarily, while it considers the possible competitive implication of the deal. The commission expressed concern that the merger might ``significantly'' reduce competition in the market including the possible bundling of jet engines, avionics and non-avionics. The EC action could postpone the merger by as much as four months. GE originally hoped to close the deal in early March.
The FAA has granted type certification to Bombardier's 70-seat CRJ700 regional jet. The move clears the way for deliveries to U.S. customers, including American Eagle, Atlantic Southeast, Comair, Delta Connection, GECAS and Horizon. In all, Bombardier claims 175 firm orders and 313 options for the regional jet, which began service with Air France affiliate Brit Air in February.
Cornerstone Logic, Inc. has developed PocketFuel, a ``rental car style processing'' unit, designed to simplify and speed aviation fueling transactions. PocketFuel uses a handheld Windows CE device, infrared printer and magnetic card reader, and a wireless ethernet connection. This allows an operator to pay by credit card for fuel and other services and receive a receipt, while never having to step inside the terminal. PocketFuel's technology enables the handheld device to communicate from the fueling ramp to Cornerstone Logic's FBO Manager program inside the terminal.
Bombardier Aerospace has had to make a complete ``U-turn'' on Dash 8 Q400 certification for London City Airport (LCY) operations. The Canadian company had previously regarded the requirement as a low priority for the Q400 program, but pressure from new U.K. Q400 customer British European has changed all that. The airline has requested that the aircraft be certificated for full passenger load operations from both LCY and Belfast City Airports.
Sky Helicopters has announced the expansion of the Garland/DFW Heloplex Heliport (T57), located 15 miles east of downtown Dallas, which the company says will make it the largest heliport in the United States. With completion expected in early 2002, the facility will expand to more than 45,000 square feet with additional parking and security for the eight-acre heliport. Sky Helicopters operates the heliport in cooperation with the city of Garland. The FBO provides Jet A and 100LL seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and additional times may be requested.
Jet Aviation has purchased a facility at London's Biggin Hill Airport and will offer FBO services by September. The new facility includes two hangars totaling 55,830 square feet and is currently being used by Jet Aviation for maintenance and refurbishment services on Gulfstream, Falcon, Hawker and Citation aircraft. Starting out with a staff of 25 employees, the Biggin Hill FBO will be managed by Elie Zelouf, former general manager of Jet Aviation Basel.
Moody's Investor Services predicts the regional jet and general aviation industries will continue to prosper for several years, but warns of a potential overcapacity problem for airframe manufacturers. ``Demand for corporate/business aircraft will . . . be strong,'' the ``Global Aerospace/ Defense Industry Outlook'' says. Positive factors include continued growth in the economy -- albeit at lower rates than in recent years as U.S. economic growth slows -- and the introduction of new models by several manufacturers that will stimulate demand.
Teterboro Airport is about seven miles from the George Washing-ton Bridge and is the quick way to ``Downtown Big Apple,'' notwithstanding the fact that La Guardia is geographically closer. Timewise, Teterboro wins hands down, owing to the fact that merely landing at LGA is a daunting task in itself. The Marine Air Terminal at LGA has long since been usurped by the commuters, relegating general aviation aircraft way out in the tewlies.
Inadequate communication leads to deficient planning and briefings that are manifested in poor IAPs. Communication skills can range from cockpit communications where all pertinent information is discussed between flight crewmembers to communications with dispatch and ATC.
Atlantic Coast Airlines (ACA) Holdings struck a deal initially valued at $200 million with United Airlines parent UAL Corp. to purchase three regional airlines that United would inherit with its acquisition of the US Airways Group.
Bombardier Aerospace's CRJ900 prototype made its maiden flight on February 21, from Montreal's Mirabel International Airport, on what crewmembers described as a ``flawless initial flight'' for the stretched aircraft. The prototype was taken to FL 350, was airborne for two hours 54 minutes and basic maneuverability and initial systems checks were tested.
