Dassault, Pilatus Tops in 2021 Product Support Survey
For the third year in a row, Dassault Aviation held the top spot for business jets in the annual AIN Product Support Survey. The French manufacturer of Falcon jets recorded this year’s highest overall average ratings of newer and older aircraft, with a score of 8.7 among jets based on results of AIN’s survey of aircraft operators, pilots, and maintainers. Gulfstream Aerospace came in second for a third consecutive year based on its mid-cabin jet overall average score of 8.5, while Embraer placed third with a score of 8.4.
For turboprops, AIN broke out the results of in-production and out-of-production aircraft. Pilatus recorded the top score for in-production turboprops with an overall average of 8.8, up 0.8 from last year’s score of 8.0. The out-of-production Mitsubishi MU-2 turboprop recorded a strong overall average score of 9.1, up slightly from 9.0 last year.
In comments to AIN regarding improvements to product support over the past year, a number of OEMs cited the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic on those efforts, although none reported interruptions in providing service and support to their customers. For this year’s survey, there were 885 respondents who rated 2,671 aircraft broken down into 137 models. The minimum number of ratings required to include a manufacturer’s aircraft in the final results is 20.
NBAA’s Safety Committee released an updated list of its Top Safety Focus Areas for 2021-2022 as it looks to highlight key areas that it believes the industry should focus on and address. Designed to promote safety discussions and new and ongoing initiatives within the industry, the list is broken into three main areas: addressing preventable accidents; engaging on unique operations concerns; and implementing mitigation strategies.
Areas surrounding preventable accidents include loss-of-control inflight, runway excursions, controlled flight into terrain, and ground operations and maintenance accidents. Unique operational concerns cover flight crew and maintenance operations proficiency, single-pilot accident rate, procedural non-compliance, and fitness for duty. And mitigation strategies include safety management systems implementation, safety manager qualification and training, and increased use and sharing of safety data.
“The Safety Committee took a deep dive into the previous Safety Focus Areas to look at what priorities are actionable, then broke the topics into usable chunks,” said NBAA Safety Committee chair Jeff Wofford. “This structure will help the committee focus its efforts and collaborate with other standing committees, helping to prioritize the topics with the most potential for safety improvements.”
The committee plans to focus on these areas throughout the upcoming year and use the list to shape agendas at events such as the Single-Pilot Safety Standdown.
Infrastructure Package Calls for $25B More for Aviation
The sweeping 2,700-page, $1 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R.3684) unveiled over the weekend would provide a boost to aviation with an additional $25 billion in funding for airports and air traffic control equipment, along with clean energy research support.
A bipartisan group of Senators unveiled the compromise package on Sunday and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) is hoping to push the bill through the chamber before the Senate departs for August break next week. The House, which has already left for its August break but remains available for a call-back, would still need to consider the bill.
Of note for aviation is the $25 billion in additional investment in aviation, including $5 billion that would be available through 2026 for air traffic control and tower equipment. Another $15 billion is allocated for airport infrastructure grants through 2030. The legislation would set aside $500 million of that allocation specifically for non-primary and general aviation airports and another $20 million for the contract tower program. On top of the $15 billion is an additional $5 billion specifically for airport terminal projects.
The package also addresses many other infrastructure needs across transportation and other sectors and includes a number of projects focused on clean energy and lower emissions programs. This includes grants that would be set aside for carbon capture and hydrogen research programs.
This year’s NBAA-BACE will feature the show’s first-ever Maintenance Pavilion that will provide maintenance vendors with an opportunity to exhibit their products and services in a dedicated space. The Maintenance Pavilion will be located near the keynote speaker area, advanced air mobility zone, and other “big-draw attractions,” including the indoor aircraft display. It also will be adjacent to the convention center exit to the outdoor airport display shuttle busses.
“The last two annual NBAA Maintenance Conferences were canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Frequent attendees and exhibitors to that conference told us how much they missed the opportunity to come together,” said Stewart D’Leon, NBAA’s director of environmental and technical operations. “We wanted to do something special for the maintenance community this year because they missed out on dedicated in-person maintenance conferences two years in a row. We are thrilled to present this new opportunity and hope maintenance exhibitors—especially smaller organizations that aren’t always able to exhibit at NBAA-BACE—will take advantage of it.”
In addition to maintenance providers, the Maintenance Pavilion will also host a silent auction to provide travel funds for recipients of maintenance scholarships. NBAA-BACE will be held October 12 to 14 in Las Vegas.
Prepared vs. Proficient: How Training Measures Up
If you asked them, most pilots, flight crews and maintenance technicians would claim they are proficient. But that’s the right answer to the wrong question.Instead, they should ask themselves whether they are prepared for any and every situation. Find out what difference that answer makes to safety.
With ongoing travel restrictions preventing an in-person worldwide tour of its PC-24 twinjet, Pilatus instead has launched a three-part “video tour” series that will be published on the Swiss manufacturer’s YouTube channel. The videos will provide detailed aircraft tours, with the first installment, already released, including a walk-around by company test pilot Matthew “Fish” Hartkop, who explains the features and benefits of the light jet’s design, systems, and performance.
To be released on August 6, the second installment will provide an in-depth look at the aircraft’s “advanced cockpit environment,” with a discussion on technologies, performance, and flying qualities. A final video, to be released August 13, will showcase the interior with Pilatus project manager Marta Esquer Cerezo highlighting the aircraft’s comfort and size, flat floor, cargo area, and seating layout. Cerezo also discusses the benefits of the forward lavatory.
“Interest in seeing the PC-24 first-hand has been tremendous, and we wish we could host everyone personally here at the factory in Switzerland,” said Pilatus CEO Markus Bucher. “Until we get that opportunity, this video tour is the next best alternative.”
Textron Aviation Delivers Air Ambulance Sovereign
Textron Aviation has delivered a preowned Cessna Citation Sovereign to Amref Flying Doctors, a provider of fixed-wing air ambulances in Africa, Europe, and Asia based at Wilson Airport in Nairobi, Kenya. The midsize twinjet is expected to join the organization’s fleet comprising a Citation XLS and Bravo and Beechcraft King Air B200 and become operational in September.
“The Cessna Sovereign was an easy choice for Amref Flying Doctors when looking to expand our aviation capability and capacity, so as to support our international, long-distance air ambulance operations,” said Amref Flying Doctors chief operating officer Mike Black. Reconfiguration of the Sovereign’s cabin for air ambulance missions, including a multiple stretcher system, was performed at the Citation Service Center in Orlando, Florida.
In addition to the aircraft acquisition, Amref Flying Doctors also selected Textron Aviation’s ProParts program to cover the airframe systems and avionics parts for line, scheduled, and unscheduled maintenance.
Georgia FBO Joins the Avfuel Network
Flightways Columbus, the lone FBO at Georgia’s Columbus Airport (KCSG), is now the newest member of the Avfuel-branded dealer network. The only towered airport in the central-eastern part of the state along the Georgia-Alabama border, KCSG offers a 7,000-foot main runway.
The FBO, which is open daily from 5 a.m. until 9 p.m. with after-hours callout available, offers full-serve fueling along with self-serve avgas. Amenities include a passenger lobby, pilot lounge with snooze room, flight-planning room, large conference room that can seat up to 26 people, crew car, and ground transportation assistance.
As one of the 650-plus members of the Avfuel network, the FBO will now participate in the Avtrip customer loyalty program and offer its contract fueling program. Customers using the Avfuel Pro Card can save money by placing all their purchases at the facility on one transaction and avoiding processing fees.
“At Flightways, we challenge ourselves to establish a personal connection with all customers and strive to create positive experiences that are unforgettable,” said company manager Michele Renfroe.
Deloitte Sees Cautious Recovery in Business Air Travel
After more than a year of canceled in-person meetings, conferences, and tradeshows, and closed workspaces, Deloitte sees business air travel by employees of U.S. corporations bouncing back in the second half of this year. However, in a report published today, the consultancy group said traffic levels will still remain well below pre-pandemic levels until the end of 2022, due largely to lingering uncertainty and concerns surrounding the virus as new waves of infection continue to spread globally.
The report acknowledged that while domestic leisure travel has “taken off” in the U.S., business travel faces “a slower return” due to a “more complex set of considerations.” In fact, the report said, “Companies find it difficult to ask employees to travel, and many of their clients, vendors, and partners have yet to open their doors to employees, let alone visitors.”
Deloitte described this situation as “temporary” as businesses will gradually be persuaded to increase their travel spend and in-person “interaction with customers” when competition heats up and growth opportunities increase. “Many companies plan to significantly accelerate their return to offices following Labor Day [September 6], and an uptick in corporate travel is expected to follow,” it added.
However, Deloitte sees international travel will remain depressed until borders fully reopen and Covid travel restrictions, such as quarantines and complex requirements to prove vaccination status, are eased.
Cutter Aviation named Nels Peterson customer relations manager at its Phoenix facility. Peterson, who previously worked at a flight school and on technician crews with the airlines, initially joined Cutter as a technician and later moved into team lead and inspector roles.
Duncan Aviation appointed Brian Foersch as Bombardier service sales representative at its facility in Lincoln, Nebraska. A U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Foersch has served with Duncan for seven years, holding engine lead tech and engine line team leader roles with responsibility for Rolls-Royce, Pratt & Whitney, and Williams engines.
Two of AIN’s editors recently received industry accolades. Editor-in-chief Matt Thurber received the coveted Bill Gunston Technology Writer of the Year Award at the 2021 Aerospace Media Awards, which were presented online recently due to the cancellation of this year’s edition of the Paris Air Show. Thurber’s winning entry was "Keeping the Pilot in the Loop on Flight to Autonomy." Senior editor Curt Epstein was presented with a Sapphire Pegasus Business Aviation Award for outstanding journalism at this year’s Caribavia conference held on St. Maarten. Epstein was honored for his consistent achievements and his dedication to professional aviation journalism.
Partners In Aviation hired Perry Bridges as v-p of operations. Bridges previously spent 20 years with Cessna Aircraft, including 11 with Cessna Finance Corp., and also has served as v-p of aviation for Bank OZK in Chicago.
Raisbeck Engineering brought Tim Morgan on board as v-p of engineering. Morgan brings more than 35 years of aerospace engineering, product development, and certification experience to his new role, including spending 20 years with TTF Aerospace and serving with AIM Aerospace.
Passur named Kurt Ekert non-executive vice chairman. Ekert, who will work with CEO Brian Cook to explore investment capital opportunities, has served as a director of the company since September 2009 and also has served as president and CEO of CWT and chief commercial officer of Travelport.
ACC Aviation appointed Viktor Berta as v-p of its newly created aviation finance practice. Berta has a background in working with lessors, airlines, and MROs on structuring and restructuring facilities and previously worked with ACC Aviation’s consulting team on an aircraft financing deal.
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