Turbomeca has designated the following North American TurboSupport Centers: Acro Aerospace in Vancouver, Canada; -- Heli Support in Fort Collins, Colo.; -- Keystone Engine Services in West Chester, Pa.; -- Turbomeca TurboSupport Center in Las Vegas. Each TurboSupport Center is certified and audited by Turbomeca as able to perform line and heavy maintenance, including engine removal and installation, borescope inspections and designated parts replacement. The centers also will maintain a stock of rental engines and commonly ordered parts.
A nationwide all-hazards warning system could be up and running within two years and cost $15 million per year, according to a draft strategy recommendation by the Partnership for Public Warning (PPW). The PPW, a McLean, Va.-based nonprofit group of public warning specialists from government, business and academia, is seeking public comment on its draft report by April 18. The final strategy is planned for release in May. The draft of ``A National Strategy for Integrated Public Warning Policy and Capability'' is available at: www.partnershipforpublicwarning.org.
SevenBar Enterprises, Dallas, has appointed business aviation industry veteran Bill Koch as president and chief operating officer. He has previously been president of aviation-affiliated firms Sutherland Cos. and AMR Combs.
Marion Blakey promised to attack FAA Regional inconsistencies in a Feb. 20 speech before the Aero Club of Washington (see Washington, page 104). The new FAA administrator announced a new customer service initiative ``that provides written guidance and training to all managers and supervisors in our regulation and certification offices throughout the country on applying FAA rules and policies in a standard and consistent manner.'' The full text of Blakey's speech, which also covered several other issues, is posted at www.nbaa.org/presentations/blakey20030220.htm.
Bombardier Aerospace will lay off a total of 3,000 employees over the next 12 months at its facilities in Montreal, Toronto and Belfast. ``In view of challenging market conditions, we have a responsibility to take aggressive actions to continuously improve our competitive edge and align our production rate with market demand,'' explained Pierre Beaudoin, president and chief operating officer, Bombardier Aerospace.
Bombardier's all-new Global 5000 business jet also made its first flight on March 7. The aircraft -- serial number 9127 -- took off from Bombardier's Downsview, Ontario, facility under clear afternoon skies, and during its three-hour, 44-minute flight northwest of Toronto, reached a maximum altitude of 45,000 feet, and a maximum indicated airspeed of 340 knots. The first flight was dedicated to testing basic system functionality and assessing the aircraft's handling and flying qualities.
AirNet Systems Inc., Columbus, Ohio, has appointed Larry Glasscock to the position of senior vice president, express services. Glasscock has more than 20 years of experience leading integrated air and ground transportation companies. AirNet Systems Inc. operates AirNet Express, which provides expedited air transportation and passenger charter services.
Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) may be the type of accident most feared by pilots. No wonder. According to NTSB accident statistics, you're 20 times more likely to have a CFIT accident than to collide with another aircraft in flight. Dozens of perfectly good business, commercial and military aircraft have been unintentionally flown into the ground by pilots who just didn't know where they were in proximity to terrain hazards. Few midair collisions have occurred in recent years, especially after TCAS was mandated for passenger-carrying airliners.
Jeppesen has discovered an irregularity affecting certain airspace boundary records contained in Jeppesen NavData, which causes a small number of Special Use Airspace and Controlled Airspace boundaries to be misrepresented. Affected by the irregularity are Jeppesen data and databases delivered by other vendors but derived from Jeppesen data that contain such airspace boundaries. Primary navigation records, such as navaids, intersections and waypoints, are not affected. Jeppesen charts are not impacted.
Nav Canada has completed installation of a new ILS at British Columbia's Kelowna International Airport (YLW). The ILS has been successfully tested and is now fully operational. This installation is in addition to the $5 million already invested in the new Air Operations Center officially opened in June 2002. Kelowna International supports more than 1,800 full-time jobs and is Canada's 11th busiest airport in terms of passenger traffic.
The 2003 NBAA Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference (see ``It's Still About Recognition,'' page 82) drew nearly 1,300 attendees and almost 200 exhibitors Feb. 2 through 5 in Anaheim, Calif. Conference highlights included inspirational presentations by Erik Lindbergh, grandson of Charles Lindbergh, and NASA astronaut Curt Brown. Several hundred people attended two first-time sessions on aviation security and the use of online tools to monitor air traffic and avoid congested airspace and airports.
The issue is still recognition,'' lamented Patty Hagen, a scheduler/dispatcher for charter/management company TXI Aviation of Dallas. Hagen was referring to the number one problem that still dogs her profession, i.e., trying to convince corporate human relations departments (and management in general) that scheduling and dispatching really is a dedicated profession with a clear, though evolving, career path.
Lufthansa Technik (LHT), Hamburg, has captured an order for the completion of a Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) for an unnamed Asian customer. By the time the aircraft is delivered at the end of this year, some 70,000 labor hours will have been devoted to installing in it, among other things, a complete conference room and state-of-the-art communications equipment.
Gen. John R. Dailey, USMC (Ret.) Director, National Air and Space Museum, Washington, D.C. He was an RF-4 pilot in Vietnam and logged command time in everything from helicopters to Harriers to F-18s before retiring as a 36-year Marine Corps veteran in 1992. After serving as a NASA executive, in 2000 he took the top job at NASM, where his primary focus is to get the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles International Airport built, funded and functioning. 1 How about a sense of scale for the new aviation hangar?
The NTSB said it is ``concerned'' that Rockwell Collins' testing requirements for AHC-85 EADIs ``are inadequate and create a possible safety hazard by allowing faulty units with benign latent failures to enter service.
Sino Swearingen Aircraft Corp. said its second conforming SJ30-2 entry-level jet (serial number 0003) made a successful first flight from the company's facilities in San Antonio. Serial number 0002, which was already flying, will be used to validate aerodynamics and handling qualities. The new flight article will be used primarily for hot and cold weather testing, flight into known icing, pressurization, systems and avionics.
Qantas is teaming with the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority, the Australian and International Pilots Association and the Centre for Sleep Research at the University of South Australia to conduct a major study on pilot fatigue and find a scientific way of managing the risks associated with it. The Fatigue Risk Management System study will be conducted in three phases over three years.
Atlantic Aero has an STC for permanently deactivating Aeronca thrust reversers on Learjet 35 and 36 series airplanes. Atlantic notes that the supply of parts for Aeronca reversers has become scarce, and some operators have opted to pin unrepairable units using the maintenance manual procedure. But a recent interpretation by the FAA's Western Region calls for the repair and return to service of pinned reversers at the next major inspection interval, which recurs at 1,400 flight hours.
Air Charter Guide has introduced CharterXtra, a system that enables corporate travel managers to offer online booking of pay-per-use charters for business travelers. CharterXtra integrates within existing systems to provide access to the Air Charter Guide database of charter operators and aircraft, and enables users to quickly compare price and availability among airline, corporate fleet and charter options. Air Charter Guide is an online directory of over 16,000 commercially available charter aircraft worldwide (www.aircharterguide.com).
Mesaba Airlines received the FAA Diamond Award for 100-percent participation by Mesaba's aviation maintenance technicians in FAA-accepted training programs. It was the second consecutive year that Mesaba achieved 100-percent participation status. The Diamond Award recognizes training for aircraft maintenance professionals throughout the airline industry. During 2002, more than 300 Mesaba mechanics participated in training programs, including aircraft systems training, regulatory training and FAA rules orientation.
The FARs specify the requirements for flight crew oxygen use based on altitude (for unpressurized aircraft) and cabin pressure (pressurized aircraft). The regulations under FAR Part 91 and Part 135 are quite similar, but the Part 135 requirements are more conservative. The following table summarizes the applicable requirements. Flight Crew Oxygen Requirements
-- March 2 -- A Cessna 208 collided with ice-covered terrain during the final approach phase of a VFR landing, about one-quarter of a mile from the approach end of Runway 08 at Ralph Wien Memorial Airport (OTZ), Kotzebue, Alaska. The pilot, the sole occupant, suffered minor injuries, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. IMC prevailed at the airport. According to the NTSB, at one mile from the airport the pilot said he could not see the airport, and he stated he was in a whiteout condition.
With an estimated 374 trillion sticks of gum sold worldwide each year, public areas such as airports, schools and shopping centers are increasingly affected by unsanitary gum pollution. RecovrX, an environmental cleaning and recovery company, has patented a cost-effective gum removal system that promises to combat gum pollution and waste by utilizing an efficient, environmentally safe technology. The RecovrX Gum Removal System is a specially designed steam cleaner manufactured by USF Surface Preparation Group.
Jet Aviation Zurich, a Cessna Citation Authorized Service Center for more than 20 years, recently received an additional approval from Cessna as an Authorized Service Station. The new authorization allows the facility to perform engine and airframe maintenance, repairs, warranty work and avionics installations for all single- and multiengine aircraft, Conquest I and II and Caravan 208 turboprops.
