Supply-chain issues weighed on Textron Aviation’s deliveries of Cessna Citation business jets and Beechcraft King Air turboprops in the third quarter, leading to lower revenue in the three-month period. According to parent company Textron’s third-quarter earnings report released today, Textron Aviation delivered 39 jets and 33 turboprops in the quarter, down from 49 jets and 35 turboprops in the same period a year ago.
Revenues of $1.2 billion in the quarter are $14 million below third-quarter 2021, with this erosion partially offset by an 18 percent year-over-year increase in aftermarket volume. Quarterly profit, however, swung higher at $139 million, up $41 million from a year ago.
Backlog as of September 30 was $6.4 billion thanks to a book-to-bill ratio of 1.5:1. This is nearly double the $3.5 billion backlog from a year earlier.
“We delivered strong performance even as we continued to experience supply-chain disruptions throughout the year that have impacted production schedules,” Textron CEO Scott Donnelly said on an earnings call with analysts this morning. He added that demand for aircraft continues to be robust with “a lot of order activity,” including from individuals new to business aviation, fractional companies, and corporate flight departments that are refreshing their fleets.
Bell has brought its Autonomous Pod Transport (APT) eVTOL this week to the 2022 Air Medical Transport Conference in Tampa, Florida. The company has been flying the aircraft for several years and aims for a production version that will deliver 100 pounds, 100 miles, at 100 knots per hour, said Bell executive Lane Evans.
Evans said the APT to date has shown its ability to perform depot-to-deport missions that would lend itself to the delivery of medical supplies. The aircraft has the ability to be manually off-loaded and can automatically drop loads at a fixed point and depart or overfly and airdrop. “It will do all of those calculations, but primarily right now it is going to supply.”
The APT has been test flown beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) and in highly-controlled and congested airspace, including the area around Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (KDFW). “It’s got a lot of testing on it,” Evans said. “Now it is a matter of the [FAA] rules and regulations to catch up.”
To date, the FAA has issued a very limited number of package delivery by drone authorizations under Part 135 and has significantly limited the range of approved BVLOS operations.
The partnership between the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and NATA regarding security measures for members of the commercial and general aviation industry has entered its 25th year with the recent renewal of the relationship for an additional five years.
Under the agreement, NATA’s Compliance Services (NATACS) provides the TSA with pre-enrollment, enrollment, biometric collection, secure data transmission, and results distribution for covered individuals such as crewmembers of air-taxi, business and general aviation aircraft, and flight-training candidates. This is accomplished through the NATACS-managed network of more than 350 certified government-trusted agents located worldwide. “We are honored to continue the essential and relevant work that we do with the TSA and our industry,” said NATACS v-p of security and operations Joe Dalton. “As a trusted fingerprint facility, NATACS will remain steadfast in providing the services that our dynamic aviation community has depended on for over two decades.”
NATACS COO Shirley Negri added, “NATACS’ enrollment and credentialing-management services continue to evolve as the industry responds to regulatory requirements. The renewal of a successful public/private partnership allows for both the regulated and the regulator access to standardized procedures, technology-driven tools, and the ability to deploy timely solutions quickly.”
The U.S. Department of Transportation appointed 12 new members, representing a cross-section of the industry, to the FAA Advanced Aviation Advisory Committee (AAAC). Among the dozen are National Business Aviation Association president and CEO Ed Bolen, Helicopter Association International president and CEO James Viola, and Blade Air Mobility president and general counsel Melissa Tomkiel.
They join the more than three-dozen industry, research, academia, retail, technology, and state and local government representatives of the committee, which advises the FAA on drone and advanced air mobility key integration issues and policies.
The DOT said the expansive reach of the committee will help raise awareness of potential impacts on communities and emerging aviation models. “AAM and UAS hold tremendous promise, but it’s extremely important that we bring these aircraft to market safely, and with full consideration of community concerns,” Bolen said, adding that he appreciated the opportunity to bring a business aviation perspective to the models.
He also said that moving forward on advanced aviation will require a lot of coordination, communication, and collaboration. “Through the AAAC, we can approach issues in the interest of all stakeholders, address questions upfront, and mitigate potential concerns while these emerging technologies are still in development.”
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is finalizing an update to its aircraft accident and incident report regulations with the goal of streamlining and simplifying the requirements. The revised rules, to take effect on Jan. 1, 2023, were developed after three rounds of industry consultations between 2019 and 2022.
“For aviation, there are two key changes being introduced in the amended regulations,” said ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell. “The creation of four categories of aircraft operations, each with different reporting requirements, and new requirements for sport aviation operators to report accidents and incidents.”
“The four categories are Category A, commercial passenger transport; Category B, commercial non-passenger, including medium to large remotely powered aircraft (RPA); Category C, non-commercial aircraft; and Category D, small RPAs and certain uncrewed balloons. “Passenger-carrying and commercial operations will have a greater reporting focus due to the greater public safety benefit that could be derived,” said Mitchell.
Other changes include aligning aircraft operation categories and definitions with revised Australian flight rules introduced in December, as well as matching ICAO definitions for accident, serious incident, fatal injury, and serious injury. Revised rules also include defining occurrences that must be reported to the ATSB immediately, events that must be reported by telephone as soon as reasonably practical, and “routine” matters that can be reported in writing within 72 hours.
Satcom and connectivity equipment provider Skytrac Systems named Louisiana-based helicopter maintenance specialist Arrow Aviation as an authorized service center (ASC) after partnering on repairs of the manufacturer’s ISAT-200A terminal.
The ISAT-200A onboard server with satcom capabilities is designed for rotorcraft use and offers automated flight following, flight data monitoring, real-time health and usage monitoring alerting, and satellite voice, text, and push-to-talk communications. As an ASC, Arrow will provide repair of Skytrac’s Iridium satcom terminals and accessories. Arrow also will repair ISAT-200A accessories such as the cockpit display panel and dispatch voice interface, as well as the Dynamic Air Link 200.
“Arrow’s understanding of operator needs and central location will greatly benefit all helicopter operations including the offshore oil and gas and helicopter emergency medical services industries,” said Skytrac v-p of sales and marketing Jan van der Heul. “We are confident that our clients will appreciate the regional support, especially those in the underserved Gulf of Mexico area.”
The Air Charter Association (ACA) reached a milestone last week with the organization now represented by members in more than 50 countries across six continents. Total membership at the UK-based organization is 324, a spokeswoman told AIN.
ACA credits a number of efforts to the growth in membership, which includes members in nine new countries this year such as Canada, Mexico, Kenya, and Finland. It credits a recently announced partnership with 4Air to offer members sustainability planning services and continuous advice to deal with key industry challenges as a driver of that growth.
The appointment of Chris Adams as membership executive also has helped build international membership and wider representation in the cargo and airline markets, the organization said. “It’s noteworthy that many of our new members view membership of the ACA as a key benchmark to assuring their partners and clients alike of their reputation and professionalism,” Adams added.
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Advanced Rotorcraft Technology (ART) plans to demonstrate its Flightlab software using Brunner’s NovaSim virtual reality (VR) flight simulator that provides a 360-degree external view. The combination will allow clients to “fly” various models of helicopters to differing degrees of fidelities.
“Partnering with ART shows the full potential of the NovaSim VR/MR [virtual reality/mixed reality]. From the Bell 407, Airbus H125, UH-60 Black Hawk, and emerging eVTOL models, all now can be flown on one device,” said Brunner sales and marketing manager Mario Ackermann.
The device is currently configured as a Bell 407 and will feature ART’s 407 physics-based model. Other model helicopters will be added. ART president Ronald Du Val said that using NovaSim's VR simulator provides “very accurate flight models in a totally immersive experience for both training and engineering development. Now [customers] have the ability to feel the different flight models in use. The very smooth behavior of the motion platform adds important cueing to the pilot and effectively augments the VR/MR display.”
CALS—a senior-level and laser-focused peer-to-peer networking summit—will address the latest and most cutting-edge topics, strategies, and solutions in corporate aviation. The summit is attendee-centric and serves as an educational and social platform, connecting select corporate aviation professionals with colleagues, industry experts, and solution providers in a relaxed, informal environment. We invite U.S.-based flight department leaders, including directors of maintenance, to apply to attend this event as our guests, which will be hosted Nov. 29 to Dec. 1, 2022, in Bonita Springs, Florida. Seats are limited, so don’t wait to apply.
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