Kopter Resumes Flight Testing of SH09 Helicopter

Leonardo subsidiary Kopter announced yesterday that flight testing of the third SH09 light-single helicopter prototype—dubbed P3—restarted in Pozzallo, Italy, last week. The Kopter flight test and prototype maintenance teams arrived in Pozzallo earlier this month to prepare P3 to resume flight tests that had been halted March 10 due to Covid-19.

Flight testing activities will now assess the benefits provided by the new main rotor configuration, Kopter said. Advancements in development and trials planned in the forthcoming months include new tail rotor head, the Garmin G3000H avionics suite, final main rotor head, and flight controls, the company added.

During the Covid-induced three-month pause in flight testing, Kopter said it maintained a “good level” of operational activities, leveraging its digital approach to operations and organization that permitted much of the staff to work from home. That allowed engineering teams to continue design activities for the upcoming P3 upgrades and pre-series 4 (PS4) configuration definition, while the operations and procurement teams continued to ensure the delivery of parts for both aircraft.

According to Leonardo, Kopter’s competencies will boost future developments of more disruptive technologies, mission capabilities, and performance, including hybrid/electrical propulsion solutions.

FlightAware: U.S. Bizav Flying Sees YOY Rise on June 20

Business aviation flight activity continues to mount a substantial post-Covid-19 recovery, with U.S. traffic on Saturday actually increasing 2.5 percent from a year ago when adjusted for day of the week, according to data from FlightAware. “On Saturday, June 20, business aviation traffic surpassed 2019 numbers for the first time since the initial decline,” said FlightAware CEO Daniel Baker. “Weekday recovery still has ground to make up, but continues to trend upward.”

The company’s data shows that month-to-date worldwide business aviation activity is down 22.7 percent from a year ago, averaging 9,927 flights per day versus 12,845 a day in 2019. In the U.S. alone, flying fell 19.8 percent month-to-date, averaging 8,152 flights per day, down from 10,165 daily a year ago.

From June 14 to 21, the FlightAware data indicates that U.S. business aviation flying continued to gain more steam, decreasing only 17.3 percent—or 82.7 percent of prior-year levels—from the same day-of-week adjusted period a year ago. This was in comparison to airline traffic, which was down nearly 69 percent year-over-year last week.

Signature TechnicAir Offers Incentives as Traffic Grows

MRO Signature TechnicAir is assembling seasonal offers to help spur activity as traffic begins to pick up in the EMEA region. “With the green shoots of recovery providing an upturn in flying activity, we are offering some very competitive deals to new and existing customers over the next few months to help ensure [an operator’s] aircraft is fully prepared and ready to support…operations as business aviation flying demand increases,” said Andy Preston, managing director of Signature TechnicAir EMEA.

The incentives vary and cross a range of activity, including reductions in rates involving scheduled inspections, ADS-B modification labor, Tamarack Atlas winglet installation labor, and defect/squawk work. In addition, incentives include complimentary interior/exterior cleaning and crew transport. “These are just a few of the incentives we are offering,” said John Hamshere, sales and customer support manager for EMEA.

Signature TechnicAir’s EMEA stations have remained operational throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, the company said, noting its locations provide base, line, and AOG services, along with mobile service unit activity.

The MRO provider’s base maintenance facility at Bournemouth International Airport in the UK provides airframe, avionics, and engine services, including upgrades and modifications for Cessna Citations and Embraer Legacy 600s. Along with Bournemouth, Signature’s London Biggin Hill, Luton, and Manchester line stations offer round-the-clock services.

Duncan, Gogo Team on Amended Avance STCs

MRO provider Duncan Aviation has teamed with Gogo Business Aviation for new Gogo Avance LC and Gogo Avance Smart Cabin System (SCS) installation options to amend three existing STCs for the Gogo Avance L5 Wi-Fi system. Once fully amended, customers will have the ability to install Gogo Avance L3 Wi-Fi or a standalone SCS in more than a dozen aircraft models, including the Gulfstream IV/G450 and Bombardier Challenger 300, 350, 604, 605, and 650.

“As a long-standing valued partner with Gogo, Duncan Aviation continues to lead in the industry with ongoing certification investments in Gogo systems,” said Gogo Business Aviation v-p of aftermarket sales David Salvador. “The additional STCs Duncan Aviation is developing for Gogo Avance L3 and SCS will greatly benefit our mutual business aviation customers.”

Installation of the single air card line replacement unit (LRU), mounting tray, and all other existing architecture for Avance L3 will be included in the amended STCs. They also will cover design changes for the installation of the SCS. According to Duncan, it has received FAA and Transport Canada Civil Aviation validation for the amended STCs while EASA validation is pending.

Bizav Joins Call for EU Investment in Green Initiatives

Business and general aviation groups are backing a call for European Union leaders to prioritize investments in renewable fuels and more sustainable technologies as air transportation continues to gradually renew operations in the region.

Thirteen organizations issued an open letter today to EU ministers and European commissioners, saying, “Due to the current dramatic revenue losses across the entire air transport ecosystem in Europe, it will be challenging to achieve timely and ambitious investments into climate action,” and this makes public support for decarbonization efforts more important now than ever.

The groups outlined a series of proposals to accomplish that goal of support for green initiatives. Proposals include a call for implementing policies dedicated to boosting the production of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). These policies should involve direct capital investment and financing projects for SAF production facilities, as well as the establishment of a center of excellence for SAF, the groups said.

Other proposals seek incentives for airlines and operators to replace older aircraft with newer, more fuel-efficient models and for increased public investment in research programs for new technologies and fuels.The groups further called for continued investment in air traffic management modernization and in sustainable airport and heliport infrastructure.

Avant Aerospace Relocates Near Sibling West Star MRO

Avant Aerospace recently moved from Dallas to a hangar at St. Louis Downtown Airport (KCPS), bringing the aircraft parts supplier closer to the West Star Aviation maintenance, repair, and overhaul base at East, Illinois.

Purchased by West Star Holdings in 2017, Avant Aerospace has maintained its own brand while offering West Star customers its part products and capabilities. The company provides parts, spares, equipment, and tooling, as well as procurement, inventory consignment/purchase, and AOG services.

The move to Hangar 12 at KCPS gives Avant 20,000 sq ft of space, enabling the business to consolidate its entire inventory and operate more efficiently, the company said. “Relocating and being closer to the East Alton MRO will centralize our inventory, thus reducing delivery time and shipping expense,” said Avant Aerospace director John Hardy.

The move also comes as Avant has expanded its inventory and support beyond Dassault Falcon parts to include Bombardier, Textron, Piaggio, and Gulfstream.

Honeywell Flight Tests Sensors for UAM Autonomous Ops

Honeywell Aerospace has started flight testing new sensors intended to support autonomous operations of aircraft in urban air mobility (UAM) environments. From its base in Phoenix, the company is using an Airbus AS350 helicopter to test the sensors, and the aircraft is also fitted with cameras to analyze visual markings that look like QR codes to guide it to a designated landing area.

Earlier this month, Honeywell launched a new Unmanned Aerial Systems business unit to focus on unmanned aircraft and the UAM sector, for which numerous new eVTOL models are under development. It intends to conduct additional testing of autonomous flight technology with partners that include eVTOL developers such as Vertical Aerospace.

The flight testing will continue throughout 2020 and gather data on the performance of the sensors to support further improvements. Honeywell aims to be able to demonstrate fully automated landings by around mid-2021 as it prepares to add this capability to its product portfolio.

“Introducing numerous piloted and autonomous aircraft in dense urban environments is a real challenge in making the UAM vision achievable,” commented Matt Picchetti, Honeywell’s v-p and general manager of navigation and sensors. The company is leveraging its experience in developing autopilots.

This story comes from the new FutureFlight.aero resource developed by AIN to provide objective, independent coverage, and analysis of new aviation technology, including electric aircraft developments.

Northern Jet Picks Web Manuals for Digital Docs

Northern Jet Management has selected Web Manuals to digitize its aircraft manuals and regulatory documents to ensure real-time compliance with changing aviation regulations. The move will help support the Michigan-based company’s operations, which include fractional ownership, charter, jet cards, and aircraft management.

“Digitizing our documentation allows our operations to run leaner and more efficiently,” said Northern Jet director of operations Jeff Gauger. “Web Manuals allows us to improve how we work, and in turn continue to improve safety, and be ready for post-Covid-19 recovery.”

Gauger explained that safety is the main benefit of using Web Manuals because with access to its compliance library, Northern Jet is able to cross-reference against the most current regulations and standards and respond to those quickly. It also improves efficiency in making and distributing revisions to a document.

“We recently added a Gulfstream G150 to our existing fleet of Bombardier, Cessna, and Dassault Falcon aircraft,” said Northern Jet owner and CEO Charles Cox. “This addition brought with it an entirely new set of manuals to be uploaded—a process made much quicker by the implementation of Web Manuals. In fact, the feedback already received across the team—from our chief pilot to director of maintenance—has been incredibly positive.”

AC Air Intros Remote-control Helicopter Tug

Chino, California-based AC Air Technology showed off its new self-loading T1H2 helicopter tug earlier this year at Heli-Expo. Covid-19 slowed down production but AC Air will now finally start delivery next month of the rechargeable unit, which has a continuous run time of 30 minutes and retails for around $17,000. Two six-inch-wide treads drive the unit, which can load, carry, and unload any helicopter with skids weighing up to 6,000 pounds.