G500 Deliveries Put Gulfstream Over the Top in 2018

Business jet deliveries at Gulfstream Aerospace surged 40 percent in the fourth quarter—to 42 units (34 large-cabin and eight midsize jets)—largely thanks to nine shipments of the newly certified G500, parent company General Dynamics announced today. This pushed full-year Gulfstream deliveries to 121, one more than in 2017 and meeting General Dynamics’ guidance of 121 to 125 units. The mix favored large-cabin jets, at 92, up two from a year earlier.

Revenues at General Dynamics’ aerospace division, which also includes Jet Aviation, climbed 4 percent last year, to $8.455 billion, while earnings slid 5.5 percent year-over-year, to $1.49 billion, due to since-fixed completions problems at Jet Aviation and ramp-up costs for the new G500 and G600, said General Dynamics chairman and CEO Phebe Novakovic. Regarding the G600, she noted that the 35-day partial U.S. government shutdown delayed this model’s certification to the second quarter.

The company’s aerospace backlog stood at $14.505 billion at year-end, about $80 million higher than a year ago. Book-to-bill at Gulfstream was 0.91:1 for the year but would have been higher if a pending $1 billion aircraft fleet order had been firmed up by December 31, said Novakovic.

This year, Gulfstream is expected to deliver about 145 jets, with aerospace revenues projected to rise to $9.7 billion, according to General Dynamics.

Learjet Fleet Tops 25 Million Hours with New Intervals

Bombardier extended the intervals between major powerplant inspections on its Learjet 70 and 75 models to 3,500 hours, the company announced on Tuesday. The 500-hour extension, from 3,000 hours, will improve operator bottom lines by reducing the required inspections over the lifecycle of the twinjet's Honeywell TFE731-40BR engines, Bombardier said.

Bombardier unveiled the latest enhancement as the Learjet fleet collectively topped the 25 million flight-hour mark. The milestone occurred nearly 55 years after the first Learjet entered service in 1964, bringing among the earliest purpose-built business jet to the business aviation community.

“This is a significant milestone for our pace-setting Learjet family,” said Bombardier Business Aircraft senior v-p of worldwide sales and marketing Peter Likoray. “Reliability and longevity are two of the reasons customers among Fortune 500 companies continue to choose Learjet as the most trusted light jet platform.”

Bombardier acquired Learjet Corp. in 1990 and since has introduced eight new and upgraded models, including the Learjet 75, which entered service in 2013.

The company notes it continues to invest in new features for the Learjet family and in-service fleet, pointing to upgrades to the Garmin G5000 flight deck that are expected to be available on new and in-service 70 and 75s later this year. Unveiled last fall, the upgrades incorporate improvements in climb, cruise, and descent vertical navigation, along with takeoff and landing performance calculations, as well as an option for FANS-1/A+.

Bolen Notes Labor Shortage Strategies at SDC

At the opening general session this morning for the 30th anniversary edition of the NBAA Schedulers and Dispatchers Conference in San Antonio, Texas, association president and CEO Ed Bolen thanked the audience for their engagement in last year’s fight over ATC privatization. “When we work together and we coordinate, and we can communicate, we can make a big difference,” he said. “We can solve problems.”

Among the next challenges facing the industry is the intensifying pressure on the workforce, with shortages of pilots and maintenance technicians already being felt, said Bolen. “Recognizing that there is a shortage out there, we’ve got to find some way to continue to attract and retain the very best.”

He detailed a number of efforts NBAA and the industry can further use to attract talent at the grassroots level. For example, NBAA has already modified its professional membership tier to welcome students, allowing them to participate in the organization and take advantage of its resources. Through NBAA's regional representatives, it also works to foster career events for students, along with internships at companies introducing people to the industry and mentorship programs guiding them.

The organization has also revamped its compensation survey to give employers a better idea of what talent is worth.

After 2018 Growth, XOJet Eyes Expansion Under New Owner

XOJet closed out 2018 under new ownership with an 8 percent bump in total revenues, 17 percent rise in brokerage revenues, and growth in its membership programs and fleet. Acquired by Vista Global Holding in the fourth quarter, XOJet surpassed 1,000 members last year, a milestone reached in a little more than 18 months after the Brisbane, California–headquartered firm rolled out its Access Solutions membership programs.

Access Solutions offers three options: Select Access for occasional fliers; Preferred Access for fliers of more than 25 hours each year; and Elite Access for frequent fliers seeking guaranteed rates and availability. Growth was particularly strong with the Elite Access program, XOJet noted. The firm announced enhancements and incentives to that program early last year.

Meanwhile, the operator added two Citation Xs to its fleet, bringing the total number of aircraft to 43, and extended its Preferred Partner Network by 13 percent, which it said now provides on-demand access to more than 1,500 aircraft. XOJet focused on new relationships with operators in Europe to improve its charter capacity in that region. Under its new ownership, XOJet expects to further expand the fleet and extend its reach globally.

Rinaldi: Shutdown Presents Funding Reform Opportunity

The 35-day shutdown of the U.S. government “cut us deep” but presents an opportunity for funding reform, said the head of the nation’s air traffic controllers union. Speaking to the Aero Club of Washington yesterday, National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) president Paul Rinaldi traced through some of the damage incurred during the shutdown, including the stress on the controllers who worked without pay, along with the cessation of training of new controllers, the halting of programs such as Datacomm implementation, and the stoppage of key safety reporting programs. Rinaldi cited preliminary numbers that the shutdown cost $11 billion.

Concerning to Rinaldi is that the government is still operating under temporary funding, particularly when looking at the last year that was marked three shutdowns and a string of stopgap funding measures.  

But he added, “Out of this tragedy could be a wonderful opportunity. NATCA’s position on FAA reform remains unchanged.” While NATCA does not have a specific proposal, it backs four primary principles: ensuring the frontline workforce is protected, safety and efficiency is a top priority, the funding stream is stable and predictable, and the system remains dynamic and serves all users.

The current system does not meet any of those principles Rinaldi said, adding, “After this shutdown, I don’t think any of you…can say this system meets your core principles."

Epps Designates Two PC-12 Satellite Support Centers

Epps Aviation, the Pilatus-authorized sales and service center for the U.S. Southeast, is expanding its support reach with the designation of PrivateSky Aviation Services and St. Barth Executive as Pilatus satellite centers.

Located at Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) along Florida’s Gulf Coast, PrivateSky will offer a range of services for the PC-12, including interior, avionics, and scheduled/unscheduled maintenance. The FBO is part of the Phillips 66 brand. French West Indies-based St. Barth Executive, meanwhile, will provide maintenance for PC-12s in the Caribbean under EASA Part 145. Epps said St. Barth Executive will provide an option for AOG situations. Led by CEO Vincent Beauvarlet, the services provider additionally operates a PC-12 in its own charter fleet.

“With the ever-increasing number of PC-12s, especially in Florida, Epps is happy to welcome these companies to our network,” said Epps Aviation service center director Gus Persons.

Drone Roadmap Revealed at Davos

Earlier this month, the World Economic Forum (WEF) unveiled its Advanced Drone Operations Toolkit during its annual economic summit in Davos, Switzerland. The toolkit—developed in partnership with 41 government agencies, private enterprise, research organizations, and civil aviation organizations—is a playbook on how to create a framework to integrate drones into a national airspace.

It stresses nimble, performance-based regulations to create airspace access on a mission-specific basis: the government specifies the safety standard for the mission and the drone operator specifies how the standard will be met. The toolkit was developed in collaboration with the Drone Innovators Network and that organization’s pilot projects in Africa and Europe.

The Indian state of Andhra Pradesh announced it would use the toolkit to enable a pilot project for statewide drone delivery operations. “Now governments can learn from world-leading drone delivery projects in Africa and Europe to develop their own national oversight,” said WEF’s Harrison Wolf, who served as project lead on development of the toolkit. “This toolkit means governments don’t have to start from scratch and can begin societally important, socially responsible operations. We are really looking forward to the initializing of the pilot project in India.”

Garmin Now Shipping ADS-B GPS Source for Legacy 600/650

Garmin is shipping its standalone GPS 3000 WAAS/SBAS position sensor that interfaces with existing avionics to help meet ADS-B Out requirements. The unit can also provide position information to an existing flight management system to meet requirements for Required Navigation Performance (RNP), as well as support GPS-based vertical approach navigation, such as Localizer Performance with Vertical (LPV) approach guidance.

“Garmin continues to lead the industry with the most fielded ADS-B solutions that span all segments of aviation, including a wide range of commercial, defense, regional, and business aircraft,” said company vice president of aviation sales and marketing Carl Wolf. “We provide these aircraft with a solution that is cost-effective and is an easy-to-install alternative to the existing avionics manufacturer’s service bulletin.”

Aircraft that are eligible to use the GPS 3000 as an ADS-B position source include the Embraer Legacy 600/650, as well as the ERJ-135/145 from which the bizliner is derived. FTI Engineering, in cooperation with Atlas Air Service in Germany, has already received EASA STC approval for the GPS 3000 in these aircraft, with installation now available throughout Garmin’s dealer network. FAA validation of the STC is pending.

Make Your Voice Heard in the 2019 FBO Survey

AIN’s FBO survey is open for year-round feedback, but the deadline to vote in the 2019 survey is February 8. The results will be published in the April issue. The survey takes only a minute, and you can do it while waiting for passengers, on the shuttle bus to/from the hotel or any other time that is convenient for you. Participants will be entered to win a $500 Amazon gift card. Log on to www.ainonline.com/fbosurvey to rate your experiences at the FBOs you visit.