The first Airbus ACJ TwoTwenty, an executive variant of the A220 single-aisle airliner, was delivered today from the A220 final assembly Line in Mirabel, Canada, to Comlux Completion in Indianapolis, Indiana, where the green corporate airliner will undergo a VIP completion. Airbus Corporate Jets said the TwoTwenty represents “a new and unique value proposition to business aviation buyers,” featuring intercontinental range and expansive personal space spread over six living areas at a price of about $72 million.
"Delivering the first-ever ACJ TwoTwenty to Comlux marks a major milestone in the business aviation industry,” said ACJ president Benoit Defforge. “This game-changer is going to pioneer new flying experiences and an unbeatable value proposition to the large business jet market."
Airbus Corporate Jets has partnered with Comlux, the Swiss VIP aircraft specialist and operator, and its U.S.-based completion facility to produce and install configurable interiors for the first 15 TwoTwentys. The preconfigured interiors will speed completion time and expense, and bring the completed cost below the price of a new ultra-long-range business jet, according to Airbus Corporate Jets.
“We are ready to get straight to work and deliver a quality, luxurious product to our client base,” Comlux Completion CEO Daron Dryer told AIN. Dubai-based luxury hospitality and investment company FIVE is the launch customer, with delivery of its completed TwoTwenty expected in December.
Global business aviation flight activity in December surged 43.7 percent from the same month a year ago, with the North American market posting the strongest December on record and European activity up 63.7 percent year-over-year (YOY), according to just-released TraqPak data from Argus International. “December flight activity was pretty much right on forecast, as the Omicron Covid-19 variant did not cause any noticeable disruptions to business aircraft operations,” noted Argus v-p of market intelligence Travis Kuhn.
Business aircraft flying in North America climbed 36.7 percent YOY and 16.5 percent above 2019 levels. By operational category, Part 91 activity jumped 40 percent from a year ago, followed by fractional with a 38.6 percent increase and Part 135 with a 32.9 percent gain. Large-cabin activity was up 60.7 percent, while flights increased for midsize jets by 43.7 percent, for light jets by 34.5 percent, and for turboprops by 21.8 percent.
In Europe, large-cabin activity recorded another triple-digit gain, ascending 142.6 percent YOY. There were more than 66,000 business aviation flights recorded there last month. Asia-Pacific also posted solid gains last month, with more than 54,000 business aviation flights—up 70.3 percent YOY.
“We continue to see the results of strong demand and expect that to continue well into 2022,” said Kuhn, who predicts that flying this month will rise 36.6 percent YOY in North America and 90.8 percent in Europe.
Fourteen organizations representing operators, maintainers, and other aviation industry segments are urging FAA Administrator Steve Dickson to address long-standing issues surrounding the availability of instructions for continued airworthiness (ICA). “The FAA’s enforcement of rules requiring aircraft manufacturers to provide, and maintainers to possess, maintenance information has been inconsistent for decades,” the groups told Dickson in a recent letter that asked him to have an Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee (ARAC) take up the matter.
Regulations require design approval holders (DAH) to prepare and make available ICA to persons who must comply with the instructions, including owners and maintainers. “The lack of clear guidance regarding DAH obligations has led to the proliferation of practices that are inconsistent with the language and intent of ICA requirements, including absolute refusals to provide data, onerous licensing policies, and economically impractical pricing,” the organizations said.
Maintenance organizations can be forced to either forego business opportunities or pay hefty prices for the information, while operators can face limited options for maintenance at increased prices. “Since some of the offenders are foreign DAHs, U.S. companies are disadvantaged internationally,” the letter stated.
The FAA has determined that access to and possession of ICA is important to safety, the organizations told Dickson. “However, FAA’s nebulous enforcement regime represents a weak link in the airworthiness chain,” they said.
NBAA, in concert with the Shanghai Airport Authority (SAA), has canceled the 2022 Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (ABACE), citing the ongoing challenges associated with the Covid-19 pandemic. ABACE, which launched in 2012 and attracts more than 9,000 attendees from 50 countries annually, was scheduled to have taken place this year from April 12 to 14 in Shanghai.
This marks the third consecutive year that NBAA and its ABACE partner SAA have opted not to hold the event as a result of pandemic concerns and associated travel restrictions.
“As we know, the continued pandemic has prompted governments around the world to institute travel restrictions and requirements, presenting significant logistical and other challenges for exhibitors,” said NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen. “We were hopeful we could have held the event, but the health and safety of all ABACE participants is our highest priority, so we have elected to postpone it through 2022. We will continue to support the resurgence of business aviation in Asia and around the world.”
Spring City Aviation, the lone service provider at Milwaukee’s Lawrence J. Timmerman Airport, has joined the Avfuel branded dealer network.
The FBO offers customers a newly-renovated two-story terminal featuring a spacious passenger lounge, pilot lounge with snooze room, flight planning area, conference room with seating for up to 30, complimentary refreshments, and courtesy car. It has hangar space able to accommodate aircraft up to midsize jets. The company, which is operated by pilots, offers a Cessna-authorized Part 145 service center as part of its services, along with a flight school. The full-service FBO also provides aircraft management, rental, sales, and charter with its fleet of five King Airs.
As a new Avfuel distributor, Spring City will now participate in the Avtrip customer loyalty and contract fuel programs.
“Spring City Aviation has utilized Avfuel on the flight operations side for a number of years and has always experienced quality service,” said Josh Siehoff, the location’s general manager. “We are proud to now raise the Avfuel sign as a branded FBO, joining a strong network of premier FBO options.”
Fort Worth, Texas-based repair station Trimec Aviation completed the installation of a Collins Aerospace Venue cabin management system aboard a Gulfstream V. A Collins Aerospace dealer, Trimec said the new Venue system incorporates touchscreen controls to access multiple cabin functions and also has the capability to interface with carry-on devices.
“Operators today want to keep up with digital advancements and this is a great system to modernize the cabin experience for the passengers,” said Trimec Aviation general manager John Holland. “We have a great relationship with the Collins team and look forward to doing more of these Venue installs in the future.”
The work continues to expand on Trimec Aviation’s Gulfstream support and capabilities that include upgrades, troubleshooting, and maintenance of the systems, the company said. Trimec provides maintenance on a range of aircraft and also offers, paint, interior, and major engine work, in addition to an in-house avionics shop.
International private airport operator Vinci Airports began the management of France’s Annecy Mont-Blanc Airport on January 1, following the signing in July of a 15-year agreement with the local Haute-Savoie government. The company—which now operates 46 airports in 12 countries in Europe, Asia, and the Americas—will manage a €10 million ($11.35 million) renovation program at the French airport co-funded with the local authority.
It will include rehabilitation of the 6,600-foot runway, as well as a major renovation of the terminal to accommodate private events and local activities. Vinci’s environmental action plan includes improved insulation for the building, installation of solar power generating equipment, converting to LED lighting throughout the facility, and switching from fossil-fuel to electric runway equipment. The operator will also install charging stations for electric vehicles.
“Annecy Mont-Blanc Airport specializes in both business aviation and leisure travel and plays a key role in boosting the appeal of the North Alpine region,” said Nicolas Notebaert, CEO of Vinci Concessions and chairman of its airports division. He added that his company, with its strong environmental ambitions, will demonstrate its expertise in making aviation more sustainable, working closely with the airport and the surrounding area.
Hill Helicopters reported that it has accumulated more than 342 orders for its turbine single-engine kit HX50 and certified HC50 helicopters.
The sales pace surprised CEO Jason Hill, who said that sales came from 38 different countries and significantly bested orders from competitors, although Hill's helicopters have not yet entered service. “We have a 51 percent market share. We're outselling the [Robinson] R44 by 2.3 to one, the R66 by four to one, and the Bell 505 by 4.6 to one,” he told a recent virtual global meetup audience.
Hill said development of the HX50 is “right on schedule and has met all major milestones.” He predicted the helicopter will achieve first flight this year and customer deliveries in 2023 “as originally planned.” Deliveries of the certified HC50 are slated to begin in 2026. Hill received additional orders for the $960,000 HC50 last week as part of a promotion to offer the helicopter at a substantial discount through Jan. 31, 2022, to customers who have already ordered the HX50. Those customers will be able to order an HC50 for $696,000.
The HX50 program has already made substantial progress, according to Hill, thanks to being completely vertically integrated and the use of manufacturing techniques new to the helicopter industry, such as making the composite fuselage as a single piece. Hill is also manufacturing its own engine, the GT50.
Supersedes but retains requirements of AD 2021-24-06, which mandated repetitive visual inspections of rivets on the rear transmission shaft bearing support and of the local structure for cracking and missing, loose, or sheared rivets and any necessary corrective actions. Updated AD adds repetitive visual inspections of the rivet heads on the left- and right-hand sides of the rear transmission shaft bearing support, revises a corrective action, and adds a reporting requirement. It also revises the special flight permit limitation required under AD 2021-24-06. Prompted by an additional report of loose rivet heads on the outside face of the tail boom corner support.
Supersedes but retains requirements of AD 2020-21-01, which mandates modifying the main gearbox tail rotor drive flange installation. Updated AD widens applicability to include more helicopter models. Prompted by several reported occurrences of loss of tightening torque of the Shur-Lok nut, which serves as a retainer of the drive flange.
Supersedes AD 2018-11-01, which requires installing a cut-out for the left- and right-hand rail support junction profiles and repetitively inspecting splices, frame 5295, and related equipment for a crack. Since the FAA issued this AD, Airbus Helicopters has developed a modification for in-service helicopters for replacing aluminum splices with steel splices on frame 5295. Thus, this AD retains the requirements of AD 2018-11-01 but now requires a modification for replacing aluminum splices with steel splices on frame 5295 if cracking is found. This AD also provides terminating action for the repetitive inspections.
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