Supply chain constraints continue to hamper Boeing’s ability to accelerate production of the 737 and 787 lines, leaving company CEO David Calhoun pessimistic about engine suppliers’ ability to reach full delivery capacity in 2023. Speaking Wednesday during the company’s third-quarter earnings call, Calhoun lamented Boeing’s immediate ability to take advantage of the robust demand for its commercial airplanes as it gradually sheds narrowbody inventory and delivers new 737s at a rate of 31 per month.
However, he called the inventory of 270 Max narrowbodies “an asset, not a liability” due to its ability to backfill deliveries. Still, the company delivered fewer Maxes in the third quarter—precisely 88—as it projects a total of about 375 for the year.
Last week at NBAA-BACE in Orlando, Florida, Bombardier held a ceremony to deliver the first production Challenger 3500 business jet to its customer. Les Goldberg, CEO of Entertainment Technology Partners, is a current owner of a Challenger 350 and plans to use the new aircraft as a business tool.
The Challenger 3500 is an upgrade to the 350 platform and offers a host of new features for the pilot and passenger, as well as a nod to sustainability. BJT got to take a look around inside Goldberg's airplane at the NBAA show to see these new features.
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is marking the 10th anniversary of the return of business aviation following the 9/11 attacks, but business aviation operations remain far below peak, and one of the chief barriers–the requirement for an armed security officer (ASO)–remains unresolved. DCA once stood as the flagship of Signature Flight Support, the sole fixed-base operation at the airport that in 2000 handled 44,592 general aviation flights, for an average of 122 a day.
Now the FBO handles just seven arrivals a day on average, and a busy day might see two dozen. But Mary Miller, vice president of industry and government affairs for Signature parent BBA Aviation, said the facility remains a central base for its network. “It’s such a high-profile location for us, where you have industry leaders, government leaders and congressmen pass through,” she said, adding that D.C. is a center of power and an important place to have visibility.
Wake turbulence can be a threat on any flight. Every aircraft, both large and small, generates wake turbulence as a function of creating lift. Wake turbulence vortices can vary in strength, duration, and direction and if encountered can cause a loss of control in-flight event or accident. The trick to surviving a wake turbulence encounter is to avoid it altogether.
Under IFR flying, wake turbulence avoidance is accomplished by air traffic controllers applying minimum separation standards based on each aircraft’s class, as determined by size or aerodynamic characteristics. Separation may be accomplished by assigning specific speeds (distance and time) or altitudes to be flown. Pilots are expected to fly the speed and altitude assigned by controllers to maintain this minimum separation.
California’s Central Valley is a major agricultural region that accounts for approximately half of the fruits and vegetables consumed in the U.S., and in its center sits Modesto and its airport Modesto City-County Airport-Harry Sham Field (KMOD). Until 2019, its long-time lone FBO was known as Sky Trek Aviation but its new owners decided to make a change. “I think they felt it was time to do something new and something fresh,” said Otto Wright, general manager of what is now known as the Modesto Jet Center (MJC). “Nobody really knew where Sky Trek Aviation was, so it was kind of a nice way to announce who we are and where we’re at.”
Farming makes up a large portion of the FBO’s clientele, according to Wright. “You’ve got guys who will fly in here with Citation Xs wearing dirty cowboy boots, jeans, and a big hat and that’s kind of normal out here,” he told AIN. Those customers help drive the location’s peak activity periods, which come at the beginning and the end of the growing season. With almonds a big local crop, one would think that they would be a readily-available snack in the FBO, but with all the growers passing through MJC, Wright has eschewed offering them to avoid showing favoritism to any particular brand.
Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) has signed with Lilium to acquire 100 Lilium Jet eVTOLs as part of a memorandum of understanding tied to the proposed development and operation by the Saudi flag carrier of an eVTOL network across the kingdom. The sides signed the MOU Wednesday during the sixth edition of the Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh.
Saudia said its purchase will accompany new electric point-to-point connections and seamless feeder connections to its hubs for business-class guests. Lilium promotes the Lilium Jet's flexible cabin architecture as ideal for meeting the needs of the premium market, which the company believes can help drive the early adoption of eVTOLs.
Poland’s state treasury and armaments agency have signed a contract with General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA-ASI) to lease MQ-9A Reaper remotely-piloted aircraft (RPA). The deal comes as part of a major increased in defense spending by Poland, fueled primarily by the Ukraine war and the need to bolster defenses and intelligence-gathering capability along Poland’s eastern border.
The lease contract is valued at $70.6 million, although no air vehicle numbers or duration has been revealed. While the sensor configuration of the Reapers is also classified, according to the announcement from defense minister Mariusz Blaszczak, it is noted that they will be used for gathering imagery intelligence and for providing radio-electronic reconnaissance.
Autonomous eVTOL developer Wisk Aero recently publicly revealed its new sixth-generation aircraft. The company's unpiloted Generation 6 aircraft is designed to carry passengers up to 90 miles, flying at a cruise speed of 120 knots and an altitude between 2,500 feet and 4,000 feet. Last month, Wisk and its primary investor Boeing jointly published a concept of operations. This document spells out a path to introducing uncrewed urban air mobility services in the context of the U.S. National Airspace System.
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