Beechcraft King Air 360 launch customer Stamoules Produce took delivery of the first refreshed copy of the venerable turboprop twin yesterday at Textron Aviation’s east Wichita campus. “This is a special day for Beechcraft King Air turboprops as we begin a new era for such a beloved aircraft,” said Textron Aviation senior v-p of sales and flight operations Rob Scholl. “This upgraded aircraft features innovative technology and next-generation capabilities, and it will allow [Stamoules Produce] an opportunity to transform the way they do business.”
Announced in early August and type certified by the FAA last month, the King Air 360/360ER improves upon and replaces the 350i with features such as Innovative Solutions & Support’s ThrustSense Autothrottle, a new digital pressurization controller, and a 10 percent lower cabin altitude than that of the 350i. Cabin improvements include craftsman-built cabinetry, partitions, and side ledges as well as upgraded materials and finishes, and new interior options.
Katie Stefanopoulos, a family member of California-based Stamoules Produce, will serve as its corporate pilot. “When selecting our first aircraft, we looked for a product that would not only give us the performance and flexibility we need to grow our business but also by a company with a trusted name and expertise in the industry,” she said.
AINsight: 7 Avoidable Mistakes in Acquiring a Bizjet
Acquiring a business jet is fraught with the potential to make expensive mistakes. Yet, a qualified aviation team can help a purchaser achieve optimal results by avoiding these seven missteps: going it alone; not selecting the right aircraft; not planning for taxes; not creating a legal or strong aircraft ownership/operating structure; skipping aircraft inspections; not exploring aircraft management arrangements early and often; and not considering financing before signing a purchase agreement.
Assembling the right aviation team admittedly entails some cost and initial effort. But most purchasers quickly realize that buying a jet is not like buying a car, real estate, or other assets. Rather, a jet purchase or lease is complex and requires the assistance of aviation experts who excel in the subject matter and interact seamlessly on a deliberate closing schedule.
With the support of an experienced aviation team, a purchaser can complete a simple or complicated acquisition of a business jet smoothly and correctly. As aircraft deal activity rises amid Covid-19 safety concerns, it is worth understanding where mistakes can occur and how to prevent them.
Elections Bring New Faces, New Need for GA Advocacy
Results from the November 3 elections in the U.S. are bringing changes to the aviation industry and new faces to Washington, D.C. Along with changes in the administration, the congressional races will bring a shuffling of House and Senate committees and more balance in memberships.
During a NATA webinar yesterday to assess the impact of the elections, two staff members—Alexander Beckmann, deputy chief of staff for the outgoing congressman and House aviation subcommittee member Dan Lipinski (D-Illinois), and Kerry Knot, chief of staff for House Appropriations Committee member Robert Aderholt (R-Alabama)—stressed the importance that the industry reaches to newly elected and returning members alike. “Both parties are going through major changes,” Knot said. “Now’s not the time to step back. Now's the time to redouble all the efforts.”
Beckmann agreed and suggested to look at staffers, as well as lawmakers: “People underestimate the impact that shooting one personalized email to staff that represents your district makes. We do read our emails.” This is especially important as new staff comes on board that might not understand aviation issues, he added.
Leadership in the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) and Senate Commerce Committees and aviation subcommittees remained intact, despite a few close races, including the closest yet for T&I chairman Pete DeFazio (D-Oregon). However, the House General Aviation Caucus is believed to have lost about 40 members.
Toronto-based Mid-Canada Mod Center (MC2) has completed the first Canadian installation of the Universal Avionics Systems (UASC) InSight Display System integrated flight deck solution. The modification was performed on a 1995 Canadian-registered Cessna Citation VII.
“Repair costs for legacy avionics on an aircraft of this age are typically quite high and some of the systems are no longer supported,” said MC2 president Bill Arsenault, noting the Citation VII has relatively few upgrade paths available. “The main goals here were to enhance safety through better situational awareness and extend the usable life of the aircraft with a modern cockpit.”
The project included an extensive flight deck upgrade and airborne connectivity. Arsenault told AIN that a subsequent Transport Canada (TC) supplemental type certificate (STC), required to cover the deviations from Universal’s original FAA STC due to “a few enhancements such as software updates and the addition of an electronic standby instrument,” was developed by MC2 sister company Avionics Design Services, a TC-authorized design approval organization.
As a result, the UASC system is now a solution for all Citation VIIs with existing Honeywell and Collins avionics. According to UA, it offers LPV approaches, ADS-B Out, and CPDLC/CPDLC digital clearance capabilities, as well as a growth path to enhanced flight vision system capability. InSight also simplifies user control and input and increases reliability, it added.
Autonomous Electric Tow Tugs Could Cut Handling Costs
Californian start-up Moonware is stepping up its plans to develop a family of electrically powered tow tugs that it says could transform the ground handling process for aircraft. Moonware plans to make tugs slated to enter service in 2023 that will be able to tow business aircraft and eVTOLs up to a weight of around 10,000 pounds, with larger tugs planned for airliners with pulling power of up to around 600,000 pounds.
The San Francisco-based company's vehicles will move autonomously between pre-determined waypoints, such as gates, taxiways, and runways that would be designated by ATC at each site. Any required path updates will be set via the company’s cloud-based traffic management network that will draw on real-time data showing each vehicle’s position and status. The system will use this data to update each vehicle’s route to tow a particular aircraft, avoid a potential hazard, or recharge the batteries.
The vehicles also will use a patented mechanism that leverages the weight of each aircraft’s front nose gear to generate the necessary torque for towing operations. Moonware said this also allows the vehicle to accommodate different types of landing gear and reduces structural fatigue compared with the clamps and pin-latch mechanisms used by many current tow tugs. The system will use multiple Lidar sensors to avoid collisions with other aircraft, ground support vehicles, or buildings.
CalGuard Pilots Recount Rescuing Hundreds from Inferno
Members of California National Guard’s 40th Air Combat Brigade were dispatched to fly into a raging forest fire and evacuate hundreds trapped by the rapidly-moving Creek Fire at the Mammoth Pools campground in the Sierra Nevada mountains near Merced on September 5. The fire started a day earlier, incinerating 81,000 acres in just 24 hours.
A Boeing CH-47F Chinook commanded by CW5 Joseph Rosamond was dispatched from Stockton and was joined by a Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk commanded by CW5 Kip Goding out of Fresno. The two told their stories during a recent webinar hosted by the Helicopter Association International.
The mission was exigent with little time for each crew to brief and no time for the aircraft commanders to cross-brief. The information was imprecise. Goding was initially told 30 people needed to be evacuated, then 30 families. Before it was over, 242 would be evacuated by both helicopters over the course of three hops and 10 hours. On the first hop, 20 passengers were crammed into the 11-seat Black Hawk. On the second, 102 campers were jammed into the Chinook.
The mission would strain crew and machines to their limits and so impressed military commanders that each member of both crews was awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross by President Trump on September 14.
Croatian Charter Operator Sees Its Best Quarter Yet
Croatian charter operator Jung Sky completed what it said was its most successful financial quarter in its nearly 12-year history, surpassing its previous record—in third-quarter 2019—by 11.5 percent in revenue and 21 percent in flights. The Zagreb-based company operated flights to 115 airports across 28 countries in the July-to-September period.
The third quarter “not only gave us some breathing room after a harsh lockdown period in April and May, but it also put us back on track in terms of our business plans,” according to Jung Sky co-owner and board member Vedran Jung. He added that, by a margin of 0.7 percent, 2020 was its best by far in the first nine months of any year since its inception.
Despite the positive business results thus far, the company deferred plans to add a third business jet to its fleet this year. “We remain determined to get it done around spring next year, but we will keep assessing the situation to find the best timing,” Jung explained. “[A] third jet is definitely the next step for Jung Sky and it’s not just about adding new crewmembers. A third aircraft would enable our flight operations more flexibility and adaptability and would set this company on a course of approximately 50 percent revenue growth.”
Jung Sky’s fleet currently consists of two owned Cessna Citation CJ2s.
Two Dead after Pair of Guimbal G2s Collide in Malaysia
Two people are dead after a pair of Guimbal Cabri G2 light helicopters collided midair on November 8 in Malaysia. The fatalities were aboard one helicopter, registration number 9M-HCB, while the other, 9M-HCA, made an emergency landing, with its occupants receiving only minor injuries.
Both helicopters were registered to My Heli Club and left Kuala Lumpur Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport en route to Genting Sempah at approximately 11:11 a.m. local time. The collision occurred approximately 22 minutes later at an altitude of 1,300 feet agl over Taman Melawati in the state of Selangor.
Videos posted to social media by witnesses shows 9M-HCB in a rapid and straight vertical descent before impact. Accident photos show 9M-HCA landed in a nearby field with significant undercarriage damage.
Those killed were identified as My Heli’s chief instructor Mohamed Sabri Baharom, 56, a former Royal Malaysian Navy pilot, and local businessman Mohd Irfan Fikri Mohamed Rawi, 41. The survivors included Datuk Ahmad Jauhari Yahya, 66, who founded the club in 2018 and is the former CEO of Malaysia Airlines, and Tan Chai Eian, 51.
Photo of the Week
Time for some reflection. Walt Wakefield, a senior v-p at aircraft broker Jeteffect, took this photo of a Dassault Falcon 2000LX in Miami after a rainstorm, perfectly mirrored on the wet ramp. Thanks for sharing, Walt!
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