Blackhawk Expands, Unifies Branding

Blackhawk Modifications is doubling its facility space and undertaking a branding alignment that will bring it and two other mutually owned aviation firms under the umbrella of Blackhawk Aerospace, the Waco, Texas-based company announced yesterday. The expansion and branding campaign is concurrent with the company’s 20th anniversary. 

Its location at Waco Regional Airport (ACT) has added 10,000 sq ft of hangar and office space for its growing sales and marketing teams, as well as showcase aircraft for sale that are refurbished under its Phoenix by Blackhawk program.

Combined, the company’s offerings include turboprop engine performance enhancements and aircraft upgrades and modifications. Blackhawk Aerospace comprises Blackhawk Modifications and Blackhawk Aircraft Sales; Blackhawk Aerospace Solutions—formerly Vector-Hawk Aerospace—in Huntsville, Alabama; and Blackhawk Aerospace Composites in Morgantown, Kentucky.

“Blackhawk Aerospace represents the culmination of each company’s core competencies coming together to make a sum that is greater than the parts,” Blackhawk president and CEO Jim Allmon said. “This physical expansion and brand unity is a milestone that successfully positions us for our next 20 years.”

FAA Issues Venezuela Emergency Order

The FAA today issued an emergency order prohibiting “all flight operations in the territory and airspace of Venezuela at altitudes below FL260.” The Notam applies to U.S. air carriers, commercial operators, and “all persons exercising the privileges of an airman certificate issued by the FAA,” except for pilots flying foreign-registered aircraft or foreign air carriers operating U.S.-registered aircraft.

Venezuela is experiencing serious disruptions, with battles between pro- and anti-government forces as President Nicolas Maduro attempts to retain control while opposition leader Juan Guaidó seeks support for his claim to leadership of the country.

The Notam allows the above to conduct flight operations if authorized by other U.S. government agencies with FAA approval or under an FAA deviation, exemption, or other authorization. Pilots are allowed to deviate as necessary in case of an emergency that “requires immediate decision and action for the safety of the flight,” according to the FAA.

Before the FAA issued its emergency order, OpsGroup’s Airport Spy had been recommending that members, especially those flying U.S.-registered aircraft, avoid Venezuela.

TAG Geneva Marks First 60-month Global 6000 Check

TAG Aviation’s maintenance facility in Geneva recently completed its first 60-month inspection on a Bombardier Global 6000 for a private customer. The heavy maintenance check was accompanied by routine inspections and repairs and an aircraft cabin deep clean. Bombardier Business Aircraft last year expanded TAG’s authorized service facility status in Geneva to include Global coverage, TAG Aviation said, calling the completion of the first Global 6000 sixty-month check a major maintenance milestone.

“We look forward to welcoming future operators of Bombardier Global aircraft and pride ourselves on developing relationships with aircraft manufacturers and suppliers and to meeting maintenance program deliveries on time for each one of our valued customers,” said Franck Madignier, president of maintenance and FBO services for TAG Aviation Europe.

TAG Geneva’s maintenance services center provides maintenance for the Global Express, XRS, 5000, and 6000. In addition to Geneva, TAG’s facility at Paris Le Bourget Airport has been a Bombardier Business Aircraft-authorized service facility since 2013 and its Farnborough center has held that status since 2006.

Avinode Answers If Your Charter Is Ready for Takeoff

Avinode yesterday launched a new product aimed at helping its customers find and sell more short-notice charter flights. Called Takeoff Ready, the product ensures that not only is an aircraft available for charter in the next four days but that there is a crew to fly it.

More than a third of requests through Avinode’s system are for flights within the next 96 hours, which is why Takeoff Ready focuses on this time period. “The reason for [96 hours] is that’s when you know what your crew schedule basically looks like,” said Avinode executive v-p of the Americas Per Marthinsson, adding schedulers should also have a pretty good idea of an aircraft owner’s intentions in that window of time. “Thirty-five to 40 percent of all the requests in the Avinode system are sent for this time period,” which would be about 7,000 of the 20,000 average daily charter requests made through Avinode’s system, Marthinsson added.

One possible drawback to Takeoff Ready is the requirement that operators have to manually input an airplane and crew’s availability into the system. “We are not relying only on computer availability, but we are having users coming in saying, ‘This is what I want to sell, this is what my owner wants to sell,’ and be able to promote that to a community of 7,000 users around the world.”

Task Force Launched To Combat UAS Airport Risks

The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) and Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) have formed a blue ribbon task force on unmanned aircraft system (UAS) mitigation at airports. The task force will refine practices and provide a framework to mitigate the threat of UAS incursions at airports.

“Occasional bad actors threaten to undermine the great progress we have made and even put responsible, legal UAS operations in a negative light,” said AUVSI CEO Brian Wynne, noting recent high-profile drone incursions at London Gatwick and Newark Liberty Airports. “The industry is working with our government partners on remote identification and tracking standards, but…more needs to be done and at a faster pace than the regulatory process allows.”

The task force’s main objectives are to lead a dialogue to refine procedural practices for airports, law enforcement, and other stakeholders to ensure an efficient and seamless response to future UAS incidents. It will also develop a longer-term framework to deter incursions at airports that can be used at other high-profile facilities, including national landmarks, stadiums, prisons, and military bases. The task force is co-chaired by former FAA administrator Michael Huerta and Los Angeles World Airports CEO Deborah Flint. Other members include major airport, air traffic control, aviation, public facility, and security executives.

Long Island FBO To Add New Hangar

Hawthorne Global Aviation Services, one of three service providers at New York’s Long Island MacArthur Airport, has broken ground on an expansion of its FBO. The project, which is expected to be completed by the end of this year, consists of nearly 30,000 sq ft of hangar space and 2,000 sq ft of tenant offices.

That will bring the facility to 120,000 sq ft of aircraft storage space, capable of sheltering jets up to the size of a Gulfstream G650. The location, which has an on-site Part 145 repair station and U.S. Customs facilities, is currently home to approximately 15 large-cabin business jets.

“We are continuing our partnership with L.I. MacArthur Airport and the town of Islip by expanding our footprint,” said company president and CEO Bryan Burbage, adding the new structure will allow it to maintain the level of service that its customers have come to expect. “Since we acquired this location six years ago, we have outgrown our space and need to expand to be able to accommodate all of our customers.”

The facility offers a 10,000-sq-ft terminal and is home to ExcelAire, the company’s aircraft charter/management division.

JetSuiteX Selects C&L for ADS-B Installs

JetSuiteX has awarded C&L Aviation Group a contract to outfit its fleet of Embraer EMB-135/145s with ADS-B, the Maine-based MRO provider announced this week. “This program allows JetSuiteX to continue its successful operations into the FAA 2020 mandate, having a compliant fleet of aircraft,” C&L avionics sales manager Charlie Carroll said.

C&L will upgrade the public charter operator’s Embraer fleet with Honeywell Primus II avionics systems. “The Honeywell solution is the most cost-effective method, with less downtime for these aircraft,” Carroll explained.

Garmin and Universal are also among C&L’s ADS-B offerings for regional and corporate aircraft types that include Bombardier Dash-8, Beech 1900D, EMB-120, Beechjet 400A, Hawker 800 Series, Bombardier Challenger series, and Gulfstreams. Last fall, C&L was awarded an STC for an ADS-B solution for the Saab 340 family, which can also be used for transponder/GPS pairing in other Part 23 and Part 25 aircraft, the MRO provider to business and commercial aviation operators added.

Airbus Helicopters Orders Down, Revenue Up

Airbus Helicopters reported a drop in orders but modestly higher revenues for the first quarter, the company reported yesterday. The helicopter unit posted new orders for 66 helicopters during the quarter, compared with 104 from the year-ago period. These orders included 20 for Super Puma-family heavies and 16 for the H145 medium twin. Airbus attributed a 5 percent year-over-year gain in quarterly revenues—to $1.13 billion from $1.078 billion from a year ago—to a higher service volume. 

During Heli-Expo in March, Airbus Helicopters announced orders for 43 aircraft, including 21 from Texas-based Air Medical Group Holdings for a mix of singles and light twins and 10 for the helicopter manufacturer's new H145D3 variant. Earlier this year, Airbus predicted that its helicopter market would increase between 2 percent and 5 percent annually over the next few years.