German charter operator Platoon Aviation received its fourth Pilatus PC-24 late last week at Aero Friedrichshafen, with the ceremonial handover taking place in the presence of officials from Pilatus and Air Alliance. The latter company is the authorized Pilatus sales center for Germany and Austria.
Hamburg-based Platoon Aviation, which has more of the Pilatus light twinjets on order, took delivery of its first PC-24 in first-quarter 2021. Its all-PC-24 fleet provides charter flights to a plethora of European destinations, including popular summer holiday destinations such as Olbia, Nice, Majorca, and Naples, the company said.
“The PC-24 is at the cutting edge of technology and offers passengers the highest level of comfort, be it the spacious cabin, flat floor, or high-quality workmanship of the materials,” said Platoon Aviation managing director Deniz Weissenborn. “This business jet is an excellent match for our modern corporate philosophy.”
Pilatus v-p of general aviation Ignaz Gretener said he is pleased with the rapid growth of the company’s PC-24 fleet. “The PC-24 is popular with charter customers in general and the dynamic team at Platoon Aviation knows how to deliver a high-quality service to go with it,” he added.
Midway through the two-year cycle for the NTSB’s Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Improvements for 2021 and 2022, the agency said it is pleased with the increased awareness and public engagement of pressing issues. However, only eight of 167 related safety recommendations, and none in the aviation arena, have been successfully closed.
Since that time, the agency said it has met with officials from associations such as HAI, GAMA, and NBAA, as well as with the Part 135 and 91 communities. Through webinars, podcasts, conference attendance, and other meetings, the NTSB estimated that it has reached more than 1,500 operators nationwide.
“We are pleased by the engagement of so many of our safety advocacy partners, industry groups, and associations in the past year to promote our recommendations and highlight transportation safety concerns,” the NTSB said in a recent update on the Most Wanted List. “Also, we acknowledge that many industry groups and operators are making voluntary efforts to improve safety, including on some of our recommendations. However, without mandates, many others may not act.”
Hybrid-electric aviation pioneer Ampaire is preparing to launch a Series B funding round after confirming that Surf Air Mobility is no longer planning to acquire the startup. Flight marketplace Surf Air announced the agreement to buy Ampaire in February 2021.
In a statement, Ampaire said it has decided to “move forward as an independent company” as it prioritizes efforts to bring to market hybrid-electric versions of the Cessna Grand Caravan. The Ampaire team is working on plans to convert several aircraft types to hybrid-electric propulsion, building on recently completed flight tests with its Electric EEL technology demonstrator that uses a Cessna 337 as its platform. It now believes that the Grand Caravan conversion could be approved under an FAA supplemental type certificate by 2024.
For now, this development work is being funded by private investors and public grants such as the U.S. Department of Energy’s ARPA-e program and the UK’s Future Flight Challenge. Ampaire still has two of the EEL aircraft in flight testing, with one being used to trial new technology and systems as part of ARPA-e. The other is being used to conduct market survey demonstration flights to familiarize prospective airline customers with how hybrid-electric aircraft could be deployed in commercial service. This work has involved Scottish airline Logan Air, with flight tests conducted in the UK and California.
Want more? You can find a longer version of this article at FutureFlight.aero, a news and information resource developed by AIN to provide objective coverage and analysis of cutting-edge aviation technology.
As Cirrus Aircraft sales continue to grow, the company is adding to its investments in Europe. In addition to opening a new sales office in Valenciennes, France, last month, Cirrus has unveiled plans to open a European regional operations office in Rotterdam, Netherlands, which will focus on sales leadership, service, and training.
Last year, Cirrus delivered 442 SR series single-engine piston airplanes and 86 single-engine Vision Jets. Next year, those numbers should climb 20 and 10 percent, respectively, according to senior v-p of sales and marketing Ben Kowalski. Production of Cirrus airplanes is going as fast as the supply chain allows, he added. “We’re probably at a rate we feel comfortable with.”
A surprising 39 percent of buyers of Cirrus SR piston airplanes during 2021 are new to aviation, according to Ivy McIvor, the director of the SR product line. “This is really good news,” she said. “We’re doing a huge part to grow the industry.” Twenty-five percent of 2021 SR orders went to buyers outside the U.S.
Meanwhile, Cirrus Aircraft's Vision Jet is now certified in more than 40 countries and nearly 700 pilots have Vision Jet type ratings. The engine improvements on the latest edition, the G2+, deliver 25 percent better takeoff performance, according to the company.
Operators of turbine-powered aircraft are still feeling the pinch of high jet fuel prices, an effect of the continuing Russia-Ukraine war and its disruption to global fuel supplies due to sanctions on Russia.
According to today’s Airnav fuel price report, the national average price for jet-A is $6.32 a gallon, up 21 cents from two weeks ago. New England is seeing the highest prices in the U.S.—an average of $7.95 a gallon, up 81 cents per gallon from mid-April, followed by the Eastern region at $7.40 per gallon, as supply imbalances stemming from the reduced flow of European fuel imports into the area continue to work through the system. With the exception of Alaska, all other areas of the U.S. saw price hikes over the past two weeks.
The current highest reported FBO price in the country, $12.88 a gallon, was at New York La Guardia Airport, but bargains as low as $3.45 a gallon in the Eastern region can still be found, depending on what refueling stops an operator chooses to make.
“The region is getting back in balance with supply stocks,” said Joel Hirst, Avfuel’s v-p of sales. He noted that overall prices are still high in the Eastern region but are coming back in line with the rest of the U.S. “I expect continued volatility in all jet markets for the next several months,” Hirst added.
On display last week at Aero Friedrichshafen was a mockup of Apus Group’s zero-emission hydrogen-powered twin-motor i-2 airplane, highlighting the fuel cell and power controller installation in the forward fuselage. Apus opted for an efficient “structurally integrated hydrogen storage system” using tubular wing spars as tanks.
Each wing will have four spars, extending for about the first two-thirds of each wing’s span. When full, the eight spar tanks can hold 23 kg of hydrogen.
The i-2’s two 135-kW electric motors run off a fuel cell that burns five kilograms per hour, giving the four-place airplane a range of 500 nm. At an assumed hydrogen price of €5 per kilogram, Apus estimates that operating costs will be 80 percent of those of a Cirrus SR22 piston single. Apus plans to roll out the first i-2 early next year, followed by first flight later that year.
Apus is also developing the larger i-5 using the same tubular spar hydrogen storage. This four-motor airplane would be able to carry up to 14 people and have an 800-nm range. Operating cost is projected as 40 percent less than a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan.
Textron Aviation said today it has acquired Mistequay Group, a Saginaw, Michigan-based supplier of components for aerospace and defense OEMs that specializes in ball screw assemblies, gear systems, and actuator components. Under the Wichita-based OEM, Mistequay will operate as AeroMotion by Textron Aviation and be integrated into the Beechcraft and Cessna airframer’s global operations function.
Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The company’s 130-employee workforce will be retained at its Saginaw and Monroe, Washington facilities. AeroMotion will expand Textron Aviation’s internal capabilities and key component technologies and engineering support of its Citation product line.
“I’m thrilled to have the employees from Mistequay join the Textron Aviation team,” said Textron Aviation senior v-p of operations Brad White. “By working collaboratively, we will create growth opportunities and offer value that benefits our workforce and the customers we support each day.”
Bell has signed a purchase agreement with Swiss helicopter services company Karen for two Bell 505 light single helicopters. The company will use the delivered aircraft for VIP and commercial flights and pilot training. Karen was founded by Enzo Carlino in 1999 and offers a wide range of services, including corporate transportation, helicopter management, pilot training, technical training, and maintenance, repair, and overhaul.
“We are excited to begin operating the 505 and offer this aircraft to our customers,” said Luca Carlino, managing director of Karen. “The aircraft will modernize our fleet of Bell 206 aircraft.”
The five-seat 505 cruises at 125 knots and has a 360-nm maximum range. More than 360 of the type are operating around the world, with 65 of those helicopters flying in Europe. As of February 2022, the delivered fleet had amassed more than 100,000 flight hours since entering service in 2016. The light single 505 is equipped with a Safran Arrius 2R engine and Garmin G1000 NXi avionics suite.
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