The Federal Aviation Administration must take more far-reaching steps to protect against runway incursions and air traffic controller errors as increased traffic jeopardizes aviation safety, National Transportation Safety Board acting Chair Carol Carmody told a House panel. "The continued growth of commercial aviation and the general aviation fleet continue to strain the U.S. aviation system infrastructure," Carmody testified before the House transportation appropriations subcommittee Wednesday.
The pilot of a Cessna Citation 501 was killed April 2 when he encountered a problem shortly after takeoff and crashed into a milk bottling plant. The aircraft, N405PC, had just taken off from Austin Straubel International Airport (GRB) in Green Bay for a nonstop flight to Ft. Myers, Fla. when the pilot reported an unspecified problem and said he had to return to the airport. There were snow showers in the area at the time.
Model 172RG airplanes (Docket No. 2000-CE-24-AD; Amendment 39-12153; AD 2001-06-06) - requires inspection of the main landing gear pivot assemblies for cracks, replacement of any cracked main landing gear pivot assemblies, and installation of new bushings on the pivot assembly shaft. This AD is the result of many service difficulty reports of cracked main landing gear pivot assemblies on the affected airplanes. The actions specified by this AD are intended to detect, correct, and prevent future cracks on the original design landing gear pivots.
Canadian manufacturer CAE of Toronto won contracts for aircraft simulators valued at more than $100 million (all monetary figures are expressed in Canadian dollars) from Bombardier Aerospace, Continental Express and a Dutch training firm. Bombardier ordered two full flight simulators (FFS), one flight training device (FTD) and the upgrade of an existing FTD to FFS status, a deal valued at more than $40 million.
NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM is expected to announce the selection of a contractor this week to build the museum's new Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at Washington Dulles International Airport. Plans call for a fast-track construction program to enable the center to open on schedule in December 2003. Ground-breaking ceremonies for the new Dulles facility were held last fall (BA, Oct. 30/199).
MIDCOAST AVIATION won FAA supplemental type certificate approval to install BFGoodrich Aerospace's GH-3000 electronic standbay instrument systems on Challenger 604 aircraft. The GH-300 provide heading and navigation data, including emergency airspeed, altitude and attitude on a single three-inch active matrix LCD display.
THE NORDAM GROUP is expanding its Southeast Asia repair facility, Nordam Singapore Pte. Ltd., with a new 40,000-square-foot facility in the Changi North area of Singapore. "We believe the Asian aircraft repair market is poised for tremendous growth over the next five years," said Meredith Siegfried, Nordam Repair Division director of International operations, adding that the expansion will allow it to offer full bonding capability for selected reversers, nacelles, airframe parts and flight controls.
PrivatAir Group won FAA approval for 180-minute Extended Range Twin-Engine Operations (ETOPS) with its Boeing Business Jets and authorization under Part 129 of the Federal Aviation Regulations as a designated foreign air carrier under the U.S.-Switzerland bilateral "Open Skies" agreement. The approvals permit PrivatAir "to offer the most direct routes across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and unlimited operations to the U.S." Previously, PrivatAir said its operating authority was limited to private, diplomatic and a handful of commercial flights to the U.S.
FAA ADMINISTRATOR Jane Garvey is "very encouraged" by National Air Traffic Controllers Association President John Carr's willingness to undertake the first study of aircraft separation standards since the jet age began. Reducing the present five-mile horizontal separation between aircraft is a goal. She noted Carr's willingness to have the National Transportation Safety Board and pilot groups participate and says once NATCA's board gives clearance, "we'll set a formal structure in place" for the study.
Raytheon Aircraft Company, which is ramping up production of its just-certificated Premier I business jet, plans to eliminate at least 450 jobs in its Kansas facilities to reduce costs.
Gulfstream Aerospace finally has found a "clear path" for European certification of its Gulfstream V long-range business jet and hopes to win Joint Aviation Authorities approval by early next year, company President and Chief Operating Officer Bill Boisture said. If accomplished on that schedule, the European approval would come five years after the Federal Aviation Administration certified the G-V.
SCOTT OLMSTEAD was named chief financial officer for Evergreen International Aviation. Olmstead joined Evergreen in 1998 as a holding company comptroller and tax director. He also held a number of management positions with Moss Adams, Certified Public Accountants.
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION plans to acquire test equipment repair and calibration services for the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center in Oklahoma City, Okla. The contractor will provide services, personnel, material, supplies, supervision, labor and equipment required to operate the test equipment repair and calibration work center at the Oklahoma City site. FAA estimated the cost of the five-year contract at $11 million. For more information, contact Cheryl Martin at (405) 954-7829 or email [email protected].
Model AS-350B, BA, B1, B2, and D; and AS-355E, F, F1, F2, and N helicopters (Docket No. 2000-SW-30-AD; Amendment 39-12043; AD 2000-25-08) - supersedes an existing AD that currently requires inspecting the main gearbox suspension bi-directional cross beam for cracks, replacing the cross beam if a crack is found, and adding time intervals for repetitive dye-penetrant inspections on cross beams with 5,000 or more hours time-in-service (TIS).
TAG AVIATION named Capt. Larry B. Edeal director of flight standards. Edeal, who has served as a lead captain for a TAG client for the past two years, will be based at the company's U.S. corporate headquarters in San Francisco. A decorated U.S. Army helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War, Edeal then worked as a helicopter pilot in Southeast Asia for Mobil Oil Corp. after he left the service in 1972. An Airline Transport Pilot (ATP), he has held a variety of corporate flying jobs with LifeFlight Network in Portland, Ore. and with Louisiana-Pacific Corp.
GULFSTREAM V operators will have to meet some stringent requirements to install electrically heated cooktops in their aircraft galleys. Responding to an STC request from the manufacturer, FAA proposed special conditions pertaining to cooktop installations.
The Experimental Aircraft Association praised a proposal that lengthened inspection times on Bell 47 helicopter blade grips as a "positive first step," but said the proposal does not go far enough to address the association's concerns over an emergency airworthiness directive FAA issued last summer. In an action that drew a chorus of protests from EAA and other vintage helicopter enthusiasts, FAA called for inspections every 200 hours and immediate repair of any faulty grips on more than 1,100 Bell 47 helicopters.
Legislators last week introduced companion bills in the House and Senate to further protect back-country airstrips from closing at the whim of federal land managers. Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Reps. Butch Otter (R-Idaho) and James Hansen (R-Utah) introduced legislation - S.681 in the Senate and H.R. 1363 in the House - requiring a public comment period before land managers can close airstrips.
WHILE EXECUTIVE JET is adding airplanes to its fleet at the rate of six to eight a month (BA, April 2/159), Executive Vice President Kevin Russell maintains the company has not had problems building its pilot base. The company hired 450 pilots last year, but had a pool of 8,000 applicants. Russell added that all were well-qualified applicants since the company requires a minimum of 2,500 hours flight time for consideration.
Despite setbacks in finding someone to serve as chief operating officer of FAA's Air Traffic Organization (ATO), Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta believes there are good candidates for the post and expressed optimism the selection process can be completed by the end of the month.
The crew of a Gulfstream III charter flight attempting to land at the Aspen, Colo. Airport (ASE) received an electronic sink rate warning seconds before the plane crashed, the National Transportation Safety Board said Friday.
Model TBM 700 airplanes (Docket No. 2000-CE-70-AD; Amendment 39-12152; AD 200106-05) - requires, for certain airplanes equipped with Option No. OPT 70-35-001 (gaseous oxygen system, incorporation of a modification that relocates the oil breather vent location. This AD is the result of mandatory continuing airworthiness information issued by the airworthiness authority for France. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent oil from entering the gaseous oxygen system service compartment. Such oil contamination could result in a fire or explosion.
HAMILTON STANDARD'S technical publications, including component manuals and service bulletins, are now available on-line at the company's web site, www.hsvas.com. The search capability permits users to look up information by part number, model number, aircraft type and nomenclature.
Model S-76A, S-76B, and S-76C helicopters (Docket No. 2001-SW-05-AD) - proposes superseding an existing AD that currently requires, before further flight, performing a fluorescent penetrant inspection (FPI) of the main rotor shaft assembly. Also, a recurring FPI and visual inspection for a cracked shaft are required by that AD. That AD also requires replacing the shaft with an airworthy shaft before further flight if a crack is found. This action would require replacing certain serial numbered shafts with an airworthy shaft before further flight.
