Atlanta-based Volato is moving quickly to accommodate stranded aircraft owners and pilots impacted by last week’s shutdown of fractional HondaJet provider Jet It. Volato CEO Matt Liotta told AIN this morning that his company is prepared to offer Jet It HondaJet owners short-term leases and onboard pilots displaced by the shuttering. Liotta said the key to the strategy was moving quickly before too many airplanes and pilots were dispersed.
He added that Volato had been in touch with roughly half of Jet It aircraft owners and that the company's former pilots were already applying for employment. Liotta said hiring simulator-current, insurance-qualified pilots was simply a matter of training on internal processes and a check ride.
Volato operates 17 HondaJets and has 24 more on order. Jet It had 21 HondaJets, but Liotta said as many as 11 are being held in maintenance centers pending payment for services and at least one has a lien attached for non-payment.
Further complicating matters, maintenance records relating to Jet It’s Honda fleet were believed to be in a locked office in Greensboro, North Carolina, from which Jet It had been evicted. Jet It had also stopped payments to Honda Aircraft for its factory aircraft and engine maintenance support program. AIN reached out to a spokesman for Jet It over the weekend but did not receive a reply
In a recent special airworthiness information bulletin (SAIB), the FAA requested that manufacturers of radio altimeters and aircraft, as well as operators, continue to voluntarily provide “specific information” related to those altimeters’ design, functionality, and usage; continue to test the equipment in cooperation with federal authorities; and report results to regulators.
The FAA said it is continuing to collaborate with the FCC and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration on the issue as it assesses options beyond its previous airworthiness directives (ADs), which prohibit select aircraft operations in the presence of 5G cell tower interference as of July 1, 2023, and ban all Part 121 (airline) operations after Feb. 1, 2024, unless performed with a radio altimeter-tolerant airplane.
The information requested in the SAIB is detailed, potentially voluminous, and in many cases likely proprietary. The FAA further asks that all retrofit plans and details be forwarded to the Mitre Corporation—the FAA’s chief civilian technical contractor for collection, aggregation, and de-identification. It places the burden on avionics and aircraft manufacturers for equipment and procedure testing and analysis, updating aircraft flight manuals, reporting anomalies, and developing retrofit plans
The SAIB also notes that “operators should consider the potential loss of pilot trust in dependent aircraft safety systems in the assessment of existing, and the development of new, crew procedures.” Pilots are encouraged to report all radio altimeter anomalies to air traffic control and submit detailed incident reports to the FAA.
The post-Covid spike in European business aviation activity appears to be winding down to more normal levels, Richard Koe, managing director of industry data analyst WingX Advance, told AIN late last week at EBACE 2023. “Clearly, during the lockdown people had excess savings and the need to get out from a lockdown. The surge we saw in business aviation demand during the entire pandemic—which really came through in Europe from mid-2021—we've seen the air come out of that to a large extent."
Koe noted year-to-date declines in the region versus 2022. “That doesn’t mean we are behind [pre-Covid] 2019,” he added. “We’re still up 5 percent in terms of business jet sectors flown this year versus the same period in 2019.”
He pointed out that the compound annual growth rate for Europe is “not particularly impressive, and it's weaker than in the U.S.” And with protests roiling the EBACE show on opening day, Koe added, “The environmental factor in Europe is certainly having a larger impact than in the U.S. It’s much more sensitive here.”
For the remainder of the year, WingX predicts, traffic levels will be on par with those of 2021. “When we speak to operators and when we talk to partners like Avinode, we can see in the bookings that there is a strong summer coming,” concluded Koe.
Bombardier has partnered with defense contractor General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada to develop a multi-mission/anti-submarine warfare aircraft based on the Global 6500 business jet. Bombardier’s Global family is a proven platform for a number of special-mission applications, notably the Global 6000-based Saab GlobalEye airborne early warning aircraft.
The two companies have formed the Canadian Multi-Mission Aircraft (CMMA) Team to produce an aircraft intended for export and domestic use. In terms of the latter, the team is calling on the Canadian government to open a fair and competitive procurement for the requirement to replace the Royal Canadian Air Force’s Lockheed CP-140 Aurora fleet of maritime patrol aircraft, which are due to be replaced in the early 2030s. Canada has already lodged a letter of request (LOR) with the U.S. concerning the acquisition of the Boeing P-8A Poseidon.
While the LOR does not tie Canada into buying the P-8, it does signify some intention. An accompanying statement noted, “The government has determined that the P-8A Poseidon is the only currently available aircraft that meets all of the CMMA operational requirements.” Bombardier and GDMS-Canada are challenging that assertion.
Wilson Air Center “Corral” Offers the Perfect Welcome to Houston
Wilson Air Center – Houston reveals a new terminal with a sprawling 7,200 sq. ft. lobby as the perfect gateway to Houston, Texas. Experience true Houston Hospitality combined with the world-class service at the Wilson Air Corral.
Connecticut-based Tradewind Aviation has expanded its Pilatus PC-12 turboprop fleet to 24 with the addition of five aircraft, including two PC-12 NGX models direct from the manufacturer as part of a 20 airplane, five-year order placed in 2022. The factory-new aircraft were completed by Pilatus at its Broomfield, Colorado facility.
Concurrent with the aircrafts’ arrival, Tradewind announced expanded service with routes to Newport, Rhode Island, and Virgin Gorda in the Virgin Islands. Tradewind began PC-12 operations in 2003 and offers both scheduled and charter flights. Some of the aircraft will be based at the company’s 50,000-sq-ft hangar complex at the Hudson Valley Regional Airport in Dutchess County, New York. The NGXs are certified to burn sustainable aviation fuel, complementing Tradewind’s carbon offset program by which the company automatically purchases carbon offsets for all its flights in North America and the Caribbean at no additional charge to passengers.
“The arrival of new aircraft is always an exciting development in the aviation industry, and particularly for us as we continue to grow our fleet of Pilatus PC-12 NGX turboprops and strengthen our partnership with a well-respected industry leader,” said Eric Zipkin, Tradewind co-founder and president. “With Citation CJ3s also part of our fleet, Tradewind is well equipped to broaden our flight options and provide a great experience for guests and crew on short- and medium-range flights across the map.”
Business aircraft charter and management firm TAG Aviation has added four aircraft to its European fleet so far this year and is enhancing its operations with new software from Leon Software, the company said last week at EBACE 2023.
The fleet additions include a Bombardier Global 7500 and Gulfstream G550 in the UK for private operators, as well as two Embraer Phenom 300Es—one each in Geneva and Zurich—that will be available for charter. “This fleet expansion highlights TAG’s continuous growth in Europe and its strength in our two main European hubs: the UK and Switzerland,” said TAG Aviation Europe CCO Karl Mills.
Meanwhile, the company recently tapped Leon to upgrade its operating systems with a flexible solution for scheduling, quoting, and workflow management. This will allow TAG to more efficiently track crew and schedule changes, as well as act as a central source of operational information across all sites.
“The collaboration between TAG Aviation and Leon Software represents an exciting new chapter for TAG, and we look forward to seeing the positive impact it will have on our customer experience,” said TAG Aviation Europe CEO Joanne Goodall. “TAG’s mission to deliver unparalleled service in the sky and on the ground aligns perfectly with Leon’s aim to provide businesses with the best possible operations software, so this partnership is a natural fit.”
Hill Helicopters’ order book stands at 830 as the company finished its first complete fuselage and tailboom assembly for the HX50, nearly completed the design of its GT50 turbine engine, and manufactured a variety of components such as turbine fans, gears, and bearings. Separately, the company said it plans to publicly unveil its first completed helicopter on December 7 during an event at the Imperial War Museum in Duxford, UK.
“When you come to the event, you will be able to experience HX50 for the very first time. You’ll be able to sit in the seats, you'll be able to see the lines of the aircraft, use the digital cockpit and experience what it's going to be like to own one of these for yourself,” said Hill CEO and founder Jason Hill during his monthly webcast. “You’ll also get to experience the GT50 engine for the first time. And we’ll be rolling out the drivetrain and the rotor systems.”
According to Hill, the order book is split between 673 HX50 kit helicopters and 157 to-be-certified HC50 variants from customers in 59 countries. He also provided additional details regarding standard equipment on board the helicopter that includes leather seats, climate control, digital cockpit, two-axis autopilot, retractable landing gear, and a choice of colors.
Daher has transitioned its flight operations at its Tarbes headquarters in southwestern France to sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The OEM is known for its line of TBM turboprop singles, and its flight activities at Tarbes include production, testing, training, maintenance, and delivery. To power them, it now uses a blend of 30 percent SAF produced by Neste from renewable waste and residue raw materials. In its “neat” unblended form, SAF can provide lifecycle carbon emissions savings of up to 80 percent.
Nicolas Chabbert, the company’s senior v-p of its aircraft division, noted that while it looks to set an example in the transition to low-carbon emission aviation, the availability of SAF still presents a challenge. “We took the initiative of going a step further by joining with the Spanish airline Volotea—a carrier that connects small and mid-sized cities in Europe and flies from Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport as part of its route network—to convince World Fuel Services to supply SAF on the platform,” he explained. “We expect our example will bring other operators to use renewable energy on airplanes.”
According to James Hardacre, World Fuel’s v-p of business aviation sales for Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, Daher’s adoption of SAF for its needs at Tarbes means “all users at this facility can now benefit from our supply of Neste-blended jet fuel.”
People in Aviation
West Star Aviation hired Jay King as project manager for Bombardier aircraft at its Chattanooga, Tennessee facility. King has more than 17 years of aviation experience and has volunteered at NBAA for maintenance, scholarship, and FAA Part 145 program initiatives.
Ontic, a licensor and manufacturer of complex engineered parts for the global aerospace and defense industries, appointed Brian Sartain COO. Sartain has more than 35 years of experience in the aerospace industry, having most recently served as senior v-p of repair and engineering services at AAR. He will assume his role on June 5 and will be responsible for day-to-day manufacturing operations.
Don Bateman, a Canadian electrical engineer and the inventor of the Ground Proximity Warning System, passed away on May 21. He was 91. Bateman spent most of his career as chief engineer of flight safety avionics at Honeywell before retiring in July 2016. In 2005, he was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. He holds 40 U.S. and 80 foreign patents for aircraft terrain avoidance systems, head-up displays and speed control/autothrottle, stall warning, automatic aircraft flight control, and weight-and-balance systems. He leaves behind a wife, Mary, four children, eight grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
Paragon Aviation Group hired Crystal Kubeczka as v-p of sales. Kubeczka’s aviation background includes 15 years with FlightSafety International as a subject matter expert in Gulfstream programs and most recently as v-p of sales for Americas at International Trip Support. She is also a member of NBAA’s international operators steering and scheduler and dispatcher committees.
Private aircraft management, charter, and maintenance providers Priester Aviation and Mayo Aviation promoted Carl Bennett to v-p of quality and safety, succeeding Kurt Humm, who is retiring. Since 2018, Bennett has served as director of safety for Mayo Aviation, which joined Priester Aviation last year. His new role extends to both companies. Bennett has more than 35 years of experience in Part 135 passenger and cargo operations.
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