Joe Greenwood has been promoted to general manager of sales, customer administration, and marketing&spare parts for the repair division; Jim Berberet has been named director of business development for the repair division; Laura Lundquist is named as director of human resources for Nordam group; Tray Siegfried has been promoted to director of operations for interior and structures division; Susan Hughes Johnson was promoted to vice president of administrative financial services for the Nordam group; Rick Armstrong is promoted to vice president of the transparency divis
The Australian Government has ordered three Bombardier Challenger 604s to transport senior government officials in Australia and throughout the Asia Pacific region. The aircraft will be maintained and crewed by Qantas Defence Services, a subsidiary of Qantas Airways Ltd.
GE Capital Aviation Training (GECAT) will manage Britannia Airways' simulator training in London. Britannia's Luton-based Boeing 757/767 simulator will be moved to GECAT's London-Heathrow training center as part of the deal.
A European Commission (EC) proposal that could change the way takeoff and landing slots are allocated at Europe's largest airports has evoked the ire of regional airlines fearful of losing access to their most important markets. The EC submitted its draft proposal on July 18, invited airlines and trade groups to discuss the changes a week later (July 26), and required them to furnish detailed responses to the proposal by the end of August.
Four aviation insurance specialists are the first recipients of the Aviation Insurance Association's (AIA) new Certified Aviation Insurance Professional (CAIP) designation. They are Jim Aldeman of Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance, ACE Aerospace's John Danilov, Beverly Rant of Acordia Aerospace and Jeffry Rasmussen of Mortenson, Matzelle and Meldrum. Recipients completed four continuing education courses and have worked full-time in the aviation insurance industry for at least five of the past 10 years.
The trade group that represents the largest U.S. airlines has launched a plan to fight fatigue among flight crews, but the largest airline pilots' union has categorized the effort as a ``delaying tactic'' that stands in the way of true regulatory reform. The debate is significant to business aircraft and FAR Part 135 operators, since any policy or rule changes that result are, over time, likely to ``trickle down'' to their level. Unveiled as the Alertness Management Initiative, the Air Transport Association (ATA) has called for:
Barring any last minute hitches, New Piper expected to receive FAA certification for the Malibu Meridian as B/CA went to press in late September. Customer deliveries were expected to begin immediately with Sales and Marketing Vice President Larry Bardon saying that at least four aircraft would be in customer hands by the start of the NBAA convention this month. A now-resolved software problem with the Meggitt avionics system delayed Meridian certification in its final stages. New Piper plans to deliver 35 aircraft this year and produce 103 Meridians in 2001.
Photograph: Nordam's Tulsa facility Nordam Nordam's Interiors&Structures (I&S) unit has started construction of a 440,000-square-foot facility at the Cherokee Industrial Park in Tulsa. Located on a 56-acre site across from the Nacelle/Thrust Reverser Systems Division, the new facility will serve as the sole Tulsa location for the company's I&S operations.
AOPA Senior Vice President of Communications Drew Steketee is leaving the organization this month to become president and CEO of Be A Pilot. The AOPA, aircraft manufacturers and other industry groups helped form Be A Pilot -- originally known as GA Team 2000 -- in 1996 to encourage new pilot starts. Steketee, a nine-year AOPA veteran and 2,600-hour commercial pilot, also served in communication posts at Beech and GAMA.
The FAA promised the U.S. aviation community 500 new instrument approach procedures (IAPs) per year, once GPS became operational in the mid-1990s. This ambitious goal would be made possible by transitioning to satellite-based navigation from ground-based, line-of-sight navaids, such as ILSes, localizers, VORs and NDBs. Ground-based navaids, FAA officials say, are limited by where they can be installed, their signals are prone to physical interference and they are expensive to maintain.
Spatial disorientation'' is a term most pilots recognize and something they probably have experienced. Those who have been disoriented know how difficult it is to recover. Many accidents and incidents are no doubt caused by disorientation, but there is little evidence to prove its existence other than considering the conditions of flight prior to and during the event, and the pilot's description of it. Yet, hangar stories abound about the ``close call'' caused by being disoriented.
Photograph: Ribbon-cutting at the new TI hangar. McKinney Aerospace Texas Instruments (TI) has opened a new flight department headquarters and McKinney Aerospace a new maintenance facility at McKinney Airport (TKI) in McKinney, Texas. The 33,750-square-foot TI facility features amenities such as a ``color corrected'' lighting system and electrical, cooling and compressed air ports in the hangar's two aircraft servicing areas.
United Services, a division of United Airlines' parent UAL, will provide basic warranty and other optional maintenance and technical services to Airbus Corporate Jet (ACJ) operators. Optional services include heavy maintenance and AOG ground support. The manufacturer also said it is offering optional aircraft completion center consulting, engineering assistance and a $1.5 million ``gray definition'' package including airstairs, HF and satcom, brake fans, APU and wind-shear detection weather radar, plus insulation, cabin side walls and overhead bins.
QuickTurn, a division of SimuFlite Training International, is now offering Cessna 400-series pilot training at its Grapevine, Texas, training center. The Cessna 421C Flight Training Device (FTD), manufactured by Frasca International, is an FAA Level 5 simulator that features Collins avionics with a Bendix/King Navigation system. QuickTurn said the initial pilot training lasts five days and recurrent training is available in two- or three-day options.
Jet Support Services Inc. (JSSI) is adding optional routine maintenance coverage for its hourly maintenance customers. Dubbed JSSI Plus, the new program covers engine removal and replacement (R&R) labor, parts and labor for routine inspections, overnight component shipping and provides for on-site maintenance personnel if an aircraft cannot be ferried to a service center. JSSI Plus is only available for North American customers and replaces the company's R&R Upgrade for U.S. and Canadian customers.
Greg Napert, former founding editor of AMT magazine, has been named as the company's central-region maintenance training marketing manager, Ken Brewer has joined the company's maintenance training sales group and Andy Parish has been promoted to assistant manager of the Savannah learning center.
TEAC America has introduced a DVD replacement for its 8mm inflight-entertainment (IFE) reproducers. Al McGowan, TEAC national sales manager, said the in-seat and head-end DVD units provide substantial weight savings over tape-based video systems, and because there are no tape heads to clean, preventative maintenance is not required. The slot-loading in-seat player enhances IFE, providing MPEG-2 digital video quality and sound, with passengers' choice of videos, games, shopping or personal audio CDs.
The FAA and other aviation industry judges have named AVMATS President and CEO A.C. ``Butch'' Giessman AMT of the Year. Geissman began his career at Rockwell International as an A&P and moved to Midcoast Aviation before founding Aviation Material and Technical Support (AVMATS) in 1982. St. Louis-based AVMATS specializes in corporate aircraft service, sales and charter.
The Aviation Distributors and Manufacturers Association has awarded $1,000 scholarships to Arnold Banks and Brad Hanson. Both are college seniors pursuing aviation-related degrees.
There are plenty of jokes about the results of design by committee. But in the case of the MD Explorer, the committee might just have gotten things right, even if it has taken nearly a decade to prove the point.
