The Airport Authority at Lambert International Airport (STL) in St. Louis has broken ground on a new 9,000-foot runway. However, before construction could begin, the operator had to purchase 1,937 homes, 70 commercial properties, relocate several roads and move the Missouri Air National Guard.
Bombardier's Regional Aircraft Division has joined Regional Air Partners (RAP), the upstart trade association for the regional airline industry. Formed in April by Mesa Air Group CEO Jonathan Ornstein, RAP is comprised of airlines, manufacturers, airports and other organizations with a vested interest in the continuation of regional airline service in smaller communities. Ornstein canceled Mesa's Regional Airline Association membership in April, claiming the group was focused on larger regionals and the major airlines with whom they are associated.
It was a typical summer day around noontime when the call came to fly an afternoon charter. The pickup was scheduled for 3 p.m. with a roughly two-hour wait-and-return in upstate New York. The weather looked good, with clear skies until about midnight, when thunderstorms were expected over the Adirondack Mountains. Although fog was forecast for coastal areas north of Cape Cod, none was expected along the Connecticut shore.
Fractional jet provider Flight Options has opened its first private terminal and regional service centers at Denver's Centennial Airport (APA) and McClellan Airfield Airport (MCC) in Sacramento, Calif. The new terminals are equipped with a full complement of business amenities and are designed to ``provide the owners with a private setting for departure and arrivals,'' said Kenn Ricci, Flight Options CEO.
Atlantic Aviation, Newark, Del., has named the following as customer supervisors: Kim Burski at the company's Philadelphia FBO and Cathy Patruno-Statham at the Teterboro facility. Bombardier Aerospace, Montreal, Canada, has appointed James Hoblyn as managing director of Flexjet Europe Ltd. Piedmont Hawthorne, Winston-Salem, N.C., has named Keith Parish as customer service manager for corporate aviation.
Safire Aircraft is increasing the price of its proposed S-26 light twin jet and changing customer deposit policies this month. The new price is set at $919,000 -- a $50,000 increase from the original. The West Palm Beach, Fla.-based manufacturer also will require new and existing customers to convert formerly refundable $8,000 deposits into Non-Refundable Purchase Order and Escrow Agreements.
The Air Group has added a Gulfstream III to its Van Nuys, Calif.-based charter fleet, increasing the total number of Gulfstreams available for charter to 14 nationwide. With the new aircraft, the operator now offers examples of the entire Gulfstream line in Van Nuys, including one G-V, two G-IVs and two G-IIs.
Russian manufacturer Sukhoi said flight testing of its S-80 twin turboprop began in late July, at the Zhukovskiy flight test center near Moscow. Sukhoi is seeking U.S. FAR Part 25 certification for the multipurpose aircraft, which features a pair of General Electric CT7-9B engines with four-blade Hamilton Sundstrand 14RF-35 propellers. In its standard S-80GP configuration, the aircraft can carry up to 26 passengers or 7,716 pounds of cargo. Sukhoi is planning a maximum payload range of 378 nm, with an average cruise speed of 259 knots.
According to FAR Part 135.227, pilots are required to inspect their aircraft for ground icing contamination and to remove any snow, frost or ice adhering to any rotor blade, propeller, windshield, wing, stabilizing or control surface or powerplant, or to any airspeed, altimeter, rate of climb or flight attitude instrument. One exception is that frost on wings, or stabilizing, or control surfaces may be polished smooth. Even when operating under Part 91, adherence to these regulations is paramount to safety.
Ice protection systems, while often similar in design, may have vastly different operating limits and recommendations depending on the specific aircraft on which they are installed. In addition to following the aircraft manufacturer's recommendations, consider the following operating tips and reminders:
The bombardier beetle defends itself by firing a boiling hot spray from the rear of its abdomen, a spray formed by mixing chemicals from two separate glands. Source: Fun Insect Facts
Duncan Aviation, Lincoln, Neb., has promoted Dan Buzz to the position of vice president of modifications and completions. Galvin Flying Service, Seattle, has named John Abel as director of aircraft service, Kevin Bell as aircraft service coordinator and Scott Peterson as director of maintenance quality. General Dynamics Aviation Services, has appointed Darrell Frey as general manager of its West Palm Beach, Fla., facility.
Jet Aviation's Bedford, Mass., maintenance facility has received JAA Repair Station and Bermuda Maintenance approval. Jet sought the approvals in 2000 to accommodate ``the increasing number of international customers at Bedford.'' Jet Aviation locations in Teterboro and West Palm Beach, Fla., previously were granted JAA Repair Station Approval, which permits the facilities to maintain European-registered aircraft.
Duncan Aviation is creating Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum (RVSM) programs for Astra, Bombardier Challenger 600 and Gulfstream II/IIB aircraft, with additional aircraft planned in the ``near future.'' The new programs are in addition to Duncan's existing RVSM solution for Lockheed JetStar 731s and JetStar IIs. An increasing amount of airspace is reserved for RVSM-equipped aircraft, with full European implementation to take effect in January 2002. Duncan has produced ``Straight Talk About RVSM,'' a free pamphlet with answers to common questions about RVSM.
Delta Air Lines is entering the fractional ownership business -- as primary maintenance provider for NetJets' Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) fleet. The agreement covers each of NetJets' BBJs for 10 years from their date of delivery. The fractional operator cited Delta's ``long history of successful operation of the Boeing 737'' and ``reputation for providing excellent aircraft and engine maintenance services'' as factors in the decision to tap the Atlanta-based carrier for support.
Chicago's Meigs Field is not the only embattled lakefront airport in the Midwest. The AOPA says that five candidates running for mayor of Cleveland support the closure of Burke Lakefront Airport there. The candidates reportedly support developing the property or turning it into a lakefront park. The AOPA promises to ``work diligently to defeat any attempts to close this valuable community resource,'' which handles 100,000 flights a year including a substantial number of emergency medical care missions.
The NBAA is fighting a proposal circulating in Congress that would change the jet fuel tax structure to make the end user, rather than the producer, responsible for the tax. Currently, the producer is responsible for the tax remittance but must divide out the difference between the 24.4-cent-per-gallon charge on kerosene and the 21.9-cent-per-gallon levy on jet fuel, a form of kerosene.
No, it's not a cross between a C-119 Flying Boxcar and a Britten-Norman Islander, it's a Wolfsberg-Letov Raven 257! A piston twin earmarked for the Islander replacement market, the Raven first flew in July 2000. Letov Air in Prague recently acquired the Raven 257 program from Evektor-Aerotechnik in Kunovice, Czech Republic. Raven certification is expected in September 2002.
When approaching or departing from an airport without an operating control tower, select the common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) designated for the airport to obtain airport and traffic information and to communicate your intentions. When arriving, monitor the CTAF at least 10 miles out from the airport, and establish and maintain communication until landing.
Photograph: The first Hawker Horizon takes to the air. Facing a sales slump, Raytheon Aircraft has high hopes for its newest jet. Raytheon Aircraft's new Hawker Horizon business jet flew for the first time on August 11 at Beech Field in Wichita. The 2.5-hour flight tested the aircraft's flying qualities, engine operation, low-speed handling and climb performance, the manufacturer said, with the Horizon reaching 10,500 feet and speeds of up to 225 knots.
You're having a really bad dream. On a long final approach to Dirtville -- an uncontrolled airport -- the unthinkable happens: A lavatory fire breaks out. You recall from basic chemistry -- you're dreaming, remember? -- that fire needs three elements: oxygen, a heat source and fuel. (Your aircraft has all three.) Because air is highly conductive (21 percent oxygen), the fire is spreading into the cabin and your cockpit is filling up with smoke.
Marilyn Richwine, Cessna's vice president-corporate communications, and Chairman Russell Meyer Jr. came to New York City on August 14 to accept a corporate community service award for the manufacturer's Special Olympics Citation Airlift. Presented by American Business Media, the award cited Cessna for creating and managing all-volunteer airlifts in which customer-owned Citations carried more than 6,000 athletes from around the country to Special Olympic sites in South Bend, Ind. (1987), Minneapolis (1991), Hartford, Conn. (1995) and Raleigh-Durham, N.C. (1999).
