Aviation Data Systems has introduced its AvMaps 2000 aviation trip resource guide. The CD-ROM enables users to find information on airports, FBOs, ground transportation, hotels and restaurants. AvMaps is provided free of charge to business aviation turbine operators, and FBOs can have additional information added for a fee. The software is designed for use in desktop, notebook or hand held computers. Price: Free of charge Aviation Data Systems Impact Marketing 2661 Midway Rd., Ste. 224 Carrollton, Texas 75006
Completely hidden from the view of the public and competitors, Gulfstream Aerospace has a secure Web site that's been up and running for more than a year. The Web site provides a dynamic blueprint of how Plane-view -- Gulfstream's implementation of Honeywell's Primus Epic avionics suite with 14-inch displays -- is being developed for the G-VSP. It reveals Planeview system architecture, its new control devices and its large-format display graphics and symbology. The site also provides updates on development and certification progress.
Controllers at the Shanwick Oceanic Area Control Centre have warned jet operators against abusing an apparent loophole in the Reduced Vertical Separation Minimums (RVSM) approval process. A ``great number'' of aircraft routinely file for RVSM flight levels with non-RVSM-approved aircraft, the controllers allege, by claiming their flights are ``mercy or humanitarian'' missions exempt from Europe's new RVSM requirements.
Canada's CHC Helicopter Corp. has completed the $137 million (CDN) sale of its Canadian onshore helicopter operation. Known as Canadian Helicopters, the new company will look remarkably similar, with aircraft still sporting CHC's logo and operating under the same management. CHC retains a 45-percent interest in Canadian and will hold the operating leases on 11 Sikorsky S-76A helicopters and six additional aircraft.
Pratt&Whitney Canada's European service center affiliate will provide repair and overhaul services for Wideroes Flyveselkap's 24 P&WC-powered Bombardier Dash-8 aircraft under the terms of a new three-year agreement. The Norwegian carrier has been a P&WC customer since the 1950s .
Mesa Air Group has signed a code-sharing agreement with Midwest Express Airlines, a five-year deal that will initially connect 14 cities served by Mesa unit Air Midwest with Midwest Express in Kansas City. Air Midwest will, however, continue to share codes with US Airways in Kansas City. Mesa recently extended its US Airways code share by an additional five years, and agreed to fly four more regional jets in that airline's colors, bringing the total to 32.
Pilots are fuming over the Dutch government's recent decision to perform random alcohol testing on all flight crews operating into or out of the Netherlands. Some U.S. crews report being met at the gate by uniformed police who escorted them off their aircraft for Breathalyzer testing with no prior warning, the Air Line Pilots Association says. Other crews report being tested prior to departure.
Jetflite, the Helsinki, Finland, air charter and ambulance service, has taken delivery of a new Bombardier Challenger 604 with seating for 18 and a retrofitted Dassault Falcon 20 F-5. The operator is in the midst of a fleet renewal program, having sold off its Hawker 700 and Challenger 600 aircraft .
Bombardier Aerospace will partner with Execujet Aviation Group to open a 28,000-square-foot maintenance facility in summer 2001 in Dubai. The joint venture expands on Execujet's existing relationship with the manufacturer; Execujet provides operational support for Flexjets' European operations and is a Bombardier distributor in Southern Africa. Bombardier's Robin Gillespie says the Dubai location will help provide a better infrastructure for business jet operators in the Middle East and improve the service turnaround for Middle East business jet operators.
Air BP, Warrenville, Ill., has named Brian Blazina as its general aviation manager, Mark Frena as the global general aviation manager and Paul Lantero as the global card&marketing program manager.
Edited by Paul RichfieldBy Paul Richfield, in Crystal City, Va.
For the first time in many years, aviation companies are actively pursuing new employees to fill a variety of jobs, including many at the entry-level. This point was driven home at a recent Aviation Employee Placement Service (AEPS) job fair near Washington, D.C., where recruiters from around 40 airlines and other aviation businesses sought to entice a milling throng of suit-clad candidates.
The Mexican Navy has ordered two additional Rotorway 162F helicopter kits for pilot training and personnel transport. Chandler, Ariz.-based Rotorway now claims 500 sales of the kit, which has been in production since 1995, of which it estimates that 70 percent have been completed and are flying. Priced at $64,350, the 162F is comparable in size and performance to the Robinson R-22, although federal regulations limit the applications of the homebuilt rotorcraft.
Harmon Industries' flight department is closing after nearly 40 years of continuous operation. General Electric acquired the Blue Springs, Mo., company earlier this year. Harmon operated a single Mitsubishi Diamond. Companies seeking to hire an experienced Beechjet/Diamond captain are encouraged to contact Dave Forrer at [email protected].
Edited by Paul RichfieldBy Mike Vines, in Birmingham, England
Crossair is re-evaluating its fleet requirements while facing skyrocketing fuel costs, which helped it incur its first half-year loss since 1992. The Swiss carrier plans to withdraw its Saab 340s earlier than planned. In addition, it says it is considering the elimination of unprofitable routes, particularly in the Mediterranean, a move that would free up for sale between five and 10 Saab 2000 and MD-80 aircraft.
The most recent tests of ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast) technology are complete, and early indications bode well for a system that could reduce the risk of aircraft collisions while smoothing the flow of traffic at crowded airports. For now though, ADS-B is proving itself to be a great way for the overnight package delivery airlines to speed up and streamline their ``sort'' -- that frantic period when dozens of jet freighters arrive, disgorge their cargo containers, reload and fly off into the night.
The NBAA's Safety Committee -- with help from B/CA, the Flight Safety Foundation (FSF) and the major flight training centers -- is launching a coordinated attack on what have been termed the ``killers in aviation.'' At the heart of the program is an agreement among the training centers to coordinate training on techniques to reduce the incidence of two major accident types -- controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) and approach and landing.
A number of regulations pertain to the use of PEDs aboard aircraft. Federal Aviation Regulations 14 CFR 91.21, 121.306 and 135.144 all prohibit the use of a PED on an aircraft unless it has been determined that the device will not cause interference with the aircraft's navigation or communication systems. These rules provide exceptions to allow the use of portable voice recorders, hearing aids, heart pacemakers and electric shavers, and do not apply to private aircraft flying under VFR.
