Cessna SkyCourier Begins Final Phase of Flight Testing
The certification flight test phase of the Cessna SkyCourier development program has begun after the twin-turboprop checked off a number of milestones and continues its march toward FAA type approval and first deliveries later this year. So far, Textron Aviation’s fleet of three SkyCourier flight test vehicles (FTV) has accumulated more than 700 hours since the first flight of the high-wing airplane in May 2020.
Other milestones completed since the third SkyCourier FTV entered testing late last year are extreme hot and cold weather testing; bird-strike testing, including eight separate tests over a two-month period; certification of the Pratt & Whitney PT6A-65SC engine through Transport Canada Civil Aviation, with FAA approval expected soon; and natural icing certification.
“The aircraft has performed exceptionally well through every phase of testing, and we’re pleased by its progress,” said Textron Aviation senior v-p of engineering and programs Chris Hearne. “With the start of the certification flight test phase, we are entering one of the most important phases of the SkyCourier program.”
In addition to the flight-testing milestones, production final assembly of the SkyCourier will start this month at the airframer’s east Wichita campus. Launch customer for the airplane—which can be configured for cargo or passenger operations, or a combination of the two—is FedEx. The package carrier has firm orders for 50 SkyCouriers, along with options for another 50.
AINsight: Runway Excursions and Crosswind Takeoffs
Industry groups such as the Flight Safety Foundation (FSF) are renewing efforts to tackle runway excursions, which account for nearly a quarter of all accidents for both large and small aircraft. In January, FSF and its international partners published the “Global Action Plan for the Prevention of Runway Excursions” (GAPPRE) to help in this effort.
While GAPPRE is all-encompassing, today I will focus on areas related to aircraft handling—specifically, runway excursions during takeoff with strong or gusty crosswinds. A crosswind takeoff is a difficult maneuver that requires a lot of “rudder and stick” skills. Directional control during the takeoff roll is maintained by the aerodynamic forces generated by the primary flight controls.
Regardless of aircraft size, configuration, or number of engines, the rudder, ailerons, and elevator are used to maintain control once there is a minimum amount of airflow to make each control surface effective. On most large aircraft, the elevator is used to maintain a downward force on the nosewheel to maximize its effectiveness up to around 80 knots. Below that speed, directional control inputs are dependent on the aircraft systems—typically nosewheel steering via tiller or rudder pedals.
Regardless of the type, once the rudder becomes effective, the maneuver is the same. As the speed of the aircraft increases, each control surface becomes more effective, thus less input is required.
Spend management platform MySky today rolled out its new MySky Budget tool to help aircraft owners and operators to more accurately assess annual costs. Harnessing the data about multiple operating costs it has collected since launching its main spend management tool, the company is using artificial intelligence and modeling techniques to generate accurate projections that give clients the ability to generate meaningful budgets and to have a higher degree of control over expenses.
MySky offers two versions of the budget tool. The “light” option is specific to a particular aircraft model, while a more sophisticated “pro” option is calibrated to be specific to an individual aircraft tail number.
The tool makes its calculations on historical cost data and also by assessing average costs based on trends it has seen with individual suppliers and services providers, such as FBOs, catering companies, hotels, and car rental providers. MySky claims the new system draws on more than 30 million “operationally sensitive and financially validated” data points from across the business aviation supply chain.
Through MySky’s partnership with charter marketplace Avinode, the budget tool can also help aircraft owners to assess the degree to which they can offset fixed costs by making their assets available for third-party flights. The system can predict typical rates of demand in different regions, as well as average charter rates for these trips.
Bell cut the ribbon on its Manufacturing Technology Center (MTC) in Fort Worth, Texas, yesterday afternoon, ahead of a formal grand opening later this year. The MTC is located in a 140,000-sq-ft building 15 minutes away from Bell’s main campus and was established to lower lead time, cost, and variability from components for Bell’s future vertical lift (FVL) aircraft, including the V-280 Valor and 360 Invictus.
The MTC “is the way we are reinventing our manufacturing process at Bell for all of our next-generation products,” said Glenn Isbell, Bell v-p of rapid prototyping and manufacturing innovation. The MTC offers a digitally connected space for collaboration between Bell teams in an environment that promotes smart risk-taking. New systems will be tested and vetted for production suitability before being introduced to Bell’s future factories.
Bell will use the MTC to “showcase how we will deliver the most affordable, capable, and reliable aircraft for the warfighter,” said Bell CEO and president Mitch Snyder.
Since starting operation, the facility already has born fruit toward significantly cutting lead times and costs of critical V-280 components, said Isbell, noting that the lead time for the aircraft’s rotor masts was shrunk from 18 months to 90 days and costs were reduced by 40 percent.
Duncan, Elliott Latest To Offer CL604 Fusion Upgrade
Duncan Aviation and Elliott Aviation are the latest MROs to offer Collins Aerospace Pro Line Fusion avionics installations in the Bombardier Challenger 604. They join MRO providers Constant Aviation and West Star Aviation to offer the upgraded avionics that feature 14.1-inch touchscreens, ADS-B Out and FANS 1/A, synthetic vision, LPV/RNP approaches, and improved FMS.
“This upgrade solves the upcoming obsolescence issues facing Pro Line 4 displays and other key components on the CL604,” Collins senior director of business aviation avionics Nicole White told AIN of the reasons behind developing an STC for the Challenger 604 Fusion upgrade. “Additionally, other determining factors were the active fleet size, hull value, and overall utility of the aircraft. We believe these aircraft will be flying for years to come—making the ROI to Collins and its operators an easy choice.”
Duncan said earlier this month that it was working on its first Challenger 604 Fusion installation as part of a 192-month inspection and cabin upgrade at its facility in Battle Creek, Michigan.
Bill Forbes, avionics sales manager of Moline, Illinois-based Elliott, agreed that the Fusion upgrade is “an excellent solution to the upcoming obsolescence of the Pro Line 4 system.”
Tampa’s GA Airports See Strong Business Rebound
For Florida’s Hillsborough County, general aviation is proving resurgent after a Covid-19-induced dip starting early last year. FBO operators at Peter O. Knight, Plant City, Tampa Executive, and Tampa International airports reported just a 12 percent year-over-year drop in business in 2020, which they attributed to a weak spring due to entrenchment of the Covid-19 coronavirus. By summer, the operational tempo and fuel flowage had rebounded, it noted.
According to Brett Fay, the county’s director of general aviation and overseer of its reliever airports, the lull was used to make significant improvements at the airfields.
At Tampa Executive, the 20-year-old terminal saw a $1.2 million renovation on everything from critical repairs to new bathrooms and flooring. “We’ve got a beautiful new terminal building,” said Fay. “These changes and improvements put [it] right up there with the nicest facilities you will find in general aviation.” In addition, a $7.7 million airport improvement project—including new runway pavement, lighting, and navigational aids—is slated to finish there next month.
Plant City Airport recently received a new fuel farm and ramp aimed at improving service, while Sheltair, one of the two service providers at Tampa International, expects to start construction next month on a $20 million expansion project that will add 110,000 sq ft of hangar and office space to its campus.
Textron is formalizing its presence in the electric aircraft market with the formation of a new division called eAviation. The company today confirmed to AIN that long-time senior executive Rob Scholl has been named to head the unit in a senior v-p role that reports directly to Textron chairman and CEO Scott Donnelly. Scholl previously was the senior v-p of sales and marketing at Textron Aviation.
Scholl’s new role was described as leveraging “the work across our aerospace and defense businesses to develop new opportunities and take advantage of our fixed-wing and rotorcraft expertise in emerging technologies.” He will be charged with assembling enterprise talent throughout Textron, building external partnerships, and creating a path for further development and utilization of aircraft electrification and connected mobility technologies in the global market.
In a call with stock analysts in January, Donnelly said Textron intended to take a cautious approach to the eVTOL market. But Textron's Bell subsidiary has already been working on both manned and unmanned electric aircraft for some time with both its Nexus air taxi and Autonomous Pod Transport (APT) designs. Evidence that Textron intended to co-mingle expertise on these aircraft and other vertical lift programs emerged last year when Bell established an office on Textron Aviation’s Wichita campus.
Prague-based ABS Jets is the first European FBO to be awarded Stage 3 registration under IBAC’s International Standard for Business Aircraft Handling (IS-BAH), the voluntary code of industry safety best practices. Stage 3 is currently the highest accreditation in the standard, which was introduced in 2014, and only a handful of ground handlers worldwide have thus far earned it. Prospective applicants must wait a minimum of two years after reaching a rank before applying for the next level, to demonstrate the integration of the processes into their operation structure.
The location at Václav Havel Airport achieved Stage 2 registration in 2019, and it recently underwent a three-day audit—conducted remotely due to the pandemic—that culminated in Stage 3 status. Using various communication channels, the auditors were walked through the facility in real-time to observe operations and implemented safety standards.
“I am pleased with the results of the audit, which showed zero findings,” said Michal Pazourek, the company’s director of ground operations. “The ABS Jets team is rigorously continuing to build on the safety culture already in place. Indeed, we will keep investing in safety and risk management to prove our commitment to clients, employees, partners, and shareholders.”
ABS opened a full-service FBO last year at Bratislava Airport and also launched the IS-BAH program there, recently receiving Stage 1 at this location.
Photo of the Week
It dawned on me. While climbing out of Oregon’s Portland–Hillsboro Airport (HIO), Hawker 800XP chief pilot Mark Miller captured this sunrise over a cloud-topped Mt. Hood with the Columbia River in the foreground. Miller said he was climbing just over Portland International (PDX) when he took the photo and en route to Atlanta. Thanks for sharing this beauty, Mark!
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