In-person EBACE Show Cancelled, Virtual Event Planned

This year’s in-person EBACE show in Geneva is the latest casualty of the Covid-19 pandemic, with co-organizers EBAA and NBAA announcing the show’s cancellation this morning. But the associations said they are now making plans for virtual EBACE programming from May 18 to 20, the previously planned dates for EBACE 2021 in Geneva.

“This continues to be a very challenging situation, and the health and well-being of our attendees and exhibitors remains our highest priority,” said NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen.

EBAA Secretary-General Athar Husain Khan echoed those concerns: “Although vaccination programs are ramping up, we are still in uncharted waters. We felt that, in May 2021, the safety of our exhibitors and attendees could not be guaranteed in the traditional EBACE format.”

The associations said details regarding the virtual EBACE programming will be forthcoming, but promised an event that “will gather the industry around compelling speakers and valuable content.” In addition, they will seek other opportunities to jointly promote business aviation throughout the coming year.

Exhibitors already signed up for EBACE 2021 will hear shortly from the show’s exhibits team, EBAA and NBAA said.

Gulfstream To Expand Appleton Completions, Add 200 Jobs

Gulfstream Aerospace is expanding and renovating its completions facility in Appleton, Wisconsin, as part of a larger effort to modernize its facilities and enhance customer support.

The Savannah, Georgia-based airframer will add more than 13,000 sq ft to its completions hangar at Appleton International Airport, bringing the facility to 126,500 sq ft. The improvements will also include upgrading the furniture finishing shop, consolidating completions back shops for improving workflow, and enhancing the shipping and receiving areas as well as HVAC systems. Along with the expansion, Gulfstream expects to add 200 new jobs.

“This expansion is another effort in our long-range plan to upgrade and modernize Gulfstream facilities to further support our customers,” said Gulfstream president Mark Burns. “Enhancing the Appleton completions operations is in line with Gulfstream’s culture of continuous improvement.”

Gulfstream expects the project to be completed in the third quarter. This follows a previous expansion of the Appleton MRO facility just two years ago.

Highly-modified Kopter Begins Flight Testing

Leonardo subsidiary Kopter reported today that it has begun flights of a modified SH09 test helicopter equipped with a bevy of new components, including rotor head, main gearbox, mast, and flight control configuration. The light turbine single prototype—dubbed P3—also features Garmin's G3000H integrated flight deck, marking the first time the system has been flown on a rotorcraft.

Swiss-based Kopter made the changes to P3 as part of a “planned product development roadmap towards the final type certificate certification.” The flight-test crew reported improved handling and stability through a series of low-speed maneuvers, including forward, rearward, and sideward flights, as well as spot turns at speeds up to 35 knots.

Over a series of flights launched from Mollis, Switzerland, the test envelope expanded to include climb, descents, autorotation, and turns up to 5,000 feet. “The overall helicopter response to control inputs has been improved. All maneuvers could be performed accurately with deliberate and precise inputs,” said chief test pilot Richard Grant. Kopter plans to use P3 to expand the SH09’s weight, speed, and altitude envelopes while assessing the new flight deck avionics suite. 

The SH09 made its first flight in 2014 and subsequently went through several major redesigns. Leonardo acquired Kopter last year for $185 million.

Preowned Bizcraft Transactions See Late-year Boost

Aircraft valuation analyst Asset Insight reported that preowned transactions in the fourth quarter were up 34 percent quarter-over-quarter and marked a 25 percent increase in demand from a year earlier. Asset Insight’s AI2 Market Report characterized the quality of the for-sale fleet in the “excellent” range and improved over the third quarter and from 2019.

Turboprops and midsize jets marked the largest improvement in quality of available fleet, while light jets posted a slight decline, it noted. Pricing trends were mixed, however, with light jets posting the only year-over-year increase in the fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, in the just-released Asian Sky Quarterly, data analyst Amstat found inventory availability in the light-jet segment has contracted 26 percent since midyear, while midsize jet availability is down 22 percent and heavy jets by 20 percent. These declines stemmed from late-year jumps in transactions, with November leading the way at a 61 percent increase year-over-year. While data is still preliminary, that dramatic swing might lead to an actual year-over-year increase in transactions for all of 2020, Amstat reported. 

As for values, Amstat’s data reflected a temporary rebound in the light segment in November but down 28 percent overall from last January. Heavy jets were down a net 16 percent from the beginning of 2020 and midsize jets down by 22 percent, the analyst reported.

New GA Customs Facilty Debuts at Cincinnati Airport

Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) has improved its arrivals processes for international general aviation flights with last week’s opening of a new U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facility.

Located in the Wheels Up Jet Center (formerly the Delta Jet Center), the lone FBO on the field, the $1.2 million, dedicated general aviation facility was paid for by the airport. Adjacent to the terminal, the facility is operated by CBP officers and is staffed daily from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m., with after-hours service as available.

“This new facility provides updated technology and a secure location for our officers to simultaneously complete our anti-terrorism mission and give the public better access to these necessary services,” said Richard Gillespie, Cincinnati’s port director. “With this modernized general aviation facility, we will enhance public safety while continuing to support legitimate trade and travel.”

Gillespie told AIN that before the opening of the new facility, GA clearance was performed on an ad hoc basis at the airport with some flights being rerouted to other entry ports. The new CBP facility will now standardize the procedures, he said.

“This was an important project for CVG as it expands the U.S. Customs clearance capabilities at our airport, benefiting private jet travelers and making CVG even more efficient and accessible,” added airport CEO Candace McGraw.

Trump Helipad in Palm Beach To Be Demolished

Demolition is expected to begin soon on the concrete helipad installed at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida. Built in 2017, local authorities approved the helipad on the condition it only be used to support the presidential mission while Trump was in office.

Private helipads are generally banned in Palm Beach unless used to support law enforcement or air ambulance operations; however, an exception was made for Trump on both security and traffic grounds, with members of the Palm Beach Town Council theorizing that it would alleviate traffic congestion from presidential motorcades. In practice, Trump rarely used the helipad, preferring ground transportation to and from Palm Beach International airport via a route often lined with flag-waving supporters.  

The 50-foot-diameter pad was built to accommodate rotorcraft as large as the Sikorsky VH-3D “White Tops” operated by Marine Squadron HMX-1 but drew fire in 2018 when some area residents objected to its use by one of the Trump Organization’s private Sikorsky S-76s during a family vacation.

House Bill Introduced To Help Preserve Aviation Jobs

House aviation subcommittee chairman Rick Larsen (D-Washington) and Rep. Ron Estes (R-Kansas) jointly introduced a bill in the U.S. House to establish a cost-share program that would help preserve aviation manufacturing jobs at risk of furloughs during the pandemic. Similar to the bill (S.3705) introduced in the Senate, the Aviation Manufacturing Jobs Protection Act of 2020 (H.R. 8002) would enable federal government assistance for up to 50 percent of compensation for “at risk” aviation manufacturer employees, as long as the company covers the remaining portion.

Under the program, the Department of Treasury would enter into six-month, renewable agreements. Manufacturers must demonstrate that the workers were at risk and use the federal assistance solely for their compensation. Compensation assistance is limited to 25 percent of the workforce and would be available until April 30, 2022.

“This bipartisan bill provides critical relief to help sustain the aerospace supply chain until the nation gets to the other side of the pandemic,” said Larsen.

"Recent groundings and the negative effects of Covid-19 have slowed production rates to record lows, putting thousands of Kansans out of work and jeopardizing our local companies' stability,” added Estes, who is a member of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Introduced with a half-dozen other cosponsors, the bill immediately drew strong industry support, including from five associations representing manufacturers, repair stations, and workers.

DFW’s FBO Joins Avfuel Network

DFW Corporate Aviation, the airport board-operated sole FBO at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), is the newest member of the Avfuel network. The airport took over the business aviation fueling operation last September after fielding complaints that the incumbent into-plane fueling service provider was not responsive enough to unscheduled operators, leading some major private aircraft operators to warn crews about long waits for fueling.

As a result, the FBO acquired a pair of 5,000-gallon tanker trucks and trained its staff to handle the fueling for the private aviation traffic, which in pre-Covid days would equate to 50 flights a day, according to airport manager of corporate aviation Stephen Courtois. He said on-demand fueling requests are now responded to “immediately.” Now operating as a full-service FBO, “We're able to fill an important need for the corporate aviation community at one of the nation's largest airports,” Courtois added.

Located in a former regional airline terminal on the northeast corner of the field, the FBO features a pilot lounge, snooze room, business center, 10-seat conference room, refreshment bar, and passenger lobby. On-field U.S. Customs is available, along with rental cars and shuttle service.

The location, which is staffed daily from 5 a.m. until midnight, has no aircraft shelter. However, Courtois told AIN that airport officials are thinking about building hangars to enhance its private aviation business.