RIZON, the two-year-old Middle East executive charter company, has ordered four Bombardier Learjet 85 aircraft, with deliveries slated to begin in the second quarter. The new airplanes will operate from the Middle East during winter and Europe in the summer, mirroring the travel trends of Rizon’s regular clients. Eventually, two of the aircraft will be based permanently in the United Kingdom. In September, Rizon plans to open a brand-new, $20 million maintenance and FBO facility at London’s Biggin Hill Airport.
LYCOMING ENGINES IO, (L)IO, TIO, (L)TIO, AEIO, AIO, IGO, IVO and HIO series engines, TELEDYNE CONTINENTAL MOTORS LTSIO-360-RB and TSIO-360-RB engines and SUPERIOR AIR PARTS, INC. IO-360 series engines with certain Precision Airmotive LLC RSA-5 and RSA-10 series and Bendix RSA-5 and RSA-10 series fuel-injection servos [Docket No.
Gulfstream Aerospace is cutting back on production of its midsize business jets, but still plans to increase the number of large-cabin aircraft it delivers this year, saying its order backlog is holding up despite the economic crisis.
AMID THE STREAM OF BAD ECONOMIC NEWS last week, analyst JP Morgan reported, “Gulfstream is hanging in there, and we expect it to continue to do so for a few more quarters.” The economic storm has begun to impact Gulfstream – there were six defaults on large aircraft in the fourth quarter – but the Savannah, Ga., manufacturer found other customers to take delivery. Gulfstream, however, is still planning a drop in production. See article on Page 49.
NATIONAL BUSINESS AVIATION ASSOCIATION decided to fold its 2009 Light Business Airplane Conference (LBA) into the larger annual meeting and convention scheduled Oct. 20-22 in Orlando, Fla. NBAA originally had planned LBA as a separate three-day event in March, but scaled back the conference to two days late last year (BA, Dec. 22/283). The association then shifted plans again as the economy worsened. “In this economic climate, it is difficult to launch an event that our members and exhibitors expect from NBAA,” said NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen.
CAREY BOND was named vice president and chief marketing officer for Sikorsky, where he will oversee global aircraft sales, marketing, communications and U.S. government business development activities. Bond has served with Sikorsky since 2005 as vice president, corporate strategy and strategic programs. Before joining Sikorsky, he was vice president, customer support and service for Bell Helicopter.
MALAYSIA has received its first Bombardier 415MP amphibious aircraft. The country’s Coast Guard, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, was the launch customer in Asia for the maritime surveillance variant of the Bombardier 415 aerial firefighting aircraft. Special onboard equipment includes two side-looking airborne radars, one forward-looking infrared radar and an airborne maritime surveillance system.
February 5-6 – 12th Annual FAA Commercial Space Transportation Conference, “Launching the New Era,” Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington, Va., www.aiaa.org/events/ast February 19 – Wings Club Luncheon featuring Giovanni Bisignani, Director General and CEO of the International Air Transport Association; Yale Club, New York; (212) 867-1770; [email protected] February 26-28 – Women in Aviation, International 20th Anniversary Conference, Atlanta Hyatt Regency. For more information call (937) 839-4647, fax (937) 839-4645, www.wai.org
BOMBARDIER DHC-8-400 series airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2008-1083; Directorate Identifier 2008-NM-130-AD; Amendment 39-15782; AD 2009-01-03] – Replace the weight-on-wheels system and nose landing gear steering harnesses in accordance with the instructions of Bombardier Service Bulletin 84-32-51, Rev. B (dated Dec. 17, 2007). This AD, which resulted from an MCAI originated by Transport Canada, was prompted by several fatigue failures of the nose landing gear electrical harness, a condition that prevented the landing gear from retracting after takeoff on several occasions.
THE UNIVERSAL AVIONICS EFI-890R flat panel display is now an option for operators of the Astra/Gulfstream G100 looking to upgrade to a glass cockpit. An FAA supplemental type certificate was awarded in December to Columbia Avionics of Columbia, Mo. The STC includes Universal’s Vision-1 synthetic vision system, application server unit and dual radio control units, as well as the three EFI-890R displays, which are configured as two primary flight displays (PFDs) and one navigation display (ND).
A new one-stop center for workers laid off in the Wichita, Kan. metro area is being developed by the United Way of the Plains. The move comes as Cessna last week began the process of laying off another 2,000 workers on top of layoffs already announced by Boeing and Hawker Beechcraft.
Air medical industry leaders are urging operators and regulators to adopt a series of safety improvements that they believe could be critical to ensuring the long-term health of the industry. Three associations representing the industry – the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS), Air Medical Operators Association and Helicopter Association International – outlined a number of safety recommendations in a joint position paper that they submitted in advance of the National Transportation Safety Board’s medical helicopter safety hearings scheduled for Feb. 3-6 (BA, Jan.
MODESTO CITY-COUNTY AIRPORT’S noise maps meet the applicable FAR Part 150 requirements, according to the FAA. The approval clears the way for the California community to submit a noise compatibility program for FAA consideration.
Diamond Aircraft Industries has received a European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) type certificate for its turbo-diesel AE300 engine. The engine will power Diamond’s DA42 NG, DA40 and DA50 aircraft. Diamond had to create its own subsidiary – Austro Engine – to power the aircraft after Thielert Aircraft Engines was forced into insolvency last April. The engine manufacturer restarted its production line in June but complained of lack of support and warranty coverage from Thielert customers, forcing Diamond to begin offering engine assistance on DA42s.
The financial woes of Citigroup spilled into the business aviation industry last week, forcing the industry once again into the position of justifying its value. The financially struggling banking giant decided to turn back a Dassault Falcon 7X after the company came under fire in the general news media for spending nearly $50 million on the jet while accepting federal assistance.
The U.S. Air Force is planning to deploy its first MC-12W Project Liberty aircraft in April to support ground forces in combat. The service is purchasing 37 intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft based on the Hawker Beechcraft King Air A350 or 350-ER platform.
GOODRICH donated an icing wind tunnel to Iowa State University. The facility, which came from the company’s Sensors and Integrated Systems team in Burnsville, Minn., will be the school’s first wind tunnel capable of performing icing physics research. The tunnel, which will be housed in Iowa State’s wind simulation and testing laboratory, will be used to study, among other things, icing effects on alternative energy generators such as wind turbines. University officials estimate it would have cost them close to $500,000 to build an equivalent facility.
AFTER MONTHS of negotiations, the insolvency administrator for Grob Aerospace has named H3 Aerospace as the buyer of the company. Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany-based H3 Aerospace, through Fortius Mittelstandskapital, is buying the training aircraft and support businesses. Around 100 employees are expected to resume work at Grob’s Tussenhausen-Mattsies facility in February. The SPn program also is expected to survive. The rights to the project have been given to one of the main creditors for Grob, which has not yet been identified.
Corporate flight department leadership and pilot decision-making skills played a critical role in the 2007 in-flight fire and crash of a NASCAR Cessna 310R that killed five people and destroyed two homes – “an accident made even more tragic because it could have been so easily avoided,” according to NTSB acting Chairman Mark Rosenker.
POLSKIE ZAKLADY LOTNICZE SPOLKA Slot M26 01 airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2009-0010; Directorate Identifier 2009-CE-001-AD; Amendment 39-15792; AD 2009-02-02] – Conduct a detailed inspection of flight controls and correct any discrepancies found, per the instructions of PZL Service Bulletin No. E/62.020/2008 (dated Oct. 30, 2008). This AD, which resulted from an MCAI issued by the European Aviation Safety Agency, was prompted by the discovery of significant chafing of the aileron control cable against the wing rib in the fuselage-to-wing area of transition.
GE AND AVIALL have signed an exclusive distributor agreement under which the Dallas-based Boeing subsidiary will be responsible for forecasting, ordering and delivering all OEM replacement parts that are unique to CF34-3 engines, which power Bombardier’s CRJ100/200 regional jets and Challenger 601 and 604 business jets. Aviall also will assume responsibility for documentation management, worldwide inventory deployment, warehousing and product distribution. GE will continue to provide all CF34-3 life-limited parts and will retain technical responsibility for these engines.
The business and general aviation market continued its rapid deterioration last week as Cessna announced 2,000 more layoffs and analysts predicted that the full impact of the recession may not hit until 2010. Every indicator points to the fact that the industry is in a “depression,” National Air Transportation Association President James Coyne said last week, adding “the statistics are unprecedented in terms of decline.”
STEPHEN ESTILL was appointed to the newly created position of vice president, strategic partnerships for Sikorsky. Estill will be responsible for developing and implementing partnerships globally. Estill, who joined Sikorsky in 2002 as vice president, worldwide sales, most recently was vice president and chief marketing officer. He also had a 20-year career with Textron.
BOMBARDIER CL-600-2C10 (Regional Jet series 700, 701 and 702) and CL-600-2D24 (Regional Jet series 900) airplanes [Docket No. FAA-2008-0540; Directorate Identifier 2008-NM-031-AD; Amendment 39-15786; AD 2009-01-07] – Following the instructions of Bombardier Service Bulletin 670BA-28-011, Rev. C (dated June 5, 2008), modify the fuel tank climb-vent loop by installing shrouding boots that direct leaked fuel safely overboard.
TURBOMECA Arriel 2B and 2B1 engines [Docket No. FAA-2008-0935; Directorate Identifier 2008-NE-28-AD; Amendment 39-15790; AD 2009-01-11] – Replace the Hydra-Electric low-fuel-pressure switch in the Hydro Mechanical Unit (HMU) with either of two different low-fuel-pressure switches, per the instructions of Turbomeca Mandatory Service Bulletin No. 292 73 2826 (dated March 13, 2008).
