Signature Flight Support, Orlando, has announced the promotions of key management personnel. Steve Lee is promoted to senior vice president and chief financial officer. John ``Cy'' Farmer has been promoted to vice president, operations. David Vaughan is vice president, sales and marketing. John Hagel is regional vice president for the western region. Doug Crowther is regional vice president for the eastern region. Iver Retrum and Kristin Kirschbaum are national sales managers.
Gulfstream Aerospace has acquired the Signature Flight Engineering facility at London Luton Airport from the BBA Group. Intelligence reported in March (page 16) that Signature Luton would take over Gulfstream maintenance from Marshall Aerospace after Marshall decided to discontinue servicing both Gulfstream and Bombardier aircraft. Business under the new ownership started almost before the ink was dry, when a U.S. Air Force C-24G (Gulfstream IV) arrived for maintenance. Luton will be Gulfstream's first company-owned service center outside the United States.
DAR Corp.'s Advanced Aircraft Analysis (AAA) Version 2.4 provides a framework to support the process of aircraft preliminary design or redesign. The AAA program allows engineers to rapidly evolve an aircraft configuration from early weight sizing through open-loop and closed-loop dynamic stability and sensitivity analysis, while working within regulatory and cost constraints. The software can be used for small airplanes all the way up to military and transport airplanes. Price: $7,350 DAR Corp. 1440 Wakarusa Dr., Ste.
A AC -- Advisory circular ACARS -- Airline communications addressing and reporting system ACAS -- Aircraft collision avoidance system ADC -- Air data computer ADF -- Automatic direction finder ADI -- Attitude direction indicator ADS -- Air data system ADS-B -- Automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast AES -- Aircraft earth station AFCS -- Automatic flight control system AFIS -- Automated flight information system (Honeywell) AHRS -- Attitude-heading reference system Air Data -- Values computed from pitot, static and temperature measurements, usually by means of a digital
It will be 2005 before ``commercial air operations'' counts at the FAA and contract control towers recover to year 2000 levels, according to the FAA's latest forecast. The agency predicts the recovery will come from regional and air taxi operations, not the major airlines, which aren't expected to return to 2000 levels until 2010.
The Civil Air Patrol has been ``reframing'' itself to adapt its capabilities to the post-9/11 world. Maj. Gen. Rick Bowling, CAP national commander, met with Homeland Defense Secretary Tom Ridge to volunteer the organization's services. With more than 64,000 members nationwide, CAP, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, already has aircraft and trained personnel set up to handle security missions. According to Bowling, CAP volunteers can help rein in the costs of national homeland security.
The recurrent theme at the European Regions Airlines Association (ERA) meeting in March in Stuttgart, Germany, was that European regulators are hampering the industry's growth at a time when airline survival is at risk. ERA president and president of Portugalia Airlines Joo Ribeiro da Fonseca cited unfair competition between airlines and rail, road and sea traffic; excessive regulation; avoidable and unreasonable imposed costs; and the collective failure of Europe's regulators to solve institutional problems that hamper the regional airline industry's growth.
Details of recent accidents and incidents are presented to help avert repetition. April 14 -- An Aero Commander 500S crashed following a total loss of power in both engines at East Cooper Airport (8S5), Mount Pleasant, S.C. The airplane was destroyed, and the pilot and passenger were seriously wounded. The airplane was registered to and operated by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. The airplane had been topped off with fuel prior to the attempted takeoff, according to the pilot.
Engineered Inerting Systems claims that its Explosion Suppressant Arresting Foam (ESAF) prevents catastrophic explosions of ignited fuel vapors caused by electrical arcing, overheating of internal components, lightning strikes, static electrical discharge, and hostile incendiary small-arms fire. ESAF is a polyurethane chemical formulation that is poured onto moving mold conveyors and cures into large blocks, or buns (about the size of three stacked mattresses). The manufacturer also claims that ESAF baffles fuel to control surging and eliminate sloshing.
Two NBAA member companies -- H.J. Heinz Co. of Pittsburgh and Houston-based Universal Weather & Aviation -- teamed up to reunite rescued prisoner of war Jessica Lynch with her family. Pfc. Lynch, a U.S. Army soldier who was wounded and taken prisoner by Iraqi forces and then rescued in a dramatic special-forces mission, had been airlifted to a military hospital in Germany to receive medical treatment for multiple injuries. The Heinz Gulfstream IV flew Lynch's parents, brother, sister and a cousin to Germany.
PPG Industries, Pittsburgh, has named David P. Morris vice president, aerospace, replacing Dennis A. Kovalsky, who was named vice president for the company's automotive coatings business.
The new owner of the Fairchild Dornier 328JET program, AvCraft Aviation, is targeting January 2004 to start delivering new production aircraft, once the company restores credibility in customer service and supply chain management. President Ben Bartel described previous customer support as ``pinball,'' and told Aviation Daily that parts availability problems existed with suppliers in the past. AvCraft's 328 deal included 18 finished aircraft. Two have been sold to an air ambulance operator, and the company is close to selling a third.
Honeywell completed the first run of its new TFE731-50 turbofan engine on March 19. ``The engine, rated at 4,900 pounds of thrust, produced over 5,000 pounds of thrust in the test cell with more than 200F temperature margin,'' said Mike Redenbaugh, interim president of Honeywell Engines, Systems & Services. The TFE731-50 is a low-risk derivative of the current production engine, utilizing a common core and a scaled wide-chord damperless fan.
Hopping on the TFR bandwagon, Connecticut Gov. John Rowland and New York Gov. George Pataki pushed for 10-mile no-fly zones for nuclear power plants despite official testimony that light aircraft -- or even fuel-laden airliners -- can't breach a reactor containment vessel. AOPA President Phil Boyer has sent letters to politicians who are seeking airspace restrictions, suggesting that they be careful about what they ask for.
Regional and charter operations are being forced to bear an unfair share of security and other costs now that major airlines are in fiscal freefall and cutting service themselves. So charged Debbie McElroy, president of the Regional Airline Association, at an FAA reauthorization hearing before the House Aviation Subcommittee in April.
During recent years, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has conducted investigations into the practice of certain industries in fixing and advertising list prices. It is the position of the FTC that it is deceptive to the public and against the law for list prices of any product to be specified or advertised in a trade area if the majority of sales are made at less than those prices. B/CA is not in a position to know the prices for most of the sales in each trading area in the United States for each of the products in this issue.
Manufacturer, Model In some cases, the airplane manufacturer's name is abbreviated, but the company's full name and address can be found in the ``Airframe Suppliers Directory'' on page 116. The model name also is included in this group. B/CA Equipped Price Price estimates are first quarter, current year dollars for the next available delivery. Some aircraft have long lead times, thus the actual price will be higher than our published price. Note well, manufacturers may adjust prices without notification.
BAE Systems Regional Aircraft and British European Aviation Services are partnering to design an E-class freight interior for the BAE ATP turboprop. The design is about 60 percent complete and will incorporate a new 9-g forward net and 3-g vertical nets along the length of the cabin. The main landing gear emergency release handle is being relocated from under the mid-cabin fuselage floor to the flight deck.
Stagnation in the used business jet market is evident in the latest figures from AvData, Inc., which say there were 73 used business jets delivered to North American buyers in March, a 36.5 percent drop from the 115 airplanes delivered during the same month one year ago. See chart on page 78.
