From the moment it rolls out of its completion hangar, an aircraft is under nearly constant assault from the elements, those of nature and those assembled by the humans who operate it. An aircraft can serve well and cost-effectively for decades, but keeping it healthy enough to reach its golden years can depend upon the rigor with which those elements are confronted on a regular basis; that is, how well and often it is cleaned, lubricated, protected and inspected. The work is all-encompassing in that it must address every part of the aircraft, inside and out.
New runway guard lighting systems at Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) and North Las Vegas (VGT) airports may eventually help reduce runway incursions at airports nationwide. Wilson Felder, of the FAA's Terminal Business Services unit, said the test systems address a need identified by the NTSB to introduce incursion technology that focuses on the pilot, rather than controllers. The systems combine a variety of surveillance sources with a logic program to trigger red stoplights at runway crossing points. The system is automatic, so controllers will not have to operate it.
Brown Aviation Tool Supply Co. has introduced its Liberator ``roller clutch'' ratchet system. The Liberator is designed specifically for the installation of frangible collar type fasteners such as Hi-Loks in awkward and unusual situations. The 13-piece kit contains two ``roller clutch'' ratchet heads as well as a variety of interchangeable straight and 90-degree handles. All parts are manufactured from 4140 tool steel with a maintenance-free black oxide finish and are packaged in a custom-fitted case for easy storage. Price: $84.95 Brown Aviation Tool Supply Co. 3801 S.
Rockwell Collins has begun upgrading its Airshow Network news and information service with the latest version of software, called P4. The new network protocol improves overall connectivity of the Airshow Network and adds support for AirCell's onboard telephone system. It is available now on new installations as well as upgrades for existing Airshow Network customers. Introduced in 1997, the Collins Airshow Network is in service on aircraft worldwide using a variety of phone systems, including MagnaStar and satcom.
In the tradeoff between seat strength and cost, a new entrant is turning heads -- or more correctly, holding them back. Inflatable seat restraints, mini-air bags that pop out of shoulder straps of a three- or four-point seat belt, are gaining popularity both in the commercial and general aviation sectors as a way of meeting federal head protection guidelines.
CSI Aviation Services Inc. (CSI) has leased seven aircraft to the U.S. Department of Justice for prisoner transportation and alien deportation. CSI will provide MD82 and 727 aircraft for the U.S. Marshal Service's Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System (JPATS). The aircraft will be based in Oklahoma, Louisiana and Arizona and will also be responsible for complete aircraft maintenance.
QUESTION: What are ATC's expectations when issuing descent clearances to jets? ANSWER: It depends on how you measure things. Aeronautical Information Manual Paragraph 4-4-9, ``Adherence to Clearance,'' provides extensive advice on climb and descent clearances; much of the AIM guidance pertains to discretionary descents and crossing restrictions. For example, when ATC issues a clearance to ``cross ZEILR at and maintain one-one thousand,'' the pilot may begin descending at any time and at any rate, provided the aircraft abides by the 11,000-foot crossing restriction.
BAE Systems Regional Aircraft and Air Botnia signed a leasing agreement for two Avro RJ85s and two Avro RJ100s for delivery in November. The Avro RJ85s seat 84 passengers and the RJ100s hold 99. Air Botnia said it will use the airplanes to expand capacity by 60 percent.
``If anybody tries to tell you that the AOPA supports privatizing ATC, you tell them that's a damned lie,'' AOPA President Phil Boyer said in response to organized labor's claims that equate the association's support of the FAA reauthorization bill with support for privatizing ATC. The AOPA and other general aviation groups maintain their opposition to privatization, but are fearful that general aviation stands to lose other important provisions -- such as $100 million in relief for businesses hammered by the Sept.
EXTEX is expanding its product line with 15 new replacement parts for GTCP36-150RJ APUs found on Bombardier and Embraer regional aircraft. Each of the components has been reverse engineered and manufactured by EXTEX using the test and computation guidelines of its Parts Manufacturing Authority (PMA). The new products include aft diffuser housings, turbine nozzles, fuel manifolds, air flow deflectors, gears, deswirl compressors and guide vanes. EXTEX President and CEO Larry Shiembob claims acquisition cost savings of as much as 30 percent over OEM parts. U.S.
Prompted by the American Airlines A310 crash in New York in 2001, the NTSB wants the FAA to: (1) Require transport manufacturers to revise, if necessary, maintenance manual inspection criteria to ensure that loads resulting from severe turbulence and extreme inflight maneuvers ``are adequately addressed''; (2) Require transport manufacturers ``to establish and validate maximum threshold values'' for g-loads ``beyond which direct manufacturer oversight and intervention is required as a condition for returning the airplane to service''; (3) Require that operators who exceed
As immigrants know well, choosing whether or not to leave one's homeland forever is one of life's most difficult decisions. It means abandoning all that's familiar, probably family and friends and long traditions for the hope and promise of attaining a better life in a faraway place full of strangers. Igor Sikorsky, one of Russia's aviation pioneers, realized not long after the Bolsheviks seized power in November 1917 that his country was being violently and irrevocably transformed.
Vac-Tron has introduced the Tow-Behind Sweeper, its latest weapon in the fight against ramp FOD. The unit features a 25-hp Kohler motor and has a 2-cubic-yard capacity hopper. The 2,200-pound sweeper can be pulled by most vehicles and comes with a 30-inch curb broom, 16-inch pickup head, radial blower and dust control system. Price: Less than $25,000 Vac-Tron Equipment 27137 South Hwy. 33 Okahumpka, FL 34762 Phone: (352) 728-2222 www.vactron.com
You arrive at the ramp of a small general aviation airport where your light jet is simmering in full sun. It's 95F outside and the humidity could wilt a railroad tie. FBO services consist of a 40-year-old fuel truck, a disconnected pay phone and a broken soda machine. You open your airplane's door and inside it's 15 or so hotter than on the ramp. Climb inside and get things started. You sweat-soak your clothes in under 10 minutes. It's just part of the ritual of hot weather operations in a light turbine aircraft. But what if this aircraft were fitted with an APU?
American Blimp Co.'s fleet has accumulated 150,000 flight hours as of August, with one of its A-60+ airships logging more than 15,000 hours and two others racking up more than 10,000 hours, according to marketing Vice President Jud Brandreth. American manufactures its blimps in Hillsboro, Ore., and assembles and flight tests wherever they will first operate. You can find out more at www.americanblimp.com.
Stevens Aviation Denver at Colorado's Jeffco Airport (BJC) is now an authorized service center for Raytheon Premier I aircraft and can perform heavy and scheduled maintenance, airframe maintenance and engine repair. Stevens also has facilities in Nashville, (BNA); Dayton, Ohio (DAY); Lexington, Ky. (LEX); and two in Greenville, S.C. (GYH and GSP).
I follow your accident reviews quite closely, since I teach a Reliability & 1309 course at the University of Kansas: www.kuce. org/aero/rdas.html. Richard Aarons' August Cause & Circumstance (``Think Like an Aviation Safety Investigator,'' page 108) makes the statement ``pilot error rates in accidents involving career pilots have dropped from about 86 percent to 50 percent.'' Exactly where is his source for the 50-percent value? David L. Stanislaw Wichita, KS My statement is based on stats generated over the years by Robert A. Breiling Associates.
Brussels-based Eurocontrol says that the skies over its 36 states were the busiest ever for the July and August period. The average number of aircraft handled per day was 25,138 in July and 25,127 in August. Despite their record business, Eurocontrol says that air traffic management-related delays were down to an average of 1.9 minutes per aircraft in July and 1.6 minutes in August. Back in 2001 the average delay was 4.6 minutes in July and 3.4 minutes in August. Eurocontrol Director General Victor M.
Safe Flight Instrument Corp.'s auto-throttle system now has been STCed for installation on Bombardier CRJ 100/200 aircraft. The system received Canadian certification in May. Bombardier stated that the CRJ is the first regional jet in its class to offer an auto-throttle power management system.
-- Aug. 5 -- A Bell 206B lost control and rolled over while landing in daylight on a concrete pad at a construction site near Merced, Calif. Hostetler Investments LLC operated the helicopter, which sustained substantial damage. The commercial pilot and two passengers aboard were not injured. The pilot reported that while lowering the collective as he was landing, the helicopter rocked back and the tail rotor skid touched the ground. The pilot quickly pulled the helicopter back into a hover, and it moved forward and started rolling to the right.
``The day we had all feared has arrived,'' said AOPA President Phil Boyer as the final obliteration of Chicago Meigs Field got under way. ``Until now, many had held onto the slimmest of hopes that the airport could be saved. Now there's no denying that [Chicago Mayor Richard] Daley has gotten his way.''
YOU HAVE TO HAND IT TO the folks at GAMA. Back in February, when its members gathered in Washington, D.C., to assess the industry's performance in 2002 and contemplate the outlook for this year, things looked bleak. With the threat of war in Iraq, a huge inventory of used aircraft on the market and a boatload of sour economic news, 2003 promised to be a flat sales year -- at best.
As we went to press, federal officials continued to warn of possible terrorist attacks in the United States by Al Qaeda affiliates. The NBAA advised its members to remain vigilant for any unusual activity and follow the NBAA Best Practices for Business Aviation Security -- which are the basis for programs leading to obtaining a TSA Access Certificate (TSAAC). The NBAA's best security practices are available online at www.nbaa.org/ops/security/bestpractices.htm.
L-3 electronic standby instruments will now be standard on new Cessna Citations, the avionics manufacturer announced. The L-3 Electronic Standby System combines attitude, airspeed, altitude, slip-skid, nav data and vertical speed on a single 3-ATI LCD. The display is designed to provide clarity and excellent off-axis viewing in both sunlight and dark viewing conditions, the company says. The standby display can be customized for compatibility with the primary flight displays' symbology and can also interface with navigation and flight control systems and FMSes.
