Hypersonic aircraft developer Hermeus continues to attract major investors, this time through a partnership with Raytheon Technologies Venture Capital Group. Raytheon’s recently established RTX Ventures is making a “strategic investment” to help Hermeus complete its first hypersonic aircraft, Quarterhorse, which is a remotely-piloted small vehicle. The support also will help expedite development of Darkhorse, which will be used to mature technologies for its planned 14-seat business aircraft, Halycon.
Hermeus has begun flying Quarterhorse in simulation with in-house avionics hardware and flight software, it reported. This simulation, using what it called “hardware-in-the-loop,” will help de-risk avionics for Quarterhorse, testing software throughout the flight profile up to Mach 5, Hermeus said. The testing will simulate Quarterhorse flight conditions in real-time, calculating vehicle state in all degrees of freedom. In addition to testing nominal flight conditions, the company is also stressing the system with anomalies and varying model parameters to build confidence in the software.
Powered by Hermeus’s turbine-based combined cycle engines, based on the GE J85, Quarterhorse is anticipated to fly in 2023, testing speeds of between Mach 3 and Mach 5.
FlightSafety International and Presage Group will partner on a groundbreaking psychological study of go-around decision making for Gulfstream operators, the companies announced on Monday at the Business Aviation Safety Summit (BASS) 2022 in Savannah, Georgia. Aiming to address the root cause of runway excursions, which represent up to half of all business aviation accidents annually, the Gulfstream study will use Presage’s proprietary psychological methodology “to understand human behavior in the moment” of landing decision-making, Presage v-p of operations and business development Piyush Gandhi said at the summit.
Scheduled to start this summer using FSI-built Gulfstream flight simulators, this will be the first landing/go-around decision study of two-pilot business aviation operations. Presage's methodology for go-around decision-making is already used by some two dozen airlines and was recently applied in single-pilot operations for the Citation Jet Pilots Owner-Pilot Association (CJP) under the association’s safety committee chair, former astronaut Charlie Precourt.
Presage’s risk-mitigation processes include pilots’ input to identify real-world limits for continuing an unstabilized approach in their individual operations, with simultaneous buy-in from regulators, union representatives, and other stakeholders.
Sheltair broke ground this week on a new hangar project at its FBO at Georgia's Savannah Hilton Head International Airport. Intended to meet the growing demand for aircraft shelter in the area, the $5.5 million, 30,000-sq-ft hangar will accommodate the latest class of ultra-long-range business jets and support both transient and based customers. When completed by the end of the year, it will bring the location to more than 148,000 sq ft of hangar space.
“We are focused on investing in new facilities to better serve the general aviation industry across our network,” said Todd Anderson, the Florida-based company’s COO. “This hangar expansion will allow us to accommodate Savannah’s growing business sector while actively participating in the long-term economic growth of the airport and the community.”
At the ground-breaking ceremony on Monday, Greg Kelly, executive director of the Savannah Airport Commission, said, “We appreciate Sheltair’s decision to once again invest millions of more dollars in aviation development here at our airport.” He added the commission looks forward to continued success and growth with the aviation services provider in the years to come.
Duncan Manufacturing Solutions
Duncan Aviation has expanded and reorganized its parts manufacturing and fabrication areas, creating a new division called Duncan Manufacturing Solutions (DMS). The company added more sophisticated equipment to supplement its previous capabilities and machinery to allow for various CNC milling, waterjet cutting, metal press, engraving, and heat-treating capabilities.
Tail contamination due to accumulated snow/icing, excessive gross weight, and out-of-limit center of gravity are among the factors being eyed by investigators of the Nov. 30, 2019, fatal crash of a Pilatus PC-12, according to an NTSB factual report. The turboprop single crashed less than two minutes after taking off from South Dakota’s Chamberlain Municipal Airport in a snowstorm, killing the pilot and eight passengers and seriously injuring three.
The airplane was configured with 10 total seats, but 12 people were on board. According to an estimated weight-and-balance calculation, the airplane was 107 pounds over maximum gross weight and the center of gravity was 3.99 to 5.49 inches beyond the aft limit.
In the three hours before the flight, the pilot and a passenger attempted to remove snow and ice that accumulated on the aircraft using a ladder and isopropyl alcohol. However, the ladder was not tall enough to reach the tailplane's top.
The pilot said they “needed to get home,” the airplane was “98 percent good,” and “the remaining ice would come off during takeoff.” Photos and videos shot before takeoff revealed accrued frozen precipitation on the horizontal and vertical stabilizer upper surfaces.
After admonitions from the airport manager, the pilot responded, “We’re gonna be just fine.” Seconds after taking off and before impact, repeated warnings from the stall warning and stick pusher system were captured by the CVR.
Textron Aviation will debut three of its newest business aircraft at EBACE 2022, which will be held May 23 to 25 in Geneva. Debuts for the Wichita-based aircraft manufacturer include the Cessna Citation CJ4 Gen2 and XLS Gen2 twinjets, and the Beechcraft King Air 360 twin turboprop.
The King Air 360 was announced in August 2020 and type certified two months later. In February 2021, the CJ4 Gen2 was unveiled, receiving current interior certification under its Model 525C FAA type certificate. And the XLS Gen2 was introduced in October at NBAA-BACE, followed by FAA certification earlier this month.
Also, on static display at EBACE will be the airframer’s Citation Longitude and Latitude super-midsize and midsize jets. All of Textron's aircraft will fly to EBACE on sustainable aviation fuel, the OEM noted. Products and services from the company’s aftermarket division will be highlighted at its booth in the Palexpo Convention Center.
According to the company, there are more than 1,800 Citations and King Airs operating throughout the European region.
USAIG is involved in a lawsuit to reject coverage for an accident in which a Falcon business jet overran a runway, shearing off the landing gear. According to USAIG, the aircraft was operated by an unlicensed pilot and the second-in-command was not authorized to control the aircraft without a fully licensed pilot on board. It also said this was in contrast to statements made by the operator to USAIG about who would fly the aircraft.
Meanwhile, the defendant, which filed an accident claim, has maintained that USAIG should cover the loss because the operator did not provide any misrepresentations in writing.
USAIG issued a policy covering the accident aircraft, a 2008 Dassault Falcon 900EX (now N823RC), for a period from Aug. 25, 2020, to Aug. 25, 2021. During the underwriting process, USAIG required the aircraft owner, Aerospike Iron, to answer a questionnaire on who would pilot the aircraft. Questionnaires were submitted for two individuals, but neither were the pilots during the accident.
The Feb. 13, 2021, accident occurred when, upon takeoff, the aircraft did not lift off the ground at Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport in San Diego. The pilots aborted the takeoff and the trijet then ran off the runway, incurring more than $75,000 in damage.
USAIG subsequently brought suit to rescind the policy. Aerospike Iron unsuccessfully sought to dismiss the lawsuit.
Signature TechnicAir’s Bournemouth, UK heavy maintenance facility has been named a Honda Aircraft-authorized service center and as such will support HondaJet customers in western Europe. The authorization means factory-trained and certified technicians using the latest tools and technology will provide base maintenance for HondaJets under all EASA and UK Civil Aviation Authority regulations and OEM specifications.
Further, Signature TechnicAir also has received certification as a GE Honda Aero Engine-authorized service provider, which enables the MRO’s technicians to service the GE Honda Aero Engines HF120 turbofans that power the HondaJet. “We are delighted to extend our maintenance support to the HondaJet family of aircraft through our new partnership with Honda Aircraft and GE Honda Aero Engines,” said Signature TechnicAir EMEA managing director Andy Preston.
Additional support for HondaJet customers in the UK, including AOG, is available through Signature TechnicAir’s line maintenance and mobile service units based at London Luton, Farnborough, London Biggin Hill, and Manchester airports.
Monaco-based yacht management and charter services provider Hill Robinson Group has partnered with aircraft charter broker LunaJets. The arrangement allows Hill Robinson to enhance its services to provide synchronized travel plans for its clients when they require both aircraft lift and yacht charter.
“We found ourselves repeatedly turning to LunaJets to help serve our clients’ private aviation requirements, and were assured by their proficiency, high levels of service, and all-around success,” said Hill Robinson partner Niall Robinson. “The synergy between our two companies is self-evident.”
LunaJets managing director Alain Leboursier explained the two companies have been working together informally since 2018 and this made Hill Robinson “a logical partner in the yachting industry.”
Geneva-based LunaJets was established in December 2007 and last year coordinated more than 8,000 flights. The broker operates offices in London, Paris, Monaco, Dubai, and Riga, Latvia. Last year, LunaJets topped $100 million in revenue.
Correction
A story previewing EBACE 2022 in Tuesday’s AINalerts incorrectly identified the number of exhibitors at the last show (in 2019). There were nearly 400 exhibitors at EBACE 2019.
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