Hawker Beechcraft is beginning avionics installation on its first customer-bound Hawker 400XPR, jump-starting the upgrade program that had been slowed by the company's ongoing financial struggles.
European business aviation traffic continued its downward trend in July, as the region grapples with the lingering effects of the economic downturn and casts a wary eye toward global anxieties and other concerns. According to the July 2012 Business Aviation Traffic Tracker, published by the European Business Aviation Association (EBAA), business aviation traffic throughout the European Union slipped 4% from July 2011 figures. That decline also contributed to a 2.6% drop in year-to-date traffic numbers compared with 2011 figures.
Aerodynamically clear F-28 has radically rigid-in-line three-blade rotor with elastometric bearings in the hub. Power goes from engine to main-rotor gearbox via a belt drive with controlled idler. Priced at under $30,000.
Washington has a few catch phrases that never seem to go away, with “budget deficit,” “debt ceiling,” and “budget cuts,” among the most persistent. Even in the best of times, doomsayers bemoan tight budgets, the need to slash programs and an inability to spend new money. This year is no different, only the talks are more dire. Washington will likely be in hyperdrive after the elections.
GAMA President and CEO Pete Bunce believes time is running short for the FAA to make substantial changes to the certification process, which he says is resulting in up to 18-month delays in products reaching market and costing jobs. Given potential budget cuts that Congress may be facing, he says changes in the way FAA operates — including using the designee program the way it was designed — must be made soon. “FAA absolutely has to change right now,” he says, noting the agency has the budget and congressional authority to make the changes.
King Air B100, a limited production model built from 1976 to 1983, offers the cabin of a King Air 200, 240-kt. block speeds and rock bottom operating costs. It was developed in the early 1970s when Beech Aircraft sought out Garrett to be a second engine supplier for its turboprops to spur competition with Pratt & Whitney Canada.
The first civil jet to fly on 100% biofuel meeting petroleum jet fuel specifications will be a Falcon 20 jet owned by the National Research Council of Canada. Tests to date have typically used a 50-50 blend of biofuel and regular kerosene jet fuel. The ReadiJet fuel, derived from mustard oilseeds, is made by Applied Research Associates (ARA) and Chevron Lummus Global (CLG). The two companies announced the tests at the ILA Berlin Air Show, where they exhibited in the Alternative Aviation Fuels Pavilion. The fuel was made under contract to the U.S.
For unemployed U.S. military veterans seeking a career in aviation, a new Veterans Retraining Program (VRAP) now available through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs may allow veterans to participate in Jeppesen's FAA Dispatcher Certification program for high-demand aviation occupations. The program provides licensing of dispatchers along with the same body of knowledge that is required for the Airline Transport Pilot License, applicable to many aviation careers. Those interested in the training program should visit www.jeppesen.com/faasdispatcher.
Nextant Aerospace is ramping up production of its 400XT program, recently acquiring a facility to quadruple its space at Cuyahoga County (Ohio) Airport and accommodate a rate of up to 48 aircraft annually. The company expects to deliver 32 of the aircraft by year-end and has estimated that its order book approaches 70. The program has at least a year's head start on the Hawker 400XPR, which Hawker Beechcraft bills as the “only factory-direct aircraft upgrade program for the Hawker Beechjet 400 series.”
The National Air Transportation Association (NATA) will offer its members a new benefit starting Jan. 1, 2013 — the NATA Workers' Compensation Insurance Program. It was designed to benefit members' businesses and help advance the industry's safety goals embodied in NATA's Safety 1st program. The program is underwritten by Companion Property & Casualty Group and managed by Beacon Aviation Insurance Services, Inc. NATA Alexandria, Va. www.nata.aero
“Honeywell's inertial reference systems navigate only in true but display magnetic headings to pilots,” Jerry Norton reminded readers. “However, at 72.5 deg. N, they are programmed to switch to true course.” A retired avmanager at Honeywell, Norton logged considerable time piloting a Gulfstream in avionics trials in the high latitudes. Above 80 deg. N, “just like going across the Pacific,” he observed, “there are not a lot of alternates, just Barrow, Deadhorse, and Spitsbergen Island.” Norton continues to fly as a free-lance contract pilot.
Nextant Aerospace established an Asian foothold with the sale of 10 of its Nextant 400XT remanufactured business jets to Asia Pacific Jets and the formation of a distributor partnership with that company. The Asia Pacific Jets order calls for the aircraft to be delivered over three years, with the first two delivered by year-end. Singapore-based Asia Pacific provides medical evacuation and corporate charter services.
Most maintenance managers long for the days when they were technicians on the hangar floor. Sure, there were blazing hot summers, freezing cold winters, cramped compartments and impossible tasks; but the thing we miss the most is ability to concentrate on one task at a time. As soon as you step into a management role, you instantly become a multitasker. There never seems to be enough time in the day to get everything done, with the same attention to detail of the most basic maintenance task.
The deadline for the FAA to start a pilot project to build six UAV test sites around the U.S. has passed, putting bidders around the country on hold. The FAA has said it would choose the six sites by the end of the calendar year, but the selection process may be held up by the presidential campaign, lest privacy concerns surrounding the use of UAVs become an issue.
Avioserv San Diego Inc., Dallas, hired Kevin F. Kelly as vice president, engine sourcing and Shane Stringfellow as manager, technical operations. AWAS, Dublin, announced that Richard Sinclair was appointed vice president of sales for the Asia-Pacific region, reporting to Jon O'Connell, managing director, Asia-Pacific sales. He will be based in the company's Singapore office. Bell Helicopter, Fort Worth, announced that Raymond Leduc has joined the company as vice president, value streams at its Mirabel, Quebec, facility.
Eurocopter is the latest aircraft manufacturer to invest in a Chinese joint venture anticipating that the Peoples Liberation Army will lighten prohibitive airspace restrictions that has put a damper on general aviation development. But noting it expects those restrictions to ease, Eurocopter last week signed a partnership with the Tianjin Free Trade Zone (TFTZ) to set up a China Completion Center in Tianjin to assemble and customize the company's AS350 family of light helicopters.
Gulfstream Aerospace Corp.'s Gulfstream G650 received full FAA type certification Sept. 7, just days after the company's G280 was certified by U.S. and Israeli authorities (see below). Gulfstream expects to deliver the first fully outfitted, ultra-large-cabin, ultra-long-range G650 business jets to customers before year-end. Gulfstream received provisional type certification in November 2011 for the G650 and delivered the first 12 green aircraft by the end of that year, fulfilling a promise the aircraft manufacturer had made to customers and the financial community.
AMAC Aerospace, a provider of corporate aviation maintenance and completions services, has gained European EASA Part 145 approval to undertake heavy base maintenance on the Airbus A330 and A340 series of aircraft. The company now can perform all major inspections including repairs and modifications; OEM CBs, SBs and ADs; and avionics repairs, installations and upgrades. AMAC Aerospace Basel has also received UAE CAMO approval and the company is now authorized to provide continuous airworthiness management services on UAE-registered aircraft. AMAC Aerospace
While reading “Gearing Up for the Go-Around” (September 2012, page 40) it dawned on me that pilots are probably (and by a wide margin) the most scrutinized and regulated group of professionals in the world. In principle I am not against this, but too much regulation and excessive monitoring can be extremely nefarious and counter-productive. I will probably be crucified for what I'm going to say right now, but I'll say it anyway.
ATP has introduced its ATP Online Store, an online solution for purchasing and immediately accessing aviation technical and regulatory publication library subscriptions. The store integrates seamlessly with the ATP Aviation Hub online service to provide subscribers with immediate access and the capability to browse over 1,100 maintenance libraries from over 50 manufacturers and purchase the documentation they need online. Customers using ATP's Navigator V Desktop Platform also can quickly and efficiently download and install new libraries within minutes of purchase.
Cessna has increased the range expectation of its new midsize Citation Latitude from 2,300 nm to 2,500 nm. The Latitude was originally announced in 2011 with an expected range of 2,000 nm, but Cessna engineers responding to customer input pushed the range figure first to 2,300 nm and most recently to 2,500 nm. “As we talked with more customers, getting to 2,500 nm was imperative,” said Bob Gibbs, vice president, International Sales, South America. Priced at $14.9 million in 2011 dollars, the Latitude is scheduled for its first flight in mid-2014.
West Star Aviation now has a roll-around HS 124-700A/B/ 800A/B/XP series landing gear shipset that will allow technicians to remove the original landing gear from the aircraft while still having the capability to reposition the aircraft as required for any additional services. The new equipment supports decreased downtime during gear swaps and multi-shop events where paint is tied to airframe maintenance and gear overhauls.
FAA is urging the general aviation community to participate in its 34th annual General Aviation and Part 135 Survey for 2011. The survey, available online at www.aviationsurvey.org, provides information to track GA fleet activity, including number of hours flown and reasons for flight. The agency notes the data helps determine funding for infrastructure and service needs, and assesses the impact of regulatory changes and measures safety. The survey also is used to calculate accident rates.
National Air Transportation Association's new President and CEO Tom Hendricks , who officially stepped into his new role Sept. 1 after serving as senior vice president, safety, security and operations for Airlines for America, has emphasized the importance of the aviation associations of all industry segments working together to educate the public and Washington about “how critically dependent we all are on aviation. We need to make sure they don't take aviation for granted.
