TeleMedic Systems' VitalLink 1200 is a portable inflight monitoring device that allows real-time transmission of vital signs to a ground-based physician. The unit allows the physician to communicate with the on-site personnel via voice and text messages and to remotely take control of the unit to take additional medical measurements if required. Price: $19,995 TeleMedic Systems 5600 Seventy Seven Center Dr., Ste. 140 Charlotte, NC 28217 Phone: (704) 529-8400 Fax: (704) 529-6368 www.telemedicsystems.com
Steven A. Ridolfi has been named president of Bombardier Aerospace, Regional Aircraft for the second time following the decision by John Giraudy to take semi-retirement. Ridolfi will maintain his position as executive vice president, programs and strategic planning at Bombardier Aerospace. Giraudy, who was senior vice president, sales, succeeded Ridolfi as president of the regional aircraft unit in February 2002. Giraudy will remain on staff in a part-time role as senior advisor to Ridolfi.
British charter operator Twinjet has become an accredited participant in the U.S. waiver program, which means that nationals from qualified countries can now travel on Twinjet to the United States without a full U.S. visa -- the same system that is used by the major airlines. The company has also been accepted as an FAR Part 129 Foreign Operator by the U.S. DOT and FAA, which allows Twinjet unlimited ad-hoc charter access between the United Kingdom and the United States for both its 34-seat Airbus Corporate Jetliner (ACJ) and its 10-seat Bombardier Challenger.
Signature Flight Support President and CEO Elizabeth Haskins argued recently that the federal government should compensate Signature and other affected businesses for losses stemming from the ban on general aviation at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). Haskins said the flight ban is known legally as ``a regulatory taking'' and added that the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution provides that no ``private property shall be taken for public use without just compensation.''
For Signature Flight Support, the FBO at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is the chain's ``flagship.'' The DCA base was among Signature's most profitable for years, generating as much as $20 million in annual revenue, while servicing some 100 arrivals per day of mostly transient aircraft. Proximity to the nation's capital also made it by far the most high profile of all Signature's 40-plus bases, company executives say.
Top airport officials described to the House Transportation Aviation Subcommittee on March 6 how unfunded federal mandates have forced them to delay or forego capacity and safety projects. Delays in those projects will increase costs by $7 billion, according to the Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) and American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE). Subcommittee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) rallied to the airports' side, stressing the importance of returning aviation trust fund money to its primary purpose of enhancing capacity.
Hopes that European-wide, single-engine IFR would be implemented this spring were dashed at a mid-February Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) meeting. The earliest possible date now seems to be this September. After seven years, the JAA is still suggesting that each European member state decide its own SE-IFR policy. Operators want the exact opposite: one piece of legislation applicable to all 31 member states that covers commercial cargo and passenger work.
The FAA published a follow-up proposal in the Federal Register that would impose tougher equipment requirements for FAR Part 91 turboprops operating in domestic RVSM airspace. The supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking would eliminate an earlier-published proposed option to allow Part 91 turboprops to operate in DRVSM airspace with a single compliant altimeter. The FAA said it reconsidered the option since likely benefits would not be great enough to justify the complication to DRVSM regulations.
Executive Jet Management, Inc. (EJM), the aircraft management and charter services affiliate of fractional operator NetJets, added a Gulfstream 400 at Love Field (DAL) in Dallas, and a Falcon 50EX at Buchanan Field (CCR) in Concord, Calif. EJM now manages 106 aircraft in nearly 50 locations throughout the United States for retail charter and to support the NetJets fractional aircraft ownership program.
It's time to sell your fractional ownership share, and you're facing a down economy. Maybe that's why you need to unload the share, or perhaps your contract with the fractional provider is about to expire, and you are required to sell out. Or let's say your flight department has decided to redeem the fractional share it owns for supplemental airlift and purchase a larger share in a different aircraft type.
THE WAFFLE DID ME IN. I had dined in the same restaurant, Washington's woody Willard Room, the previous night and had immensely enjoyed the fare, fusty ambiance and company. But with the dawn my gum was unexpectedly tender, and as I chomped on the fruit-laden waffle, pain exploded from an upper right molar. An emergency visit to the dentist confirmed my worst fear: The tooth was infected; I would need a root canal. Yours truly is a card-carrying dentophobe. The sound of the drill, that gurgly thing that hooks into your mouth, the needles -- I hate it all.
General aviation facilities are next for scrutiny on the TSA's list. It plans to send out federal security directors within the next few weeks to visit with and look at the security at small airports. Security at GA airports ``varies considerably,'' TSA Administrator Adm. James Loy said.
The three Washington, D.C.-area airports fighting to survive after 9/11 will not ``see relief for the foreseeable future,'' said TSA chief Adm. James Loy at an AOPA press conference. The TSA has drastically curtailed operations at the so-called ``D.C. 3'' airports -- College Park Airport, Potomac Airfield and Washington Executive/Hyde Field, all in the close-in Maryland suburbs -- because of their proximity to the nation's capital.
The other day we had a little celebration. My friend Charlie Gray successfully climbed to the summit of Aconcagua, a 22,831-foot peak in Argentina that marks the highest point on the continent of South America. We received word of his arrival at the summit by satellite phone, and he described the scene in an elated, albeit winded tone. It was quite an accomplishment. Three years prior, he summitted Mount McKinley, the highest peak in North America, stretching 20,320 feet into the Alaskan sky.
The Jet & Propjet 2003 corporate aircraft directory contains information on more than 23,000 turbine business aircraft operating in the United States and 139 other nations. The main listings show current registration number, aircraft model and serial number, registered owner and immediate past registration marks. A cross-reference index by manufacturer and serial number is provided in the back of the book.
Already providing Lufthansa transatlantic BBJ service, PrivatAir will now also operate two brand-new 48-seat Airbus A319 LR aircraft on behalf of the German carrier. The executive-configured aircraft will provide direct nonstop flights six days per week between Munich and Newark International (EWR) starting May 19, and between Dusseldorf and Chicago O'Hare (ORD) starting June 9. Under the wet lease agreement with Lufthansa, PrivatAir will supply the aircraft, crews, maintenance and insurance for the dedicated business-class-only service.
Rockwell Collins' new subsidiary, Kaiser Electroprecision, has been awarded a contract to design and develop the horizontal stabilizer trim actuator (HSTA) and sensor package for the new Falcon 7X business jet. According to George Faulkner, vice president of Kaiser Electroprecision, the actuator for the Falcon 7X incorporates three independent means of drive using direct-current electric motors. The design is dual load path redundant throughout, and includes a secondary inverted thread nut and safety tie rod on the ballscrew to optimize safety and reliability.
It may be embarrassing, but don't lie. Nacer Fetamia, president and owner of Link Aviation flight school in Dallas, was sentenced by a U.S. District Court judge there to three months in jail and three years of supervised release, and was fined $2,500 for lying about a past DUI charge on his airman medical application. He faces possible deportation to his native Algeria as a result of this ongoing investigation. The investigation was conducted jointly by the DOT Office of Inspector General and the FBI, with assistance from the FAA.
When a technician goes through FAR Part 147 training, the emphasis is always on traditional mechanical subjects, such as electrical systems, powerplant service and repair, and airframe maintenance. A few schools that offer degree programs also require study of English composition, technical mathematics and a humanities class or two. However, the non-technical skills that will someday prove to be the most valuable to the individual are typically overlooked during this crucial phase in a mechanic's education.
Jeppesen says its JetPlanner Version 1.5 improves the usability and increases the flexibility of the application. Users accustomed to JetPlan can now enter flight plans in line-mode format, and users of Jeppesen's JAS flight planning software can import previously stored JAS requests directly into JetPlanner. JetPlanner 1.5 can be used across networks, and operators can create custom templates, which can be easily stored and retrieved for future use.
ARE YOU A PILOT, flight instructor or mechanic? Not if the TSA suspects you pose a security threat. New regulations expressly make a person ineligible to hold FAA-issued airman certificates if the TSA notifies the FAA that the person ``poses a security threat.'' ``This action is intended to reduce the opportunity for persons to carry out terrorist acts in the aviation environment.'' The FAA goes on to explain that pilots, flight instructors and mechanics could all pose a serious threat to our safety.
Rockwell Collins has received FAA STC approval for its HST-900 high-speed satcom system on the Falcon 50, 900 and 900EX. Collins says this is the first STC installation that permits the use of aero safety services in the flight deck and simultaneous voice and high-speed data in the cabin. This is accomplished through a proprietary software management system that ensures the flight deck maintains its priority and preemptively receives essential communications. The management system also validates frequency assignments to avoid GPS interference.
SOME HIGH-RANKING Air Force twit has come up with the brilliant idea of slicing off most of the U.S. Marine Corps Aviation and merging it with Navy Air, a move that the consultants claim will produce substantial savings. This prompts the question: If you integrate, what's the need for Marine Air? It is agreed that having the Navy and Marines fly the same fighters produces much savings, owing to the commonality of parts. However, the reason for Marine Air is to support the infantry grunts on the ground; the mission focus and forte of Navy Air involves other matters.
Wing Aviation, Houston, has hired Alan Ayles as parts manager in the purchasing division and Les Berkheiser as chief inspector. Ayles will be responsible for all incoming and outgoing shipments, inventory control and ordering of parts and supplies. Berkheiser will handle the directing, planning and rollout of the repair station's inspection standards.
