Gulfstream’s Construction Frenzy Extends to Farnborough

Gulfstream Aerospace kicked off construction on its new major MRO facility at Farnborough, UK, this month, part of more than 780,000 sq ft (72,464 sq m) the company is adding throughout its services network over the next 15 months as it prepares to ramp up to support its growing large-cabin fleet.

“It is really, for us, an unprecedented expansion in that narrow scope of time,” said Derek Zimmerman, president of Gulfstream customer support, pointing to projects also under way at Gulfstream’s headquarters in Savannah, Georgia, as well as in Appleton, Wisconsin; West Palm Beach, Florida; and Van Nuys, California.

The U.S. expansions are all slated to open within the next three quarters, while the Farnborough facility, which will become Gulfstream’s major European maintenance hub, is to open in summer 2020. These facilities are coming online as Gulfstream’s flagship G650 fleet has now topped 340 aircraft, while its G500 ultra-long-range, large-cabin fleet numbered 17 in service by the end of March, and the G600 approaches certification in the next few weeks.

The UK project was announced a year ago, and Gulfstream broke ground earlier this month and a start-up crew has moved into a temporary facility at the location. Once complete, the Farnborough center will span 225,000 sq ft, making it Gulfstream’s largest maintenance facility outside of its Savannah MRO.

Gogo Plans To Have U.S./Canada 5G ATG Network in 2021

Aviation connectivity products and services provider Gogo today announced plans to build a 5G air-to-ground network in the contiguous U.S. and Canada that would be available for business and commercial aviation customers in 2021. Gogo’s 5G network will be built on its existing infrastructure of more than 250 towers and use unlicensed spectrum in the 2.4-GHz range, in addition to beamforming technology.

“We expect to launch Gogo 5G at the same time as the terrestrial telecommunications companies are deploying the same generation of technology on the ground—a first in the in-flight connectivity industry,” said Gogo CEO Oakleigh Thorne. “Gogo 5G is the next step in our technology evolution and is expected to deliver an unparalleled user experience, pairing high performance with low latency and network-wide redundancy.”

The company said its 5G infrastructure will support all spectrum types (licensed, unlicensed, and shared) and bands (low, mid, and high), allowing Gogo to take advantage of new advances in technology as they are developed. Meanwhile, the company will continue to employ its 3G and 4G networks throughout the continental U.S. and in Canada to provide backup to the 5G network.

“Gogo is also committed to provide easy upgrade paths to 5G for existing Gogo air-to-ground customers,” it said.

Clay Lacy’s OXC Site Gets Part 145 Approval

Clay Lacy’s newest MRO—at Waterbury-Oxford Airport (OXC) Oxford, Connecticut—has secured FAA Part 145 certification. The approval gives Clay Lacy its third FAA Part 145 repair station, joining others at Van Nuys Airport (VNY) and McClellan-Palomar Airport (CLD), both in California.

This approval comes a little more than a year after the West Coast-headquartered Clay Lacy opened the OXC location, expanding its reach into the maintenance market and giving it an MRO anchor in the Northeast. Its OXC site spans 65,000 sq ft and houses factory-trained technicians and capabilities to provide service on Gulfstream, Bombardier, Dassault, Cessna, Embraer, and Hawker airframes.

“Clients can rely on a highly skilled and trusted local resource for AOG support, line maintenance, avionics troubleshooting, and repairs, and interior updates and reconditioning,” said Chris Hand, senior v-p for Clay Lacy.

In addition to the OXC site, Clay Lacy has several offices throughout the U.S. Northeast that provide charter and management services; additionally, the company is an authorized dealer for the Quest Kodiak 100 Series II in the Northeast.

Louisiana FBO Expands with Rival Purchase

Baton Rouge Jet Center (BTR Jet), one of three service providers at Louisiana’s Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, will expand its operation with the purchase of competitor Executive Aviation. Following the merger later this summer, BTR Jet, which opened in 2015, will begin construction on a new 5,000-sq-ft FBO operations facility and three hangars totaling 45,000 sq ft of aircraft storage. That project is expected to be completed in the first half of next year.

“This opportunity was truly a positive for both buyer and seller,” said John Schempf, president of the Newtron Group, parent company to Executive Aviation, which was founded in 1973. “The fact that we know the ownership team of BTR Jet and are familiar with their operational values and beliefs helped us feel comfortable that the long-term employees of Executive Aviation would be in great hands.”

Once the merger commences, a smooth transition between the two companies is anticipated.

“In a little over three years, BTR Jet has grown to be the number-one FBO on the field,” said company president Brett Furr, adding they accomplished that through offering concierge service at fair prices. “We have rapidly outgrown our facilities and have much need for expansion. When completed, our new facilities will be among the finest in the country and will distinguish Baton Rouge in a very positive manner."

Drone Pamphleteer Heads To Federal Court

A California drone pilot charged with violating TFRs over NFL stadiums in 2017 will make his initial appearance in federal court next week. Tracey Michael Mapes, a former freelance television cameraman from North Highlands, California, is charged with flying a modified DJI drone during NFL games over Levi’s Stadium and the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, both in the San Francisco Bay area, and dropping leaflets.

In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, airspace over and within three miles of NFL stadiums is classified as “national defense airspace” on game days by the FAA. Violators face sentences up to one year of incarceration and fines to $100,000 per incident.

According to the criminal complaint filed against Mapes, he modified his drone with a specially built compartment to drop the leaflets, which decried alleged government media manipulation and claimed that television stations were awash in “prostitutes and felons.” Jeff Harp, a security analyst for KPIX TV in San Francisco told the station in May, “There’s some mental health issues involved here.”

But Mapes disagreed, saying that his actions were justified by First Amendment protections guaranteeing free speech. Mapes also allegedly dropped leaflets over television stations and public ceremonies in Sacramento.

JetSupport Tapped for First Euro G5000 Excel Upgrade

Amsterdam-based MRO JetSupport has been selected to provide the first Garmin G5000 cockpit retrofit for a European-registered Cessna Citation Excel. The fully integrated suite, which will provide compliance with all current and anticipated mandates, features 14-inch flight displays with touchscreen controllers, the GIA 64E GPS/NAV/COM, Sirius/XM Weather Datalink, TAWS A, and dual GTX 3000 ADS-B transponders.

Available options include synthetic vision, SurfaceWatch, underspeed protection, Chartview with Jeppesen charts, Iridium phone/datalink WX, ground clutter/turbulence detection, and VHF data radio, FANS-1/A, CPDLC & Link 2000+.

“We wish to congratulate JetSupport on securing the first European G5000 customer upgrade for the Citation Excel/XLS in Europe,” said Carl Wolf, Garmin’s vice president for aviation sales and marketing. “We’ve seen a tremendous amount of interest for the G5000 in the Excel and XLS markets and we continue to achieve certification milestones that align with an entry-into-service date early this summer.”

JetSupport has been in operation at Schiphol Airport for more than 17 years, and its facility can perform other work including inspections, airframe and engine maintenance, paint, or interior upgrades. The company recently announced it has signed a strategic partnership agreement with Scandinavian Avionics to further expand the business opportunities for both companies. JetSupport’s clients will gain access to the latter’s avionics capabilities, while the partnership will offer one-stop-shop solutions for customers in the Benelux region.

Gibraltar Looks To Establish Aircraft Registry

Gibraltar, a British overseas territory located at the southern tip of Spain, announced it will set up an independent aircraft registry. It plans to register private aircraft initially to establish experience before transitioning to cover commercial airplanes.

Business plans are being invited from interested parties with 10 years' proven aircraft-registration experience, including origination of a register from scratch. Gibraltar wants to establish an exclusive long-term partnership to develop and manage the registry, which would be a subpart of the UK register, subject to scrutiny by Britain's Civil Aviation Authority in accordance with the Chicago Convention.

It wants to “elevate the international profile of Gibraltar as a premier jurisdiction in the aviation community, by creating a service-oriented aircraft registry.” Submissions, required by mid-July, should include details of financial resources, concept of register operations, business plan, and available investment.

Gibraltar also seeks details of “aspirations as to the eventual size of the registry [and] timescales involved.” These factors will test the proposal, which follows similar initiatives from other small European territories, including the self-governing UK-crown island dependencies of the Isle of Man, Guernsey, and Jersey, as well as the Republic of San Marino and Malta.

West Star Expands ODA Privileges

West Star Aviation has been granted “No-Program Notification Letter” (No-PNL) privileges that expands its ability to issue, amend, or reissue STCs. Under West Star’s organization designation authorization (ODA), the newest privileges enable all four of its main locations to complete projects without submittal of a PNL letter.

The No-PNL includes projects involving FMS, CVR, FANS, Iridium DLU, and Conquest RVSM. “This is a very beneficial addition to our ODA delegation,” said Jeff Maszkiewicz, West Star’s ODA lead administrator.

West Start provides a range of services from its primary facilities in East Alton, Illinois; Grand Junction, Colorado; Chattanooga, Tennessee; and Perryville, Missouri. These sites are augmented with satellite locations in Aspen, Colorado; Chicago; Denver; Houston; and Minneapolis. Its services cover repair and maintenance of airframes, engines, and APUs, along with avionics installations and repair, major modifications, interior refurbishment, and paint.