With Halo Buy, Directional Eyes Urban Air Mobility Ops

Directional Aviation’s OneSky Flight has acquired UK-based Halo Aviation, adding another helicopter operation to its portfolio just months after buying New York City-based Sikorsky S-76 operator Associated Aircraft Group. Halo has a fleet of six Leonardo Helicopters AW109s and AW169s that it flies from bases near London, the Midlands, and Channel Islands.

Kenneth Ricci, Directional Aviation’s principal, said the addition of Halo advances three important strategic goals. “First, these acquisitions position us as a leader in the future of vertical-lift solutions,” he said. "Second, it builds a core competency in urban mobility operations. Third, it makes possible synergies with our other affiliated companies, like Flexjet and Sentient, allowing us to provide a complete aircraft travel solution,” he said.

According to Ricci, Directional will share more about its vertical-lift plans in the coming months, including “bolstering the fleet with a manufacturer order that could lead to a possible combination of powerhouse travel solutions.” But Andrew Collins, OneSky’s on-demand private jet travel and vertical-lift lead, made it clear that Directional’s longer-term goal is to jump into advanced air mobility, with the Halo and AAG acquisitions providing “a platform for the entry into service of electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) technology…[and a] link between airports and final destinations.”

Second Dassault Falcon 6X Joins Flight-test Campaign

Less than two months after Dassault Aviation’s first Falcon 6X widebody twinjet took to the skies, a second aircraft has joined the flight-test campaign. Flight-test aircraft S/N 2 completed its inaugural flight on April 30, flying for two hours, climbing to FL400, and reaching a cruise speed of Mach 0.85.

The initial flight-test vehicle flew for the first time on March 10 and the third, which will have a finished interior, is expected to join the program in the third quarter. That latter aircraft will test cabin systems and amenities, galley equipment, flight entertainment systems, and options such as high-speed Ka-band Internet capability. The first production aircraft, S/N 4, will be completed to a typical customer configuration and sent on a global tour.

“We are very pleased with the progress of the Falcon 6X test program and remain confident of meeting its target 2022 certification date,” said Dassault Aviation chairman and CEO Eric Trappier, adding that both 6X flying test aircraft are “performing as expected and showing a high level of systems maturity for this phase of the program.” Several Dassault test pilots have now flown the Falcon 6X, he added. “All are extremely satisfied with its performance and handling characteristics.”

Announcement of the second 6X first flight comes as Dassault is set to unveil its next Falcon model, with a virtual launch scheduled for tomorrow 11 a.m. EDT.

Aviation Mx Industry Looks for Post-pandemic Recovery

The aviation maintenance industry is showing signs of a post-pandemic recovery while concerns about a technician shortage are renewed, according to results of an Aeronautical Repair Station Association (ARSA) survey. The February-March survey of 116 U.S. companies representing 196 FAA repair stations showed a 15.6 percent year-over-year decline in workers, from 22,952 in January 2020 to 19,360 in January 2021.

An economic slowdown caused by Covid-19 prompted 56 percent of ARSA members to seek government assistance through forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans. Another 14.6 percent received Small Business Administration Economic Injury Disaster Loans and 7.6 percent received aid through the Air Carrier Payroll Support Program.

But looking ahead, 59.2 percent of respondents plan to add workers this year while 33 percent expect employment to remain flat. Less than 2 percent expect layoffs. Additionally, more than half—55.3 percent—of the companies surveyed anticipate revenue and market growth this year, with 25.2 percent expecting business activity to remain flat. Less than 7 percent expect contraction and 12 percent were uncertain about business activity this year.

Despite the optimism, 52.5 percent of surveyed companies reported “difficulty finding/retaining technical talent” as a major threat to their companies going forward, according to the survey. During the period, 907 technical positions went unfilled, the survey noted.

Satcom Direct Strengthens Global Infrastructure

Melbourne, Florida-based Satcom Direct has expanded its terrestrial network with enhanced individual Points of Presence (PoPs) and network upgrades that help it support customers’ growing need for connectivity. The network enhancements include more connectivity options, thanks to expansion in the Asia-Pacific region. Satcom Direct also upgraded antennas at its Comsat teleports, the company said, adding capacity throughout its network.

As a result of the terrestrial network improvements, Satcom Direct said that as an internet service provider it can provide more flexibility to business aviation, military, and government customers. With cybersecurity a critical element for connectivity, Comsat and Satcom Direct’s Tier III-rated, ISO 27001-certified SD Data Center in Melbourne work together “to support delivery of a suite of cybersecurity solutions which maintain customer data integrity.” Satcom Direct customers can use the terrestrial network to safely access cloud services and cloud service providers, the company added, “and SD Data Center customers can use the teleports as a bridge for both legacy and new network technologies.”

“For our customers, who are often operating in mission-critical environments, resilient high-speed connectivity is essential, which is why we’ve made these investments,” said Satcom Direct founder and CEO Jim Jensen. “With the latest upgrades, we are delivering enhanced services, applying value-added functionality through accelerated data transmission, enriching our network management, and most importantly keeping our customer data secure.”

Gogo Offers Business Aviation’s First Unlimited Streaming and Data Wi-Fi Plan

Data consumption in the air and on the ground has increased by 38 percent year over year during the past 10 years. To better accommodate the rising demand for data onboard business aircraft, Gogo Business Aviation launched the first unlimited streaming and data plan in business aviation—Gogo Biz 4G Limitless.

Aero-Dienst Opens Oberpfaffenhofen Airport Mx Station

Aero-Dienst has received approval from Luftfahrt-Bundesamt, the German federal aviation office, for its new EASA Part 145 maintenance station at Oberpfaffenhofen Airport in southern Germany to provide line and base maintenance services to business jets. With the approval, Aero-Dienst offers standard line services and MRO services for airframes, engines, and avionics components, as well as interiors, modifications, upgrades, and AOG support from a new 7,400-sq-ft hangar.

“This move takes us and our aircraft maintenance considerably closer to our existing customers in the Munich metropolitan area,” said Aero-Dienst managing director Viktor Peters. 

The new station and its seven technicians provide service on Bombardier Globals, Challengers, and Learjets, as well as Dassault Falcons and Hawkers. Aero-Dienst also operates two line maintenance stations in Austria—at Vienna and Klagenfurt—and a component shop in Landsberg am Lech, Germany, in addition to its main facility in Nuremberg.

FlightSafety, Flight Research Team on Upset Training

FlightSafety International and Flight Research have partnered to provide upset recognition and recovery training, the companies announced yesterday. The program fuses FlightSafety’s type-specific simulator training with Flight Research’s in-aircraft instruction, with the aim to reduce loss of control in flight (LOC-I) accidents.

According to FlightSafety, the in-aircraft portion allows pilots to experience in-flight upset with real gravitational forces, vestibular excitation, and mental stress. Meanwhile, FSI’s simulation programs replicate scenarios that can’t be safely accomplished in an aircraft such as low-level stalls. “Using technology and the aircraft provides the most thorough training possible against loss of in-flight control, the single greatest cause of fatal aviation accidents for more than a decade,” FlightSafety said.

FSI president and CEO Brad Thress noted that the two companies share a “mutual safety obsession…so working with [Flight Research] to develop this enhanced jet upset recovery training makes perfect sense.” Mojave, California-based Flight Research uses Sabreliners, Aermacchi MB-326 Impalas, and Slingsby T-67 Fireflys for its upset prevention and recovery training program.

Wisk To Operate Autonomous eVTOL Air Taxis for Blade

Wisk Aero will supply and operate up to 30 of its eVTOLs for Blade Urban Air Mobility’s passenger transportation network, the companies announced today. According to Wisk, the aircraft will be what it called its sixth-generation design rather than the two-seat, all-electric Cora currently undergoing flight testing.

The agreement between the two companies is contingent on factors such as when Wisk gets approval for autonomous flight operations. It calls for Wisk to deploy its aircraft on short routes linking Blade’s network of private terminals in various U.S. cities. The aircraft will be owned, operated, and maintained by Wisk, which will be paid according to flight duration based on minimum flight-hour guarantees.

Blade said it will publish flight-hour rates “once we are closer to launch to more accurately reflect market dynamics and operational costs.” For now, the two companies will form a working group to address what it will take to deploy autonomous air taxi operations.

In April, Blade announced an agreement under which its partner operators will acquire up to 20 Beta Technologies Alia 250 eVTOL aircraft. These five-seat vehicles will have a pilot on board and are expected to start commercial operations in the Blade network in late 2024. Blade currently provides flights in a mix of helicopters and fixed-wing amphibious aircraft.

Want more? A longer version of this article can be found at FutureFlight.aero, a news and information resource developed by AIN to provide objective, independent coverage and analysis of cutting-edge aviation technology.

F/List Secures EASA Part 145 Approval for Upholstery Shop

F/List's upholstery facility in Erfurt, Germany, received EASA Part 145 repair station approval. The European regulator's approval clears the way for the shop to provide qualified maintenance service on business aircraft upholstery.

The aircraft interiors specialist, which had acquired the shop from ACC Columbia in February, called the upholstery work an “increasingly important strategic business area” with aftermarket demand picking up significantly during the pandemic and, along with it, refurbishment requests. The addition of the upholstery business has expanded F/List capabilities and its service network in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, the company added.

“We are very pleased to have obtained EASA approval for our upholstery facility in Erfurt. The certification shows that F/List Germany meets all EASA requirements at our new facility and that we’re able to offer our customers the high-quality services they have come to expect from us,” said F/List Germany CEO Ulrich Gehling.

Count on AIN for Full Coverage of EBACE Connect

You can count on AIN for full coverage of EBACE Connect. Our team will publish one issue of our award-winning daily EBACE Convention News in early June. We will also have comprehensive real-time reporting of all the top news at AINonline.com and in our daily e-newsletters. Companies who wish to share news or propose pre-EBACE Connect interviews and briefings can contact show editor Chad Trautvetter.