Jet Edge is now one of the largest business jet fleet operators and managers after its acquisition of Columbus, Ohio-based JetSelect Aviation closed yesterday. The deal expands the Jet Edge fleet to more than 85 aircraft, adds a range of new models—particularly in the super-midsize business jet segment—and rounds out its reach throughout the U.S.
The combined entity encompasses a fleet of large and ultra-long-range aircraft, including Boeing, Gulfstream, Bombardier, Dassault, and Embraer models, in addition to the super-midsize Challenger 300/350 and midsize Learjet 60. JetSelect brings 18 aircraft, more than half of which are Challenger 350/300s. With its base in Columbus, JetSelect provides strategic locations throughout the Central and Eastern U.S. Jet Edge plans to leverage the additions by offering its point-to-point charter offering with its Gulfstream IV/Vs, along with the Challengers.
“JetSelect CEO and founder Robert Austin has done an incredible job building an amazing team, a significant fleet of Bombardier series aircraft, and the infrastructure to support the new fleet diversification,” said Jet Edge CEO Bill Papariella. Jet Edge plans to retain the existing JetSelect Aviation team and maintain its Columbus-based operations. After a transition period, Plans call for Jet Edge and JetSelect to eventually become one brand under Jet Edge International.
Foley: 2020 Will Be ‘Much Different Year’ for Bizav
Flight shaming will have a greater effect on the business jet industry in 2020, while demand for such aircraft in emerging markets will be on the rise, according to business aircraft consultant Brian Foley’s latest industry prognostications. “There are developments that would suggest that 2020 will shape up much differently than 2019,” Foley said.
He believes private and corporate fliers will seek to avoid judgment and public humiliation of Flygskam, or flight shaming, by paying into third-party carbon offset programs or by exiting aircraft ownership and opting instead for charter or fractional flying as the movement gains steam. “The latter is not at all helpful to new business jet sales, which have been stubbornly anemic for the past decade,” Foley added.
But better economic growth prospects overseas, attractive stock valuations in emerging markets, and expectations for a successful Brexit should stimulate “a decent uptick in offshore business jet sales,” Foley explained. “This comes at a good time as the economic cycle of the largest purveyor of jets, the U.S., matures and buyers remain skittish.”
Foley also believes that there are too many business jets chasing too few buyers: 41 new models from seven manufacturers competing for industry-wide unit sales of 700. That could result in some casualties in 2020, he said.
Puerto Rican FBOs Report Business as Usual Post-quake
Despite the earthquake and substantial aftershocks that rocked Puerto Rico last week, causing widespread damage and power outages on the southwest side of the island, Copeca Jet Center, an FBO at Rafael Hernandez Airport (TJBQ) in Aguadilla reports it is fully operational. Western Aviation Service Corp., which shares the aircraft-handling duties there, confirmed that it too is conducting business as normal and that the airport has power.
TJBQ is the southernmost U.S. port of entry, with 24-hour customs available with prior notice. At 11,702 feet, it boasts one of the longest runways in the Caribbean.
After the initial quake last week, other FBOs on the island—such as Jet Aviation San Juan at Luis Munoz Marin International Airport and Million Air, the lone service provider at San Juan Fernando Luis Ribas Dominicci Airport—told AIN over the weekend that operations at their respective airports and their facilities were also unaffected.
Researchers Explore Nanotubes for Composite Mfg
Engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a method to use carbon nanotubes to produce aerospace-grade composites without an autoclave, researchers announced in a paper published yesterday. “If you’re making a primary structure like a fuselage or wing, you need to build a pressure vessel, or autoclave, the size of a two- or three-story building, which itself requires time and money to pressurize,” said MIT professor of aeronautics and astronautics Brian Wardle. “Now we can make primary structure materials without autoclave pressure, so we can get rid of all that infrastructure.”
A team led by MIT post-doctoral student Jeonyoo Lee created a method to make aerospace-grade composites without requiring an oven to fuse the materials together. The team wrapped layers of material in an ultrathin film of carbon nanotubes that, when electrified, generated enough heat to cure and fuse the composite material together. As a result, the team produced composites as strong as those made in a conventional aircraft autoclave but only using 1 percent of the energy.
Next, the team will look for ways to scale the process for curing large sections of composites that would be used for primary aerostructures to generate enough pressure to fill any voids between the layers of materials. They’ve successfully done that in the lab with small samples.
The U.S. Navy has selected Leonardo’s TH-119 as its new training helicopter, the company announced last night. A military variant of the civil AW119, the new military trainer—designated the TH-73A—will replace the service’s existing fleet of Bell TH-57s. The initial contract, valued at nearly $176.5 million, is for 32 aircraft with spares, support. Subsequent individual year contracts are expected to bring total deliveries to 130 aircraft by 2024, with a value of $648.1 million.
Leonardo competed with Bell and Airbus Helicopters for the deal and those companies had offered variants of its Bell 407 single and light-twin H135, respectively. The aircraft will be assembled at Leonardo’s AgustaWestland Philadelphia Corp., with delivery “expected to be completed in October 2021.”
According to the Navy, the TH-73A will meet advanced rotary-wing and intermediate tiltrotor training requirements for the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard through 2050.
In July 2019, Leonardo announced that the TH-119 received IFR supplemental type certification from the FAA. The TH-119 is equipped with Genesys Aerosystems avionics and a Pratt & Whitney PT6B engine. It is based on the AW119 civil helicopter and features an adjustable observer seat that provides a full view of the cockpit, reinforced skids with removable shoes, and has the ability for “hot” pressure refueling without shutting the engine down.
Stevens Aero Gears Up for Citation XLS G5000 Upgrades
Stevens Aerospace and Defense Systems has completed the company’s first installation of a Garmin G5000 avionics suite in a Cessna Citation XLS, it announced yesterday. This is one of the first of 10 G5000 upgrades for the XLS to be done in North America under an STC developed by Garmin.
Stevens technicians performed the avionics upgrade at the company’s Greenville, South Carolina facility. In addition to the G5000 flight deck, the 15-year-old XLS also received fresh paint and a full interior refurbishment with leather seats, new cabinets, a reconfigured galley, and new passenger amenities, according to Stevens.
The upgrade replaces the original Honeywell Primus 1000 avionics with three landscape-oriented, split-screen displays and two console-mounted touchscreen-control pilot interfaces. Its Garmin digital automatic flight control system includes emergency descent mode as a standard feature. ADS-B Out is standard, as is PBN/RNP 0.3 and LPV/APV approach capability. Garmin’s underspeed protection, which enables fully coupled go-arounds, is optional.
Other options for the Excel/XLS G5000 upgrade include controller-pilot datalink communication with departure clearance capability, synthetic vision, Garmin SurfaceWatch, datalink weather via Iridium satcom, Doppler weather radar, and Garmin’s Flight Stream 510, which provides Connext wireless connectivity on the flight deck.
Stevens has installed a G5000 suite in a Hawker 400XP and completed dozens of G1000 upgrades in Beechcraft King Airs. It will begin its second G5000 XLS upgrade this month.
Walter Boyne, 90, the National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) enshrinee and U.S. Air Force aviator who has written more than 50 books and served as chairman of the National Aeronautic Association (NAA), died on January 9 in Silver Spring, Maryland. NAHF called Boyne a “skilled pilot, impactful leader, and prolific writer,” and added that the nation has lost a “remarkable aviation legend.”
Born Feb. 2, 1929, Boyne grew up in East Saint Louis and joined the Air Force in 1951. During his time with the USAF, he became a B-50 and B-47 combat crewmember and later was a nuclear test pilot, flying both the B-47 and B-52, according to NAHF.
After serving in Vietnam, he became assistant curator of the National Air and Space Museum in 1974 and later was appointed director. Expanding the museum’s reach in television, he co-founded “Wingspan–the Air & Space Channel” in 1988. He later stepped in as chair of NAA from 2006 to 2014, steering the association through a difficult time.
Boyne also made a significant mark with his research and writing career, selling his first article, which was about the P-36 Curtiss Hawk, in 1962 for $29. He went on to write more than 1,000 articles, 44 non-fiction books, and seven novels focused on aviation. Several made the New York Times Bestseller List.
Aeronautical Data Systems (ADS) has just released its new Ergo Blue iPad app that helps users identify maritime ships as an emergency aid for overseas flights. When an aircraft flying over the ocean experiences serious problems, knowing the position of ships could make the difference between a disaster or a survivable accident in the rare case where ditching the airplane into the ocean becomes necessary.
To use Ergo Blue, the user simply inputs two airport identifiers—for example, a departure and arrival point or a diversion airport near the outbound coast and one near the inbound coast—and then presses the “Vessels” button. The position of ships near that route is then displayed.
With airborne internet access, pilots can see real-time updates of ship positions and their track, but Ergo Blue also calculates predicted positions if connectivity isn’t available. The information about each ship includes the time, vessel name, its lat/long position, track, speed, and distance from the aircraft. The ship position information comes from automatic identification system data, which includes a live-streamed database of 220,000 ships.
Pilots and operators can subscribe to Ergo Blue for $49 per week, $89 per month, or $997 per year. The weekly rate is the minimum subscription length, and it offers an easy way to use the app for the occasional over-ocean flight.
U.S. Department of Transportation inspector general Calvin Scovel is retiring on January 31 after 42 years of military and civilian service. After retiring as a brigadier general from the U.S. Marine Corps in 2006, he became DOT’s sixth and is now its longest-serving inspector general. Sworn in on Oct. 26, 2006, Scovel has served under three presidents, appeared as a witness before 76 hearings, and directed a staff of more than 400 employees leading audits that are credited with helping make the national transportation system more efficient and safe.
Gulfstream Aerospace promoted Matt Baer to regional vice president of sales for the Northeastern U.S. and eastern Canada. Baer, who has spent the last decade working in the aviation industry, joined Gulfstream last spring as a regional sales manager after serving as v-p of global corporate aircraft finance with Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Larry Jorash joined Ross Aviation as v-p of operations, integration, and safety, with responsibility for Ross’s MRO activities, as well as its FBOs at Bedford (BED), Sarasota (SRQ), Worcester (ORH), Hyannis (HYA), and Westfield (BAF). Jorash previously spent more than 20 years with Signature Flight Support, most recently as senior v-p of operations.
Jost Lammers has taken over as CEO of Munich Airport operator Flughafen München GmbH (FMG), succeeding long-time head Michael Kerkloh, who retired. Lammers has held senior management roles at various European airports since the late 1990s, including with Hochtief portfolio airports, and most recently was CEO of Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport.
Duncan Aviation named Todd Shriner a technical representative for Bombardier Aviation products. Shriner, who has more than 12 years of experience with Bombardier business jets, has served as a lead mechanic in Duncan's airframe department since 2009 and before that was a line service specialist for Gran-Aire.
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