FAA broke ground March 6 for the Potomac TRACON, regional air traffic control facility to serve the Baltimore-Washington area. The facility, at Vint Hill in Fauquier County, Va., will consolidate terminal radar control facilities at four airports - Baltimore Washington International (BWI), Dulles International (IAD), Reagan National (DCA) and Andrews AFB. Each of the four airports will continue to be served by its existing control tower. FAA selected the site, a former Army base that closed in October 1997, more than a year ago (BA, Jan. 25, 1999/37).
The National Transportation Safety Board has scheduled a two-day symposium to discuss "the conflicts between the growing need for data to improve transportation safety and the industry's concern about the use of that data in regulatory actions, law suits and criminal prosecutions."
PETERSEN AVIATION, Van Nuys, Calif., added a Gulfstream III and a Hawker 800XP to the company's fleet of managed aircraft that are available for charter. Petersen also added a Westwind II to its fleet of owned aircraft.
FLIGHTTIME.COM said it developed a Product Sharing charter program "that enables multiple companies to pool together and lease seats on one shared aircraft, leading to similar cost-savings and convenience without the commitment to exclusive use of an aircraft." FlightTime.com said its first client to use a customized corporate aircraft is The Procter&Gamble Company, which will use an Airbus A320-200 configured with 56 first-class seats. The aircraft will operate four times a week between P&G's headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio and Brussels, beginning this month.
RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT SERVICES MEXICO opened its first Mexican service center at Toluca International Airport earlier this year. The 248,000-square-foot facility is located 35 miles west of Mexico City and is a joint venture of RAC and Aerolineas Ejecutivas.
CESSNA AIRCRAFT held a dedication ceremony for its new 74,000-square-foot Structural and Test Facility. The $11.6 million facility more than doubles Cessna's test facility capacity and will accommodate all current and future aircraft in the product line. The facility will house the design and fabrication of test setups, operation of static, cyclic, reliability and component tests for aircraft, and recording and documentation of test data.
RON FISHER was appointed service manager for Jet Aviation Dallas. Fisher is a 27-year aviation veteran, formerly with the U.S. Marine Corps and then with ACCI Aviation Services.
SELENA BIRK was named acting airport manager at the Van Nuys, Calif. Airport (VNY) and Jens Rivera, who had been manager at VNY, was named airport manager at the Ontario, Calif. International Airport (ONT). The appointments, by Los Angeles World Airports, were effective Feb. 22.
QUALIMETRICS, INC., Sacramento, Calif., will install an automated weather observing system (AWOS) at the Julian Mountain Pass in southeastern California. When installed next month the AWOS will broadcast real-time wind speed, wind direction, wind gusts, temperature, relative humidity and altimeter setting via a discrete VHF frequency to pilots traversing the mountain pass. The same information also will be available by telephone.
HO27( ) and HO4/27 Series Propellers (Docket No. 98-ANE-64-AD; Amendment 39-11592; AD 2000-04-10) - requires installing improved propeller mounting bolts to a higher torque value, operating the airplane for one flight, checking the torque, and retorquing, as required, to the correct torque value. This amendment is prompted by reports of insufficient torque of propeller mounting bolts due to operating conditions, loads, and environmental conditions such as humidity and temperature.
The new DOT budget submitted to Congress requests $47 million to recapitalize the Loran-C navigation system, which the department, despite loud protests from several industries, had planned to phase out this year. DOT Secretary Rodney Slater, in a major turnaround for the administration, said DOT has decided to operate and maintain Loran-C in the short term while continuing to evaluate the long-term need for the system. The budget requests $27 million in Loran funding for the Coast Guard and $20 million for FAA.
A BOEING BUSINESS JET went on the market last week, according to a full-page advertisement in last Tuesday's Financial Times. The ad said the $34 million "green" aircraft had been delivered by Boeing and "is positioned in the United States ready for delivery to buyer who will benefit from the discounted price while enjoying Boeing support and Boeing warranty." The BBJ is S/N 29441 (YG002).
BEARING INSPECTIONS, INC., Los Alamitos, Calif., signed an agreement with GE Engine Services to be the primary repair and overhaul provider for jet engine main line and accessory bearings. The agreement initially covers three years with an option for renewal in 2002. Bearing inspection will support GE Engine Services facilities worldwide.
CF34 Series turbofan engines (Docket No. 98-ANE-19-AD; Amendment 39-11566; AD 99-23-26 R1) - revises an existing AD that is applicable to GE CF34 series turbofan engines. That AD currently requires: replacement of Buna-N O-rings with Viton O-rings; or a new location of the vent groove on the MFC mounting flange; or installation of an MFC with improved overspeed protection. This amendment requires the installation of an MFC with improved overspeed protection.
Model BAe.125 Series 1000A and 1000B Airplanes and Model Hawker 1000 Series Airplanes (Docket No. 99-NM-80-AD; Amdt. 39-11499; AD 2000-01-02) - requires an inspection to determine the integrity of the duct connection on both ends of the turbine air discharge duct in the air conditioning system; an inspection to measure the bead height on the ends of the turbine air discharge duct; and corrective actions, if necessary.
In a deal that Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.) characterized as a compromise for all concerned, House and Senate officials last week tentatively agreed to a comprehensive aviation package that guarantees that aviation excise tax money will be spent on aviation, but leaves the Airport and Airway Trust Fund on budget and does not formally guarantee a general fund contribution to FAA's budget. The deal essentially calls for $40 billion for FAA funding in fiscal years 2001 through 2003 and authorizes the current fiscal year at appropriated levels.
Accidents, Fatalities, And Rates, 1982 Through 1999 For U.S. Air Carriers Operating Under 14 CFR 135, Nonscheduled Service (On-demand Air Taxis) Accidents per 100,000 Accidents Fatalities Flight Hours Flight
THOMAS WYMAN was named avionics manager for Signature Flight Support's regional maintenance center at Chicago Midway Airport. Wyman has more than 21 years of aviation maintenance experience, previously working for K-C Aviation/Gulfstream Aerospace, Falcon Jet Corp. and Canadair Challenger.
The latest airline bankruptcy filing will have an effect on earnings at Mercury Air Group. The Los Angeles-based fixed-base operator and fuel provider said it will take a pretax charge of $2.7 million as a result of Tower Air's filing for bankruptcy on Feb. 29. The charge "will substantially reduce earnings for the quarter ending March 31," Mercury Air Group said, adding that "it will not be our policy to continue supplying Tower Air on a pre-paid basis" said Mercury President Joseph Czyzyk.
Series and Model 600 S2D Airplanes (Docket No. 98-CE-56-AD) - proposes to revise an earlier proposed AD that would require repetitive inspections of the 1/4 inch and 5/16 inch bolt hole areas on the lower spar caps for fatigue cracking, replacement of any lower spar cap where fatigue cracking is found, and reporting of any fatigue cracking.
ANN CROOK was named director of the newly created Oregon Department of Aviation. Crook joined the Oregon Transportation Department's Aeronautics Division in 1997 as state airport manager and has been guiding the division's transition to departmental status, expected to be final in July. Crook, a native Oregonian, is a graduate of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. She previously managed the airport in Hutchinson, Kan. and was operations manager at Mahlon Sweet Airport in Eugene, Ore. for five years.
ISRAEL AIRCRAFT INDUSTRIES signed new contracts valued at $2.4 billion in 1999, the company said, a 26 percent increase from 1998. The total included $1.1 billion of new commercial business last year, a 31 percent increase over the $800 million in 1998. Shimon Eckhaus, vice president of marketing at IAI, said the company set a goal of $2.65 billion in new contracts in 2000.
BOEING subsidiary Boeing Realty Corp. is meeting with city and regional officials in Long Beach, Calif., to discuss plans to turn over to a private developer surplus commercial airplane facilities at Boeing's Long Beach plant. The company is ending production of aircraft at the plant, delivering the last of 1,191 MD-80s last December. The final MD-90s and MD-11s will be assembled at Long Beach this year. C-17 military transport operations west of Long Beach Airport will not be affected by the proposed redevelopment.
(Beech) Model 400A and 400T series airplanes (Docket No. 99-NM-334-AD) - proposes to require a one-time inspection to detect incorrect wiring of the engine fire extinguisher bottle squibs, and corrective action, if necessary. It also would require a modification to the wiring and the addition of wire harness and bottle labeling for future reference. This proposal is prompted by reports of incorrect wiring of the engine fire extinguisher bottle squibs.
