World Fuel Services (WFS) announced yesterday that 43 members of its sponsored Air Elite FBO Network achieved carbon neutrality in their operations for 2019.
WFS affiliate World Kinect Energy Services analyzed the energy use and carbon emissions of the Air Elite members for the year, including Scope 1 emissions that are released directly by the company’s operations (heating buildings, powering equipment, etc.), and Scope 2 (primarily consisting of carbon released to produce the electricity the company consumed). Through Kinect, those FBOs, which span 15 countries, purchased carbon offset credits equal to their footprints.
WFS and Air Elite have begun the process to assess and balance the 2020 Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions for members. “Sustainability is an important responsibility for our industry, and is a growing desire for our customers,” said Larry Wade, Air Elite board chair and president of member Golden Isles Aviation.
Some locations, such as Lebanon, New Hampshire-based Granite Air Center, want to go even further. “Scope 3 emissions are much more involved to calculate as you need to include every indirect emission related to the business in any way, right down to the miles driven by employees to get to and from work, for example,” said company co-owner and COO Jason Archambeault. “We hope within the next couple of years we will be able to meet that goal.”
Aviation management companies are experiencing growth, which has me thinking about the long-term impact on business aircraft owners, aspiring leaders, and the business aviation industry. Outsourcing aircraft management has considerable benefits, offering a plug-and-play solution.
For aviation professionals, working for a management company is a great way to develop one’s craft. But the challenge often comes for those who seek a pathway to aviation leadership. “At a management company, aspiring aviation leaders don’t always develop the broad skills required for someone to lead an in-house flight department,” said one aviation director.
And as more airplanes move under management, will these new owners help fund our foundations and associations like many flight departments do? Will they help us tackle our environmental, safety, regulatory, and workplace issues? Will they become advocates, bringing many more voices to address the issues at hand?
Despite their growth, Solairus Aviation CEO Dan Drohan believes the three largest management firms probably manage less than 5 percent market share of business jets. So the in-house flight department is not at risk of going away.
That said, I do hope we can educate new owners coming into the industry. And I hope aspiring aviation leaders will consider how best to architect their career. Lastly, I encourage management companies to continue to foster a career path for their team members and advocate for the industry and leadership opportunities.
Bizav Activity Remains Mixed in North America, Europe
Business aviation activity remains mixed with North American operations showing signs of improvement, down just 12 percent in February from a year earlier, while European operations dropped 31.7 percent, according to data released yesterday by business aviation analyst Argus International. The Argus TraqPaK report for February noted that, when accounting for Leap Year, operations in North America actually were 9.9 percent below February 2020 levels. This came as activity in the second half of February jumped 7.3 percent over the first half.
While strengthening, all operational and aircraft categories still were below February 2020 levels, except for Part 135 midsize jet flights, which showed a modest 0.3 percent improvement. Part 91 flights involving large jets marked the steepest year-over-year slide in North America, down 32.5 percent. Counting all of Part 91 flights, North American activity was down 19.6 percent. Meanwhile, Part 135 flights were off just 3 percent and fractional by 8.6 percent, according to Argus. Across all sectors, large jets led the decline, down 22.9 percent, with light jets faring the best at a 6.7 percent dip.
In Europe, flights across all aircraft categories were down year-over-year in February, with large jet activity plunging 43.9 percent and turboprop operations down 28.3 percent. Light jets marked the smallest year-over-year drop, but those operations were still down 21.3 percent from February 2020.
Aerospace Partners To Test 100 Percent SAF in a Widebody
Airbus, German research center DLR, Rolls-Royce, and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) producer Neste have launched what they lay claim as the first in-flight emissions study using 100 percent SAF on a widebody commercial passenger aircraft, the companies said yesterday.
Findings from the Emission and Climate Impact of Alternative Fuels (ECLIF) study—to involve tests on the ground and in the air using an Airbus A350-900 aircraft powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines—will support sustainability efforts already underway at Airbus and Rolls-Royce. Fuel-clearance engine tests, including a first flight to check operational compatibility of using 100 percent SAF with the aircraft’s systems, started at Airbus’s facilities in Toulouse, France, this week. Plans call for flight-emissions tests to start in April and resume in the autumn, using DLR’s Falcon 20E “chase plane” to measure the emissions impact of using SAF. Meanwhile, further ground tests measuring particulate-matter emissions will gauge the environmental effects of SAF use on airport operations.
Both the flight and the ground tests will compare emissions from the use of 100 percent SAF produced with HEFA (hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids) technology against those from fossil kerosene and low-sulfur fossil kerosene. Neste will provide the SAF while the UK’s University of Manchester and the National Research Council of Canada provide further measurement and analysis of particulate-matter emissions during the ground testing.
Hill Reveals More Features for HX50 Helicopter
Hill Helicopters announced a new online configurator and a variety of features and options for its under-development HX50 turbine single. Interior features include in-seat electric heaters and air-conditioned seat ventilation; a refrigerated center console compartment beneath the armrest cushion to chill drinks and snacks; and a power supply for each passenger's tablet computer with audio streamed directly to passenger headsets. The audio is fully integrated with the digital cockpit and onboard audio system. Each passenger seat can be equipped to support rear-facing, forward-facing, and booster seats for children.
The HX50 can also be equipped with a pilot-operable folding blade system that replaces standard lag damper pins with interlocked quick-release pins, allowing the blades to pivot around the blade roots and orient over the tail boom. Safety interlocks prevent the aircraft from being operated with the blades unlocked. The aircraft can also be ordered with landing skids as opposed to wheels.
Hill unveiled the five-seat HX50 in August. It plans to initially offer it as a kit-built aircraft in 2023, with a certified Part 27 version—the HC50—following in 2026. List price for the kit aircraft is $662,000. The design features an all-composite, three-blade main rotor, retractable landing gear, and a ducted tail rotor. Performance targets include a 140-knot cruise speed and a maximum range of 700 nm.
Air Charter Scotland Establishes Home Airport Base
Air Charter Scotland has positioned a Cessna Citation CJ2 for charter out of its home airport in Glasgow following a long absence there, the charter and aircraft management provider announced today. “While we have had our offices at Glasgow for 20 years, we haven’t had an aircraft positioned out of our home since 2008,” said Air Charter Scotland COO Derek Thomson. “This is terrific timing for discerning private jet customers, many of them new to charter, who are responding to the restrictions and reduced scheduled service frequencies brought about by the pandemic.”
“Light jets are the most popular charter aircraft in the UK right now and this one with its enhanced performance benefits will be a popular addition to our fleet,” Thomson added. The CJ2 features new paint, dual Garmin GTN avionics, a refurbished six-seat interior, and Tamarack Atlas winglets. Additionally, the light twin underwent a two-week maintenance check before its placement at Glasgow Airport.
The company also operates bases at London Luton and London Biggin Hill airports. Beginning in January it created Air Charter Scotland Europe and a new European air operator’s certificate with an initial two aircraft—a Cessna Citation CJ3 based in Malta and a Bombardier Challenger 350 based in Nice, France.
Duncan Wins Europe, Canada Approvals for ACA Installs
Duncan Aviation recently obtained supplemental type certificate (STC) approvals from Transport Canada Civil Aviation and EASA for an installation package for the Aviation Clean Air (ACA) ionization system aboard Bombardier Globals and Challenger 300/350s.
The approvals clear the way for Duncan customers in Canada and the European Union to buy the ACA packages for their aircraft, including the STCs, ionizers, and PMA parts kits. “We’re seeing strong demand for the ACA system in Europe and the Middle East,” said avionics installation sales rep Steve Elofson. “A Global Express in Europe is currently having the ACA ionization system installed in accordance with the EASA-approved STC.”
Designed for installation in the aircraft’s existing environmental control system, the ACA ionizers neutralize pathogens, including those that cause the flu and the common cold, and removes allergens and unpleasant odors. Testing from independent lab Innovative BioAnalysis found that the ACA ionizer was effective at rendering the Covid-19 coronavirus harmless, Duncan said, noting that 99.4 percent of the virus particles were inactivated within 30 minutes.
Most of Duncan’s main facilities and satellite shops are able to perform necessary modifications before installing the ACA ionizer system.
WAI Panel Hightlights Need To Encourage Female Pilots
Females make up a mere 5.18 percent of the pilot population, but efforts can be made to increase that number in years to come, said Jacqueline Davidson, a strategist for Boeing. “When was the last time you saw a female pilot in your passenger journey?” she asked during a session on “Pilot Talent Diversity: Minority Barriers Hindering the Majority” at the 2021 International Women in Aviation Conference.
In the 1970s, applicants with a military background were being hired quickly within the airlines. The military, being an affordable way to learn how to fly and build time, did not have female pilots at the time, she said. If a woman wanted to learn how to fly and build time, it was going to cost more than their male counterparts.
Davidson interviewed female pilots about their experience in the industry to try and understand why a job as a pilot can be discouraging for some women. Scheduling, preconceived ideas, being perceived as timid, and a feeling of having to choose in between family and work were common answers from interviewees.
“Developmentally, we know that exposure can influence individuals,” noted Davidson. Young girls are not exposed to the idea that pilots can be female, therefore they do not consider the possibility. Davidson adds that the key to increasing the percentage is “seeing and believing.”
Dassault has started flight testing of its Falcon 6X large-cabin business jet, which will be able to make intercontinental trips as long as 5,500 nm when it enters service in 2022. The first flight took off from Bordeaux in and will now continue with three prototypes operating from Dassault test center at Istres in the south of France.
Photo of the Week
Peaked interest. Pilot and aviation journalist Felix Meier took this photo while copiloting a Pilatus Turbo Porter PC-6 on a ferry flight from St. Gallen-Altenrhein (LSZR) to Locarno (LSZL) while crossing the Swiss Alps. The PC-6 is typically used for skydiving, he said. Thanks for sharing this with us, Felix!
If you'd like to submit an entry for Photo of the Week, email a high-resolution horizontal image (at least 2000 x 1200 pixels), along with your name, contact information, social media names, and info about it (including brief description, location, etc.) to photos@ainonline.com. Tail numbers can be removed upon request. Those submitting photos give AIN implied consent to publish them in its publications and social media channels.
AINalerts News Tips/Feedback: News tips may be sent anonymously, but feedback must include name and contact info (we will withhold name on request). We reserve the right to edit correspondence for length, clarity and grammar. Send feedback or news tips to AINalerts editor Chad Trautvetter.
AIN Alerts is a publication of The Convention News Company, Inc., 214 Franklin Avenue, Midland Park, New Jersey. Copyright 2021. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is strictly prohibited.
