Business and general aviation fixed-wing aircraft billings jumped by more than 14 percent year-over-year (YOY) in 2019 to $23.51 billion, marking the highest level since 2015, GAMA reported today. Up from the $20.56 billion reported in 2018, industry billings were propelled by an overall increase in shipments to 2,658 units, and in particular, a more than 100-unit jump in business jet deliveries to 809.
Shipments of business jets were at the highest total in a decade—874 were delivered in 2009—and last year’s tally is up 15 percent from the 703 handed over in 2018. However, the 525 business and general aviation turboprops delivered last year was down 11.3 percent from a year earlier. Piston aircraft deliveries climbed by nearly 200 units, to 1,324. The fixed-wing cumulative total is up a little more than 9 percent from the 2,432 shipped in 2018 and has reached a level not seen since 2008.
Shipments on the rotary-wing side struggled, falling some 16 percent, to 819 units, with declines in both piston and turbine helicopters. Correspondently, billings were down nearly 12 percent to $3.27 billion. Piston helicopter deliveries plummeted from 281 last year, to 179, and turbine helicopter shipments dropped to 640 last year from 696 a year earlier.
Congress Keeps Spotlight on Aviation Workforce Issues
While Congress passed comprehensive legislation in late 2018 to take a multifaceted approach to address workforce shortage concerns, lawmakers are keeping a spotlight on the issue as the numbers surrounding future employment needs remain daunting.
“Challenges in sustaining this workforce are looming, if not already upon us,” said House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chairman Pete DeFazio (D-Oregon) in testimony at a recent aviation subcommittee hearing. The Labor Department is predicting that 11,800 maintenance and technician jobs will need to be filled each year over the next decade, but the FAA certified only about 8,600 per year over the last four years. Troubling to the lawmakers is the lack of diversity in the current workforce. “We can and must do better,” DeFazio said.
The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 included several measures to address the workforce in general and the diversity of the workforce, but the House aviation subcommittee chairman said, “It is clear Congress can do more to ensure the U.S. remains at the forefront of aviation and aerospace.”
As for the FAA, Catherine “Kate” Lang, the new senior advisor to the FAA Administrator on aviation workforce outreach, said, “The FAA is committed to partnering with industry, the academic community, and government agencies to remove unnecessary barriers for entry to the aviation workforce, enhance education pathways, and build the pipeline of qualified aviation professionals."
Embraer Executive Jets delivered 10 more business jets in the fourth quarter and all of 2019 compared with the same periods in 2018, boosted by the entry of the Praetor 500 midsize and Praetor 600 super-midsize twinjets, the Brazilian airframer announced today. In the fourth quarter, the Brazil-based aircraft manufacturer delivered a total of 46 business jets, compared with 36 in the prior year’s quarter. For 2019, total business jet deliveries were 109, up from 91 in 2018.
Of the deliveries, three were for the Praetor 500 in the fourth quarter and all of 2019, while five Praetor 600s were delivered in the fourth quarter and 13 for the full year. Year-over-year, Embraer also delivered two more Legacy 500s (11) and one more each of the Legacy 450 (15) and Legacy 650 (five). The only model that saw fewer deliveries was the Phenom 300E, with 51 shipped in 2019 versus 53 in 2018.
Unveiled at the 2018 NBAA-BACE, the Praetor 500 and 600 are redesigned Legacy 450 and 500 fly-by-wire business jets. Embraer delivered its first Praetor 600 to an unidentified European customer in June, followed by a December delivery of the first Praetor 500 to launch customer FlexJet, part of the fractional operator’s $1.4 billion order for a mix of Praetor 500/600s and Phenom 300Es announced at NBAA-BACE 2019.
Elliott Aviation has completed its 10th Garmin G5000 retrofit installation in a Cessna Citation Excel/XLS. The aircraft work scope also included a Doc 6, engine hot sections, cabinets, and Gogo Avance L3 installation with Elliott Aviation’s “Wi-Fi enablement” STC. These G5000 installs have been completed at both its headquarters in Moline, Illinois, and its facility in Des Moines, Iowa.
The G5000 retrofit for the Excel/XLS replaces all existing Honeywell Primus 1000 avionics, including the autopilot and flight director. It adds WAAS/LPV, ADS-B, XM weather, electronic charts, SafeTaxi, engine monitor data, and emergency descent mode. Options include synthetic vision, turbulence detection, SurfaceWatch, underspeed protection, ChartView, CPDLC, and lightning and hail prediction.
In addition to the Excel/XLS, Elliott Aviation has installed more than 25 Garmin G5000 systems in the Beechjet 400A/XP and more than 350 Garmin G1000/G1000 NXi systems in King Airs. Elliott claims to have completed more Garmin flight deck retrofits than all other dealers in the world combined.
Duncan Earns Honeywell Component MRO Nod
Duncan Aviation has signed a new agreement with Honeywell that gives the MRO provider approval to facilitate repairs, overhauls, and exchanges on all of the manufacturer’s line-replaceable components and parts on behalf of its customers. The authorization by Honeywell immediately establishes Nebraska-based Duncan as a one-stop-shop for its clients requiring maintenance on Honeywell’s full line of components and parts and formalizes an existing relationship between the two companies.
“We have been collaborating with Honeywell for more than 40 years,” said Mark Cote, Duncan’s vice president of parts sales, component repairs, and satellites. “This long-term partnership ensures our mutual customers always receive the best experience, greatest value, and highest-quality component service possible.”
Duncan operates full-service repair locations at Lincoln, Nebraska; Battle Creek, Michigan; and Provo, Utah, and has nearly two dozen satellite facilities across the country to provide local support for avionics, engine, and AOG situations.
Viking Air Celebrates Milestone Anniversary
This week marks the 10th anniversary of a milestone in the revival of the Twin Otter utility aircraft by Viking Air. A decade ago, the company’s first production Series 400 made its first flight. It was the first of the turboprop twins to be built since the original de Havilland Canada production line was shuttered in 1988 after producing 844 legacy Twin Otters.
Viking decided to relaunch the aircraft after obtaining the type certificates for the out-of-production de Havilland Canada fleet, and five months after its first flight, the aircraft—MSN 845, to maintain serial number continuity—was delivered to launch customer Zimex Aviation at the 2010 Farnborough International Airshow.
“MSN 845 has been reliably, economically, and safely serving our organization in various special missions in Africa and the Middle East,” said Zimex CEO Daniele Cereghetti, adding the missions are primarily humanitarian aid and support to the oil and gas sector. “After 4,250 cycles, we are looking forward to many more happy landings with MSN 845.”
Viking has since delivered 155 Twin Otters, and as president and CEO David Curtis noted, “It’s hard to believe it has been 10 years since that memorable day I was able to witness MSN 845’s first flight from the cockpit’s right seat…I am truly amazed at what Viking has accomplished [over the past decade]."
Astronautics To Supply Badger Pro+ for Subaru Bell 412EPX
Astronautics, selected to provide the Badger Pro+ integrated flight display system for new production Bell 412EPXs and 429s, won a contract to further supply the avionics suite for Subaru Bell 412EPXs that will replace UH-X helicopters in the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force’s UH-1J fleet.
The Subaru Bell 412EPXs will be fitted with four six-by-eight-inch displays that show primary flight, navigation, and engine data, as well as system synoptics, weight and balance, and checklist information. In addition, the system will display high-definition video from multiple inputs and provide night vision compatibility.
“The Badger Pro+ system gives the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force enhanced situational awareness to reduce pilot workload and exceptional video capabilities for mission support,” said Astronautics president Chad Cundiff, adding the system is designed with color, contrast, letter sizing, and fonts that provide enhanced viewability and a wider viewing angle.
Further, the display package includes new advisory vertical approach capability, clear presentation of the helicopter terrain awareness and warning system, and seamless interface with other avionics, including advisory vertical approach guidance for areas without approved SBAS/WAAS approaches. As for video capabilities, the system accepts four video formats, including those involving either analog or high definition, and displays the video in full and split-screen modes with pan, zoom, and rotation functionality.
Aviation Disruptors To Gather for Revolution.Aero
The 2020 Revolution.Aero Europe conference in London (March 17-18) will bring together companies focused on new technology and business models aimed at transforming business and personal aviation. Much of the agenda is focused on so called urban air mobility and the new wave of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. The event also addresses efforts to reduce aviation’s carbon footprint in response to concerns about the industry’s long-term environmental sustainability.
Among the eVTOL start-ups due to speak are Volocopter, Lilium, Joby Aviation, ZeroAvia, and Wisk. They will be joined by several of the established aviation groups already actively supporting new aircraft programs, including Honeywell, Collins Aerospace, BAE Systems, and Rohde & Schwarz.
Key topics will include the following: alternative power sources, such as electricity, hydrogen, and sustainable aviation fuel; autonomous flight technology; new manufacturing techniques and aerodynamic concepts, ground infrastructure and supersonic flight.
In the first instance, money is a key requirement for fueling aviation’s would-be market disruptors. This is reflected in the Revolution.Aero agenda with key contributions from leading investment groups such as DiamondStream Partners, JetBlue Technology Ventures, CitiGroup and Boeing HorizonX. The event will also feature the Pitch@Revolution competition in which start-up business cases are assessed by expert judges and the audience.
In yesterday’s story on Alyssum Holdings and its subsidiaries Fly Victor and RocketRoute, Alyssum said that Louis David Spagnuolo was not a “business partner” of Fly Victor founder Clive Jackson.
Requires introducing a limitation or procedure to the aircraft flight manual, as applicable, to address an unsafe condition where the flight guidance/autopilot does not account for engine failure while capturing an altitude during ALTSEL, ASEL or ALTS CAP mode. According to Transport Canada, if an engine failure occurs during or before a climb while in ALTSEL, ASEL or ALTS CAP mode, the airspeed might drop significantly below the safe operating speed, requiring prompt crew intervention to maintain a safe speed.
Model(s): AS350B/BA/B1/B2/B3, AS350C, AS350D/D1, AS355E, AS355F, AS355F1/F2, AS355N, and AS355NP
Published: February 13, 2020
Effective: February 28, 2020
Requires repetitive inspections of the installation of the pull cables on the emergency float kits. Prompted by accident investigation findings and subsequent reports of difficulty pulling the emergency float kit float activation handle installed on the pilot cyclic.
Requires revising the airplane flight manual by attaching a supplement that contains new or revised operating limitations, abnormal procedures, and emergency procedures prompted by reports of continued flight after a flight control surface shutdown. If flight is continued after a flight control surface shutdown, the airplane is left without protection against flight control surface hard-over and force fight events on the remaining, operable flight control surfaces.
Requires disconnecting and removing the headset amplifier and microphone interface circuit card assemblies for the 3.5 mm audio and microphone jacks. Prompted by a cabin fire incident that occurred recently on an SF50 during ground operations. A subsequent investigation determined the probable root cause was a malfunction of the headset amplifier (P/N 38849-001) and the microphone interface (P/N 35809-001) circuit card assemblies for the 3.5 millimeter audio and microphone jacks. This malfunction can result in an electrical short and subsequent uncontained cabin fire without activating circuit protection.
Bell 525 Flight Test Program In Final Stages
Bell’s 525 Relentless flight test program is in its final stages, and the company showed a production-conforming aircraft at the recent Heli-Expo in Anaheim, California. FAA flight testing will conclude after about 2,000 hours of flying, and the four helicopters are at about the three-quarter mark, but the manufacturer is not providing a timeline for certification.
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