Fifth G700 Accelerates Gulfstream Test Program

Less than a month after the fourth flight test aircraft in Gulfstream’s new flagship G700 program took to the skies, it was joined by a fifth on Friday. The first flight of T5, which will be used to test avionics and provide flight training simulator data, lasted three hours and eight minutes. Gulfstream Aerospace said the twinjet, registered as N703GD, reached an altitude of 48,000 feet and exceeded the type’s Mach 0.925 Mmo during the flight.

The official unveiling of the G700 occurred last year at NBAA-BACE, and since its first flight back in February, the Savannah, Georgia-based airframer has made significant progress in the test program, including cold weather, flutter, aerodynamic stalls, and envelope expansion. During the series of test flights, the twinjet has reached Mach 0.99 and 54,000 feet, 3,000 feet more than its maximum cruise altitude.

“The G700 flight-test program is progressing exceptionally well,” said company president Mark Burns, adding the program is steadily increasing flights, flight hours, and the completion of numerous company tests. “Every day we come closer to our goal of delivering this revolutionary aircraft to our customers.”

A stretch derivative of the ultra-long-range G650 with the G500/600's Symmetry flight deck, the G700 is expected to enter service in 2022.

EBAA: Bizav Traffic in Europe ‘Not As Bad As Expected’

After a very good month in August—when the business aviation traffic in Europe “returned to some kind of normal” and at times even exceeded figures from last year—it is again running below the 2019 line, EBAA COO Robert Baltus said last week at the virtual Russian United Business Aviation Association (RUBAA) conference. “But this drop is not as bad as we had expected it to be,” he said. The actual figures for this autumn are running below last year’s line by 12 percent to 20 percent for certain weeks.

According to Baltus, the biggest traffic losses during the Covid-19 pandemic have been suffered by flights exceeding five hours, especially those across the Atlantic. Even in August, these flights were 35 percent below 2019 levels, while shorter flights (one to four hours) were pretty much on par from a year ago. Two-hour flights did the best and their share in the total number of movements has increased, he added. The cumulative drop for the whole of this year is expected to fall somewhere between 20 percent and 30 percent.

Business aircraft traffic between the EU and Russia ran slightly higher at the beginning of this year but then dropped by five times in April. It then recovered completely in August and has since been running slightly above last year.

Inquiry Clears Crew in Fatal 2013 Super Puma Crash

The newly-published results of a public fatal accident inquiry (FAI) into the crash of a CHC Airbus AS332 L2 Super Puma in August 2013 near Sumburgh, Shetland Islands, has concluded “no willful neglect” on the part of the flight crew. Such inquiries are often precursors to possible criminal charges and/or used to bolster civil proceedings under Scottish law. Four passengers died when the aircraft hit the water during a non-precision instrument approach to Sumburgh. A fifth passenger committed suicide attributable to crash-related, post-traumatic stress disorder in 2017. 

A 2016 investigation by the UK’s Air Accident Investigation Branch concluded that the crew failed to maintain sufficient airspeed during the approach, triggering a descent below the minimum descent altitude (MDA) of 300 feet agl. The AAIB cited a variety of contributory factors in the accident including crew communication and decision-making as well as the failure of CHC’s standard operating procedures to “optimize” the use of automated systems during a non-precision approach. 

Sheriff Principal Derek Pyle, who conducted the inquiry in August and September, said the accident stemmed from a “perfect storm of circumstances” that resulted in the pilots’ inability to maintain the correct 80-knot speed on the approach.

Impact Finding Paves Way for New Florida ATC Procedures

The U.S. FAA issued a “Finding of No Significant Impact” in its Record of Decision for the South-Central Florida Metroplex, clearing the way for the agency to move forward with satellite-based arrival and departure procedures in the region. Plans call for the FAA to implement the new procedures in mid-2021 for Miami, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood, Palm Beach, Orlando, Tampa, and St. Pete-Clearwater international airports, along with 15 smaller airports.

FAA issued the Record of Decision on the environmental impact of the procedures after holding 29 public workshops and two public comment periods throughout 2019 and 2020. It also evaluated 3,239 comments in the Final Environmental Assessment (EA). The EA was conducted in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, which requires the agency to publicly identify the potential environmental impacts of the proposed procedures.

In its decision, the agency arrived at five findings: the proposed procedures will “ensure the safety of aircraft and the efficient use of airspace;” they do not involve any physical development or modification of facilities, including protected resources; they do not adversely affect protected historic resources; they will not have a disproportionate impact on minority or low-income population; and, they do not require a Clean Air Act conformity determination since they do not require facilities development and they would not “result in or induce an increase in operational capacity.”

HJC: Guflstream Preowned Supply Nearing All-time High

The supply of many preowned Gulfstream models is nearing an all-time high, according to aircraft brokerage Hagerty Jet Group (HJG). In the third quarter, 24 Gulfstream G650s were for sale, compared with just 11 at the end of 2018, HJG reported. In the quarter, the supply of available G550s had increased to 48 versus 20 at the beginning of 2019, while 17 G280s were available, compared with two in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Certain deals cleared out some of the G550 inventory, as well as for the GV and G200, the broker acknowledged but said it believed this will be short-lived. “We expect supply to continue to increase across all models in the next six months.”

The number of transactions was stable or up for some models quarter-over-quarter, it said. At the same time, published ask prices continued to fall, tumbling 3.5 percent to 13 percent.

There is a demand for business jets, but HGJ does not believe values will increase after the pandemic, it said. “In the past 10 years, we have only seen aircraft values go down except for in 2011 and again in 2018…Unless we have some kind of broad global economic recovery in the next 12 months, we can expect values to remain flat or decrease.”

Air Methods Settles California Overtime Claims for $78M

A California judge has given final approval to a $78 million settlement from air ambulance provider Air Methods to settle unpaid overtime claims from flight crews based there. The settlement comes seven years after employees initiated a class action suit against the nation's largest air ambulance provider in Alameda County Superior Court, charging that the company “failed to pay wages and overtime, failure to provide rest and meal breaks or to pay compensation in lieu of such breaks, failure to pay timely wages on termination, failure to provide accurate wage statements, and unlawful business practices and unfair competition within the jurisdiction of the state of California.”

The effect of the settlement is to raise crew wages by 20 percent, with each plaintiff receiving an average payment of more than $100,000. The settlement had received preliminary judicial approval in July. Air Methods’ employees typically work 24-hour shifts.

In a statement, Air Methods said, “it was time to put these issues to rest and do what is best is for our California clinicians and Air Methods. These changes are focused on how we treat uninterrupted sleep time under state overtime requirements, our approach to California daily and weekly overtime, and meal and rest periods.”

Spirit Aero Proceeds with Bombardier Deal for Less Cash

Spirit AeroSystems will proceed with its acquisition of Bombardier’s Airbus A220 wing and aftermarket business but at a 45 percent lower cash price, the Wichita-based aerostructures supplier announced Monday. Under an amended definitive agreement, Spirit will acquire the outstanding equity of Short Brothers in the UK and Bombardier Aerospace North Africa (BANA) for $275 million in cash instead of the previous $500 million.

Further, Spirit will acquire all the assets of the MRO business in Dallas and assume certain liabilities of Shorts and BANA. It also will make a special contribution of about $130 million to Short's pension plan on the first anniversary of the closing of the deal, as well as assume obligations of a repayable investment agreement totaling $290 million with the UK’s Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy. Spirit also will assume $300 million of net liabilities of Short's pension plan.

With the amended agreement, Spirit expects to close on the acquisition on October 30. “This acquisition accelerates our strategic transformation by increasing our Airbus content with the A220 composite wing and growing our aftermarket business,” said Spirit president and CEO Tom Gentile. “As with the rest of the aerostructures industry, performance will be adversely impacted due to Covid-19 for the coming years, but we worked closely with Bombardier on a mutually agreeable price reduction that mitigates this impact.”

The former Short Brothers factory at Belfast in Northern Ireland is an aerostructures center of excellence that produces the composite wing for the A220 airliner (formerly Bombardier's CSeries aircraft). The facility had been living under the threat of closure and Paul Everitt, chief executive of UK industry group ADS, welcomed the takeover. “Being one of the largest aerostructures businesses in the world, Spirit AeroSystems will be a great partner for the facility and will help open up new opportunities across the world,” he commented. “At a time of unparalleled difficulty for our sector, it is great to see the commitment from Spirit AeroSystems to invest in world-leading aerospace expertise and expand their UK footprint for the future.”

Vanderbilt LifeFlight Is Air Medical Program of Year

Tennessee’s Vanderbilt LifeFlight has been named the air medical program of the year by the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS). The award recognizes an air medical program for a superior level of patient care, management prowess, and quality leadership. “After careful review of all the candidates for the program of the year, Vanderbilt LifeFlight rose to the top in best practices for crew safety and innovative patient care during its past 36 years of operation,” said AAMS president and CEO Cameron Curtis.

LifeFlight is operated by Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) in partnership with Air Methods. Founded in 1984, the program has flown more than 40,000 patients. It employs 300 from eight helicopter bases in Gallatin, Tullahoma, Clarksville, Murfreesboro, Mt. Pleasant, Henry County, Humboldt, and Cookeville. LifeFlight also operates an airplane base at Nashville International Airport and 14 ALS ground ambulances, critical care ambulances, and communications and event medicine divisions. 

LifeFlight was the first civilian air medical entity to purchase an IFR-capable Airbus Helicopters EC145 in the U.S. In 2015, VUMC partnered with Air Methods to provide aviation fuel, maintenance, aircraft, dispatch, billing, and EMS licensure. VUMC provides all medical staffing, patient care, and clinical services for Vanderbilt LifeFlight.

Webinar: Autothrottle Safety and Performance Benefits

Autothrottles greatly simplify the operation of turboprop engines, helping the pilot not only manage power changes automatically during busy flying periods in terminal airspace but also add major safety benefits. For the first time, the Innovative Solutions & Support autothrottle system is now available for PT6-powered airplanes, and webinar attendees can learn about how the system works and all of the benefits it offers. Please join us on November 4 as AIN editor-in-chief Matt Thurber moderates an in-depth discussion with Tom Grunbeck, director of autothrottle products at Innovative Solutions & Support, and Aaron Tobias, FAA consultant DER flight test pilot.

Saving Berni the Sea Turtle With a Turboprop Single

When a group of kind-hearted people rescued Berni Stranders, an olive ridley sea turtle, from the cold waters at Port Alberni near Vancouver, Canada, they set in motion a logistical challenge that ended with the turtle’s release into the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean on September 8. Berni is only the fourth olive ridley sea turtle to be recorded in the waters of British Columbia and the second treated at the Vancouver Aquarium. Because he was so far from the warmer waters where he could thrive, Berni needed a ride, and this is where Turtles Fly Too comes in. The charitable organization arranges for pilots with extra space in their airplanes to transport cold-stunned turtles to aquariums in warmer climes, where they can be rehabilitated and released.