ROGER WANAMAKER was appointed chief pilot for Flight Services Group. Wanamaker will be based in Stratford, Conn., and will be responsible for day-to-day operation and supervision of pilots. He has more than 41 years of aviation experience and is type rated on Gulfstream, Boeing, Douglas and Lockheed aircraft.
FAIRCHILD DORNIER won Canadian type certification for the 328 turboprop, clearing the way for delivery of the first 328 in Canada to Shell Canada Ltd. The oil company's aircraft is equipped with a gravel kit to protect the underside of the plane, engines and propellers from loose objects on unimproved runways. The 32-seat 328-130 is based in Calgary, Alberta and will operate five or six days per week flying six sectors a day. Fairchild Dornier won original FAA and JAA certification for the 328 turboprop in 1993 and more than 100 have been delivered.
TRW AERONAUTICAL SYSTEMS (Lucas Aerospace) signed a 10-year flight-hour-maintenance and asset management contract with Continental Express under which the carrier buys access to spare line replacement units (LRUs) from TRW and pays for anticipated repairs and overhauls on a cost-per-flight-hour basis. Valued in excess of $80 million over the life of the program, TRW said the contract is "the single largest equipment supplier asset management deal in the regional aircraft market in terms of the number of LRUs."
NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD BAR ASSOCIATION Annual Fall Meeting and Aviation Law Conference will be held Nov. 7-10 at the Hampton Inn in Pensacola, Fla. For more information, contact Karen Griggs at (301) 407-1000.
Despite numerous problems with the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft, the blue ribbon panel chartered to study the program inside-out will recommend to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld that once all the shortcomings are fixed, the aircraft should be fielded.
The National Transportation Safety Board wants FAA to require inspections of Piper PA-28, Piper PA-44 and Cessna 172 series airplanes older than 15 years to detect potential cracks in control cable terminals.
A National Transportation Safety Board report indicates that the 1999 fatal crash of a Model 1124A Westwind business jet was due to the disconnection of the horizontal stabilizer from the actuator, a situation that investigators suggest may have been related to maintenance performed on the aircraft's horizontal stabilizer control system two days before the accident.
FLIGHTSAFETY INTERNATIONAL received FAA Level D approval for its newest Embraer ERJ-145 regional jet simulator installed at FSI's new 16-bay center at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. The simulator is the second for the ERJ-145 at the D/FW center and one of 18 that eventually will be part of FlightSafety's regional airline-training network by the end of next year. FlightSafety Simulation in Tulsa, Okla. designed and is building the simulators for the network.
FAA is expected to release its "benchmarks" study this week measuring airport capacity at the nation's top 31 airports. Garvey appeared cautious about the release of those benchmarks, Coyne said, expressing concern that the figures could be misinterpreted or used as a crutch by certain entities to gain an economic advantage. A chief worry of general aviation groups is that supporters of peak-hour pricing proposals will use the benchmarks to pursue their agenda, which could squeeze out GA flights.
Adam Aircraft filed its application for certification under Part 23 for its six-place composite M-309 aircraft. The company will conduct the certification program at its new 55,000-square-foot facility at Centennial Airport in Englewood, Colo. and hopes to win type approval in 2003. "This is very exciting for us because it officially marks the beginning of the certification process," Adam Aircraft President John Knudsen said of the application filing.
THE U.S. AEROSPACE INDUSTRY'S international trade surplus plunged by $10.7 billion, or 29 percent, last year to $26.7 billion as exports declined and imports set a record high, the Aerospace Industries Association said this month. Exports fell $7.7 billion to $54.7 billion, while imports rose $2.8 billion to $27.9 billion. The 2000 surplus was down $14.3 billion from a peak of $41 billion in 1998 and was at its lowest level since it reached $26.6 billion in 1996.
Federal Aviation Administration's proposal to require control wheel inspection and testing on 12,500 Cessna aircraft is unwarranted and should be shelved, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association said. In a notice of proposed rulemaking published in the Jan. 22 Federal Register, FAA called for repetitive inspections of plastic control wheels and possible repairs on certain Cessna 150, 172, 175, 180, 182, 185, 206, 210 and 336 series airplanes.
The nation's state aviation agencies and the Federal Aviation Administration have agreed to jointly pursue streamlining environmental reviews to shorten the time it takes to build new or expand existing airports. The National Association of State Aviation Officials and FAA Administrator Jane Garvey last week renewed a memorandum of understanding to work cooperatively on a range of aviation issues.
ROCKWELL COLLINS said Duncan Aviation is installing and certifying its Pro Line 21 Continuum avionics upgrade on Challenger 600 aircraft. The upgrade includes the Collins FDS-2000 flight display system with five AFD-2000 adaptive flight displays. The multifunction display will provide information on ground proximity warnings, weather, FMS maps, traffic alert and collision avoidance system and other information. Installation on the first aircraft has begun with the supplemental type certification expected next month.
Raytheon Aircraft claims it is making progress in resolving two problems with the T-6A Texas II trainer aircraft that the U.S. Air Force wants addressed. Responding to the service's complaints that the T-6A's air conditioner isn't powerful enough, Raytheon is testing a different system that has proven itself on another plane, a Raytheon spokesman said this month.
A short-term financial crisis that forced Sino Swearingen Aircraft Corp. to lay off more than 100 contract engineers last month and slow development work on the SJ30-2 business jet (BA, March 26/145), has been resolved with a commitment by existing and new Taiwanese investors to support the program through FAA certification, the company said last week.
BE A PILOT, the industry program designed to draw people into aviation, is raising the price of its Introductory Flight Certificate offer to $49 in response to flight school concerns about increasing fuel, insurance and other costs. The program surveyed flight schools and, of 135 responses, 71 suggested increasing the price to between $45 and $55. "There is no way to accommodate all regional and school-to-school cost differences," said BE A PILOT President and Chief Executive Drew Steketee.
Model F.28 Mark 0070 and Mark 0100 series airplanes (Docket No. 2000-NM-290-AD; Amendment 39-12172; AD 2001-07-07) - supersedes an existing AD that currently requires revising the Airplane Flight Manual (AFM) to provide the flightcrew with instructions not to arm the liftdumper system before commanding the landing gear to extend.
TAG AVIATION USA, INC. named Frederic Senn director of worldwide marketing. Senn, formerly marketing manager for TAG Aviation SA in Geneva, will assume his new role in New York May 1. Senn held agency and marketing positions with Leo Burnett Advertising and Nespresso Inc. before joining TAG Aviation SA in Geneva.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT SERVICES more than doubled the amount of hangar space available for aircraft maintenance and repair work at its Fulton County Airport (FTY) fixed-base operation near Atlanta, Ga. The facility's new hangar has a total area of 61,000 square feet, including nearly 30,000 square feet of space devoted to maintenance and about 15,000 feet of storage. The new amenities include six offices for maintenance customers and a lounge.
Israel Aircraft Industries reported significant gains in profits for 2000 while revenues increased at a more modest pace. The company said it had net income of $84 million last year, up 26 percent from the $67 million recorded in 1999. Revenues rose eight percent, from $2.02 billion in 1999 to $2.18 billion last year. The company also reported signing $2.6 billion in new contracts last year, an eight percent rise over the previous year.
JEFF KROLOPP was appointed vice president of strategic marketing for Bearing Inspection Inc. Krolopp formerly was director of marketing and sales for Airpax Corp., a manufacturer of customer circuit breakers for aerospace, transportation and telecommunications industries. He also held a number of positions for Eaton Corporation.
STOCKHOLDERS of BAE Systems Canada approved the sale of the company to Oncap L.P. for $25.25 per share. BAE Systems Canada designs, manufactures and sells avionics, aircraft satellite communication antennas and related equipment and has more than $300 million (Canadian) in annual sales. Oncap is a $400 million investment partnership established in December 1999 by Onex Corp. and several of Canada's largest pension funds and financial institutions.
DALEY, of course, is the man who has repeatedly vowed to close Meigs Field in 2002 and turn the airport into a park (BA, Dec. 8, 1997/239). There was no immediate word on whether the future of Meigs was discussed at the dinner. The Boeing tour moves to Dallas-Ft. Worth this week and to Denver on May 1-2.
