MICHAEL A. BRAND was named president of the Sermatech Manufacturing Group. He will oversee the company's manufacturing business. Brand was most recently vice president of operations at Sermatech.
RICH DRAZEN joined CompletionAir, East Alton, Ill., as a regional sales representative, focusing on interior, avionics and maintenance sales for large and mid-size corporate jets. Drazen has been involved in the aviation industry for 35 years. He previously held posts with JetCorp, Sabreliner Corp. and Midcoast Aviation, where he was vice president of completions.
MERCURY AIR CENTERS, AVLOG and GE Capital Financial are launching a new, joint aviation purchasing card. The Mercury Easy Trip Mastercard, which will replace multiple charge cards, will be accepted in more than 22 million locations. The card can be used at any FBO for various services, including fuel, aircraft maintenance and catering.
Two legislators have introduced bills in the House to require background checks on current and future students enrolled in flight training. The bills, introduced by Ander Crenshaw (R-Fla.) and Michael Castle (R-Del.), call for students to pay for a background check that includes reviews by the Central Intelligence Agency and Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Castle bill, H.R.2957, would cap the costs of the background check at $100 per individual.
RTS SERVICES received ISO 9001 certification for its engine repair facility and parts supply operation in Fort Worth, Tex. ISO 9001 is a quality system model for service companies.
TERRY G. SCOTT was named president and CEO of International Turbine Service, Inc. Scott will be responsible for operations, sales and marketing activities. He was previously senior vice president of sales and marketing at Dallas Airmotive.
SOLOY CORPORATION is seeking certification for its Turbine Pac powerplant for Cessna's new 206H/T206H model aircraft. Soloy wants to be able to offer turbine conversion as an alternate to the new Lycoming IO/TIO-540 piston engine installation.
PRATT&WHITNEY CANADA delivered the first PW206B2-powered Eurocopter EC135 to ADAC Luftrettung, a German air rescue service. The PW206B2 is built from the PW207 power section along with the PW206B reduction gearbox. The engine has a 30-second One Engine Inoperative thermodynamic power rating of 816 shaft horsepower, which allows the EC135 to operate at higher Category A takeoff weights.
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION Friday was believed to be readying another effort to convince National Security Council officials to reduce - from 25 miles to 18 miles - the no-fly zones around New York and Washington, D.C. and to reduce other restrictions involving Part 91 VFR flights in Class B airspace. Officials were hopeful some relaxation of restrictions could come as soon as this week.
GE CF34-3A1, -3B, and -3B1 turbofan engines (Docket No. 2001-NE-21-AD; Amendment 39-12441; AD 2001-19-02) - on certain engines with scavenge screens Part Numbers (PNs) 4047T95P01 and 5054T86G02 installed in the B-sump oil scavenge system, requires initial and repetitive visual inspections and cleaning of the B-sump scavenge screens. This amendment is prompted by five reports of B-sump oil scavenge system failure causing engine in-flight shutdowns.
BAE Model 4101 airplanes (Docket No. 2001-NM-151-AD) - proposes to require a functional test of the shortening mechanism of the nose landing gear for free movement of the capsule in the upper and lower bearings, and corrective action, if necessary. This action is necessary to prevent damage to the capsule, which could result in inability to extend the nose landing gear in normal or emergency situations, and consequent injury to passengers and flight crew. FAA estimates that this proposed AD would affect 59 airplanes on the U.S.
Canadian plane-maker Bombardier received an order from REGA, Swiss Air-Ambulance Ltd., for three Challenger 604 aircraft. The aircraft will be configured for air ambulance use with two intensive care stations and life support equipment. The aircraft also will have two galleys and a crew rest area that can be converted into additional seating. Bombardier expects to deliver the first two 604s to Zurich, Switzerland-based REGA in June 2002 with the third in November 2002.
Aerospace manufacturers continued to prepare themselves for the financial blow of the commercial aviation free fall with three more companies announcing plans last week to lay off thousands of employees. Bombardier, Rockwell Collins and Textron will cut 8,900 more jobs in the upcoming months, joining Honeywell and Boeing, which already had detailed plans to reduce some 42,000 positions. Those reductions come in the immediate wake of the scheduled airlines' plans to cut more than 110,000 workers because of a widespread drop in airline traffic since the Sept.
UAL CORPORATION'S new business jet subsidiary will be called "Avolar," and it may begin providing limited flight operations as early as next month (BA, Sept. 24/139). Avolar's new aircraft will not begin arriving before April, but there is a plan in place to begin carrying passengers as early as Nov. 1 using Falcon 50 aircraft.
BOMBARDIER Model DHC-8-100, -200, and -300 series airplanes (Docket No. 2001-NM-241-AD) - proposes to require replacement of the observer's seat latch assembly with a new, approved seat latch assembly. This action is necessary to prevent the observer's seat separating from its attachment points in an accident or emergency landing due to an understrength seat latch assembly. FAA estimates that this proposed AD would affect 35 airplanes on the U.S. Registry at a cost of $56,420, or $1,612 per airplane. Send comments in triplicate by Oct.
PRIVATAIR opened a western sales and operations division in Monterey, Calif. The new base will handle business west of the Mississippi River. Woody McClendon was appointed vice president and manager in charge of the division.
French manufacturer Dassault Aviation delivered a new Falcon 2000 last month to Executive Jet, Inc., the 29th of more than 100 Falcons ordered by the fractional aircraft provider and the 1,500th Falcon business jet delivered since production began in the early 1960s.
Federal agencies were put on notice last week that their rulemaking proposals must meet standards laid down by the White House Office of Management and Budget or face rejection. John D. Graham, administrator of OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), prefaced his memorandum to agency heads by observing that federal regulations can provide cost-effective solutions to many problems. But he warned that "If not properly developed, regulations can lead to an enormous burden on the economy."
AIRSHOW added three new members to its sales and marketing team: John Hill, account director; Lonnie Muir, sales director; and Jaime McGrath, sales engineer. The company also launched a new corporate branding campaign with a newly designed logo as well as a new slogan, "Dedicated to making the cabin work."
PILATUS Models PC-12 and PC-12/45 airplanes (Docket No. 2000-CE-77-AD) - proposes to supersede AD 99-19-32, which applies to certain Pilatus Model PC-12 and PC-12/45 airplanes. AD 99-19-32 currently requires inspection of the flap actuator internal gear system for correct end-play and backlash measurements and corrective adjustments, as necessary. Pilatus has identified modifications for the flap system and designed and manufactured a new flap control and warning unit (FCWU) that permits the flap power drive-unit circuit breaker to close during flight.
Marion Clifton Blakey, a veteran government employee and more recently a principal in a public affairs firm, was sworn in last week as the ninth chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board.
ASTRO-AIRE ENTERPRISES, Oakland, Calif., was appointed a Honeywell-Grimes authorized repair center. Astro-Aire, which holds an FAA Repair Station license and is celebrating its 40th year in business, will bench check, repair and overhaul/modify all makes and models of Grimes-manufactured aircraft lighting and power supply devices.
