Elliott Aviation has expanded its network into Dallas with the acquisition of Four Points Aero on Love Field. The acquisition gives Elliott its fifth MRO, joining its headquarters facility in Moline, Illinois, and others in Minneapolis, Atlanta, and Des Moines, Iowa.
“The acquisition of Four Points Aero aligns with our mission to continuously meet and exceed our customer’s needs and expectations,” said Elliott president and CEO Greg Sahr. “We are excited to grow not only our footprint but also our team with the talented technicians working at Love Field.”
Four Points expands Elliott’s service capabilities to include Dassault Falcon 900B, 900EX, and 2000EX models. The business aviation services provider already has been authorized to service a range of Beechjet, Hawker, King Air, Premier, TBM, and Embraer airframes. It is also a Part 145 repair station on various Bombardier Challengers and Learjets, along with Cessna Citations and, at its Atlanta facility, certain Gulfstreams and Falcons.
The Love Field facility provides full-service airframe, engine, and avionics maintenance, repair, and overhaul. Elliott said the site will offer AOG services with FAA-licensed techs and well-stocked mobile repair vans.
“Adding a Texas-based MRO location to the Elliott footprint has been part of our strategy from the outset of our investment,” said Stephen Stites of Summit Park, Elliott’s investment partner.
Wheels Up topped the list of U.S. Part 135 operations in the first half of the year, logging 82,478 hours, according to data specialist Argus.
In its TraqPak Mid-Year Business Aviation Report released this week, Argus noted that the Wheels Up hours during the first six months of the year edged up from the 82,083 logged a year ago. The on-demand private aviation provider by far outpaced all other Part 135 operations, according to the Argus data.
The next closest was Executive Jet Management, which logged 39,410 hours under Part 135, while Solairus Aviation followed at 26,437, XOJet at 23,625, and Exclusive Jets at 23,375. Jet Linx, Jet Edge, Jet Aviation, Corporate Flight Management, and Clay Lacy Aviation rounded out the top 10, in that order.
Executive Jet Management saw the biggest jump in hours flown, up by 10,473 over the 28,937 flown in the first half of 2021. Solairus also saw a significant increase, up 8,725 hours this year over the 17,712 logged in the same period in 2021. However, XOJet, Jet Linx, and Jet Edge each saw declines in the first half, according to the Argus report.
Proportionally, Jet Aviation was also one of the operators with the largest gains, seeing almost a 50 percent increase from 4,947 hours in first-half 2021 to 9,748 this year, moving it into the top 10.
California-based Davcon Construction is expected to complete Phase 2 of its private hangar project at Mesa, Arizona’s Falcon Field Airport next month. Construction on the complex, which can accommodate the latest ultra-long-range business jets, began in March 2020, with fully-occupied Phase 1 opening last August.
The two phases, which were constructed at the cost of $70 million, consist of 350,000-sq-ft of turnkey hangars ranging from 3,700 sq ft to 15,000 in either a wholly-occupied or shared format, plus an additional 50,000 sq ft of Class A business space. Phases 3 and 4, which will double the development cost, are slated to come online in Q3 of 2023 adding a further 250,000 sq ft of hangar, retail, and Class A office space.
According to Davcon president David Wakefield, the hangars are some of the first of their kind, incorporating solar and batteries within the design along with a number of other efficiencies. The unique design and execution of this project led to the facility winning an energy star quality achievement award.
Ground handling services for the hangar tenants are provided by the Avflight FBO which opened last year as part of the complex.
The FAA is proposing to update flight operations and maintenance manual requirements to reflect industry use of electronic versions in various formats, including electronic flight bags (EFB) and portable electronic devices (PED). The requirements apply to Part 91K and 135 operators, as well as air carriers.
Current manual requirements “do not appropriately accommodate the use of electronic manuals,” the agency said. “For example, the requirement that each page in a manual display the date it was last revised creates unnecessary barriers for operators that use electronic manuals.” Further, the requirement that some certificate holders “carry” appropriate parts of the manual on each aircraft when away from their principal base of operations does not reflect current technology.
This action would require manuals accessed in electronic format to “display the date of the last revision in a manner in which a person can immediately ascertain it.” However, there is no explanation in the proposed amendment as to what “manner” is acceptable.
The requirement that appropriate parts of the manual be aboard airplanes during operations would be revised to require program managers or certificate holders to simply ensure that pertinent parts “are accessible” to flight, ground, and maintenance personnel. Lastly, the proposed rule would eliminate outdated language that refers to accessing information in manuals kept in microfiche. Comments are due September 12.
Textron’s eAviation division is continuing work on its Nexus eVTOL prototype aircraft and is aiming for a first flight “in a couple of years,” according to division president and CEO Rob Scholl. The U.S. company previously had indicated that it had dropped plans to bring the model to market.
For now, work is proceeding on the design and build of the latest iteration of the hybrid-electric aircraft Nexus 4 EX, which Textron unveiled in January 2020. A dedicated team within the new eAviation business unit based in Wichita is now leading the program, with support from colleagues from other Textron divisions, including Bell, Textron Aviation, automotive supplier Kautex, and newly acquired Slovenia-based light aircraft manufacturer Pipistrel.
In November 2021, Scholl indicated that it no longer viewed the Nexus as an active program. He explained that Textron would not proceed with the full development of an eVTOL vehicle until it could make the business case for doing so, implying that this was heavily predicated on significant advances in battery technology.
Given its background in certifying the all-electric Velis Electro fixed-wing training aircraft and its previous work on various eVTOL designs, Pipistrel’s contribution could be especially valuable with the Nexus. “There are a lot of synergies [within Textron] on the advanced air mobility side,” Scholl said last week. “People find the work that we're doing exciting and interesting.”
Want more? You can find a longer version of this article at FutureFlight.aero, a news and information resource developed by AIN to provide objective coverage and analysis of cutting-edge aviation technology.
Revv Aviation, the rapidly expanding Midwest-based aviation services provider, has now added a new facility at Quad Cities International Airport (KMLI) in Moline, Illinois. The company occupies a 6,300-sq-ft hangar and it plans to provide piston, turboprop, and jet maintenance under an extension of the company’s Davenport, Iowa facility’s Part 145 certificate.
In addition, from an adjoining 4,400-sq-ft two-story office, the location will also offer flight training and aircraft charter services with one of the company’s King Airs based there.
“I’ve been observing Revv over the past two years and this is an ideal company to continue Moline’s legacy of supporting general aviation,” said Benjamin Leischner, KMLI’s executive director, adding the company’s passion for aviation is evident in everything it does. “Revv will pursue aggressive development of our existing general aviation plans on the airfield.”
The FAA has approved the expansion of the approved model list (AML) supplemental type certificate (STC) for installation of the uAvionix AV-30-C electronic flight instrument in more than 190 additional high-performance single-engine and light multiengine aircraft.
First STC’d in 2020, the AV-30-C can be installed as either a primary attitude indicator or directional gyro, but it also includes probeless angle of attack, baro corrected altitude, indicated/vertical/true airspeed, bus voltage, g load, and GPS navigational information. It fits in a standard 3-inch panel cutout.
Aircraft fitted with a uAvionix tailBeaconX ADS-B Out Mode S transponder can also use the AV-30-C as the control head for the transponder. The tailBeaconX, which includes a rear navigation light, ADS-B Out with Mode S, SBAS GPS, and antennas, replaces a typical tail-mounted position light. It also meets requirements for use of space-based ADS-B, which is being implemented in Canada.
“We are excited to make our highly successful AV-30-C available to a broader market segment,” said uAvionix COO Ryan Braun. “We have received a lot of requests from aircraft owners in the light-twin and high-performance singles market for solutions that preserve the unique look of their panel while offering the significant benefits that a digital EFIS can bring.”
The Volusia County (Florida) Sheriff’s aviation unit, Air One, has signed a purchase agreement with Bell for two 407GXi helicopters. The new aircraft will mark the fourth and fifth Bell 407s to serve in the sheriff’s department fleet. Operated out of DeLand Municipal Airport near Orlando, Air One operates 24/7/365 to support the sheriff’s office’s aerial operations, including law enforcement, search and rescue, fire suppression and monitoring, and special missions such as SWAT team fast-rope insertions.
“For more than 20 years, Air One has relied on the Bell 407 to complete life-saving missions in Volusia and other neighboring counties,” said Capt. Richard Fortin of the sheriff’s special services law enforcement operations division. “The 407GXi was Air One’s choice aircraft when looking at growing our fleet and expanding our mission efficiency.”
The Bell 407GXi is powered by a Rolls-Royce M250-C47E/4 turbine engine with dual-channel fadec that is designed to deliver improved hot and high performance, fuel efficiency, and 133-knot cruise speeds.
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.
Requires revising the existing airplane flight manual to provide emergency procedures for inconsistent or unreliable flight data and emergency and abnormal operations procedures for generic input/output (I/O) internal module failure, and revising the operator's existing FAA-approved minimum equipment list items for the multi-function probe heating, air data, and inertial reference systems, as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency AD. This AD was prompted by a report of a weak point identified in the Falcon 7X EASy avionics architecture, which, coupled with theoretical generic I/O card failure, could lead to misleading data on display units.
Expands the applicability of an existing AD calling for inspections and repairs, if necessary, of the center fuselage frame assembly at the intersection of the lateral pylon with the floor spar. The AD stemmed from cracks found in the affected area.
Requires repetitive detailed visual inspections of tail rotor (TR) damper bracket assemblies for cracks and corrosion and replacement, if necessary. During scheduled inspections, some TR damper bracket assemblies were found cracked. Subsequent investigation revealed that the cracks originated from the outer edges of the TR damper bracket lug bores and were due to stress corrosion. This condition could lead to fracture of the affected part, possibly resulting in failure of the tail rotor damper, and consequent loss of control of the helicopter.
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.
