Corporate Airlines, former code-share partner of defunct Midway Airlines, has shuttered its Raleigh-Durham, N.C., operation. More than 100 employees were furloughed -- including 75 pilots and some 30 maintenance and station employees. Seven leased British Aerospace Jetstream 32s also were grounded. Carrier President Chuck Howell says he hopes to have the people and aircraft flying again in early 2002 in what will likely be a mix of code-share and point-to-point service under the Corporate Airlines banner.
Parker Hannifin Corp.'s Aircraft Wheel&Brake Division is offering a $500 rebate to purchasers of its Sikorsky S-76 helicopter wheels and brakes. The rebate program runs until June 30, 2002 and coupons are available through Helicopter Support Inc. and Parker's Web site. Parker said its new cast aluminum brake cylinder pro- vides better corrosion resistance than the existing mag- nesium design and will reduce maintenance time and cost. In addition, Parker is offering a $400 rebate on any Cleveland wheel brake conversion kit through June 30, 2002.
Investigators working the Lynch 414 accident studied the weather reports and forecasts for appropriate times and locations, and even looked into definitions of the terms weather analysts use in the products they produce for the aviation community. Here is some of what Gregg Nesemeier's NTSB team uncovered:
An ICAO resolution calls for a high-level international conference on aviation security to develop measures for ``preventing, combating and eradicating acts of terrorism involving civil aviation,'' and to review Annex 17 to the ICAO charter in light of the September 11 attacks. Annex 17 and associated guidance material contain the internationally approved Standards and Recommended Practices and Procedures of aviation security as they relate to international flights.
Bombardier has sold two, and options for five more, Q300 turboprops to Petroleum Air Services in Cairo. The first two 50-passenger aircraft will be delivered in May 2002. The optioned aircraft would be delivered by June 2004. Petroleum Air Services currently operates five 50-passenger de Havilland Dash 7 airliners plus a sizeable helicopter fleet.
Edited by David RimmerBy Kerry Lynch FAA Warns Islip on $50k Landing Fee
The town of Islip, N.Y., received warning from the FAA to back away from its $50,000 nighttime landing fee at MacAr-thur Airport (ISP) or face losing its airport grants and passenger facility charge authority. Despite an outpouring of opposition, the town on September 10 unanimously voted to impose a $50,000 charge on aircraft that land at the airport after the 11 p.m. curfew.
Memphis visitors can order FBO ground services online at Wilson Air Center's Web site: www.wilsonair.com. Pilots and dispatchers can advance order fuel, hangar space, and catering services as well as rental car, limousine and hotel reservations.
Multi-Aero, a St. Louis-area aviation services provider, is rolling out a nationwide shared charter service that it has already launched locally. Dubbed Share A Flight, the service allows travelers to commit to single seats on one of a selection of planned one-way or roundtrip charters. The proposed flights are initiated either by other travelers, Multi-Aero or one of its partners.
The Helicopter Association International's (HAI) president, Roy Resavage, testified October 8 before the Subcommittee on Aviation concerning the present restrictions on general aviation flying in Enhanced Class B Airspace.
Furloughs and hiring freezes already under way before September 11 at major airlines and regionals, as well as at some corporate flight departments, have accelerated. But organizations whose stock-in-trade is matching pilots to empty cockpits say there's reason to hope the downturn won't be as steep or severe as some might fear.
In the first senior management change at an OEM since the September 11 terrorist attacks, 40-year company veteran John Murphey has replaced Terry Stinson as Chairman and CEO of Bell Helicopter. Murphey wrote in a letter to Bell customers that Stinson had retired, but the shakeup was announced as part of a broader corporate restructuring at Textron -- the manufacturer's parent company. Textron has been hard hit by flight restrictions and market uncertainties at both its Cessna and Bell Helicopter operating units.
Duncan Aviation's Morristown, N.J., satellite facility is now an FAA approved repair station. CRS# D24R826Y makes it official. Duncan has 17 other satellite maintenance facilities. For more information or to schedule work at Morristown, call Cory Moos or Dave Pittman at (973) 326-1110.
Stress affects each of us differently. Drs. Lyle H. Miller and Alma Dell Smith, two of the world's leading stress experts, have developed the Stress Directions Stress Navigator Workshop and made it available online. ``It's the best way we know to combine our expertise with your unique life experience so that you can start taking immediate action to break out of your habitual response to stress,'' says Dr. Miller.
A collision between a Cessna CJ2 business jet and an SAS MD-87 on a fog-obscured runway at Milan's Linate Airport on October 8 killed 118 people in the aircraft and on the ground, making it the worst commercial aircraft accident in Italian history. Italian authorities said the CJ2, which was on a customer demonstration flight from Germany with stops in Milan and Paris, was preparing to take off when the accident occurred.
Jet Aviation West Palm Beach recently installed a complete Securaplane alarm and security system in a Challenger 604 used for worldwide travel. Jet's avionics manager, Brian Wilson, said, ``We completely removed the interior of the airplane, taking out the seats, the carpet, the galley and the lavatory to install security sensors, metal alarm strips and camera lenses.'' Jet Aviation also installed infrared motion detectors in the wheel wells, multiple cameras on the belly, and a camera on the vertical stabilizer to overlook the forward fuselage.
Comair's charter operation, Comair Jet Express, has been renamed to highlight its affiliation with corporate parent Delta Air Lines. The Cincinnati-based unit is now known as Delta AirElite Business Jets. Delta President and CEO Frederick Reid says the charter operation ``provides professional services to premium clients'' and that attaching the Delta name to it will help the carrier ``capitalize on the business opportunities presented by this growth market.''
SimuFlite has added personalized services for its clients to its Web site. Clients who have trained at SimuFlite in the past two years, or have made training reservations, can now go to www.simuflite.com to make airline, car and hotel reservations and also review aircraft-specific information and take emergency recall drills on line. Clients can access the ``My Travel'' area to make travel arrangements any time. Hotels and car rental companies that offer discounts to SimuFlite customers are identified.
A county policeman was injured at New York's Westchester County Airport (HPN) while attempting to stop a vehicle carrying Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) from running a mandatory security checkpoint en route to board a private jet to an unreleased destination. The incident occurred on Sunday, October 14, the senator's birthday. According to a county police official, the incident was due to a misunderstanding by the Secret Service agent driving the vehicle who thought arrangements had been made to drive through the checkpoint without stopping.
Chicago-area air charter firm T-Bird Aviation had added a Bombardier Challenger 600 to its fleet. The DuPage County Airport (DPA) operator also flies a Cessna Citation II, VII and a Falcon 20.
The ERJ 170, Embraer's largest passenger aircraft to date, rolled out in late October. Able to carry 70 to 78 passengers, the ERJ 170 has an 1,800-nm range in the standard version and 2,100 nm for the long-range version. Maximum cruise speed for both aircraft is 0.80 Mach. Unlike smaller Embraer regional jets, the ERJ 170 has two wing-mounted engines and a single aisle with two-by-two seating. Powerplant for the new aircraft is General Electric's new CF34-8E engine. The cockpit will be outfitted with Honeywell's Primus Epic avionics suite.
Two European regional carriers have selected Rockwell Collins' Flight Dynamics HGS. Eurowings, a Lufthansa partner based in Dortmund, Germany, will equip its new fleet of Bombardier CRJ 200s with the head-up guidance system. Eurowings has placed 15 firm orders for the CRJ 200 and has options for 20 more. Austria-based Rheintalflug has also selected the HGS for installation on its Embraer ERJ-145 fleet.
Austin Jet International, Horseshoe Bay, Texas, has named Marty Sinker as its aircraft services group president. Sinker was formerly the general manager at Raytheon Aircraft Services in Tampa, Fla., and will be responsible for all fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters.
Edited by David RimmerBy Mike Vines, at Helitech, Duxford, England Helitech '02 in Brazil
The organizer of the biennial Helitech U.K. show plans to launch a South American version of the show in 2002. Helitech South America is scheduled for November 5-7 at the Brazilian air base Campo de Marte near Sao Paulo. Apart from the growing biennial Chilean FIDAE air show/exhibition there is no other major international air trade show in South America. A large exhibition hall is planned for Helitech with company chalets, a static helicopter display and demonstration flights.
Fly any new airplane fitted with large-format, flat-panel displays and immediately you're impressed with the improvement in the situational awareness they provide. What pilot ever complained about cockpit displays being too big, too bright or too clear? These attributes, compared to CRT displays, offer significant advantages in depicting weather, terrain, traffic and flight plan route in relation to aircraft position.
More than a few operators laud Bombardier's Learjet personnel for ``bending over backwards'' to help them keep their aircraft flying. ``They're a real good bunch of folks,'' said Kirby Woehst, Federal Express' managing director of corporate aviation.
