CAN Volunteers Step Up for Cancer Patients Amid Crisis
While Covid-19 has dampened business aircraft operations, one critical set of flights soldiering through the Covid-19 crisis are those for the Corporate Angel Network (CAN), the charitable organization that arranges travel aboard empty seats of business aircraft for patients traveling to or from cancer treatment.
Some patients have been able to—or were asked to—defer treatment during the Covid-19 crisis, but CAN stressed that efforts of the business aviation community remain critical because many cancer patients must continue treatments. “Those who are requesting to fly with CAN are in urgent need and we will continue to exhaust all options to serve them,” said CAN executive director Gina Russo.
On the positive side, Russo said, “We are still receiving available flights from other partner flight departments.” In fact, some operators have dedicated flights for CAN patients, saying they were honored to help, she noted. This was the case with the transport of three-year-old Giovana, who lives in California but is receiving treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
One such CAN volunteer flew her home when operations began to dwindle, CAN cited as an example. “Knowing that CAN is still in high demand with a decreasing supply of flights, a participating CAN partner offered to fly Giovana home even though it didn’t have a scheduled business activity,” the organization reported.
It seems we have found ourselves today as an industry in a position that can only be considered reactive with respect to pricing of preowned business aircraft. We must be very careful not to consider it a new norm for valuations of aircraft, but rather a symptom of the current Covid-19 crisis.
I have had a fair share of brokers calling me to say, “I hear you will take X for the plane you have for sale.” In many or most cases the numbers they are saying are absolutely not correct.
We should not react to the pandemic as a guide to the value of aircraft. As is always the case in a rapidly changing environment, we must let the reality of the situation evolve before we start moving in any direction with respect to pricing of aircraft.
Might our industry look different or at the very least a bit streamlined? Perhaps. Might the value of the asset take a short-term hit with respect to value? Maybe. There are too many variables today to begin to provide what will be a new demand for aircraft as we come out of this. But we will come out and clarity will be critical.
Bizav Industry Puts a Brave Face on Covid-19’s Impact
With the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on business aviation having reached every part of the world, this week saw the industry demonstrating a positive response to an irrefutably negative situation. The latest data from respected analysts confirmed that the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on business aviation is completely global. Both Argus International and WingX reported that business aviation flight activity was down by around 30 percent during March. Argus’s TraqPak flight tracking data shows U.S. traffic falling more steeply—by 46.8 percent—between March 11 and 17 as U.S. authorities started to impose restrictions.
The most optimistic projections do not appear to see any sort of sustained market recovery at least until the end of May. Even these are heavily predicated on unconfirmed assumption that virus infection rates will have peaked in some regions of the world by the end of April.
In the U.S., the NBAA and NATA trade associations pressed treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin to resolve their concerns that the business aviation sector might find it harder than expected to benefit from a share of the nearly $80 billion in financial aid committed to aviation under the CARES Act. Meanwhile, the European Business Aviation Association appealed to European governments to help sustain the industry through a mixture of financial relief and judicious relaxation of operational restrictions and regulatory requirements.
Positive Covid Test Spurs Dassault Wilmington Ops Pause
Dassault Aircraft Services at New Castle Airport (ILG) in Wilmington, Delaware, is pausing its operations immediately after an employee tested positive for Covid-19, the company announced today. “The decision is to help ensure the continued safety and health of our employees and customers,” it said.
Some staff will be furloughed until the facility can resume normal operations, which as of now is expected on April 20. The facility will continue to have some staffing to ensure basic FBO, administrative, and security functions.
Procedures that Dassault recently sent to customers about delivery and re-delivery of aircraft at the facility still apply. “As we continue to monitor the latest updates and information concerning the global Covid-19 outbreak, the health and safety of our employees, customers, and business partners remain our highest priority,” Dassault said. “Dassault Falcon Jet and Dassault Aircraft Services are following the latest guidance from local and state health officials as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).”
German Medevac Transports Patients in Special Isolettes
German helicopter air ambulance service DRF Luftrettung will begin transporting Covid-19 patients in “EpiShuttles” this week to protect patients and crew. Costing approximately $44,000 each, the EpiShuttles resemble over-sized neo-natal isolettes and allow patients to be connected to a ventilator via airtight access while being monitored and treated at the same time. They also allow patients to be transported more quickly as helicopters need not be disinfected between transports using the EpiShuttle.
Because of the Covid-19 crisis, “more and more people need an intensive care ventilation place as quickly as possible, but are currently mostly only transported on the ground, which takes time and can thus endanger life,” DRF said. The need to airlift more Covid-19 patients is expected in the coming weeks as the virus spreads and ever more patients will need to be transported greater distances to secure available medical ventilation.
Airlifting Covid-19 patients with traditional stretchers poses a distinct danger to aircrews. But the EpiShuttle largely ameliorates that risk. DRF notes that in traditional transports “the pilot, emergency paramedic, and emergency doctor are in direct contact with the patient and are at risk of becoming infected.” DRF will begin the service with two EpiShuttles and will ramp up to eight in the coming weeks.
Textron Equips Med Providers With N95 Mask Donation
The Wichita-based airframer of Beechcraft and Cessna airplanes this week donated 2,500 N95 face masks, as well as personal protection equipment—coverall suits, face shields, nitrile gloves, lab coats, and shoe covers—that will be used by medical providers and first responders in Kansas for the Covid-19 pandemic. Textron Aviation’s delivery brings its total donation of N95 masks to 7,500. It donated 5,000 of the masks last week.
“With personal protection equipment in such high demand, we are proud to make these donations of safety equipment to our local first responders and medical professionals who are on the forefront of fighting this battle every day,” said Textron Aviation senior v-p of supply chain management Todd McKee.
The donations were delivered to Wichita State University, which is serving as a central repository for PPE donations and is coordinating with the Kansas Department of Emergency Management and regional donors for equitable distribution of the equipment. “We are also grateful to WSU for leading the community response in the distribution of these critical supplies to our community partners,” McKee added.
SmartBay Certified on Tecnam P92JS
EASA granted a supplemental type certificate (STC) to Boggi Aeronautics, based in Arceto, Italy, to install the SmartBay sensor suite on the Tecnam P92JS light single-engine airplane. The SmartBay sensors turn the two-seat P92JS into a low-cost aerial reconnaissance platform capable of a variety of missions.
SmartBay can carry three sensors and includes its own mission computer, which can be operated by the pilot. Sensors that can be carried include gyro-stabilized cameras, Lidar (laser scanners), chemical, hyperspectral (for ground analysis), infrared, and others that can be adapted as needed by customers, according to Boggi.
The SmartBay without sensors installed weighs 13 kg (28.6 pounds), including the pylon, battery cables, and displays. Total weight with sensors is up to 22 kg. In terms of cost of operation, a SmartBay-equipped P92JS fits between the cost of flying drones and a light helicopter. According to Boggi, flying for 400 hours per year under a five-year amortization scheme, operating costs should not be more than €260 ($280) per hour.
There are three airplanes currently flying with SmartBay in Europe and one in the U.S., flying earth-observation and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions. Other uses for the SmartBay-equipped P92JS include precision farming, corridor mapping, environmental risk monitoring, remote emergency response, and law enforcement.
The ongoing effects of the global pandemic led GE Aviation to announce yesterday that it will furlough half of its U.S. engine assembly and some component manufacturing workers for four weeks. The furloughs are in addition to last week’s announcement in which it planned to cut 10 percent of its workforce and furlough 50 percent of its MRO staff for 90 days.
“Due to the unprecedented impact of Covid-19 on the commercial aviation industry, GE Aviation is implementing a temporary reduction in commercial engine assembly and some component manufacturing operations for up to four weeks,” a GE spokesperson told AIN. “We appreciate the commitment of all our employees during this difficult time, and we regret having to take this action. We will continue to deliver for our customers and preserve our capability to respond when the industry recovers.”
Most of its defense-related activity will be unaffected by today’s action. The impact of the furloughs will vary by site, depending on the product mix and customer base. GE declined to specify the number of employees affected. It has 26,000 workers in the U.S.
Early eVTOL Deliveries Boost EHang’s Revenues in 2019
Most eVTOL aircraft developers are several years away from even generating revenues and any sort of meaningful account of cash flow and profitability. China’s EHang published fourth-quarter and full-year 2019 unaudited financial results showing growth, albeit from a low starting point for the Nasdaq-listed company.
As of the end of December, EHang had delivered 61 examples of its 216 Autonomous Aerial Vehicle even though the model has yet to achieve type certification. Deliveries have been made to a number of “partners” worldwide who appear to be acting as dealers for the two-seat all-electric aircraft. The company also earns some money from conducting light displays using drones and other services.
Total revenues for 2019 reached RMB121.8 ($17.5 million), which was an increase of 83.2 percent on 2018. Revenues from sales of the 216 model accounted for RMB85.9 million ($12.3 million). In the process, EHang reduced its operating loss by 37.7 percent to RMB46.3 ($6.7 million) and its adjusted operating loss by 39.3 percent to RMB31.6 million ($4.5 million).
EHang appears to be focusing on achieving type certification through the Civil Aviation Administration of China. However, it is unclear when this process will be completed—especially in view of the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Free AIN Webinar: How Bizav Can Survive Covid-19 and Thrive
Join us on April 7 at 12:00 p.m. EDT as AIN senior editor Charles Alcock moderates a webinar panel with General Aviation Manufacturers Association president and CEO Pete Bunce, EBAA secretary-general Athar Husain Khan, and Duncan Aviation COO Jeff Lake about how the business aviation industry can not only survive the Covid-19 crisis, but thrive in the aftermath. Register now. You can also submit questions for the panelists ahead of the webinar.
Will Government Help Business Aviation Survive Covid-19?
AIN senior editors Charles Alcock and Kerry Lynch discuss the U.S. CARES Act and how it will affect business aviation.
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 AIN Publications, 214 Franklin Avenue, Midland Park, New Jersey. Copyright 2020. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is strictly prohibited.
For advertising in AIN Alerts please contact Nancy O'Brien at nobrien@ainonline.com.
