With the availability and adoption of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) slowly but steadily increasing, and more and more companies becoming involved in its sale, distribution, and ultimate use, several aviation organizations today announced the launch of the Council on Sustainable Aviation Fuels Accountability (CoSAFA). The group—which includes NATA, NBAA, EBAA, IBAC, GAMA, and Airlines for America as members—aims to provide clarity, transparency, and accuracy to the accounting practices documenting the use of SAF in multi-party transactions.
They launched the council to ensure the scale-up of SAF production will be enabled by well-designed protocols for SAF chain of custody through the supply chain life cycle, allowing for product and transaction tracing, a means of verifying relevant data, and proper accounting or claiming of environmental benefits.
“SAF provides a viable means of decarbonizing the majority of aviation operations both now and for the foreseeable future,” said NATA president and CEO Timothy Obitts, who will also serve as CoSAFA’s board chair. “The formation of CoSAFA is a critical step toward the aviation industry further reducing its carbon footprint and achieving its sustainability goals. The movement toward a cleaner future is continuing to gain traction and make inroads, unifying every sector of the industry.”
Airports in the Caribbean countries of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Barbados remain closed after La Soufrière, a volcano on Saint Vincent, roared to life over the weekend for the first time since the late 1970s, blanketing the island’s lush landscape in a layer of ash and blocking out the sun.
Argyle International Airport on Saint Vincent, as well as Canouan Airport, which serves other islands in the Grenadines, remain closed, hindering relief efforts including the delivery of fresh water, which is in desperately short supply due to interrupted flow and the contamination of reservoirs.
Power on Saint Vincent was also interrupted as a result of the eruptions on the northern side of the island, which scientists say could go on for weeks. Several scientists believe the 4,084-foot volcano is following the same pattern it did during its 1902 eruption that caused massive damage to the island and claimed the lives of 1,600 people.
While no deaths were reported from the latest eruptions and the resulting pyroclastic flow of superheated gases, lava rock, and ash, thousands of residents were evacuated from neighborhoods inundated with ash from plumes that rose more than 40,000 feet.
Prevailing winds carried the dense ash clouds 120 miles east, covering Barbados’s capital of Bridgetown and its Grantley Adams International Airport, which will be closed at least until Friday.
NetJets Updates Global Sustainability Efforts
NetJets’ U.S. fleet flew 750,000 nm with sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and offset 38,543 tonnes of CO2 in the past six months, according to the fractional aircraft provider's first biannual report on its global sustainability program launched in October. Also during the period, 7,650 carbon-neutral flight hours were purchased and the Columbus, Ohio-based company saw a 61 percent enrollment increase in its Blue Skies program, which encourages fractional shareowners to purchase an equivalent amount of carbon credits to ensure their flights are carbon neutral. NetJets Europe, which has been carbon neutral since 2012, offset 4,724 tonnes of carbon in the same period.
The report follows NetJets' February purchase of a 20 percent stake in WasteFuel, which aims to convert landfill waste into SAF by 2025. Further, NetJets plans to purchase 100 million gallons of SAF in the next decade.
In other news at NetJets, the company has retired the Marquis Jet card name in an effort “to create more consistency and build upon the strength of the NetJets brand,” the company told AIN this week. “By calling it the NetJets Card, we promote simplification across the marketplace and can leverage our brand name itself rather than having to promote different brand identities at the product level.”
NBAA is appealing to the FAA to ensure that its upcoming rulemaking requiring safety management systems (SMS) for Part 135 operators does not disrupt safety measures already in place, is scalable, and does not impose additional mandates such as for flight data monitoring. The FAA is anticipating releasing a proposal next year to require SMS for Part 135 operators, repair stations, and manufacturers.
In a recent letter to Rick Domingo, the executive director of the FAA’s Flight Standards Service, NBAA said it supports the core existing regulatory framework of SMS for business aviation operators, but “we remain concerned with support for existing safety cultures, scalability, and oversight.”
Many operators have used SMS for 15 years or more, NBAA said, adding that, as such, those operators “have a strong safety culture well embedded within their operations.” NBAA further stressed the need for scalability, given that the Part 135 on-demand charter business consists of many single-pilot, single-aircraft operators with limited personnel and budgets. Another concern surrounds any possible requirement for flight data monitoring (FDM). Some Part 135 operators use FDM and while it is viewed as an industry best practice, “the cost to equip aircraft and implement the program is not economically feasible for most operators,” NBAA said.
The bounce in used helicopter sales in the second half of 2020 seems to have been triggered more by bargain prices than by any real market recovery. So suggests first-quarter 2021 data from Canadian consultancy Aero Asset, which reported this week that retail sales of preowned twin-engine helicopters dropped to pre-pandemic levels. “Comparing the first quarter of 2021 with [the same quarter in] 2020, the on-market supply of twin-engine helicopters for sale decreased to pre-pandemic levels,” said Valerie Pereira, Aero Asset v-p of market research. “We saw a parallel decline in both transactions and supply.”
Overall, the market seems to have returned to the malaise of the fourth quarter in 2019. While the deal pipeline ticked up another 10 percent in the most recent quarter, returning to fourth-quarter 2019 levels, sales volumes for both light and heavy twins actually contracted from fourth-quarter 2020 levels, while sales volume for medium twins fell by half.
The Airbus H145 was the top performer in the category, posting a 50 percent increase in sales and a 42 percent drop in supply in first-quarter 2021 compared with fourth-quarter 2020. However, most of the market lagged, with five of the 13 preowned twin models tracked by Aero Asset posting no trades at all. Those included the Bell 412, Sikorsky S-92A and S-76D, Airbus EC155/H155, and Leonardo AW169.
Chantilly Air Jet Center, the newest FBO in the Washington D.C.-area, has also become the newest member of the Signature Select network, aligning it with more than 200 Signature locations worldwide. Members retain their individual ownership and brand but are supported by Signature’s sales and marketing teams and participate in the FBO chain’s customer loyalty programs.
Located at Manassas Regional Airport, Chantilly Air, which began serving transient aircraft last year and has achieved Stage 1 registration under the International Standard for Business Aircraft Handling (IS-BAH), features an 11,000-sq-ft terminal with a pilot lounge, snooze rooms, conference rooms, refreshment galley, and fitness center. The newly-built complex also includes a 50,000-sq-ft hangar and tenant offices. The company also operates a Part 145 repair station at the site.
“The fact that we can maintain our independent operations but add the elements of the Signature brand to our FBO is exciting,” said Tim Sullivan, Chantilly’s COO. “Building on our 30-year reputation as an aircraft charter and management provider, we look forward to becoming an FBO of choice for the metro D.C .area, as well as having a long and mutually beneficial partnership with the Signature network.”
FAA, EASA Approve Viasat STCs for CL300, CL350
Nearly nine months after Viasat announced it would offer Ka-band connectivity on Bombardier Challenger 300s and 350s, the satcom provider has received STCs from the FAA and EASA for these super-midsize business jets. The STCs allow the installation of Viasat’s Ka-band Global Aero Terminal 5510 at Bombardier service centers.
“Achieving STC approval for the Challenger 300 and 350 enables operators to take advantage of Viasat’s ‘no speed limit’ Ka-band IFC service—our fastest, most robust business aviation IFC offering in the super-midsize business jet market,” said Viasat business area director of business aviation Claudio D’Amico. “Our service supports business-critical productivity capabilities, including videoconferencing and VPN access, as well as simultaneous use of entertainment apps including video and audio streaming.”
Viasat’s terminal communicates with its ViaSat-1, ViaSat-2, and KA-SAT satellite platforms and is expected to be forward-compatible with its next-generation satellite system, allowing customers to install the Viasat hardware and subscribe to its service with assurances that they can access additional satellite capacity and expanded coverage once the ViaSat-3 constellation is launched and operational.
DOT Prepping for Manufacturing Jobs Relief Aid
The U.S. Department of Transportation has established a website and on Wednesday published a notice providing information surrounding participation in the Aviation Manufacturing Jobs Protection (AMJP) program that was established in the most recent Covid-19 relief bill, the American Rescue Plan Act. Congress set aside $3 billion for the AMJP program, which will provide grants for eligible manufacturers and maintenance businesses to retain, recall, or rehire affected workers. AMJP program sets up a 50/50 cost-share program to cover compensation for workers.
A strong proponent of the program, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association has encouraged affected businesses to prepare for participation, noting that the DOT is expected to begin accepting applications shortly. Eligible businesses should apply now for a Data Universal Number Systems (DUNS) and register online with the System of Award Management, GAMA advised. The DOT said those steps must be taken before a company can apply for assistance under the AMJP program.
“The DOT estimates that thousands of businesses that meet the statutory criteria may be eligible to receive funding through this program,” the agency said, adding it is “also taking steps to help ensure that small, socioeconomically disadvantaged businesses (including those in underserved communities) receive timely information about this assistance.”
According to the notice, applicants will need to furnish business, eligibility, and compensation details, among other information.
AIN Webinar: Mitigating 5G Avionics Interference
According to a recent RTCA report, terrestrial 5G telecom systems could cause interference issues with certain existing avionics. This can cause serious safety concerns for aircraft equipped with legacy radar altimeters and other vulnerable products. Solutions to this problem exist, and we will be highlighting these during an educational webinar on 5G interference concerns in the NextGen airspace presented by subject matter experts in avionics manufacturing, installation, and regulatory perspectives.
Please join us on April 28 as AIN editor-in-chief Matt Thurber moderates this webinar with Nathan Hernandez, business development sales manager at Southeast Aerospace; Dr. David Redman, director of Aerospace Vehicles Systems Institute and an RTCA committee member; and Ashley Ring, v-p of sales and marketing at FreeFlight Systems. Sponsored by Freeflight Systems.
AINalerts News Tips/Feedback: News tips may be sent anonymously, but feedback must include name and contact info (we will withhold name on request). We reserve the right to edit correspondence for length, clarity and grammar. Send feedback or news tips to AINalerts editor Chad Trautvetter.
AIN Alerts is a publication of The Convention News Company, Inc., 214 Franklin Avenue, Midland Park, New Jersey. Copyright 2021. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is strictly prohibited.
