"We are much further ahead than we were a year or two ago," NBAA's Doug Carr asserts, concerning the state of business aviation security, while TSA's Rob Rottman places overall general aviation security "light years ahead," compared to pre-9/11/01.
Grumman dominated the large-cabin business jet aircraft market after introducing the Gulfstream II in 1967. When the Canadians later announced they would challenge with their new CL600, Grumman elected to develop a G1159 derivative that would have an eight-hour, 3,750 mile-range, with basic reserves and feature a modified airfoil and winglets. Most GII systems were retained, along with its twin 11,400-pound-thrust Rolls-Royce Spey 511-8 engines. But Grumman never proceeded with it.
The Slow Starter (Common Bus System) Problem: With the left generator already online, the right generator fails to come online after right engine start. Failure may be caused by uneven wear between the generators, a GCU-to-GCU "hand shaking" malfunction related to load balancing, or an inability to produce enough voltage under load to overcome the reverse current protection function. Solution:
According to several of its operators, the Mitsubishi MU-2B is one of the fastest, most fuel efficient, strongest and most responsive handling general aviation twin turboprops yet built. With flaps retracted, it has virtually the highest wing loading of any popular twin turboprop, providing a smooth ride in turbulence and minimal frontal area for reduced drag and efficient cruising.
Prominent in the fallout from the February 2005 Challenger 600 runway overrun at Teterboro Airport is a reminder of the kind of double-binds in which the FAA and its field offices can ensnare operators.
Among business aviation temporary flight crew providers, three companies tend to dominate: AirCare Crews, Corporate Aviators, Inc. and Jet Professionals International (JPI). AirCare Crews
"I've been in this job for four years, and before that, I came from the field, and I understand the issues. I can tell you that we are not standardized throughout the country, and we have worked very hard to eliminate that problem over the last few years."
Corporate pilot and appellate lawyer Peter Stein has examined workers' compensation issues from the perspective of both a Fortune 100 chief pilot and a litigator who has argued workers' comp cases at the state court level.
As business aviation has matured, the use of part-time pilots and flight attendants for crew augmentation in FAR Part 91 and 135 operations has become an established -- if occasionally controversial -- practice.
At the NBAA in Washington, D.C. (www.nbaa.org), Mike Nichols can assist flight department managers in understanding the tax, insurance and liability implications of using independent contractors as temporary flight crewmembers. Nichols can be contacted at mnichols@nbaa.org.
It was a typical Chamber of Commerce late fall day on the beach at Puamana, just south of Lahaina, Maui, with brilliant sunshine, soft tradewinds, billowy cumulus clouds and 80°F temperatures. The only sounds to be heard were the breakers washing up against the rocks along with some mynahs singing in the acacia trees. I strolled down to the shore and settled into a beach chair to peruse A Hawaiian Reader, occasionally catching a brief glimpse of a sea turtle just beyond the shore break or glancing at the fishing boats plodding along off the coast.
Bob Kidd, head of Tulsa-based Intercontinental Jet Corp., has no illusions about the painful learning curve associated with the MU-2B's entry into service decades ago. It had multiple propeller and prop-coupler failures, a resonant vibration that cracked prop blades and plenty of engine failures. But now the aircraft is a mature design and it's as reliable as any general aviation turboprop --- if it's properly maintained.
LIKE SO MANY SUCH FLIGHTS, it began with a crash. January 5, 2005, had been a wet and windy day in north central Mississippi and those conditions continued into the night. Shortly after 8 p.m. the phone rang at the North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo and the emergency dispatcher reported there had been an automobile accident in Falkner, a small town near the Tennessee line. A crash victim needed to be rushed to treatment.
In 2002, a small flock of independent contract pilots and flight attendants congregated at the NBAA Convention to discuss what they could do to promote themselves as skilled and trained business aviation professionals operating at the highest standards recognized by the industry. Out of that informal meeting came the Independent Business Aviation Contract Professionals Association, or (thankfully) IBACP.
13.1 Contract Pilots Occasionally, XYZ may utilize contract pilots. Because these pilots do not routinely fly in our operation and may be flying with several other operators whose operating procedures vary widely from our own, it is important that we adopt certain additional procedures when flying with contract pilots to ensure that the integrity of our operation, from both a flight and customer service perspective, is neither compromised nor diminished in any manner.
After 13 years in aviation, most of them with US Airways where he served as an executive in its operations, service, Express, MetroJet and Shuttle divisions, Scheeringa joined Flight Options in 2004 and took the helm of the company in November of that year. Founded in 1998, the fractional operator, now a wholly-owned Raytheon subsidiary, operates nearly 200 aircraft in behalf of more than 2000 owners and employs 1800 "team members," including some 800 pilots. 1 Flight Options originally operated refurbished jets. Is that practice over?
"HEY BRO, JUST ONE question: Was it Chinese or French?" His face broke into a broad smile. "Oh, Chinese at first sight. No question." With that, the ever-hopeful womenfolk let out a collective groan as their mates laughed heartily. The exchange and reaction have always been thus.
In 1959, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' leaders developed a clean-sheet, high-speed turboprop with exceptional fuel economy, excellent short, unimproved runway capabilities and rugged construction. The new MU-2 was intended for civil and military markets. A round fuselage cross section was chosen because it's the most structurally efficient for pressurization, while small NACA 64000-series airfoils promised low drag and high cruise speeds.
Raytheon Aircraft turned a few heads at the NBAA's Orlando convention when Brad Hatt, president and general manager of the Hawker unit, announced that the $13.8 million Hawker 850XP, the newest iteration of the Hawker 800 family, would be fitted with winglets designed by Raytheon's own engineers. Up until then, it appeared to be a foregone conclusion that Aviation Partners' full-chord, 44-inch-tall winglets recently certified for the Hawker 800 would have been standard.
ALTHOUGH NOT A CERTIFIED Beatlemaniac, my wife is envious of those who are. She knows all the music, the histories, muses, triumphs and tragedies of the four Liverpudlian songsters. But she never got her True Fan card punched because she came of age after the group disbanded. So, she never had the chance to scream and swoon, to weep with delirium up in the loges. And she always felt a bit cheated because of it.
Learjet 45 Lima Juliet, third call. Right turn heading 270. Contact me on 1-3-2 decimal 7-2, over," the controller said impatiently. "Ah, center. Can you repeat that?" I couldn't fully comprehend what center wanted us to do. Short of breath, experiencing some hot and cold flashes, and a little dizziness, could it be the onset of a cold? It wasn't the result of too much folic the night before this mission. It was just so hard to concentrate.
THEY MADE FOR AN UNUSUAL trio: two men -- one 60 years old and the other a dozen years his senior -- and a young woman, barely more than a teenager, whose stunning features and thousand-watt smile turned heads wherever she went. They had arrived at Centennial Airport outside Denver aboard a Cessna 421 and made their way across the chilly ramp to The Perfect Landing, an airport restaurant with good food and spectacular views. It was Dec. 17, 2004.
Bombardier reports delivering more than 300 Challenger 604 aircraft in the past decade, making its "entry-level" large-cabin business jet the single best-selling model in the heavy-iron category in that time. It has certainly lived up to its name as a challenger to the status quo, and it's easy to understand its popularity. Cabin comfort means a lot in this class and no other purpose-built business jet has a wider cabin cross-section.
