Photograph: Comair CRJ200 Resurrecting service on one of the airline industry's shortest city pairs, Comair says it will introduce two daily roundtrips between New York's JFK International Airport and Philadelphia International Airport using 50-seat Bombardier CRJ200s. The 90-mile flight is scheduled for 45 minutes -- much of which is spent taxiing at either end. Delta Connection President Fred Buttrell said the new service will provide ``easier access to domestic and international travel'' aboard Delta and its affiliated carriers.
Cessna Aircraft will shut down the McCauley Propeller Systems operation in Vandalia, Ohio, and move some of the work to Columbus, Ga., citing a drop in market demand for single-engine airplanes. Cessna expects to move about 30 of the 195 affected employees in Vandalia into vacant space in Columbus. McCauley has been based in the Dayton, Ohio, area since it was founded in 1938 and has produced propellers for some 250,000 aircraft. Owned by Cessna since 1960, most of McCauley's current work is for Cessna, but it continues to produce for other manufacturers.
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 127. 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.
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.
``At the moment, everything continues to favor the [used aircraft] buyer,'' declared Fletcher Aldridge in the first quarter 2002 edition of his Market Leader newsletter, which is produced by Vref Publishing of Shawnee Mission, Kansas. ``[Aircraft] availability is excellent; prices are too,'' he added. ``However, we are seeing early signs that some stability could be returning to the used aircraft market.''
Photograph: Dassault Falcon 7x To receive its FAA type and production certification, an aircraft must successfully endure an arduous series of abuses that include fuselage over-pressurization, brake mashing, nonstop wing bending, even radiation assault and a chicken-carcass cannonade. But for all that, one of the most perilous tests confronting any new model is accumulating or sustaining enough investment capital to pave the way from the design room to the production line.
Manufacturer and Model This block includes the manufacturer's name and the aircraft's model name and technical designation. For more information on manufacturers, see ``Airframe Suppliers Directory,'' on page 127. B/CA Equipped Price This is the current price of the aircraft with the equipment stipulated in the ``B/CA Helicopter Minimum Equipment List,'' and is shown for comparison purposes only. In most cases, the price is provided by the manufacturer; exceptions are so noted.
The integrated avionics suites found in modern business aircraft come in a variety of sizes -- mostly industry-standard boxes. Deciding which to choose depends on the aircraft and the complexity of the avionics in-stalled. The large-format display tubes found in the integrated cockpit systems of high-end aircraft are replacing many electromechanical instruments. Standard-size cutouts for Collins Pro Line 4 display tubes are 7.0 by 6.0 inches or 7.25 by 7.25 inches. Honeywell's large-format displays for its Primus and SPZ integrated cock-
While we're on the subject of avionics, it seems only appropriate to remind all our readers that full implementation of the domestic U.S. portion of RVSM is slated to become operational in December 2004. (See ``Domestic RVSM,'' April, page 82.) You can find more information on this at the FAA RVSM Web site, www.faa.gov/ats/ato/ rvsm1.htm.
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)
Today's full-featured airborne corporate command posts, replete with encrypted satcoms, high-speed data terminals, in-cabin local area network access to corporate intranets, live television reception, personalized audio/visual entertainment and enrichment suites, customized passenger briefings and moving map display systems are a far cry from the merely comfortable business aircraft cabins of yore. Indeed, traveling in such a stimulus-enriched environment is likely to redefine the terrestrial workplace.
