North American flight activity marked the strongest April on record last month, up 16.7 percent from a year ago, according to Argus International’s latest Aircraft Activity Report. European activity, meanwhile, jumped 74.8 percent from April 2021, displaying “little indication of an overall slowdown,” according to the report detailing Argus TraqPak data of IFR business turboprop and jet activity.
Globally, business aircraft activity increased by 24.5 percent from a year ago.
In North America, Part 91 activity logged the greatest gains in April, up 20.1 percent, followed by Part 135 at 14.6 percent, and then fractional at 12.2 percent. Large-cabin jets led the surge in year-over-year activity with a 31.5 percent increase overall and 36.6 percent increase in Part 91 operations alone. Midsize-cabin activity was up by 20.6 percent year-over-year in April, small-cabin activity by 13.6 percent, and turboprop activity by 8.5 percent from a year earlier.
Similarly in Europe, large-cabin jets drove the flight gains, up 155.8 percent last month. Midsize cabins followed at 54.7 percent, small cabins at 53 percent, and turboprops at 44 percent. In other regions of the world, activity was up 17.7 percent from a year earlier but down 7.2 percent from March.
Argus anticipates continued strong growth in flight activity in May, projecting that flights will be up 14 percent in North America and 43.8 percent in Europe, year-over-year.
Gulfstream Aerospace will issue a software fix later this year for its G500 fly-by-wire flight controls following a “hard landing event” of one of the twinjets in gusty winds. The OEM issued a new maintenance and operations letter last week that reiterates previous guidance in the airplane flight manual (AFM) with respect to control inputs and approach speeds when landing in gusty conditions. Further, it plans to release an AFM revision to “provide updated operational procedures, limitations, and warning notes.”
Meanwhile, Gulfstream soon expects an applicable FAA alternate means of compliance to existing and related airworthiness directive AD 2020-05-12. Gulfstream said preliminary aircraft data analysis suggests that the hard landing occurred after the aircraft flight control system entered Angle of Attack (AOA) limiting mode at approximately 12 feet agl following a series of large, rapidly alternating pitch stick inputs.
The new limitations in the AFM include maximum landing wind speed of 15 knots, including gusts; maximum gust speed of five knots; all approaches stabilized by 1,000 feet agl; mandatory vertical guidance required from ILS or FMS-based approaches before night landing; minimum approach speed is Vref+10 to the threshold and used to calculate landing distance; and autothrottles required during normal approach, landing, and operations with pilots to physically guard and override in the event of performance anomaly.
Digital aircraft records specialist Bluetail has added a new feature, RecordSnap, that allows maintenance technicians to use their smartphone camera to take photos of aircraft documents and automatically store and convert them to PDFs on Bluetail’s platform. RecordSnap doesn’t require a separate app and is compatible with iOS and Android operating systems.
“The idea behind Bluetail's aircraft records digitization and cloud-storage capabilities is to save time on aircraft maintenance paperwork,” said Bluetail v-p of applications and delivery Greg Baynham. “This new capability is the next step in that process. Now, instead of taking the maintenance records to a scanner and then sending those files to us, the A&P or any maintenance stakeholder can take a photo of the entry with their smartphone and immediately upload it to their secure Bluetail account.”
Bluetail co-founder and CEO Robert Guerrieri added, “Every monthly upgrade and new capability we introduce is just another part of our ongoing investment in making our application the most capable in the business and general aviation industry.”
Illinois-based aviation services provider Carver Aero has rebranded itself as Revv Aviation, a move the company describes as a reflection of the rapid growth it has experienced over the past two years.
Early in 2020, CL Enterprises acquired Carver Aero, which at the time consisted of the FBOs at Iowa’s Davenport Municipal and Muscatine Municipal Airports, a Part 135 charter operation, and a Part 145 repair station at Davenport.
Since then, it has gone on to add the Advanced Air FBO, flight school, charter operation, and maintenance shop at Council Bluffs Municipal Airport in Iowa; Janesville Jet Center, the lone service provider at Southern Wisconsin Regional Airport; and LumanAir Aviation Services, an FBO at Aurora Municipal Airport near Chicago, along with aircraft maintenance and servicing company ATS Illinois. It also was recently awarded a five-year lease to take over as the sole service provider at Schaumburg Regional Airport in Illinois.
“Our vision is to be a trusted provider of FBO services for many communities throughout the Midwest and beyond for many decades,” explained CL Enterprises chairman Peter Limberger. “Revv Aviation will build on the legacies of aviation family businesses throughout the Midwest and provide long-term careers and good-paying jobs in an expanding industry."
Aviation Partners (API) has extended its blended winglets installation authorization to Duncan Aviation’s MRO facility in Provo, Utah. The agreement builds on similar authorizations at Duncan’s MROs in Lincoln, Nebraska, and Battle Creek, Michigan.
“Duncan Aviation and Aviation Partners have been industry partners for years,” said Duncan Provo executive v-p and chief operating officer Chad Doehring. “Having our Provo facility API-authorized gives our western U.S. customers a more convenient option for winglet installations.”
Fourteen years ago, Duncan, API, and Dassault partnered on the installation of API blended winglets on a Falcon 2000EX for STC flight testing. A year later, API designated Duncan’s Lincoln and Battle Creek sites as authorized installers of its blended winglets on Falcon jets.
Ten airframe teams at Duncan’s three MRO facilities have a decade of experience completing more than 100 blended winglet installations on Falcon 50s, 900s, and 2000s. Further, in the mid-1990s Duncan completed several Gulfstream II and dozens of Hawker 800 winglet installations. “Duncan Aviation is our longest-standing, and our most prolific, installation partner,” said API president Gary Dunn.
Norman Mineta, 90 a long-time revered leader on Capitol Hill who later navigated the nation’s transportation system through the aftermath of 9/11, died yesterday. “Norm Mineta’s life story is one of values, accomplishment, and dignity,” said NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen. “He was an extraordinary public servant, and an even better human being.”
GAMA president and CEO Pete Bunce agreed, calling Mineta “a true giant in all facets of transportation.”
Born Nov. 12, 1931, to Japanese immigrant parents Kunisaku Mineta and Kane Watanabe, he and his family were interned near Cody, Wyoming during World War II. Despite his internment, he later joined the U.S. Army, serving as an intelligence officer in Japan and Korea. Mineta subsequently rose up through politics, becoming mayor of San Jose, California and ultimately was elected to Congress in 1974.
Serving until 1995, Mineta became a “tireless advocate” for general aviation, NBAA said. Over the years, he led the aviation subcommittee and the full House Public Works and Transportation (now Transportation and Infrastructure) Committee. After a stint with Lockheed Martin, he returned to the public sector first as Secretary of Commerce and then, beginning in 2001, of Transportation.
The events surrounding 9/11 were a defining moment as he made the unprecedented decision to ground all airplanes during the attack and later stood up the Transportation Security Administration.
Mineta became the longest-serving transportation secretary, holding the role until 2006.
Constant Aviation has expanded its maintenance apprenticeship program as part of its multipronged strategy to recruit and retain aviation maintenance technicians. Through the improved, two-year program, apprentices will work alongside experienced technicians while participating in classroom and lab work and receiving an hourly wage.
The MRO provider also will cover the cost of training and testing for FAA airframe certification as well as provide apprentices with a base set of tools. As apprentices move through milestones of the program, they also will receive pay increases. The apprenticeship program is offered at Constant’s facilities at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport in Ohio and Orlando Sanford International Airport in Florida.
“With the private aviation industry experiencing record growth, rising demand for technical work on aircraft has squeezed MRO staffing industrywide,” said Constant CEO David Davies. “We are meeting the demand through initiatives including an expanded maintenance apprenticeship program that gives prospective technicians the experience and skills they need for careers in aviation through on-the-job training and classroom and online education.”
Aerospace Quality Research and Development (AQRD), an aerospace engineering and Part 145 repair station, has added two hangars totaling 40,000 sq ft at its base at Addison Airport (KADS) north of Dallas. The additional space allows AQRD to improve its AOG services including on-wing AOG structural composite repairs.
“We are always thinking of ways to support our customers better,” said AQRD CEO Raj Narayanan. “When the new facility became available for purchase, we knew it would be a great opportunity, especially for additional on-wing AOG needs.”
The new hangars are in addition to two other hangars totaling 40,000 sq feet at KADS that 20-year-old AQRD and its 56 employees occupy. They also will provide for an expansion of AQRD’s specialized composite processing equipment capabilities as well as off-wing repairs and STC upgrades to corporate, commercial, and military aircraft. Accelerated service is also expected with the additional hangars.
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Model(s): AS350/355, EC130/135, EC635, and BK117, including all submodels
Published: April 29, 2022
Effective: May 2, 2022
Requires replacing certain flight control flexball cables with a serviceable part and prohibits installing an affected flexball cable on any helicopter, in addition to reporting certain information to Airbus Helicopters. Prompted by a supplier report of a non-conformity occurring during production. If not addressed, this condition could result in increased friction inside the flight control flexball cables, jamming of the flight controls, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.
Requires replacement of certain horizontal stabilizer pitch trim switches with ones that have a more reliable spring. Prompted by several in-service events where, following a STAB TRIM FAULT advisory message and autopilot disconnect, both pilot and copilot commands to trim the horizontal stabilizer nose-up resulted in a nose-down movement of the horizontal stabilizer, with the horizontal stabilizer reaching the full travel nose-down position in two incidents. A subsequent investigation by Bombardier and the supplier of the trim switch determined that one of the springs within the trim switch had failed. The majority of observed trim switch failures occurred in units that were manufactured after 2019, when the supplier of the spring was changed. Bombardier also identified an existing issue with the trim switch wiring installation that was the main cause of the in-service events. Additional corrective action will follow in the near future to address this non-compliant wiring installation, Transport Canada said.
Model(s): Global Express, XRS, 5000, 5500, 6000, and 6500
Published: May 3, 2022
Effective: May 17, 2022
Supersedes but retains requirements of AD CF-2022-14, which mandated incorporating life limits into the maintenance schedule for brake accumulators, as well as determining the number of landings already accumulated on the brake accumulators in accordance with Bombardier service bulletins. This AD is issued to correct certain service bulletin references. Prompted by in-service failures of brake accumulators on other types of airplanes with similar components and the supplier's determination of the need to introduce life limits on three brake accumulator part numbers.
Model(s): AS350/355, EC130/135, EC635, and BK117, including all submodels
Published: May 3, 2022
Effective: May 3, 2022
Requires replacing certain flight control flexball cables with a serviceable part and prohibits installing an affected flexball cable on any helicopter, in addition to reporting certain information to Airbus Helicopters. Prompted by a supplier report of a non-conformity occurring during production. If not addressed, this condition could result in increased friction inside the flight control flexball cables, jamming of the flight controls, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.
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