THE EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION was pleased that the Department of Transportation okayed the sport pilot/light-sport aircraft proposal and shipped it to the Office of Management and Budget on Dec. 23 for the mandatory 90-day review. "This is great news, as it completes an important step to make sport pilot/light-sport aircraft a reality," said EAA President Tom Poberezny. The proposal would create a new sport pilot certificate and new class of "light-sport" aircraft.
MICHAEL P. LEE was appointed vice president for technology and compliance at FlightSafety International. He has been the general manager of courseware support and director of maintenance training standards at FlightSafety for the last 16 years. A licensed airframe and powerplant mechanic, Lee was previously vice president of the Professional Aviation Maintenance Association and currently is on the board of directors for the Aviation Technician Education Council and the Northrop/Rice Foundation.
The Federal Aviation Administration is seeking bids on a proposal to outsource the operation of the agency's network of Automated Flight Service Stations, which provide an array of information, weather and advisory services for the aircraft pilot community.
NATA PUSHES GROUND SAFETY - National Air Transportation Association is developing a program to cut ground-based aviation accidents, NATA President Jim Coyne said. NATA represents airport-based businesses including fixed-base operators and charter aircraft companies. "In 2004, we'll raise the bar on ramp safety," he said at a press luncheon in Washington last month. "It's a fact that there are more accidents on the ground than in the air...unfortunately, there are a few pilots that turn off their brain when the nose wheel touches down."
BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (BWI) opened a new consolidated rental car facility Dec. 22. The new facility centralizes the operations of eight different national rental car companies. The $134.8 million facility sits on a 100-acre site on the west side of the airport and provides covered areas to protect customers while picking up and dropping off rental vehicles.
THE NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM'S new addition, the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, has gotten off to a strong start with officials estimating some 150,000 visitors in its first two weeks. The center, designed to house a portion of NASM's collection that had been in storage, officially opened Dec. 15, but hosted several dedication events before that date.
EXECUTIVE JET MANAGEMENT added three aircraft to its charter fleet. The aircraft include a Challenger 600 based at Aiken Municipal Airport in Aiken, S.C. and a Gulfstream IV-SP at Republic Municipal in Farmingdale, N.Y. EJM also added a Citation Bravo at Chicago Midway. Executive Jet Management manages 120 aircraft based at more than 50 locations throughout the U.S.
U.S. SERVICES EXERCISE JPATS OPTIONS IN $228 MILLION CONTRACT -- Raytheon Aircraft won a $228 million contract for 47 T-6A trainers as part the U.S. Navy/Air Force Joint Primary Aircraft Training System program, which is now in its 11th option year. The JPATS program calls for up to 800 aircraft to be delivered through 2017. The U.S. Air Force and Navy have ordered 301 of the aircraft so far and have taken delivery of 149 T-6As. The latest contract extends deliveries through 2007. Raytheon valued the program orders and options to date at $2.3 billion.
BOMBARDIER SECURES ORDER FOR Q300S -- Bombardier won an order from Qantas Airways of Sydney, Australia for six 50-passenger Bombardier Q300 turboprops and options for two more. Delivery of the aircraft is slated for the first half of the year. The aircraft will replace 36-seat Dash 8 Series 100 aircraft currently operated by Qantas regional operation QantasLink.
ROLLS-ROYCE secured a contract from Houston, Texas-based ExpressJet to extend Rolls' TotalCare maintenance package to ERJ 145-XR aircraft, which are powered by the AE 3007 engine. Rolls-Royce, which already provides its TotalCare services for the ExpressJet ERJ 135 and 145 fleets, valued the total deal at $720 million through 2015. Under TotalCare, Rolls-Royce manages all engine maintenance, repair and overhaul. The program can be tailored to customer needs. Rolls-Royce currently maintains 2,800 engines through TotalCare.
Al Gleske, who has spent more than a quarter-century working for FlightSafety International, is retiring at the end of the year. Gleske, who joined FSI 26 years ago, has headed the simulator training manufacturer's Washington, D.C. office for many years. Succeeding Gleske will be Tom Mahoney, who was named vice president of government relations, effective Jan. 1. For the past nine years, Mahoney has been manager of FSI's Teterboro, N.J. learning center, the company's principal Falcon Jet training location.
Finding the right market is key to business success, and Anchorage-based Hawaiian Vacations has identified a market with a lot of potential demand this time of year. The operator is offering weekly nonstop flights beginning Dec. 20 between Fairbanks, Alaska (FAI) and Kahului, Maui (OGG) in Hawaii. The trips will be flown by New York-based North America Airlines using Boeing 757-200 aircraft in a two-class configuration.
BOMBARDIER Model DHC-8-102, -103, -106, -201, -202, -301, -311, and -315 airplanes (Docket No. 2002-NM-79-AD) - proposes to adopt a new AD that would require a one-time inspection to determine the serial numbers of the elevator and aileron servos of the drive assemblies of the automatic flight control system, and follow-on corrective actions if necessary.
WING ICING SEEN AS LIKELY CAUSE OF TBM 700 CRASH - National Transportation Safety Board investigators suspect that icing on a portion of the wing caused the takeoff crash of a TBM 700 this month in Reading, Pa. The aircraft, N700QD, was operated by Quest Diagnostics, Inc. The instrument-rated, airline transport pilot was attempting to make a Part 91 flight to Norwood, Mass. (OWD).
Raytheon Aircraft received an early Christmas present when NetJets placed a fleet order for the manufacturer's Hawker 400XP business jet, the first big order from the fractional aircraft provider this year. See article below.
National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the fatal crash of a Piper PA-46 Malibu Mirage Dec. 17 near Daytona Beach, Fla. A preliminary FAA report said the aircraft, N511BM, went down in the Turkey Bay area west of Daytona Beach. The pilot, the only occupant, was killed.
January 11-15, 2004 - AAAE Aviation Issues Conference, Hyatt Regency Kauai Resort, Kauai, Hawaii, (703) 820-1395 March 2-3, 2004 - ASME International (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) Aero Engine Life Management Conference, Thistle Royal Horseguards Hotel, London, England, (404) 847-0072; [email protected] or www.asme.org.igti March 15-17, 2004 - Helicopter Association International Heli-Expo 2004, Las Vegas, Nev., (703) 683-4646
Air Canada split a major order for regional jets between Canadian manufacturer Bombardier and its principal rival, Embraer of Brazil. See article below.
FlightSafety International received Level D certification for its Citation X full flight simulator. The simulator will be located at FlightSafety's training center at Orlando International Airport next to Cessna's new aircraft maintenance facility. The training center already operates a number of Cessna simulators including the Excel, Bravo, Encore and CJ2 aircraft.
NETJETS ORDERS 50 HAWKER 400s FROM RAYTHEON, OPTIONS 50 MORE - Fractional aircraft operator NetJets, which had been one of the major drivers in the sharp growth of business jet deliveries in the late 1990s, has placed an order for 50 new Hawker 400XP light jets and eight new Hawker 800XPs from Raytheon Aircraft Company. The order, valued at $360 million, marks NetJets first announced fleet order in months, and may signal a resurgence in the fractional share market, which has been flat for more than a year.
