Chances are you've heard that Nexrad has the capability to detect hail. That was made possible a few years ago with the addition of polarization. Previously the system detected precipitation in the horizontal dimension better than in the vertical. As a result, it could not distinguish between large raindrops, which tend to have a horizontal size greater than vertical, and hail, which tends to be equal both horizontally and vertically. Now it can differentiate between wide and tall.
The palette’s evolution began in the basement of a home in Kansas City, Missouri. Dedication to a task is often found in the strangest of places and so it was with this research project on thunderstorms. J.T. “Jean” Lee, then a young scientist for the “Weather Bureau,” as the federal agency was called some 60 years ago, was assigned to Severe Local Storms Research (SELS). Simply put, the SELS team was to learn all it could about the hazards thunderstorms posed to aircraft, a project begun earlier by the U.S. Army Air Corps.
Longitude’s cockpit layout closely parallels that of Latitude. Three side-by-side, 14-in., landscape configuration flat panel displays occupy most of the instrument panel. The LCDs are some of the highest resolution screens yet installed in a business aircraft. Synthetic vision is standard. Above the screens are left and right display controllers and a central integrated standby instrument system. At the top, there is a central glareshield-mounted flight guidance control panel.
Honeywell’s second-generation HTF7000 series engines are more powerful and fuel efficient than the original powerplant that entered service in 2003, plus they have lower emissions. Aboard Longitude, they’re rated at 7,550 lb. thrust for takeoff.
In March 1966, BCA covered a Queen Air conversion, Bell's new JetRanger and the BAC-111 flight deck with windows that were "said to show three more lights at 100 ft. than the next best transport."
An undistorted view of the outside world isn’t a luxury for pilots, it’s an absolute necessity for obvious reasons. Yet sections of the aircraft manual describing the proper windshield care are usually buried in an obscure chapter that doesn’t receive much attention in ground school training.
By William Garvey, Molly McMillin, Jessica A. Salerno
The first binding energy efficiency and carbon-dioxide (CO 2) emissions targets for aviation have been agreed to by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). In all but a few cases, aircraft in production or development will meet the initial standard without modification. The global CO 2 standard will apply to all commercial and business aircraft delivered after Jan.
Teterboro Airport was the airport most requested in Air Charter Guide Worldwide Trip Builder itineraries during January 2016, according to an analysis of aircharterguide.com data. It received the most requests for both departures and arrivals of charter flights.
Teterboro Airport was the No. 1 business aviation airport searched on acukwik.com in January 2016, an analysis of AC-U-KWIK site traffic reveals. The top airport outside the United States was Mexico City's Toluca International Adolfo Lopez Mateos Airport, which ranked fourth. Super Bowl 50 increased interest in three San Francisco Bay Area airports.
As you begin maneuvering for the planned approach, the controller states that, due to a marine layer that has moved into the area, visibility has gone from the forecast 2 mi. to less than a quarter of a mile. You’ve come prepared. Thanks to the special onboard systems, this approach is authorized down to zero/zero conditions. It is flown completely by the autopilot.
Fuel—having enough of it and assuring its steady flow to the engines—is so central to an aircraft’s operation that by many measures, the machine is designed around its fuel’s inflight storage and delivery.
Richard Hanson, Government & Regulatory Affairs Representative for the Academy of Model Aeronautics, discusses his concerns that the FAA includes model aircraft in their recent move to regulate small drones.
By William Garvey, Jessica A. Salerno, Molly McMillin
Daher delivered 55 TBM 900s in 2015, which the company said was a 10% increase over the previous year, and the second best year since deliveries of the initial versions of the single engine turboprop began in 1991. Of last year’s total, 44 went to U.S. buyers and five to Brazilians. However, Nicolas Chabbert, senior vice president of Daher’s airplane unit, said he expects this year to be a challenging one internationally. The TBM 900 is the current production TBM family, following the 850 and original 700.
Before launching into the IFR system, pilots need to familiarize themselves with the instrument requirements for their particular helicopter. Within the same make, model and series of helicopters, variations in the installed avionics may change the equipment needed or the level of augmentation for a particular operation. The complexity of the automatic flight control system (AFCS), autopilot and flight director in some helicopters requires formal pilot training to understand the unit’s operation, limitations, failure indications and reversionary modes.
Perusing AvWeeks through 10 decades is quite a journey of discovery revealing the brilliance, ingenuity, doggedness, bravery, tragedies and breakthroughs that has delivered the aerospace industry to its place today.
By William Garvey, Jessica A. Salerno, Molly McMillin
Turbomeca’s Arrius 2R turboshaft — the first European engine to be fitted to a Bell-produced helicopter — has been certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The EASA certification, announced by Bell and Turbomeca on Dec. 16, is one of the final hurdles for the new Model 505 JetRanger X turbine-powered light helicopter currently undergoing flight testing. Certification of the helicopter is expected early in 2016.
By William Garvey, Jessica A. Salerno, Molly McMillin
Business aviation operators responding to a survey reported plans to refurbish and buy new and used aircraft. JSfirm.com, a Texas-based aviation job website, released its first business aviation report from a survey of more than 300 Part 91 and 135 operators. The survey was conducted to gauge the health of the industry, it said. Of those responding, 57% reported an increase in flight hours last year; 35% said they planned to refurbish existing aircraft in the next two years and 47% said they planned to buy new or used aircraft, the survey said.
By William Garvey, Jessica A. Salerno, Molly McMillin
Just weeks after the FAA set up its online system to register small UAVs, the agency has already signed up at least 181,000 aircraft. Administrator Michael Huerta is “encouraged” by the results but says this is just the beginning. “Our challenge is to make sure everyone is aware of the requirement and registers,” he says. In addition, the FAA has released an B4UFLY mobile application to let UAV pilots know about flight requirements and restrictions. The FAA expects to finalize rules for commercial, non-hobbyist operations of small UAVs by late spring.
By William Garvey, Jessica A. Salerno, Molly McMillin
National Business Aviation Association’s Domestic Operations Committee has created a customs checklist to help business aviation operators meet Customs and Border Protection requirements at U.S. ports of entry. The challenge was in addressing local policies and logistical requirements that vary among the ports of entry, said Ron Bojanski, Midwest Aviation/Kiewit Engineering Canadian operations manager who led the project.
By William Garvey, Jessica A. Salerno, Molly McMillin
India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. plans to develop a new helicopter engine—the Hindustan Turbo Shaft Engine (HTSE) 1200. The announcement follows the first test run of the 25-kN (5,620-lb.) thrust Hindustan Turbo Fan Engine (HTFE) 25. “The HTSE-1200 can be used for helicopters of 3.5-ton class in the single-engine configuration such as the Light Utility Helicopter and for 5 to 8 ton class in twin engine configuration such as the Advanced Light Helicopter and Light Combat Helicopter,” said T.
The anti-lasing law has teeth — if law enforcement authorities can find and arrest the perpetrators. Here are some accounts of a handful of laser felons who were caught.
The Learjet 75, Bombardier’s marketing name for the Learjet 45-456 and subsequent units, has been in production since November 2013 and it offers a package of improvements that make it a far more capable business airplane than the original Model 45 introduced in the mid-1990s. It offers true full-tanks, full-seats loading flexibility, substantially better runway performance, sportier climb performance, improved fuel efficiency, longer range and better reliability.
The first fatal general aviation accident investigation in which I participated involved load shift. It was summer 1968. A low-time pilot was earning “free time” from an FBO by running an errand to a neighboring airport. There he picked up two cases of oil, stacked them behind the pilots’ seats in the Cessna 150 and returned to his home airport. Turning base to final, the airplane stalled.
When pilots are asked to perform a tough assignment, they should be provided the tools necessary to conduct the mission safely. Assigning a single pilot to a single-engine, VFR-only helicopter with insufficient weather information and without instrument system protection certainly seems contrary to that rule and, indeed, statistics show such circumstances make such operations among the highest risk sectors in civil aviation.
