The FAA is ready to commission the first Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System (STARS) in Philadelphia, ending the evaluation phase and beginning the operational phase of the program. STARS eventually will be installed at all major terminal radar approach control facilities in the country. The next STARS to go into service is expected to be at Portland, Ore., followed by Miami TRACON.
The FAA has opened a formal complaint docket against Mayor Richard Daley and the city of Chicago to consider the AOPA's allegations that the latter violated federal regulations when it closed Meigs Field without proper notice. On April 4, the AOPA filed a formal complaint with the FAA against the mayor and the city contending that they had violated federal law (49 U.S.C. 44502 [c]) and various sections of FAR Part 157. The AOPA has also filed suit in federal court over the alleged violations.
GAMA, Washington, D.C., has hired Brian Riley as vice president of government affairs, a newly created position. Riley comes to GAMA from the DOT, where he was deputy assistant secretary for budget and programs.
Time Pieces LLC, Hanover, Ind., is offering one-tenth fractional shares in Piper J-3 Cubs. For $3,750, a shareholder receives 50 hours in a specific Cub over a 24-month period. The one-time fee includes insurance, hangar, maintenance and centralized scheduling. Time Pieces charges a monthly management fee, but applies it against the initial $3,750, the balance of which is returned to the shareholder after the 24 months are up. The first Cub is in place at Mount Comfort Airport in Indianapolis. Another Cub is looking for a home base from which to begin flying in mid-July.
Despite the current political and economic uncertainties around the globe, there seems to be surprising optimism within the European business aviation community. From Iceland to Greece, the burgeoning FBO fraternity is making multimillion-dollar investments (TAG Aviation has spent $100 million at Farnborough alone) to satisfy an increasingly sophisticated clientele. While it remains to be seen what impact Gulf War II might have on business aviation on the continent, the long-term prospects are good.
SimCom has recently installed and made available the first of two MU-2 simulators at its Orlando training center. The new Marquise/Solitaire simulator was built to FAA Level 5 standards and is equipped with a Quantum 3-D, full wrap-around visual-motion system with color day and night graphics and weather depiction. The cockpit features a complete factory avionics suite that includes a Honeywell SPZ 500 autopilot.
Among alternatives to fractional ownership are shared ownership and interchange agreements between owners, where ownership costs are defrayed by sharing or aircraft and crews are interchanged for greater operational flexibility. In the former, two or more entities purchase and operate an aircraft jointly, while in the latter, owners of aircraft agree to equipment exchanges to cover unavoidable downtime or augment operations.
Honeywell's AIS-2000 OneView multi-region satellite television has received FAA certification for four business jets -- the Gulfstream IV, Global Express, Boeing Business Jet and Challenger 604. The AIS-2000 system provides worldwide television viewing in a number of geographic regions, including the United States, Canada and Western Europe. Regional satellite coverage includes DirecTV for the United States, Bell ExpressVU for Canada, and a variety of service providers in Europe.
Bombardier Flexjet, Dallas, the fractional ownership program of Bombardier Aerospace, appointed Bob Knebel as vice president, sales. Knebel comes from Cessna Aircraft Co., and he has also held positions with Beech Aircraft, Gemini Distributors and Gates Learjet.
Peter Edwards President, Bombardier Business Aircraft, Montreal, Canada An Ohio native, Edwards has long had a global perspective, graduating with an international relations degree from the University of Southern California and then pursuing additional studies at universities in France, Tunisia and Egypt. A veteran with Volpar, Edwards went on to head AiResearch's specialized outfitting of large-cabin aircraft for corporate and head of state applications.
The NTSB wants the FAA to require the immediate inspection of all propeller parts and propeller assemblies overhauled or inspected by T&W Propellers, of Chino, Calif., to determine if they are airworthy. The Safety Board also recommended that the FAA require all Hartzell Z-shank propellers be overhauled every 2,000 hours or five years, whichever comes first, as recommended by the manufacturer.
Forty years ago, the first Falcon Jet, then the Mystere 20, first flew. Now, 1,600 Falcons later, the fleet has accumulated more than 10 million flight hours.
London's newest FBOs are London City Jet Centre, which sits directly in the capital's business district, and Jet Aviation at Biggin Hill Airport, some 20 km (12 miles) south of the city. Jet Aviation opened its first U.K. FAR/JAR 145-approved maintenance center just 16 months ago. ``We are already handling around 1,350 aircraft movements annually. We are on track with our business plan and looking for more business,'' said Deputy General and Quality Manager Chris Webb.
Aviation Material and Technical Support (AVMATS) donated the use of a Sabreliner so that Kevin Maguire, a U.S. Army combat engineer injured in Iraq, could fly home to Missouri's Spirit of St. Louis Airport. Maguire, the son of AVMATS employee Jim Maguire, sustained neck and spinal cord injuries while helping set up coalition defenses around Baghdad International Airport. He is expected to make a full recovery after six months of rehabilitation.
The G550 sports an avionics suite that's as revolutionary as was the SPZ-8000 when it debuted on the GIV in the mid-1980s. Four active matrix LCD screens, in portrait configuration, dominate almost all the instrument panel area, offering almost one-third more display area than the GV's six CRTs. The outboard screens are PFDs, capable of displaying a full-width attitude indicator that's larger than anything yet installed on a production aircraft.
As important as pilot and pilot-controller communication is to the safety of flight operations, it's difficult to find any definitive single source of guidance for the exact lexicon and phraseology to be used by pilots. Probably the best known source of guidance on pilot-controller communication is the Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM). Chapter 4, Section 2, Radio Communications Phraseology and Techniques, maps out much of the basics, including contact procedures, call signs, and the use of figures, altitudes, directions and speeds.
GAMA reports that first quarter aircraft shipments fell 16.4 percent compared to the same period last year -- from 531 units in 2002 to 444 units this year. First quarter industry billings were $1.87 billion -- down 33.2 percent from first quarter 2002. ``Unfortunately, a decline in general aviation shipments and billings was not unanticipated,'' said GAMA President Ed Bolen. ``These are very tough times.
ExecuJet Middle East, Dubai International Airport, appointed Horm Irani as sales/deputy managing director. Irani, who possesses 18 years of aerospace industry experience, has previously been employed by Goodrich Aerospace, Bombardier Aerospace Regional Aircraft and the Canadian Air Force.
Lufthansa Technik is hard at work in Hamburg outfitting the two Airbus A319LRs to be operated by PrivatAir between Newark and Munich, and Chicago and Dusseldorf under Lufthansa colors. Each will have 48 business-class seats. Lufthansa also completed all three of PrivatAir's BBJs, one of which is also configured with 48 seats and operates as a Lufthansa flight between England and Germany.
There's been a change in the dates for the 2nd Annual Latin American Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (LABACE2004). Originally scheduled for March 4 to 6, 2004, LABACE has been rescheduled for April 15 to 17, 2004. The only Latin American event of its kind to focus exclusively on business aviation, LABACE is hosted jointly by the Associao Brasileira de Aviao Geral (ABAG) in Brazil and the NBAA in the United States.
Costa Rica -- Visitors must present a valid passport to enter. Tourist cards are no longer accepted. Germany -- Mengid Airfield (ETHM) will be open to civilian traffic during the European Formula 1 race taking place from June 23 through July 1. PPR will be required for all aircraft. Ireland -- PPR is required for all aircraft requiring daytime and overnight parking at Cork Airport (EICK). Israel -- The Civil Aviation Authority will be striking through July 1.
Collins Pro Line CNS 21 radio sensors now have STC approval on the Challenger 601. The Rockwell Collins sensor package is designed for installation on current and new-design aircraft to seamlessly bridge the future transition from voice to data information exchange. The Collins VHF-4000 voice/data transceiver supports VDL (VHF Data Link) Mode 2 and can grow to accommodate VDL Modes 3 and 4. Similarly, the navigation receiver, GPS and transponder elements of the system fully support current and future planned regulatory and operational requirements and standards.
The largest of Embraer's regional jets, the EMB 195, will begin flight tests this fall, with first delivery to occur in late 2004. The 195 program's critical design review phase has been met and production of parts and components has started -- first metal was cut in August 2002. In parallel the 195's all-new General Electric 18,500-pound-thrust CF34-10E engine is due to be certified this September.
``You have to have compatible needs -- the same type of travel or travel that is a good fit between the partners,'' one charter/management executive who has put together several shared ownership arrangements said, concerning the first ingredient to success in a multiple-ownership pact.
Gold Air will move most of its aircraft from its base at Biggin Hill, Kent, to other London-based airports to avoid high fuel and landing fees, according to Capt. William Curtis, managing director of Gold Air International. The company has already started operations from London Stansted. Curtis said, ``The Biggin landing fee for a Learjet 45 is around $280. This roughly equates to the total landing fee and handling charge at the BAA's [British Airports Authority] sites such as Stansted. Fuel at Biggin is expensive at the equivalent of 54 U.S. cents per liter.
