RECENT NEWS

Dassault Falcon is reorganizing its service support strategy. Worldwide there are currently five company-owned service centers and 26 authorized service centers (ASC). In addition, there are five recently added satellite service stations with GoTeams positioned on four continents. According to Jacques Chauvet, senior v-p for worldwide customer service, all facilities had to provide maximum service, including C inspections, to all Falcon models. “While the philosophy worked well in areas with large Falcon populations such as Europe and the U.S., it proved less practical in some of the new, emerging markets for business jets,” he said. Facilities will now be classified in three categories: heavy, major and line maintenance. Heavy service centers will provide comprehensive customer support for all Falcons and hold local regulatory approvals as well as those from the FAA and EASA. Major service centers will provide comprehensive support for Falcons of a particular model series and hold local regulatory approvals as well as those from the FAA and EASA. Line service centers will provide support for specific Falcon models and hold a minimum of local regulatory approvals.

Eurocopter and Pawan Hans Helicopters, the largest civil helicopter operator in India, have entered into two joint ventures for maintenance, repair and overhaul and training. Under the terms of the first joint venture, Eurocopter and Pawan Hans will establish an MRO facility in a key Indian metro to better serve the Dauphin fleet being operated in India. The second joint venture will set up a training center to support Indian needs. R.K. Tyagi, Pawan Hans chairman and managing director, said, “As the Indian helicopter market expands, we see tremendous opportunity for Pawan Hans in the oil and gas, tourism and corporate travel segments.” Pawan Hans began operating Dauphin helicopters in India in 1986 and is Eurocopter’s biggest customer in the country. It is an approved Dauphin maintenance center for that part of the Indian subcontinent.

Midcoast Aviation has expanded its capability to assist aircraft operators at their home bases to supplement in-house maintenance staff. “We have been providing this select service to customers by request for years,” said Morris Smith, director of technical services. “Because operators have found the service so beneficial it just made sense to expand and let all our customers know mobile maintenance teams are available to come to them. It’s the same service they get when they are in our service center, simply packaged ‘to go.’” Midcoast’s mobile maintenance team technicians are available to travel to customers throughout the U.S. to provide on-site inspections, non-destructive testing and engine and avionics troubleshooting. In 2009, Midcoast Aviation technician teams handled 57 maintenance requests for Bombardier, Gulfstream, Falcon and Hawker aircraft. On-site nondestructive testing includes ultrasonic, eddy current, bond testing and magnetic particle. X-ray inspections can be performed after obtaining the permits required by the state in which the inspections will be performed.

Sierra Industries received an STC for an Artex C406 (406 MHz) emergency locator transmitter (ELT) for installation on the Cessna Citation 500, 501, 550, 551, S550 and 560. According to a company spokesman, it provides a “cost-effective solution” for operators to update to current standards. In early 2009 U.S. emergency distress satellites ceased monitoring the older 121.5 MHz emergency frequency band in favor of the more accurate 406-MHz standard. Although a 406-MHz ELT is not yet required in the U.S., numerous countries, including Canada, Mexico and the European Union, have established, or are in the process of implementing, the standard. The Artex C406 provides an integrated ELT-to-navigation interface and transmits latitude and longitude position information with an accuracy of 100 meters. The unit operates on 121.5-, 243- and 406-MHz frequencies and features a five-year battery life. Sierra’s installation includes the ELT unit, high-speed blade antenna, wiring and removal and reinstallation of cabin interior components as necessary. The Artex C406 unit is priced at $8,500 for basic installation or $12,000 installed with GPS position broadcast capability.

Aircraft Technical Publishers (ATP) and Avantext announced an amicable settlement of all federal litigation between the two companies. As part of the settlement, Avantext has agreed to have a judgment entered stating ATP’s patents are valid and enforceable. In return, ATP has granted Avantext a non-exclusive license to ATP’s patent portfolio for an undisclosed sum of money. The patent infringement suit was filed last July. According to court documents, ATP claimed to be the owner by assignment of U.S. Patent No. 5,987,474 issued Nov. 16, 1999, to Michael Sandifer. The relationship between Sandifer and ATP is unclear and ATP would not comment on the issue. ATP alleged that Avantext was infringing on the patent with its AD Basic Library, AD Small Aircraft Library, AD Large Aircraft Library and Complete AD Library and associated software. In the suit ATP alleged that Avantext had “actual or constructive knowledge” of the patent but continued to use, manufacture or sell the infringing products. The suit further alleged that two Texas FBOs–Longview-based Maxwell Aviation Services and Athens-based Dyson–were also infringing on the patent by “using and otherwise exploiting” the infringing products. ATP filed suit seeking a preliminary and permanent injunction enjoining defendants from further infringement, compensatory damages and other costs incurred. Jeff Seiler, ATP’s director of marketing, told AIN the company is not allowed to discuss the suit under the terms of the settlement. Kurt Schoenkopf, president of Avantext, also declined to comment.

United Airlines has signed a firm order for 25 Airbus A350-900 XWBs, formalizing a commitment originally announced last December, the European manufacturer announced today. Plans call for deliveries of the Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-powered jets to begin in 2016 and run through 2019.

United also plans to take delivery of 25 Boeing 787s during the same time frame, as it retires its fleet of aging Boeing 747s and 767s. Boeing announced on February 25 that United finalized that order, valued at $4.2 billion at list prices.

United originally revealed its intention to place both orders on December 8, when it also announced plans to place purchase rights for 50 of each airplane type. The announcement followed what United called a rigorous, six-month request for proposal process, resulting in the decision to place two separate orders. According to United, “The breadth in size and capabilities of the different aircraft models ensure the company has the right aircraft for the right market throughout the fleet replacement cycle.”

With completion of the United order, Airbus’s order book for the A350XWB now stands at 530 aircraft. It expects to assemble the first A350-900 next year, and deliver the first production example in 2013.

The FAA said in its annual aviation forecast this morning that key airspace safety and modernization efforts contained in the Next Generation Air Transportation System will play a vital role in spurring long-term sustained growth in air travel and the nation’s overall economic health. Domestic mainline and regional airline enplanements are projected to increase 0.4 percent in Fiscal Year 2010 and then grow at an average of 2.5 percent per year during the remainder of the 20-year forecast period. For general aviation, the FAA is forecasting a fixed-wing turbine aircraft growth rate of 3.1 percent a year, fixed-wing pistons at 0.1 percent per year and a rotorcraft growth rate of 2.8 percent a year. The agency characterized the current low-level growth rate for business aircraft as a product of “unique circumstances” that will dissipate over time. GA hours flown are forecast to increase from 23.3 million in 2009 to 38.9 million in 2030, paced by a 4.6-percent annual growth rate for fixed-wing turbines and a rotorcraft rate of 2.8 percent per year.

Final agreement over the way the European Union’s new “common basic standards for aviation security” are implemented in the UK will not be achieved by the existing April 29 deadline and could well be delayed at least until late June due to the country’s general election, which is widely expected to be held on May 6. Steve Marshall-Camm, the UK Department of Transport’s assistant director for aviation security, said today at the annual meeting of the British Business and General Aviation Association (BBGA) that the consultation process is taking longer than expected. He also indicated that, subject to detailed risk assessment, UK officials will exercise the latitude they have to allow some groups of operators to adhere to more flexible alternate security measures (ASMs) rather than the full EU requirements. The European Commission has relaxed the requirement to comply with the full standards so that it will apply only to aircraft with a mtow of more than 15 metric tons (33,068 pounds). National authorities are permitted to allow ASMs to apply to aircraft in appropriate categories up to a weight limit of 45.5 metric tons (100,308 pounds, a figure that includes all purpose-built business jets). The threshold for the full new security rules had been set at 10 metric tons (22,045 pounds) and 19 or more passenger seats.

The FAA’s long-promised April 10 release of its ADS-B final rule appears to have hit two bureaucratic stumbling blocks. For the agency to complete the process, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) must sign off on the program’s financial aspects, an activity that usually takes 90 days. Unfortunately, although FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt signed off in early December and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood reportedly signed off shortly afterward, AIN understands that the paperwork did not reach the OMB until February 19. But the OMB is not committed to complete its studies within 90 days, making mid-May the likely, rather than the official, final rule date. Possibly also affecting the date will be the result of an information technology security and controls audit of the FAA’s ADS-B program that was launched in December by the DOT Inspector General’s office at the request of Congress. Security has been a less publicized ADS-B concern, particularly regarding satellite outages and adversarial jamming, against which pilots have little protection.

The European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) has called on the U.S. government to extend the pre-clearance option now in effect at Ireland’s Shannon International Airport to business aircraft operated under commercial rules. Pre-clearance of business aircraft for U.S. customs and immigration checks began at Shannon early last week, but contrary to earlier expectations it is restricted to Part 91 operators, and they can fly only to a restricted number of U.S. airports. While the service is available to Part 91 operators of all nationalities, EBAA says that the current restriction on pre-clearance still eliminates 70 percent of European business aircraft. “Rapid and unhindered access between the U.S. and Europe is a vital and integral part of the service provided by business aviation,” said EBAA president Brian Humphries. “The EBAA warmly welcomes the excellent work done by members of this sector working closely with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to create a ‘U.S. border’ at Shannon Airport. However, because of the indivisible nature of commercial and non-commercial business aviation it is essential that this new service is provided to both elements of this non-airline sector,” meaning private and charter operators alike.