An Airbus H225 earlier this month performed the first-ever helicopter flight using 100 percent sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) in both of its Safran Makila 2 engines. This flight, which follows an H225 flight with one engine burning neat SAF in November, is part of Airbus Helicopters’s test campaign aimed at understanding the impact of SAF use on the helicopter's systems.
Over the next two years, tests are expected to continue on other Airbus helicopter types with different fuel and engine architectures. The aim is to certify the use of 100 percent SAF in Airbus airplanes and rotorcraft by 2030, the company said.
“This flight with SAF powering the twin engines of the H225 is an important milestone for the helicopter industry,” said Airbus Helicopters executive v-p of engineering and chief technical officer Stefan Thome. “It marks a new stage in our journey to certify the use of 100 percent SAF in our helicopters, a fact that would mean a reduction of up to 90 percent in CO2 emissions.”
Use of 100 percent SAF is one of the pathways that Airbus is employing to reduce CO2 emissions from its helicopters by 50 percent by 2030. Currently, all Airbus aircraft are certified to fly with up to a 50 percent SAF blend, Airbus noted.
Honda Aircraft and FlightSafety International boosted their 15-year relationship by extending their training agreement by another 25 years, to 2047. Along with the extension, the companies announced that a new HondaJet level-D full-flight simulator manufactured by FlightSafety has been added to its Greensboro, North Carolina learning center, bringing the number of HondaJet simulators there to two, with another at FlightSafety's Farnborough, UK location.
“The collaboration between Honda Aircraft and FlightSafety will continue to enhance these programs,” said Honda Aircraft president and CEO Hideto Yamasaki. “As the HondaJet fleet size continues to grow globally with high aircraft utilization, it is important to expand the HondaJet training network to best accommodate customer needs.”
With the additional simulator, FlightSafety will be able to double its training capacity for Honda Aircraft, which so far has provided more than 600 pilots training in the HA-420 initial pilot course. “We are proud to be the authorized training provider for the HondaJet,” said FlightSafety president and CEO Brad Thress. “It’s an honor to continue providing aircraft operators the highest fidelity training.”
Last week, the New York area received its first shipment of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) via pipeline. The Neste fuel, a blend of SAF and jet-A destined to power a Delta Air Lines flight, underwent final processing at a Texas refinery. It was loaded into the Colonial Pipeline and traveled nearly 1,500 miles through 11 states before entering the Buckeye system for delivery to New York LaGuardia Airport, a journey that took approximately two weeks given the speed at which fuel travels through the pipeline. The delivery demonstrates the viability of the fuel and its ability to be transported via existing pipelines.
SAF in its neat form can provide up to 80 percent lifecycle carbon reduction over conventional fuel. While currently approved for use in blends of up to 50 percent, tests are ongoing for the eventual use of 100 percent SAF.
“The U.S. East Coast is home to some of the USA’s busiest airports, and the vast majority of them get their fuel via the Colonial Pipeline system, and in New York, the Buckeye Pipeline system,” said Chris Cooper, Neste’s v-p of renewable fuels for the Americas. “What we’re doing here is showing that just around the corner is a future where passengers at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson up to LaGuardia, JFK, and EWR can board a plane flying on SAF.”
FBO operator Modern Aviation has completed a major expansion and renovation of its facility at Seattle Boeing Field/King County International Airport. The first phase of the $25 million project consisted of the construction of a 40,000-sq-ft hangar, which was then followed by the addition of a new 24,500-sq-ft hangar with an adjoining 7,000 sq ft of office space. In total, the FBO—one of three service providers on the field—now has 115,000 sq ft of hangar space.
Concurrent with the hangar development, the company, which acquired the Seattle location in 2018, also performed a renovation on its 5,000-sq-ft terminal that expanded its conference rooms and introduced a new pilot lounge. Sustainable features were also adopted such as LED lighting, water-saving measures, use of compostable materials and recycling, landscaping with drought-resistant plants, installing special materials in hangar roofs to reduce the “heat island" effect, acquiring electric ground handling equipment, and adding electric vehicle charging stations.
“These new and renovated facilities are a true reflection of the Modern Aviation brand as we serve the current and future needs of the aviation community,” said Eric Schneider, the location’s general manager.
A new FAA notice clarifies recently revised inspection guidance for Part 135 and other commercial operators that use a continuous airworthiness maintenance program (CAMP). The revisions resulted from a review of a sampling of existing CAMP users that revealed many operator manuals did not describe required inspection item (RII) methods of compliance as prescribed by rule, but rather provided generalized policy.
The FAA concluded this was due to subjective guidance, poor inspector training, and other factors. This notice describes the steps the agency is taking to address these concerns. First, the six-month time limit is eliminated for CAMP users to complete required updates to existing RII procedures.
Second, greater clarity is given regarding the responsibilities of an operator's director of maintenance and chief inspector. Revised guidance states the person with authority to countermand the decision of an RII inspector “must hold the requisite experience and qualifications…and be identified in the certificate holder's approved op specs.”
Finally, the FAA has received concerns over documents that permit task cards as an acceptable means to “designate, perform, and document” a required inspection. However, the guidance does not include other examples of acceptable means, leading to the misconception by some FAA safety inspectors that task cards are required. The agency said it is addressing this issue.
China recently updated its latest five-year plan for general aviation, which covers the period ending Dec. 31, 2025 and aims to provide a “strong legal guarantee” for advancing civil aviation. In the announcement, the Civil Aviation Administration of China stated that it will promote the “respect, study, and abiding of the law” in the country’s civil aviation industry.
The plan sets a goal for 3,500 registered general aviation (GA) airplanes and 500 GA airports in China by the end of 2025. That compares with year-end 2020 when the country had 2,892 GA airplanes and 339 GA airports.
China's plan also calls for improvements to emergency rescue services. The goal is to have 25 or more provincial-level regions offer air rescue emergency services by the end of 2025.
Additionally, the plan also supports the introduction of small, uncrewed aerial systems. Though it doesn't indicate how many China aims to have at the end of the five-year period, 517,000 drones were registered in the country at the end of 2020.
Italian air ambulance provider Alidaunia has selected Skytrac Systems to provide satcom and cellular medical data transfer and telemedicine capability aboard its fleet of Leonardo AW139 and AW169 emergency medical services helicopters. With this new capability, Alidaunia’s air medical crew can stream patient vital signs and electrocardiogram reports in real-time from onboard medical devices and live-stream video via Google Glasses to remote physicians.
This medical data transmission feature builds on Skytrac’s ISAT-200A-07 real-time health usage and monitoring system (HUMS), which Alidaunia began flying in 2019. Subsequently, Alidaunia became an official distributor and installer of Skytrac’s satcom hardware in Leonardo aircraft. Skytrac’s HUMS system works in concert with its DAL-200 dynamic airlink, which uses cellular connectivity to transmit patient data. When cell service is not available, DAL-200 uses ISAT-200A-07 to encrypt and transmit medical data via satellite.
“Remote physicians and receiving hospitals will no longer have to rely on voice communication to gather an understanding of the patient’s in-flight condition,” said Jan van der Heul, Skytrac's v-p of sales and marketing. “Transmitting medical data and live-streaming video marks a significant technological advancement that allows for fast, informed decision-making that ultimately improves patient care.”
The International Aircraft Dealers Association (IADA) is accepting applications for scholarships from undergraduate and graduate students who plan to seek careers in business aviation. Its scholarships—totaling between $1,000 and $5,000 each—are funded by the IADA Foundation and are available to students attending 21 participating universities and colleges.
“The IADA business aviation scholarship program benefits university students seeking a career in business aviation, specifically within corporate aircraft sales, marketing, finance, legal, and insurance disciplines,” said IADA executive director Wayne Starling.
Applications are available online and require a keycode available through the financial aid officers of participating schools. Undergraduate and graduate applicants must be full-time students (minimum of 12 credit hours a semester for undergraduate students) and have a 3.0 minimum cumulative grade point average.
The deadline for applications is September 1. Notification of scholarship awards will be made through a school’s financial aid office no later than November 30.
Airbus A321XLR Will Be Intercontinental Narrowbody Airliner
Airbus’s latest A321XLR single-aisle airliner has started its flight-test campaign and could be ready to enter service in 2024. It will allow airlines to fly much longer intercontinental routes with a narrowbody aircraft that will improve operating economics at a time when rising costs are hitting hard.
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