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There’s a flight department job that requires knowledge of airports and fixed-base operations, general aviation rules and regulations, aviation weather, Customs and TSA regulations, fuel prices and analysis, aircraft maintenance scheduling, flight log entries and another four or five dozen specialized tasks. It’s not that of chief pilot but it describes schedulers and dispatchers (S&Ds), whose daily responsibilities include many tasks similar to those of pilots and duties as diverse as driving airport shuttles, arranging catering, planning meetings and handling department accounting.

From January 15 through 18 in San Diego, NBAA hosted the 23rd annual Schedulers & Dispatchers (S&D) Conference, providing a venue in which schedulers and dispatchers, veterans and beginners alike, could gain a fuller understanding of their jobs. At the same time they met face-to-face with the vendors and service providers upon whom they depend when planning and conducting their trips.

“"We don’t fly it and we don’t fix it, but we do everything else,” said Holly Pendleton, flight operations coordinator at insurance provider Aflac. “I have been on this job for 25 years and it’s still difficult to define all the duties and responsibilities of the scheduler and dispatcher.”

To educate flight department and human resource managers, Anne-Marie Smith, aviation administration supervisor at Steelcase Aviation, compiled a list of 80 scheduler and dispatcher responsibilities. Most schedulers and dispatchers perform at least some of these, and some do even more, she said. Needless to say, “An extreme level of organization and high ability to multi-task, as well as to clarify processes, really helps,” said Smith. “We must be able to see the larger picture.”

Few are aware of the scheduler/dispatcher career path until they “fall” into the job from elsewhere in the same company, or get hired and then begin on-the-job training. At a few companies such as Jet Aviation, people selected for the job are mentored for about nine to 12 months before they assume the full responsibilities of the position, said George Kythreotis, v-p of human resources. Schedulers and dispatchers must be to handle stress and think on their feet, he said.

Peter Wood, general manager of charter operator Caliber Jet, said that even after more than 30 years in the business he is still “always learning.” Scheduler/dispatchers have been given “more and more responsibility over the years,” he noted. For these quarterbacks of the flight department team who like variety on the job, no day is the same as any other. They have well honed organizational, customer relations, accounting and a score of other skill sets and don’t mind being on-call 24/7, he explained.

Networking

S&D attendees uniformly agreed that the networking opportunities the conference presents make it one of their most rewarding events. Gary Brock, senior director of aviation at Yum! Brands in Louisville, Ky., said he encourages his schedulers–three full-time and one part-time–to partake of ongoing education such as NBAA’s annual S&D Conference. “It’s important to interface with their peers, learn new ways of doing things and network with people in the field,” said Brock. “Everybody benefits from it.”

This year’s S&D Conference drew a record 407 exhibitors, besting the previous record of 391 set in 2008. The more than 2,400 attendees made for a second all-time record. Recurrent training and workshops designed for schedulers and dispatchers are a key feature of S&D Conferences. “We have three days of educational sessions, six educational tracks and a range of sessions from beginning to advanced,” said NBAA’s Jo Damato, director of operations and educational development.

At this year’s conference a series of six sessions earned schedulers and dispatchers proof of recurrent training toward International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations (IS -BAO) certification. NBAA is looking at extending the learning experience year-round with a “virtual study group” for schedulers and dispatchers.

S&D Scholarships

Over the last 15 years NBAA member companies have funded NBAA Schedulers and Dispatchers Committee Scholarship Fund awards of more than $460,250 to 116 recipients. The Schedulers and Dispatchers Training Scholarships for specific training opportunities offered by other NBAA member companies have benefited 67 people to date.

2012 Scholarship Donors (total $38,325)

• Ac-U-Kwik

• Air BP Aviation Services

• Jet Aviation

• LimoLink

• Rockwell Collins Flight Information Solutions

• Signature Flight Support

• Universal Weather & Aviation

2012 Scholarship Recipients

• Nina Brown, Universal Weather & Aviation

• Carol Bavis, Transport Canada

• Kathleen Donnelly, ITT

• Alexandra Guras, Rocky Mountain College

• Christie Golubski, Jack Henry & Associates

• Jason Herman, Purdue University

• Theresa Rushton-Herrera, Air Services

• Kelly Madewell, FedEx Express

• Lori Mincek, Sherwin Williams

• Susan Moss, Textron

• Marguerite Murphy, Baxter International

• Matthew Wilson, Alpha Flying

Continuing Scholarship Commitments

Current and aspiring schedulers and dispatchers have the opportunity to take advantage of training scholarships offered by:

• Airline Ground Schools

• ASI Group

• Beyond and Above Corporate Flight Attendant Training

• CornerStone Strategies

•Embry Riddle Aeronautical University

• FlightSafety International–La Guardia & St. Louis

• Jeppesen

• MedAire NBAA GA Desk, Universal Weather & Aviation.

2012 Training Award Recipients

• Christopher Cloutier, Alpha Flying

• Patty Cupcupin, Aviation Concepts Holding

• Douglas Haddaway, Mountain Air Cargo

• Emily Hirschman, ELJ Aviation

• Mutebi Jackson, Air Uganda

• Don Jackson, Delta Air Lines

• Mekdim Bogale, Medrock Gold Mine

• Valerie O’Grady, private pilot and flight attendant

• Matt Porter, Dialysis Clinic

• Bonnie Ream, United States Aviation

• Douglas Schiff, SeaGil Software

• Christopher Smith, Universal Jet Aviation

• William Swett, Jet Linx Aviation

• Mayy Wassil, Elderhostel

Worldwide Support Expands

ExecuJet Aviation Group widened its world presence last year by opening 10 new FBOs throughout Europe, the Middle East and Australasia, ending the year with 16 bases worldwide. “We have seized the opportunity while business aviation is in recovery mode,” said Mark Abbott, Group FBO director. “We are currently evaluating further opportunities in Africa, Spain, China, South America and the Middle East.”

Despite a challenging economy, Global Aviation continues to expand. Its Portland, Ore., location is an international gateway and scheduling international trips is a growing portion of Global’s business.

Signature Flight Support, the world’s largest FBO and distribution network for business aviation with more than 100 locations in the United States, Europe, South America, Africa and Asia, at S&D 2012 rolled out its TailWins loyalty program for pilots, crew, schedulers and dispatchers and corporate flight and travel departments, offering one of the highest rates of rewards currently available in the industry.

Another incentive program unveiled in San Diego was the World Fuel Services Air Elite FBO network’s Triple FlyBuys points program. Paying with a World Fuel Services AvCard qualifies operators for fuel rebates, gift card awards or charitable donations.

Rockwell Collins announced a new function on its Ascend Flight Manager app that furthers paperless operations and also introduced improvements to the Collins regional trip planning for European operators.

Fred Barth Honored

The NBAA recognized Fred Barth, a past chairman and founding member of the NBAA Schedulers & Dispatchers Committee, with the 2012 Schedulers & Dispatchers Outstanding Achievement & Leadership Award. Created in 2008, the award recognizes people who have shared their outstanding business aviation industry expertise, provided extraordinary service, exhibited leadership and made significant contributions to scheduling and dispatching. Barth, best remembered in the industry as the longtime flight operations control manager of AT&T’s Aviation Division, resides in Vernon, N.J. with his wife, Janice.

The NTSB has issued a preliminary report on a Dec. 28, 2011, incident in which a Cessna Citation VII was substantially damaged when it departed the runway during an emergency landing at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (FXE) and crashed into an airport perimeter fence. The Citation had just departed from FXE on a Part 91 flight to Teterboro, N.J. when, according to the crew, they began experiencing “extreme” difficulty in controlling the aircraft. The captain reported that he needed to apply “a little left control” before the Citation entered a slow right turn that he could not stop. The first officer estimated that the aircraft’s maximum roll angle approached 90 degrees of bank, and he noted there were no warning lights or advisories in the cockpit during the event.

Using rudder and asymmetric thrust, the captain was able to prevent the aircraft from rolling over. He maneuvered the twinjet back to FXE and lined it up on a runway for what he described as a “one-time shot,” but landed long. The aircraft suffered damage to the wing leading edge and nose gear as well as a slice through the cabin outer skin and ribs as it came to rest against an embankment just beyond the fence. The crew and six passengers were uninjured.

Post-accident investigation of the flight surfaces revealed that the right-wing roll spoiler extended upwards 7.9 degrees as soon as hydraulic pressure was applied from a ground power unit. Application of the flight controls resulted in the spoiler being extended normally, but when the controls were at rest it returned to its previous extended position. When the spoiler hold down switch was engaged, the roll spoiler would lock down, but as soon as the switch was deactivated it would extend again. The aircraft’s right roll spoiler bellcrank and hydraulic actuator were retained for further examination.

The NTSB has issued its final report on the first of several incidents in which Cessna Citation 560XL Excels encountered rudder binding while in flight. The Board ruled that the manufacturer’s inadequate initial design and subsequent modifications of the aircraft’s tailcone allowed moisture to collect and freeze around rudder cables during flight above the freezing level, resulting in a loss of rudder authority. The Board cited the FAA’s lack of oversight of the manufacturer’s design and production as a contributing factor.

On Dec. 1, 2010, a NetJets-operated Excel encountered the problem while on a flight from Monmouth Executive Airport near Belmar, N.J. The crew reported it had been raining during the preflight examination, which included a visual inspection of the control cables in the aft equipment bay. No irregularities in the control systems were noted.

As the twinjet cruised at altitude above the freezing level on its way to Toledo, Ohio, the crew experienced no difficulties until they disconnected the autopilot and yaw damper on descent. During the landing flare, the pilot found he could not move the rudder pedals, but was able to land the aircraft safely. The Excel taxied to the ramp using differential thrust and braking. Once the engines were shut down, manual attempts to move the rudder were unsuccessful, and examination by maintenance personnel revealed that an accumulation of ice in the tailcone stinger had interfered with movement of the rudder control cables and pulleys.

Similar situations involving the 560XL were reported on Dec. 13, 2010, in Birmingham, Ala.; Dec. 20, 2010, in Idaho Falls, Idaho; and March 10, 2011, in Haynesville, Md. None of the incidents resulted in personal injury or damage to the aircraft.

Moisture Projection

In April 2005, Cessna issued a service letter directing operators of early production Excels to drill a 0.201-inch hole in the stinger to provide a drain path for accumulated moisture. Later models (S/N5545 and up) were to have this hole installed at the factory, but the FAA found that the hole diameter on some aircraft had been drilled smaller than prescribed.

On Jan. 21, 2011, the manufacturer issued an alert service letter (ASL560XL-53-08) acknowledging water-collection issues in the airplane’s stinger that could result in ice formation. The mandatory actions prescribed in the letter advised operators to look for drain holes in frames immediately forward and aft of access panel 321ABC and to drill them if not present. The letter also instructed operators to drill a drain hole in the aft canted bulkhead. According to the NTSB’s preliminary report, the Excel involved in the March 10, 2011 incident had been modified to comply with the ASL.

Last October, Cessna issued a new service bulletin (560XL-53-16) regarding the installation of a stinger drain as a follow up to its previous ASL. Recipients of the bulletin (aircraft S/Ns 5002-5372, 5501-5830, 6002-6080 and 6082-6086) were supplied parts and instructions to install a drain and seal. The service bulletin specified a compliance time of “within 1,200 flight hours or 18 months from the date of receipt, whichever occurs first.”

In response to the NTSB report, the Wichita airframer said it “has been looking at this issue since it first came to light and has developed a solution to address it,” citing the October service bulletin. “This service bulletin, which Cessna provides free of charge to operators, provides for the installation of a drain and seal that will reduce the amount of water entering the stinger and improve drainage.”

The FAA is in the process of composing a new airworthiness directive addressing affected 560XL models and has designated February 13 as the closing period for comments. The proposed AD would shorten the period of the mandatory required installation of the stinger drain modification to within 800 flight hours or 12 months after the effective date of the AD, whichever occurs first.

Janesville, Wis.-based Helicopter Specialties (HS) is carving a national niche as a maintainer and refurbisher of EMS helicopters. Avionics technician Jim Freeman founded the company in 2000, starting with a single BK117 HEMS refurbishment in a 3,000-sq-ft hangar and a handful of employees. Today HS has 25 employees working in nearly 50,000 sq ft of state-of-the-art space. HS is certified to work on 22 different makes and models of helicopter and six different engine types.

HS’s new, $1.6 million, 28,000-sq-ft main hangar and office complex features wireless work stations, precision-controlled temperature from an in-floor hydronic heating system, avionics and parts shop, and a spacious employee break room with kitchen, picnic room, outdoor patio and barbecues. “It’s bigger than my whole house,” Freeman jokes about the break room. The wireless work stations allow Freeman and his finance director to monitor any job’s progress in real time and know exactly where the company is with regard to schedule and budget. “Our work order system is electronic and layered. I can pull labor and parts off any job,” he said. The work stations also allow mechanics to access any manuals they need. They are all loaded on the company server.

Mechanic’s Eye View of Maintenance

An adjacent 14,000-sq-ft hangar houses airframe repair, paint and machine shops. HS’s paint booth can accommodate a Sikorsky S-92A and has a 3-million-BTU make-up unit with fire-suppression capabilities. The machine shop features a new four-axis Haas Computer Numeric Controlled machining center that HS uses to fabricate a variety of custom products including equipment racks and medical floors.

The company’s new anodized, modular aluminum medical floor is just the latest example of how Freeman and his team bring a “mechanic’s eye view” to crafting maintenance solutions to the EMS market. “Your typical glued rubber floor is easy to damage. To repair it, or get to the aircraft floor below it, is a multi-day task,” Freeman said. “And then you have to wait another day for the rubber sealant to dry after you repair or replace that floor. Any extra day of delay can cost a lot when you are the operator of a $7 million helicopter. Our modular aluminum floor can be removed one individual panel at a time and slides into the existing seat track and is screwed in place.”

Freeman and his team have designed various new pieces of equipment over the years, from equipment racks that mount recessed into aircraft window clearances to create more cabin space, tougher stretcher mounts, engine maintenance mounts and maintenance stands. “We like building things that work,” he said.

Freeman’s staff is a mixed collection of old salts and young guns, most of the latter coming from nearby Blackhawk Technical College, which has an aviation program also located on Janesville’s Southwest Wisconsin Regional Airport. Freeman said recruiting remains his biggest business concern. He said his company is competitive on wages, but can’t match the lavish benefit packages large OEMs offer. He said the problem is worsening as the number of available mechanics declines. “Here in Wisconsin, we have about 400 FAA-registered mechanics. About 82 percent of them are between the ages of 47 and 58 and of the remainder, more are older than 58 than younger than 47.”

This is The Jet Business’s new store in Mayfair, London’s fanciest neighborhood. It opened fully in January, complete with purpose-built 32-inch iPads that allow prospective clients to specify their private aviation preferences and view specifications and cabin layouts on life-size video walls. Sales discussions take place in a full-size mockup of an Airbus ACJ, featuring a living room, dining room and office. Company founder Steve Varsano tells AIN he is already busy fielding inquiries from visiting clients drawn from around the globe.

Sheltair’s newly constructed FBO at Northwest Florida Beaches Airport (ECP) in Panama City is the gateway to the Emerald Coast, a 100-mile stretch of powdery white-sand beaches on the Sunshine State’s panhandle that has long been a resort destination for general aviation passengers and pilots.

The company’s 5,200-sq-ft facility opened at ECP last summer after operating from a temporary building there since July 2010, two months after the green-build airport opened. Sheltair moved its operation from Panama City Airport, where it ran an FBO it acquired in 2006 from Sowell Aviation. Panama City Airport itself was closed in October 2010, five months after it was replaced by ECP. During the five-month transition period, Sheltair was effectively running two FBOs in the Panama City area–one at the now-closed airport and another at ECP.

The old airfield was landlocked and was unable to expand its runways to meet stricter safety zones, let alone stretch them to allow Boeing 737s to land there. This led to the development and construction of ECP as a green-field replacement, but built far enough away from “non-compatible” populated areas so that airport expansion or aircraft noise would not be a concern.

But this has also created a problem for both the airport and Sheltair ECP: they are located almost in the middle of nowhere, at least for now. In fact, several GA pilots have complained on airport information websites such as AirNav that ECP is simply too far away from anything and everything. The closest beach is a 30-minute drive, and with no traffic it’s a 30-minute ride to downtown Panama City. The old airport site had been in the heart of the downtown area and just minutes from beaches. Still, ECP is attracting GA traffic that previously flew into Destin Airport, and traffic is up 60 to 70 percent over the old airport.

Sheltair ECP general manager Michael Lerma acknowledged that the airport’s location is a challenge, adding that the lack of even a nearby restaurant (sans those few inside the airline passenger terminal) has forced him to take packed lunches to work every day. It has also created difficulties with last-minute catering requests, he said, since the FBO requires at least four hours’ notice for catering due to its distance from the city.

However, Lerma said, this will change as the land around the airport is developed. This is already starting to happen, albeit at a slower pace than originally expected due to the sluggish economy. Northwest Florida Beaches Airport deputy executive director Parker McClellan Jr. told AIN that ITT is building a 105,000-sq-ft office for some 150 employees on land adjacent to the airport. That project is slated to be completed this summer and will likely spawn construction of restaurants and hotels in the area, he added.

Once the economy is on more stable footing and aircraft traffic increases at ECP, the airport itself will also expand. There are plans to build a crosswind runway eventually, as well as a parallel runway to the existing 10,000-foot Runway 16-34.

FBO Complex

Sheltair’s terminal facility, which was designed and built to “green” Leed certification standards, includes passenger and crew lounges, lobby, conference room, flight planning/weather room and a cafeteria/vending area. Amenities at the FBO include concierge service; complimentary aircraft interior cleaning; catering; crew cars; rental vehicles; complimentary refreshments, snacks and ice; and free Wi-Fi. The FBO is open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. CST (it is currently the only Sheltair facility not in the Eastern U.S. time zone).

Sheltair charges a ramp fee but will waive it with a minimum fuel purchase–both are based on aircraft size in an attempt to make it fairer for operators. Piston aircraft are exempt from ramp fees altogether. The FBO pumps 100LL and jet-A supplied by Hiller, and it participates in the Chevron FlyBuys rewards program. It also offers volume fuel discounts and contract fuel through World Fuel, Colt, UVair and the Corporate Aircraft Association.

Besides the terminal building, the FBO complex also includes 1,680 sq ft of rental office space that adjoins a 9,100-sq-ft hangar, in addition to more than five acres of parking space. The hangar space is already sold out, Lerma said, and about 15 business jets and turboprops are based at the airport, along with several dozen piston aircraft.

Sheltair ECP’s busy season–March to November–runs counter to that of most destinations in Florida. “Since we’re located farther north in the panhandle, our best weather is over the spring, summer and early fall,” Lerma told AIN. “We start to see a rise in traffic for spring break in March and our peak runs into the fall. Actually, the best time of year to visit is in April, when the weather is absolutely beautiful.”

And since the area is a resort location, Lerma said that his facility gets “lots of weekend traffic, as well as over the holidays.” It also sees a lot of fractional aircraft traffic during these peaks. On holiday weekends, Sheltair’s five-acre ramp and an overflow area that the airport allows it to use are typically packed. Rental cars can also become quite scarce during these peaks, according to Lerma, so he advises crews to plan ahead if they need a car. Sheltair has Hertz cars on site, but there are several other auto rental companies at the airline terminal.

Once traffic levels increase further and the economy is on more solid ground, Sheltair plans to double the size of its footprint at the airport. According to Lerma, this eventual expansion to the south would include a 20,000-sq-ft hangar, four to six smaller “box hangars” for based corporate flight departments and more ramp. “Right now we’re just waiting for growth in the economy before we even think about Phase 2,” he said.

Airport deputy executive director McClellan doesn’t think Lerma will have to wait all that long for such a recovery, at least in the Panama City/Bay County area. “Bay County is well positioned for the future,” he said, noting that the area is a haven for defense contractors since it sits between Eglin and Tyndall Air Force Bases, near Fort Rucker and is home to the U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center. “We also have plenty of land for development, a huge pool of trained professionals and a tourist/resort area with a spectrum of accommodations.”

The European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) has urged the European Commission (EC) to correct what it views as anti-competitive aspects of its controversial emissions trading scheme (ETS). Unlike NBAA in the U.S., which has joined calls for ETS to be abandoned altogether for non-European operators, the European group supports ETS “as part of a multi-pronged approach to mitigating the rise of carbon emissions,” but is calling on the EC to ensure “fair and equitable implementation.”

EBAA’s main complaint in a January 9 statement is that ETS is being applied unfairly to business aviation in a way that makes the system more of a burden than for other modes of air transport. “On average business aircraft operators must acquire up to 96 percent of their historical emissions in permits compared with only 15 percent for airlines,” claimed EBAA, arguing that this imbalance could be corrected by further simplifying the compliance process for the so-called small emitters.

For example, EBAA is calling for Eurocontrol’s small-emitters support facility to be used for both reporting and verification, to avoid additional verification costs. It says that current costs for monitoring, reporting and verifying emissions for small emitters can amount to significantly more than the actual cost of buying permits to cover their carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

EBAA also has repeated its call for the EC to raise the threshold for using the small-emitters support facility from the current level of 10,000 metric tons of CO2 to 25,000 metric tons. It continues to urge all eligible operators to use the facility to improve the accuracy of the data it looks at when calculating emissions for each aircraft type.

In response to the recent European Court of Justice ruling that the European Union’s ETS can legally be imposed on non-European operators, EBAA has said that the verdict is valid in that this does not put European operators at an unfair disadvantage.

However, EBAA remains concerned about further political fallout from this court ruling. “Unfortunately though, this only adds fuel to the fire, stirring up a range of protests,” complained the Brussels-based group. “China and the U.S. are just two prominent examples. It is questionable whether the mechanisms put in place by the Commission to enforce compliance will be robust enough to [prevail over] widespread international resistance.”

India’s Business Aircraft Operators Association (BAOA) is urging the nation’s government to abandon plans for new restrictions on flights by foreign-owned aircraft. The campaign comes as the country’s tax authorities are probing 15 Indian companies that they believe have registered corporate aircraft offshore with the intention of avoiding customs duty and taxes.

BAOA is advocating the adoption of clear guidelines on access to Indian airspace and airports for foreign-owned business aircraft. Under current rules, operators face a frustrating maze of bureaucracy resulting in delays and restrictions that negate the case for this mode of transportation.

“Arduous regulatory directives are restrictive for growth. There is no plan or policy, no FBOs or heliports and limited parking and hangar space for general aviation in India,” BAOA president Rohit Kapur told AIN. “The myth that business aircraft are toys of the rich for fun and frolic needs to be shattered. Business leaders fly these aircraft to save time, adding to productivity and GDP.”

The 39-member association is concerned that if the Indian government presses ahead with planned new restrictions, Indian aircraft might face retaliatory action overseas. There is concern that operating business aircraft into and within India has become so impractical as to discourage inward investment.

“Pain points [in India] start with getting clearances in a timely manner,” said Lex den Herder, vice president for government and industry affairs at Universal Weather & Aviation. In his view, India should consider a blanket or multiple operation system to reduce requirements for landing and overflight approvals, improve processing of formalities for customs and immigration and introduce a favorable climate for purchase and operation of business aircraft taxation and regulation.

The cumbersome and time-consuming procedures for buying, importing and operating business aircraft only make the situation worse. It takes three months to get security clearance for qualified pilots and a week or more to get clearance for foreign aircraft to land. In addition, there are arbitrary customs duties, high duties on spares, sales tax on aircraft transactions and high ground handling charges.

“Landing clearance [requests] submitted on a Friday will typically not be approved until 10 or 11 days later,” added den Herder. “Clearance Processing severely limits planning and schedule changes in this ever-changing business climate.” By comparison, according to Universal, clearances for China and India’s neighbor Bangladesh now take only 3 days, while four days are required for Dubai and one day for Saudi Arabia.

A classic example of India’s bureaucracy was provided by a flight into India made by executives with U.S. aerospace group Honeywell. Their aircraft had a hydraulic problem in Mumbai and they were unable to complete their planned business trip because it would have taken a week to get clearance to solve the issue. Mechanics flown in from the U.S. to oversee repairs were unable to obtain an airport pass to access the aircraft.

“The overall sense I get is that bureaucracy is clogging things up. From what I gather in the industry, the leadership of many OEMs say it is actually easier to ship something from outside India to India than within,” a General Electric customer was quoted as saying in a presentation by Universal at the recently held India-U.S. Aviation Summit in New Delhi. “It just takes too long to get parts and support to the spot where they are needed.”

“We try to plan to arrive overhead the airport with excess fuel because you can get one hour holding due to traffic saturation,” said a foreign pilot at the same meeting.

“We travel globally all the time and do not experience these types of delays and limitations anywhere else,” said den Herder.

Despite setbacks and a climate that is not entirely friendly to foreign investment, business aviation activity in India is growing, driven by a rising class of millionaires. BAOA predicts the Indian business aircraft fleet will grow three-fold over the next eight years, from the current 621 aircraft to almost 1,800 in 2020.

“Passenger growth in commercial aviation is estimated to rise at a compound annual growth rate of 17 percent. India needs to put into place the requisite safety mechanisms, airspace control and monitoring mechanisms, and landing clearance processes at a time when its airspace is already quite crowded. Now is the time to adopt best practices for India,” said an aircraft owner under condition of anonymity.

India’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) is scrutinizing approximately 15 Indian companies that it believes are basing their foreign-registered corporate aircraft overseas to evade customs duty and taxes. In particular, the agency has confirmed it is looking at the status of a Boeing 727 owned by the UB Group, Punj Lloyd’s Gulfstream, Essar’s Boeing 737 and Bharat Hotels’ Embraer Legacy 600. Several other corporate jets are also understood to be under investigation.

“While genuine offenders need to be punished, India needs to ensure that it does not violate the spirit of the Article 24 of the Chicago Convention, which states that aircraft on a flight to, from and across the territory of another contracting state ‘shall be admitted temporarily free of duty, subject to customs regulations of the State.’ Otherwise, there is concern that other countries might reciprocate with similar restrictions,” said Rohit Kapur, president of India’s Business Aircraft Operators Association.

The heavy hand of this murky law revealed itself when the DRI seized a U.S.-registered Gulfstream belonging to India’s Punj Lloyd Group’s Singapore subsidiary on January 3 at Goa’s Dabolim Airport while flying a senior executive to Doha. The aircraft was released with a heavy bank guarantee, and a DRI official told AIN, “The spirit of the law has been violated, not the law itself.”

India levies no customs duty on foreign-registered aircraft if they fly out within 15 days of arrival in the country. Many Indian companies with subsidiaries in foreign countries having the same chairmen retain U.S. registration because India has complex bureaucratic processes. For example, India’s Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) does not allow cross-utilization of pilots from one aircraft to another, and should a pilot fall sick it is easier to replace him if the aircraft is registered overseas. Obtaining DGCA clearance for embarking on heavy maintenance and pilot training can also prove to be impediments. Also, Indian private and corporate owners generally believe that foreign-owned aircraft retain a higher resale value.

In the wake of news that Boeing plans to close its defense, space and security operations in Wichita by the end of 2013, the Greater Wichita Economic Development Coalition (GWEDC) has helped launch an aviation task force to develop strategies that will promote the city’s aviation industries.

Boeing, which has an 83-year history in Wichita, announced in early January it would close its plant with 97 buildings, 2 million square feet of space and more than 2,160 people, by the end of 2013. The facility was expected to play a major role in production of Boeing’s KC-46A aerial refueling tanker.

Nor is that the only bad news in recent months. In December, the U.S. Air Force announced it had excluded Wichita-based OEM Hawker Beechcraft’s AT-6 entrant from bidding for a light support aircraft (LSA) contract with a potential value of nearly $1 billion.

These decisions only add to the economic malaise of the city that describes itself as “The Air Capital of the World,” and which has seen its other aviation industry residents, primarily Cessna, Hawker Beechcraft and Learjet, lay off some 13,000 workers since 2008.

Congressman Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.) expressed frustration with the Boeing departure and the AT-6 decision. He described Boeing’s move as “a confession that it will not honor its commitment to Kansas.

“Do not be fooled by Boeing’s announcement that it will continue to rely on sub-supplier work in Kansas,” he warned. “While economically important…that work in no way substitutes for the decade of promises made by Boeing.”

He referred to the Air Force decision to award the light support aircraft to Sierra Nevada and its Brazilian partner Embraer as disappointing. “Indeed, it’s also troubling that the United States Air Force would rather have these fighter aircraft built in another country, when jobs are needed so badly here at home.”

Pompeo noted that in announcing a U.S. Air Force contract that would have seen major work on its KC-46A tanker done in Wichita, Boeing had represented the contract as adding 7,500 jobs in Wichita.

While loss of the LSA contract is a major blow to Hawker Beechcraft and Wichita, it would give Florida’s aerospace industry a boost, as Embraer plans to build a plant in that state for assembly of its EMB-312 Super Tucano under the Air Force contract. Further, Embraer’s U.S.-owned partner, Sierra Nevada, has announced that the plant will initially employ 50 skilled workers. Seventy-one direct and indirect vendors and suppliers in 21 states in the U.S. will employ another 1,200 people, said Sierra Nevada.

The Air Force has since issued a stop-work order regarding the contract, pending a decision in mid-March by U.S. Claims Court, which is considering an appeal by Hawker Beechcraft.

There is some good news. On January 10, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback and Bombardier Aerospace announced an expansion of the Canadian OEM’s Learjet facilities in Wichita. Bombardier said the growth is expected to create 450 new jobs over the next 10 years. The project has the backing of Kansas State to the tune of $16 million.

An analysis by the Center for Economic Development and Business Research at Wichita State University said that given Bombardier’s investment of dollars locally, the new construction, plus the new payroll (compared to the cost of public services delivered), the project would return $1.26 million to the city and $1.2 million to Sedgwick County for every dollar invested by those two municipal entities.