Gulfstream Bizjet Shipments Soar 25% in 1H19

Business jet deliveries at Gulfstream Aerospace climbed 25 percent in the first half, with large-cabin shipments solely driving this increase, parent company General Dynamics announced today. In the first six months, the Savannah, Georgia aircraft manufacturer handed over 50 large-cabin jets, up from 37 a year ago, while midsize jet deliveries remained flat at 15 units.

First-half revenues at General Dynamics’ aerospace division, which includes both Gulfstream and Jet Aviation, rose by 17.3 percent year-over-year, to $4.332 billion, though earnings fell by $73 million, to $659 million, as an increase in preowned transactions—five in first-half 2019 versus two last year—eroded margins, the company said. However, this surge in preowned sales has prompted General Dynamics to marginally inflate full-year aerospace revenue and earnings guidance to $9.95 billion and $1.525 billion, respectively.

Aerospace book-to-bill in the period was 1.23:1, with General Dynamics chairman and CEO Phebe Novakovic noting “robust order activity” in the second quarter and “solid demand” across the in-production Gulfstream product line. Backlog for the segment ended the second quarter at $12.145 billion—roughly flat from both three and 12 months earlier.

Meanwhile, Novakovic said Gulfstream is set to deliver its first G600 next month, following FAA type and production approval last month.

Bombardier Marks Milestone at Singapore Service Center

Bombardier Business Aircraft’s Singapore service center has achieved a first by installing and certifying a Lufthansa Technik AG nice HD cabin management system (CMS) and SDR Wi-Fi system in a Global Express XRS, the Canadian airframer announced today. It’s the first such installation for a Bombardier business jet in the Asia-Pacific region. 

“This achievement underscores the outstanding engineering and maintenance teams that we have at the Singapore service center serving our customers in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Bombardier Business Aircraft v-p and general manager of customer experience Jean-Christophe Gallagher. 

Meanwhile, work on a project to nearly quadruple the size of its service center in Singapore continues. In February, Bombardier announced plans to add 330,000 sq ft to the 100,000-sq-ft facility at the Seletar Aerospace Park and double its employment there to more than 300 workers over the next several years. “Since opening in February 2014, the Singapore center has established itself as a center of excellence for all types of retrofits, maintenance procedures, and upgrades,” Gallagher added. “With the expansion of this facility, we will continue to provide customers in the Asia-Pacific region with enhanced reliability and service options.”

Inhofe, King Further Champion GA Issues with Plane Act

Sen. James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) is continuing his campaign to boost pilot rights and address issues affecting the U.S. general aviation (GA) community, jointly introducing new legislation, the Promoting the Launch of Aviation’s Next Era (Plane) Act of 2019, with Sen. Angus King (I-Maine). Announced yesterday, the Plane Act, S.2198, is designed to foster airport infrastructure, end the revenue diversion that has been ongoing with certain fuel taxes, strengthen pilot legal protections, and address a host of other issues.

“The Plane Act truly sets a positive path for the future of the aviation industry,” Inhofe said. “This legislation would make important investments in this pillar of our nation’s transportation system and would cut through bureaucratic burdens,” King added.

Among the numerous measures in the bill are provisions that would increase the pilot’s ability to appeal cases in federal court, ensure the NTSB has the authority to review airmen medical certificate denials, call for additional transparency in FAA rulemaking, establish public-private partnerships for GA airports, designate qualified GA airports as “disaster relief airports," and ensure tax receipts from all aviation fuel sources are deposited in the aviation trust fund.

The bill has received a strong endorsement from a number of GA and other aviation groups, 13 of which wrote a letter saying the bill “sets the stage for the future of general aviation."

Court Overturns NTSB Findings in Falsification Case

Finding the NTSB did not follow its own precedents, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia overturned a certificate revocation of the Kornitzky Group, which was known as AeroBearings and specialized in jet engine bearing maintenance. The NTSB had revoked Kornitzky’s repair station certificate last year, backing an FAA emergency order that stemmed from two primary allegations: the company had repaired bearings without the necessary technical data and intentionally falsified maintenance records by recording only the engine bearing inspections without indicating the disassembly and repair work. 

In a decision released this month, the appeals court upheld that the company performed maintenance without the appropriate technical data, but set aside the charge of intentional falsification. Kornitzy “made a materially false representation by referencing some but not all of its work affecting the bearings’ airworthiness,” the court said, but the NTSB “ identified no evidence that [the company] had intentionally disregarded the Form 8130-3 instruction.”

The Aeronautical Repair Station Association is assessing the ruling, but ARSA executive director Sarah MacLeod said, “In this case, the court may have come to the correct conclusion but for the wrong reason. There was no falsification by omission.” MacLeod added that a maintenance release “does not, and never has, contained the details that the court seemed to think were necessary.”

Aviation Mx Training School Opens Charlotte Campus

The Aviation Institute of Maintenance (AIM) has established its 12th campus, this one in Charlotte, North Carolina, where more than 15,000 manufacturing jobs have been added in the past six years, according to the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance. AIM is enrolling students in a manufacturing, fabrication, and repair program that it said will equip them to work as millwrights, industrial maintenance mechanics, and machinery workers. 

Housed in a 51,000-sq-ft facility, the Charlotte facility includes a learning resource center, computer lab, and 17 classrooms equipped with audio-visual technology. “As the Queen City continues its exponential growth, AIM is proud to develop the workforce for current and future needs of the manufacturing industry,” Charlotte campus executive director Alex Diaz said. 

Its network of 12 schools primarily serves as aviation maintenance schools that prepare students to obtain their mechanic’s certificate with ratings in airframe and powerplant for commercial, cargo, corporate, and private aviation operations.

Ebola Caution Advised on Central Africa Bizav Flights

In light of the current Ebola outbreak in Central Africa that the World Health Organization recently declared a public health emergency of international concern, Universal Weather & Aviation is advising private and business aircraft operators headed to the region to thoroughly review local and international health agency websites for the most up-to-date advisories.

During the most recent outbreak, which took place between 2014 and 2016, some countries imposed restrictions on business aircraft flights that originated from affected countries or carrying passengers originating from them. Such measures included denial of landing permission, temporary visa requirements, mandatory questionnaires, and health checks for those who have traveled to impacted areas.

While no restrictions have yet been issued in this current outbreak, the Houston-based trip support provider has published a list of resources—including the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, and the FAA—that business aircraft operators should consult during the planning process for any missions to Central Africa.

Senate Confirms Dickson as FAA Administrator

The U.S. Senate today approved the nomination of Stephen Dickson to a five-year term as FAA administrator by a vote of 52-40. Announced in March, the nomination had received broad industry backing, with leaders characterizing the former Delta Air Lines senior v-p of flight operations and U.S. Air Force F-15 pilot as a champion of safety with deep industry knowledge.

However, his nomination remained shrouded in controversy through the confirmation after a complaint came to light alleging that Delta had retaliated after a whistleblower expressed safety concerns. The events detailed in the complaint had occurred while Dickson was in senior management at the airline. However, Dickson was not specifically named as a party to the complaint.

The Commerce Committee narrowly approved the nomination along party lines. But it cleared a key hurdle Tuesday afternoon, when the Senate voted 52-45 to limit debate. That vote paved the way for today's Senate vote on the nomination without fear of a filibuster.

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee, reiterated her concerns before the procedural vote, saying, “It is clear to me he is not the right person for the safety culture that we need today at the FAA.” Commerce Committee chairman Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi), however, has endorsed the nomination, calling Dickson an “excellent nominee.”

Blackhawk Earns STC for King Air 300 Engine Upgrade

Blackhawk Aerospace has received an STC from the FAA for its XP67A engine upgrade for the Beechcraft King Air 300, the company announced this week at EAA AirVenture. The authorization, which applies to both the 14,000- and 12,500-pound gross weight versions of the turboprop twin, replaces the standard 1,050-shp Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-60A engines and four-blade Hartzell metal propellers with factory-new 1,200-shp PT6A-67A engines and Hartzell five-blade propellers.

Blackhawk’s engineering team was awarded the STC nine months after the first test flight. During testing, the upgrade delivered maximum cruise speeds as high as 343 ktas and an initial rate to climb of up to 4,000 fpm, slashing the climb time to FL350 by more than half over the stock King Air 300.

Other benefits include an 80 percent improvement in single-engine climb, as well as more thrust, noise abatement, and weight reduction from the new propellers.

“The XP67A on the King Air creates a whole new class of turboprop and will make this one of the most desirable models on the market,” said Jim Allmon, president and CEO of the Waco, Texas-based company. “Not only has the upgrade exceeded our expectations with jet-like climb and speeds, but it does so with King Air comfort and economics.”

Blackhawk is offering a $100,000 discount on the modification for orders placed before the end of September.

Vahana Concept Paves the Way for Airbus’s eVTOL Plans

Airbus’s Urban Air Mobility division is working on two designs that it hopes will prepare the way for its first eVTOL model. It does not intend either the single-seat Vahana or four-seat CityAirbus aircraft to ever enter commercial service. However, it believes that the lessons it is learning about factors such as electrical power, autonomous flight controls, and the aerodynamics of vertical takeoff and landing will be vital in ensuring the success of the design it quietly started working on in early 2019.