GE Aviation finished acquiring Walter Engines , the Prague-based manufacturer of small turboprop engines and high-precision machined parts. GE Aviation Czech, part of the OEM’s Business & General Aviation division, absorbed the company, which will trade as Walter Aircraft Engines, a division of GE Aviation. It says the acquisition should fuel its entry into the small, twin-engine turboprop segment.
TIMCO Aviation Services Chairman and CEO John Cawthron resigned. Succeeding him are President and COO Ron Utecht and CFO Kevin Carter, who assume joint responsibility for the office of CEO. Utecht spent 39 years at United before joining TIMCO as a consultant in 2003. Carter joined the company in 2002 from the investment banking industry.
AerCap Holdings closed on a $100 million engine acquisition facility, with an availability period of 24 months and an option for an extra 36 months, with a syndicate of U.S. and German banks led by Citi. The deal provides AerCap with committed funding to acquire a range of spare engine types to expand its Shannon, Ireland-based long term engine leasing business.
Argosy International’s Shanghai facility received new certification from the Civil Aviation Administration of China for the custom-blending of Akzo-Nobel aerospace coatings to meet airline, AOG and maintenance requirements. Atlas Air completed the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), meeting globally recognized safety and quality standards for operations, including maintenance and engineering.
Boeing also is testing contact memory buttons, another form of automated identification technology, for data storage on non-serialized repairables. It plans to conduct a similar pilot for contact memory buttons, “although likely a little less ‘world traveled,’” said Phil Coop. The Japanese working group’s value-stream mapping can be used for contact memory buttons, too, so that part of the trial doesn’t need to reoccur, he said.
Hawker Beechcraft , amended STCs to install a cabin interior and avionics systems, oxygen bottles, cabin headliner/window panel brackets, therapeutic oxygen system, cabin oxygen system and observers jump seat on various Hawker models, Several STCs
Let’s face it: We live in a wired world. Consequently, an increasing number of airline passengers, whether a businessman on his way to a meeting in London, or a family flying to Florida on vacation, want to remain connected while en route. A decade ago, travelers’ inflight entertainment (IFE) options were limited to watching a feature-length movie on an overhead screen during selected long-haul flights.
Grob Aerospace launched a recruitment drive at ILA Berlin in May, intended to attract 60 new engineers and technicians to its facilities in Tussenhausen-Mattsies, Germany, and St. Gallen, Altenhrein, Switzerland. It plans to offer a number of the jobs to ab initio and trainee engineers, who will work alongside its fully qualified and experienced engineers.
Free radicals are atoms or molecules rendered unstable by having unpaired electrons. This will cause them to react quickly with other compounds, trying to capture the needed electron to gain stability. Generally, free radicals attack the nearest stable molecule, “stealing” its electron. But when the “attacked” molecule loses its electron, it becomes a free radical itself, beginning a chain reaction.
The U.K.’s International Bureau of Aviation (IBA) just finished the second in its series of continuing airworthiness management training courses with four more members of the Nigerian Air Force—Presidential Air Fleet (or PAF). IBA says the four-week course aimed to meet the PAF’s needs by focusing on education in EASA legislation and Part-M requirements for continuing airworthiness management. The program consisted of classroom and project-based work.
Lufthansa Technik and India’s GMR cancelled their planned joint venture. The Hyderabad-based MRO, which was expected to offer medium and heavy checks for Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s, was scheduled to open this year; however, the German company confirmed reports that the center will not. No official reason was given for the decision to end the first foreign MRO venture in India. The failure of the GMR joint venture, however, does not affect component and engine part services or expansion plans at Lufthansa Technik’s own Services India subsidiary.
Cascade Flying Service , to install a barrier air filtration system on various Bell Helicopter 47G and Hiller Aircraft UH-12E helicopters, STC SR01845SE
Lambert Leasing , reissued STC to enlarge the Class C cargo compartment by relocating cargo bay bulkhead forward to F.S. 594.1 on Saab 340B aircraft, STC ST01254AT
Lufthansa Technik AERO appointed Mark Johnson CEO. Johnson, who has worked for the group since 1982, formerly was commercial manager of Lufthansa AG’s hub management in Frankfurt, and he succeeds Peter Kamenz, who left the company and joined SR Technics as EVP sales and marketing.
• CFM International introduced what amounts to a “seal of approval” program it says will enhance the value of CFM engines that run on genuine CFM parts. CFMI launched the TRUEngine designation in response to demand from appraisers for more accurate information on the configuration and service history of in-service CFM56 engines.
Ameco Beijing added Air New Zealand to a growing list of line maintenance customers. The MRO will support Air New Zealand with aircraft release and technical services at Beijing and Shanghai. Ameco Beijing said it has 42 international line maintenance customers and is in active negotiations with another five potential customers, including carriers from the U.S. and Africa.
Air France Industries renewed its Single Multi-Standards Certification label following audits by Bureau Veritas. The new certification adds two international standards across AFI’s maintenance operations, OHSAS 18001 (occupational health and safety) and ISO 15489 (documentation), to its previous certification.
Jet Support Services was acquired by private equity firms 1848 Capital Partners and R.H. Book. The new owners plan to expand the MRO services provider’s market share and broaden its hourly cost maintenance guarantee programs for business aircraft engines and airframes.
