Federal Aviation Administration last week disputed General Accounting Office findings that the agency has failed to protect the government's investment in general aviation airports from abuse, telling the House aviation subcommittee that the scope of such problems is insignificant.
AIRCRAFT OWNERS AND PILOTS ASSOCIATION has sold 85 percent of its exhibit space for its AOPA Expo Oct. 21-23 in Atlantic City, N.J. The exhibit hall, AOPA Expo's largest yet, will cover 150,000 square feet with more than 500 exhibits. The Expo will be held at the Atlantic City Convention Center near the aircraft static display at Bader Field.
FLIGHTSAFETY INTERNATIONAL won a contract to operate the C-5 Aircraft Training System (ATS) for the Ogden Air Logistics center at Hill AFB, Utah. The 10-year contract includes the acquisition, installation, test and acceptance of a new C-5 Galaxy Weapon System Trainer to be used by the Air National Guard. The contract also covers an Avionics Modernization Program modification for all C-5 ATS training devices. FlightSafety estimated the value of the contract at $250 million.
CIRRUS DESIGN CORP. announced a 4.7 percent price increase for the company's SR20 four-place, single-engine aircraft. The new price, $179,400, includes a Garmin International IFR avionics package that includes the popular GNS 430 com/nav/GPS, a GNC 250 XL GPS/com, a GMA 340 audio panel and a GTX 320 transponder. The standard model also includes an ARNAV moving map display, the S-Tec System Twenty autopilot and the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS). Cirrus now claims orders for 316 SR20s.
Heroux Inc. of Montreal, Quebec has acquired Montreal-based Metro Machining Corp. and Les Industries C.A.T. Inc., both of which specialize in structural components for regional jets. Bombardier is the main client for both companies. "This will allow us to expand our product offering and reinforce our position with Bombardier in the rapidly expanding regional jet market," Gilles Labbe, Heroux's chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
Business aircraft manufacturers will produce nearly 4,900 business aircraft worth $62.4 billion between 1999-2008, the Teal Group predicted in its annual World Military and Civil Aircraft Briefing slated for release yesterday during the Paris Air Show. The forecast marks an 800 aircraft-
BARNES AEROSPACE'S Ogden Division is slated to begin delivery in the third quarter of prototype assemblies for the Bell Helicopter BA609 civil tiltrotor. Bell contracted with Barnes for the left and right firewall assemblies in the nacelles. The contract calls for up to 250 shipsets. Bell and Barnes jointly developed the assemblies, which are produced by hot-formed or super plastic-formed titanium. Barnes said each shipset will require 12 assemblies.
GENERAL ELECTRIC CF34 series turbofan engines (Docket No. 98-ANE-19- AD; Amdt. 39-11179; AD 99-11-08) - requires installation of a main fuel control (MFC) that incorporates a flange vent groove and installation of an MFC with improved overspeed protection. This amendment is prompted by reports of rapid uncommanded engine acceleration events. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent uncommanded engine accelerations, which could result in an engine overspeed, uncontained engine failure, and damage to the airplane.
PIAGGIO P-180 airplanes (Docket No. 98-CE-96-AD; Amdt. 39-11176; AD 99-11-06) - requires inspecting both (left and right wing configurations) environmental control system bleed tubes for damage, leakage, and a correct gap between the tube and wing lower panel crossing area, inspecting the wiring and surrounding structures for damage, and correcting any discrepancies found. This AD is the result of mandatory continuing airworthiness information issued by the airworthiness authority for Italy.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the union responsible for maintaining air traffic control system equipment are in contract negotiations with the help of a mediator after failing to agree on a pay raise.
Federal Aviation Administration should issue its proposed regulations for air tours by the end of July, begin collecting information on air tour operators, and direct district offices to increase surveillance of those operators, the Transportation Inspector General recommended late last month. In a May 28 report on FAA's oversight of the air tour industry, the IG found that FAA's effort to propose new air tour standards and develop an industry database "has been delayed too long and should be moved forward quickly.
Flight trials are under way to test the Airbus Corporate Jetliner's extra fuel tanks in the cargo hold and operations at cruise altitudes up to 41,000 feet. The trials began with a five-hour and 55-minute flight May 31 during which normal functioning of the extra six tanks was verified. Airbus said typical cruise speed during the flight was Mach 0.8 with the maximum permitted altitude of 41,000 feet reached. The test aircraft was powered by IAE V2500 engines.
The Senate Appropriations Committee, calling the Federal Aviation Administration "a complex and multilayered organization that consistently defies management models," expressed concern that FAA continues to lag in its streamlining and modernization efforts and called for continued oversight of the agency. "The organization has the best and worst organizational characteristics of a bureaucracy: intense stability and intense resistance to change," the committee said in its report to the fiscal 2000 transportation appropriations bill.
SIMUFLITE TRAINING INTERNATIONAL'S QuickTurn division opened its 30,000-square-foot training center in Grapevine, Texas. Formerly based in the American Airlines Flight Academy at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, QuickTurn will use the new center to expand its business with new pilot training programs next year. QuickTurn said it will detail those plans later this year. QuickTurn, established in 1993, provides initial, recurrent and upgrade pilot training for the King Air C90/100 and Citation I/II series.
FAIRCHILD Models SA226-T, SA226-T(B), SA226-AT, and SA226-TC airplanes (Docket No. 99-CE-15-AD) - proposes to supersede AD 77-25-03, which currently requires repetitively inspecting the landing gear actuator rod ends that are equipped with grease fittings for cracks. AD 77-25-03 also requires replacing the landing gear actuator rod ends with an improved part either immediately or within a certain time depending on the results of the inspections. Replacement of all six rod ends terminates the repetitive inspection requirements of AD 77-25-03.
BRITTEN-NORMAN, Isle of Wight, received an order from China Northern Airlines for three 16-passenger, tri-engine BN2A-MkIII Trislander aircraft. The aircraft, which will be used in short-haul commuter and aerial tourism roles, are slated for delivery between September 2000 and January 2001. Britten-Norman valued the contract for the aircraft at $4.8 million and said it expects to receive a separate customer support contract to cover aircrew and engineering training and aircraft spare parts. Britten-Norman has produced 80 Trislanders, the company said.
EXECUTIVEJET officials vigorously rejected suggestions by some corporate pilots that marketers for the company's NetJets fractional ownership program target existing flight departments."We do not go after companies who own corporate aircraft," said Kevin Russell, executive vice president of ExecutiveJet, in response to a question. But he added that "we have a lot of senior executives who give us a call...we are frequently approached" by boards of directors or senior management of companies with flight departments.
Top officials of ExecutiveJet told reporters last week they have extensively studied the potential for using a supersonic business jet in their NetJets fractional ownership program and are confident such an aircraft would be a success if it meets certain performance objectives.
General Aviation Manufacturers Association last week urged the aviation industry to send comments on a long-awaited Joint Aviation Authorities proposal that would permit a 180-minute extended-range, twin-
GAMA PRESIDENT Ed Bolen Friday called a move by both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to remove the general fund contribution from FAA's budget in fiscal 2000 a "reversal of long established policy...that has the potential to be very detrimental to the future of aviation. These are very serious policy decisions." General aviation groups for years have argued that the general public benefits from a safe, secure national airspace system and that the general fund, in addition to the user-paid Airport and Airway Trust Fund, should help pay for the agency.
Raytheon Aircraft lost a substantial portion of the roofs on two of its hangars at its Little Rock, Ark. completion center during Tuesday's intense thunderstorms. The storms, which have been linked to the fatal crash of an American Airlines MD-80 late Tuesday, also blew one of the hangar's doors off the track and into the wing of a customer's Hawker 800 XP. An employee was injured during the storm and was treated for bruises and released from a local hospital.
Bombardier added Aerospace Industry Development Corporation (AIDC) of Taiwan to the growing list of suppliers for its Continental super-midsize business jet as the Canadian conglomerate moved closer to launch of the new aircraft program. AIDC signed on to provide the aft fuselage and empennage for the Continental, joining Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which will supply the entire wing section.
PIAGGIO P-180 Airplanes (Docket No. 98-CE-96-AD; Amdt. 39-11176; AD 99-11-06) - requires inspecting both (left and right wing configurations) environmental control system bleed tubes for damage, leakage, and a correct gap between the tube and wing lower panel crossing area, inspecting the wiring and surrounding structures for damage, and correcting any discrepancies found. This AD is the result of mandatory continuing airworthiness information issued by the airworthiness authority for Italy.
