Aviation groups including NBAA and NATA are applauding President Biden’s signing into law of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 yesterday. The measure includes an eagerly anticipated blender’s tax credit, which the organizations have supported as a means to boost the growth of the nascent sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) industry and increase investment in it.
Starting on January 1, 2023, a credit of $1.25 will be available per gallon of SAF sold as part of a blend with a demonstrated lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction of at least 50 percent compared to conventional jet-A. That credit will increase by one cent for each percentage point reduction in GHG above 50 percent to a maximum of $1.75 a gallon.
“NBAA has long advocated for this blender’s tax credit as a vital step in fulfilling our industry’s pledge to achieve net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050 under the Business Aviation Commitment on Climate Change,” said Ed Bolen, the organization’s president and CEO. “Implementation of this credit marks genuine progress toward increasing SAF production, promoting greater availability at general aviation airports, and reducing costs to end users.”
Karen Huggard, NATA’s v-p of government affairs, added “the SAF Blender’s Tax Credit and Clean Fuel Production Credit that President Biden has signed into law represent a five-year down payment on the policies necessary to scale up SAF production in line with industry demand.”
Business aviation flight activity this year is expected to end up 8.5 percent above that in 2021, assuming current trends hold, according to aviation data and safety specialist Argus International. In its mid-year review of flight activity, Argus found that business aviation flights surged in the first half but are expected to see a slower rate of growth in the second.
“We’ve been seeing the pattern of growth on top of growth begin to slow,” Argus said. Even so, the industry is “15 percent to 20 percent larger in the post-pandemic environment.” The company anticipates activity will continue to follow normal flight patterns, with peaks in August and October and a slowing in November and December.
Flight activity in the back half alone is anticipated to be 1 percent and 19.8 percent above the same period in 2021 and 2019, respectively. Counting the whole year, activity is still projected to be up 8.5 percent over 2021, 55.2 percent from 2020, and 18.2 percent from 2019.
In the first half of the year, flights topped 10,000 in 102 days, compared with just 27 in 2021 and 32 in 2019. Seven of the 10 busiest days occurred on Thursdays, with the busiest day, April 14, coming in at 12,867 flights. Fridays came in as the next busiest day, averaging 10,830 flights.
Eviation is still on track to perform the first test flight of its all-electric Alice aircraft by October, according to company officials. The startup aircraft manufacturer teased new photos of the Alice on Twitter this week, showing the nine-passenger aircraft on the tarmac at Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, where the first test flight is expected to occur sometime in the next five weeks.
Originally scheduled to take place before the end of 2019, the debut test flight of the aircraft has been delayed for some time without explanation. However, the company said it had completed ground tests in May in preparation for the initial flight at Moses Lake.
“Eviation is validating the changes we made to the aircraft after our initial ground testing as we prepare for flight,” a company spokesperson told AIN sister publication FutureFlight. Eviation did not elaborate on exactly what changes have been made to the aircraft since ground testing was completed.
After introducing an initial Alice prototype at the Paris Air Show in 2019, Eviation unveiled a revised design for the aircraft in June 2021, just a few months after an earlier prototype was damaged in a fire.
Continuing efforts to consolidate regulations and guidance documents into a single, searchable site, the FAA completed the migration of airworthiness directives (ADs) to its Dynamic Regulatory System (DRS).
On August 16, the agency decommissioned the AD databases that had been housed on the Regulatory Guidance Library. Users may still receive notifications of ADs and emergency ADs and can still subscribe for notifications. In addition, the FAA will continue to mail the AD Biweekly publication. But AD documents will only be available through the DRS, the Aeronautical Repair Station Association advised members, adding the FAA has added training tools for searching the ADs and use of the DRS.
The DRS is part of an effort by the agency to make it easier to research aviation guidance, providing a centralized knowledge center of FAA aviation safety material. The Aircraft Electronics Association noted that in addition to the Regulatory Guidance System, the DRS includes material from the Flight Standards Information System, among others. In all, the DRS houses more than 65 document types from a dozen different repositories amounting to two million regulatory documents that can be searched. The DRS is to be updated every 24 hours.
The day after the Hansen Helicopter trial resumed in Guam this week, a helicopter linked to the company crashed, killing the pilot and seriously injuring the two mechanics aboard. The MD369HS, registration RP-C6911, crashed during a maintenance flight in Mabalacat, Pampanga in the Philippines Tuesday morning local time. Pilot Diosdado Lumanlan died, and mechanics Ivan Abiong and Rodley Esogen were seriously injured.
At the time of the crash, the accident helicopter was operated by Pacific Spotters, a fish-spotting company formed by senior executives of Guam-based Hansen after they and that company were investigated and ultimately indicted in 2018.
Federal prosecutors allege that John Walker, acting as Hansen’s principal, and the company transferred N-registered helicopters and $5 million that Walker controlled to Pacific Spotters for the purpose of “continuing their criminal enterprise,” Marie Miller, special U.S. assistant attorney, alleged in Guam District Court Wednesday morning. “John Walker sold the helicopters from himself to himself to continue conducting his fraud,” she said.
Miller revealed Tuesday’s crash while arguing a motion during the trial this morning. She said Walker and other Hansen defendants, who will be tried separately, traveled to the Philippines to manage Pacific Spotters while out on bail related to the original charges filed in Guam in 2018. Pacific Spotters’ website lists offices in both Guam and the Philippines.
ExecuJet MRO Services Australia in Sydney is expanding its Falcon jet capabilities through more training of its personnel and new tools and equipment. The Dassault Aviation-owned MRO has been sending its staff for advanced technical training to sites in France and the U.S.
Examples of the new equipment and training include learning how to check wear tolerances on horizontal stabilizer rear hinge bushings using a Subito bore gauge. Also, the MRO is bolstering its non-destructive testing to include ultrasonic inspection of the horizontal stabilizer, which is “a task we previously had to bring in specialists from Dassault to perform,” said Grant Ingall, v-p of ExecuJet Australia.
As a result, the MRO can perform these inspections on the Falcon 50, 900, 2000, 7X, and 8X. In 2020, the facility was approved by Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority to perform line and heavy maintenance on those models.
“Investing in the specific tooling and training to perform these complex tasks in-country positions ExecuJet and Australia as a center of excellence for maintenance of Dassault aircraft,” Ingall added.
Aviation services provider AAR Corp. has established fellowships with Vincennes University in Indiana and the Aviation Institute of Maintenance in Indianapolis to further expand the pipeline of aviation maintenance technicians.
“The need for aviation maintenance technicians is as critical as the shortage of pilots and continues to grow,” said AAR v-p of repair and engineering Brian Sartain.
Under the program, students selected as AAR fellows receive scholarships to pursue airframe and powerplant mechanic programs while working at an AAR facility. Following graduation, students who are in good standing are guaranteed employment with AAR. Earlier this year, AAR enrolled its inaugural class of fellows at its program in Rockford, Illinois.
“AAR’s Fellowship Program removes the cost of education as a barrier to enter the aviation maintenance technician field,” said Michael Gehrich, Vincennes University’s director of aviation. “This shows AAR’s commitment to help fill the aviation maintenance technician pipeline and connect students with the potential for a six-figure career track.”
Aircraft cabin controls specialist Alto Aviation has introduced a new passenger control replacement program for Dassault Falcon 900B, Gulfstream IV, and other older aircraft equipped with non-serviceable Baker DECU switch panels.
Alto’s new Cadence solution replaces and upgrades the DECU with a drop-in unit that requires no modifications to the wood trim. The design covers the screws in the unit, with clear or black anodized bezels available at no additional charge.
The upgrade improves functionality by adding USB-A or USB-C charging ports with 15-watt, 3-amp output and an option for Bluetooth headphones. Existing wiring may be used depending on wire gauge and circuit breaker review. The new unit uses a True Blue Power TA-202 power supply with a limited lifetime warranty.
“Utilizing Alto’s direct fit-compatible approach, the Cadence replacement fits into the same cutout and may use the same wiring that powered the DECU unit,” said Kevin Hayes, the company’s v-p of sales and marketing. “In addition, the replacement is installation-friendly and increases user value by adding USB charging in the same profile.”
Alto expects the panel replacement to be available in two weeks or less.
It’s Not Easy Being Green, but AIN Can Help
Join AIN in Chicago on August 30 for a free, in-person Sustainability Forum to learn about how to develop a sustainability plan for your corporate flight department. Topics to be discussed by industry experts will include sustainability legislation and industry goals, benchmarking current sustainability efforts, sustainable aviation fuel, and offset programs such as carbon credits and book-and-claim. A wrap-up will feature an OEM’s initiatives that enable corporate aviation to achieve the carbon-neutrality goals set for the next decade. Register today—lunch will be served and seating is limited.
Mandates updates to the aircraft flight manual's limitation and emergency procedures section regarding the auto flight system's (V) ALTS CAP or (V) ALTV CAP modes. Prompted by a determination that during (V) ALTS CAP or (V) ALTV CAP modes, the flight guidance/autopilot does not account for engine failure while capturing an altitude. If an engine failure occurs during or before a climb while in (V) ALTS CAP or (V) ALTV CAP modes, the airspeed may decrease rapidly below the safe operating speed. Transport Canada said that prompt crew intervention may be required to maintain a safe operating speed.
Introduces new life limits for certain Dart Aerospace-manufactured landing gear forward crosstubes. Prompted by two in-service failures of Dart forward crosstube P/N D212-664-101 reported on Bell 412 helicopters. These forward crosstubes fractured during landing. Both failures were due to fatigue damage, involving forward crosstubes that have accumulated more than 20,000 landings.
Supersedes but retains the requirements of EASA AD 2022-0143, which required repetitive checks of the functional status of the integrated modular avionics Ethernet network and any necessary corrective actions, which may include an operational limitation. Updated AD adds a requirement to add an emergency procedure to the rotorcraft flight manual that provides procedures to be applied in case of loss of all multifunction displays (MFD). Prompted by reports of multiple MFD failures due to design deficiencies in the Ethernet network management of the integrated modular avionics suite that caused MFD failures after damage to an Ethernet wiring connector and/or avionics equipment.
Mandates the inspection of all multifunction spoiler (MFS) anti-rotation plates for cracks and hinge bolts for any possible evidence of rotation, and the replacement of all MFS anti-rotation plates with redesigned parts. Prompted by reports that some of the MFS anti-rotation plates failed in-service due to a thin wall design. The MFS anti-rotation plates were designed with overlapping tolerances on the inside and outside diameters, allowing for an extremely thin wall thickness once machined. Failed MFS anti-rotation plates can result in wear and failure of the inboard and outboard hinge pins. Significant wear and fracture of the pins could result in that particular hinge no longer supporting the load.
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.
AINalerts is a publication of AIN Media Group, 214 Franklin Avenue, Midland Park, New Jersey. Copyright 2022. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is strictly prohibited.
