Daher Taps Elliott Aviation for HomeSafe Retrofits

Daher has selected Elliott Aviation to perform retrofit installs of HomeSafe emergency autoland systems on U.S.-registered TBM 940s eligible for the upgrade. HomeSafe is based on Garmin’s emergency autoland technology, which automatically brings the turboprop single to a safe touchdown on a runway if the pilot becomes incapacitated.

Elliott Aviation will perform retrofits for TBM 940s sold by Daher to include the autoland system upgrade once HomeSafe was approved by aviation authorities, as well as other 2019 model TBM 940s that are eligible for retrofit as a customer option. According to Daher aircraft division senior v-p Nicolas Chabbert, Elliott Aviation was chosen for its capabilities and resources to undertake the comprehensive scope of work involved in HomeSafe retrofits. The retrofit requires modification of the aircraft’s braking system, as well as wiring changes and integration of electrical relays to enable automatic activation of the flaps, landing gear, and landing lights.

Elliott Aviation has been a TBM-authorized service center since 2005 and is a leading aftermarket dealer for Garmin. The HomeSafe retrofits for U.S.-registered TBM 940s will be performed at Elliott Aviation’s headquarters in Moline, Illinois. Daher will be performing this retrofit work on airplanes from the rest of the world at its Tarbes, France headquarters, which is a repair station certified by EASA and FAA.

Baker, Bolen Join Forces on Opposition to PRD Proposal

General aviation leaders continue to press the FAA to rework its electronic Pilot Records Database (PRD) proposal, saying the current notice of proposed rulemaking would create burdensome and costly requirements with little safety benefit. AOPA president and CEO Mark Baker joined NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen in a letter last week to FAA Administrator Steve Dickson expressing “serious concerns” about the rulemaking. Their letter followed opposition voiced during the comment period, as well as from Bolen to Dickson during an NBAA virtual town hall meeting last week.

“Our industry continuously demonstrates its commitment to proactive and performance-based safety innovations, but in our opinion, the proposed PRD requirements for general aviation will not improve safety,” said the association leaders, objecting to the inclusion of Part 91 corporate operators in the requirements to submit pilot records in the electronic database.

“The high cost of compliance with these new requirements will turn operators away from general aviation at a time our industry is already facing significant economic and operational challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” they warned.

NBAA members have indicated they receive very few requests for pilot records from air carriers, they noted. “Due to the extremely low volume of requests, it is not cost-effective for these operators to submit data to the PRD, as the existing process meets current needs,” they added.

NATA Initiative To Put GA Contributions in Local Focus

The National Air Transportation Association (NATA) kicked off a “General Aviation Advancing America” campaign that will involve a series of meetings throughout the country with small focus groups to discuss the importance of rural airports to economic development, job recovery, and emergency response. Involving groups of 10 or fewer essential community leaders and aviation stakeholders, the initiative is designed to encourage open dialog about the value of general aviation to the community.

These groups also will focus on ideas on how the aviation community, working with local leaders, can communicate and demonstrate the significant contributions of the airport and tenant businesses during difficult and changing times. The initial General Aviation Advancing America events will take place in Colorado later this week and Nevada next week, with others now in the scheduling process.

“With General Aviation Advancing America, NATA saw an opportunity to showcase the immense value airports and general aviation businesses contribute to their regions,” said NATA president and CEO Timothy Obitts. “Without these crucial businesses, the essential roles that general aviation fulfills will cease, leaving a serious void in disaster-relief capabilities and diminishing the support of growth and prosperity in many cities.”

World Fuel Network Adds Major-market FBOs

World Fuel Services has bolstered its supplied fuel network with the addition of two FBOs in the Houston and Chicago areas. At Houston business aviation hub William P. Hobby Airport, Galaxy FBO, the newest service provider on the field, has signed on. Located 30 minutes from downtown, the FBO features a 23,000-sq-ft two-story terminal and a pair of 38,000-sq-ft hangars with 28-foot-high, 245-foot clear span doors capable of sheltering the latest big business jets.

“The new facility will provide visitors with an impressive gateway to Houston and a great experience for the flight crew,” said Tony Wright, the service provider’s general manager.

Meanwhile, B. Coleman Aviation, one of two service providers at Gary/Chicago International Airport, has joined the network. That FBO features an 18,000-sq-ft terminal, a 12,500-sq-ft arrivals canopy, and 90,000 sq ft of hangar space that can accommodate the latest large-cabin business jets.

“Our facility provides the best access to Downtown Chicago, with competitive pricing on hangar space and amenities that fit your needs,” said company v-p Chris Kozlicki. “You can expect safer approaches, less air traffic, and relief from the city’s overhead costs at B. Coleman Aviation."

Both locations will offer new payment methods, including the World Fuel Contract card and Avcard. As well, both will now participate in World Fuel Rewards, the supplier’s brand loyalty program.

GDC Delivers VIP Boeing 777 to Head of State Customer

GDC Technics last week delivered a Boeing 777-300ER to an undisclosed head of state customer. The Texas-based completions specialist fitted a fully customized cabin interior for the widebody and also made various exterior modifications, including a security system and multiple cameras.

Passengers and crew will be able to benefit from a comprehensive suite of connectivity technology, including a dual Inmarsat and Iridium satcom system and a satellite TV antenna providing live 4K television.

The cabin interior was developed using GDC’s weight reduction capability that it says has resulted in significant weight savings. In the VIP areas of the aircraft, cabin noise can be kept below 50 decibels.

The 777 now features a crew rest compartment in the lower fuselage that offers six sleeping pods. The lower lobe also includes so-called “fly-away kits” that contain a variety of materials and equipment needed for repairs and/or improvements to the interior while the aircraft is away from its base.

To comply with Covid-19 restrictions, the final stages of certification and approval were achieved using a live-stream video link to allow FAA officials to complete inspections.

GDC Technics also recently announced the delivery of a Boeing 787 to an undisclosed “premium airline” based in North America. This features the first installation of the company’s Falcon 300 connectivity package.

Duncan Responds To Legacy 500 AOG Event

Duncan Aviation’s Rapid Response Team (RRT) answered what it said was a rare AOG call for an Embraer Legacy 500 in mid-July. The call came from a customer in Omaha, Nebraska, and was tended to by Duncan’s RRT team from its Lincoln, Nebraska headquarters.

“PBIT time expired” and “Flt Ctrl No Dispatch” CAS messages were the initial faults to which Duncan airframe RRT tech Donovan Mosher and Embraer tech rep Brad Kluthe responded. “We don’t see many faults with Embraer Legacy 500s, so I look at these as opportunities to learn something, as well as a way to be there for our customers,” Kluthe said.

After isolating and fixing the faults in a matter of hours, the aircraft then displayed “Eng Fail” and “Eng Short Term Dispatch” CAS messages. Duncan engine line lead tech Rustin McCullough and airframe tech rep Frank Logsdon joined Mosher and Kluthe, identifying a faulty component as “RH engine electronic control unit channel B."

Lincoln’s RRT team has recently responded to calls from operators of six AOG aircraft while the team in Battle Creek, Michigan, responded to one and the Provo, Utah team responded to three. In addition to the RRTs at its three main facilities, Duncan has 14 RRT launch offices at its satellite facilities across the country.

Bell Opens Wichita Facility

Bell officially opened its new Wichita facility last week in building C-5, which is a space previously occupied by certain engineering resources of sister company Textron Aviation. Bell is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. The company said its Wichita outpost will support multiple programs and business areas, including engineering, supply chain, manufacturing, and corporate services. 

“I look forward to seeing Bell contribute to our strong aviation industry as a defense and commercial leader,” said U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kansas), a member of the Senate’s defense appropriations subcommittee. Bell is a finalist on the Army’s future long-range assault aircraft (FLRAA) and future attack and reconnaissance aircraft (FARA) programs with its V-280 Valor tiltrotor and Invictus 360 helicopter, respectively.

The programs have a potential combined value of more than $60 billion with aircraft deliveries expected to begin by 2028 for FARA and 2030 for FLRAA. Bell’s announcement follows a report in May from the Center for Strategic and International Studies that suggested that whichever OEM is selected to manufacture the new aircraft, Bell or Lockheed Martin’s Sikorsky unit (in partnership with Boeing on FLRAA), could encounter second-tier supplier problems and may need to bring more work on the aircraft in-house. 

Colorado Adds Wx Cameras to 130 Mountain AWOS Sites

Pilots can now visually observe weather conditions high in the Colorado Rockies from 52 new aviation weather cameras installed on a network of 13 mountain automated weather observing system (AWOS) sites, the Colorado Division of Aeronautics (CDA) and FAA announced late last week. This effort was made possible through a partnership developed between CDA and the FAA’s Alaska weather camera program that currently provides visual weather information to pilots with a network of more than 230 camera sites.

The 13 new camera sites now operational in Colorado are the first in the U.S. outside of Alaska to be incorporated into the FAA weather camera network. Pilots can access current weather camera images and compare them to clear day views, as well as play back a loop of past images to ascertain weather trends.

Additionally, the FAA’s upgraded website also provides one-stop access to a variety of safety of flight information, including Metars, terminal area forecasts, pilot reports, and radar and satellite imagery.

The CDA covered the $226,000 cost to install and configure four weather cameras on each of Colorado’s mountain 13 AWOS units. This project marks the third such collaboration between the CDA and FAA, following Colorado's wide-area multilateration system and ongoing remote tower project at the Northern Colorado Regional Airport (FNL).

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