Textron Aviation’s Cessna Citation Ascend, the latest Excel/XLS variant, will make its U.S. debut at NBAA 2023 in Las Vegas this month in cabin mockup form. The full-size cabin replica of the midsize jet, which the company announced at EBACE 2023, will be available for viewing at its BACE static display.

“This mockup has been completely reworked since EBACE, including the hardshell, with a beautiful exterior, fully sustainable interior, [and] more functionality within the cabin,” said Lannie O’Bannion, Textron Aviation’s senior v-p of sales and flight operations.

A key feature of the Ascend is its flat floor, which makes the cabin feel more spacious despite having a little less headroom than earlier models with a dropped aisle. Textron also designed new ergonomic seats that passengers can swivel and track to create more legroom and get comfortable. 

The Ascend aircraft will come with the Garmin G5000 avionics suite, which includes an integrated autothrottle system that helps to reduce pilot workload and improve safety. 

Textron Aviation CEO Ron Draper said the company has already begun flight testing with an early prototype of the Ascend equipped with Garmin G5000 avionics. He said a production-representative version is on track to begin flight testing before year-end. The $16.7 million jet is expected to enter service in 2025.

Receiving strong support from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, FAA Administrator nominee Michael Whitaker today outlined his priorities for the agency, including enhancing safety, preparing for future technologies, and boosting the agency’s talent pipeline, particularly with air traffic controllers.

During a confirmation hearing held today on the nomination, Senate Commerce Committee chair Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) noted Whitaker’s broad support on Capitol Hill and in industry, saying, “This foundation of support will serve you well.” Pointing to his diverse aviation background, she added, “Whitaker will bring a commitment to advancing aviation safety.”

Underscoring the bipartisan support for Whitaker, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chair Sam Graves (R-Washington) introduced Whitaker to the Senate panel, calling him “a nominee who has extensive qualifications in the aviation field and who is very familiar with the FAA—its importance, its intricacies, and its shortcomings.” 

Whitaker is the COO of advanced air mobility developer Supernal and has a background in airline operations with United Airlines and Trans World Airlines. But he said he believes his experience as deputy FAA administrator under the Obama Administration from 2013 to 2016 will best enable him to make an immediate impact on the agency given his understanding of its operations.

He fielded questions about the 1,500-hour rule for airline pilots, preserving service to rural communities, maintaining contract towers, and AAM certification, among other issues.

California-based Clay Lacy Aviation, which is building its first East Coast FBO at Connecticut’s Waterbury-Oxford Airport (KOXC), has reached a milestone in its development. Clay Lacy announced that it has fully sold out its first 40,000-sq-ft hangar in advance of the facility’s opening in early 2024.

The hangar and adjoining 5,000-sq-ft terminal represent Phase I of the project. Plans call for the $20 million, 11-acre complex to eventually include three same-size hangars with 29-foot-high doors capable of sheltering the latest under-development ultra-long-range business jets, up to and including the Falcon 10X.

They will permit flight departments with two or more aircraft to hangar them together, an option that is lacking in the tight Tri-State aviation real estate market, and Clay Lacy is now accepting reservations for the latter two, which are anticipated to be completed by mid-2025.

“We considered aircraft owners' needs first and foremost when developing this project,” said Buddy Blackburn, the company’s senior v-p for FBO operations at Waterbury-Oxford. “The overwhelming response has shown that aircraft owners and flight departments have been searching for space to accommodate both current and future aircraft models and a tailored aircraft design solution that allows maximum protection and access for clients.”

After exiting bankruptcy a year ago and having delivered just five helicopters in 2022, MD Helicopters is well into a turnaround that will see the company deliver 19 helicopters this year and more than 20 in 2024. “[Next year] is a conservative plan,” MD president and CEO Brad Pedersen told AIN. He added that the company’s board of directors gave him the objective of getting to 50 a year.

“A year ago we came out of bankruptcy…after years of turmoil,” he added. “Our biggest goal was to stabilize and profitably grow [the company].” One of MD’s biggest problems was customer support for the 1,700 helicopters in the field. “We didn’t pay a lot of attention to keeping those guys flying,” he admitted.

Under the new management team—which includes COO Harvey Ticlo and Ryan Weeks, v-p of aftermarket sales and service—MD has moved on from the old authoritarian model where management didn’t listen to employees, according to Pedersen. “We want their advice and to be more inclusive and for them to be more involved. Now we have a backlog of 20 aircraft and some stability, they’re not worried about mass layoffs.”

MD’s customers depend on the company, he added. “We want to give first responders the best aircraft, and this gives us a sense of purpose,” Pedersen said.

Duncan Aviation has expanded its service agreement with Honeywell Aerospace to include the Honeywell NZ-2000 navigation computer and IC-800 integrated avionics computer product lines, Duncan said yesterday. The expansion transfers all repair capabilities and exchange inventory to Duncan Aviation Component Services and Parts & Rotables Sales located in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Part of the Honeywell Primus avionics system, the NZ-2000 and IC-800 integrated computers came as factory-installed equipment in the Bombardier Challenger 600/601 and Global Express/XRS/Global 5000; Cessna Citation 750/650; Embraer Legacy 600/650 and ERJ-135/145; Dassault Falcon 900/900B/900C/900EX/2000; Hawker 700/800/800XP/1000; and Dornier 328.

The expanded service builds upon Duncan Aviation’s existing Honeywell authorizations by adding specified part numbers. A Duncan Intelligence article lists the affected part numbers.

“Duncan Aviation has had a 50-plus-year relationship with Honeywell, providing the highest level of component service and support to our mutual customers,” said Mark Cote, Duncan Aviation's vice president of component services and satellites. “It is exciting to add these products and capabilities to the long list of Honeywell components we support today.”

Duncan Aviation has taken over managing the repair and exchange capabilities for these units, including quotes, AOG events, warranty claims, MSP contracts, and related status updates.

Collins Aerospace held ceremonies today at its Rockford, Illinois site to formally open a $50 million advanced electric power systems lab—dubbed “The Grid”—that is designed to explore step changes toward the future of hybrid and electric flight. Announced in 2019, the 25,000-sq-ft lab will build on knowledge the company has gained as a power systems supplier over multiple platforms for decades, including the 1.5-megawatt power management and distribution system aboard the Boeing 787.

The facility will have an initial test capability of eight megawatts, enabling Collins to develop cutting-edge electric motors, controllers, generators, and distribution systems, the company said. Collins cited plans to use The Grid to test a one-megawatt motor for the RTX hybrid-electric flight demonstrator and the European Union Clean Aviation Switch program. The facility also will test a one-megawatt generator for the Air Force Research Laboratory.

During the opening, the company displayed a one-megawatt motor and unveiled a 250-kilowatt motor. Collins further outlined a technology roadmap for a family of electric motors that can be scaled up or down to various aircraft segments.

“In the coming years, we will use The Grid to break new ground in the development of electric systems that are more powerful, more efficient, and lighter than ever before,” said Henry Brooks, president of Power & Controls for Collins Aerospace.

German app-based, on-demand air taxi start-up Flyvbird is preparing to launch services at the end of 2024 with the first of four Tecnam P2012 Travellers on order. The startup expects the business to grow exponentially over the coming years with a mixed fleet of up to 500 low-cost and reduced emissions aircraft envisaged by the end of the next decade to service a growing international network.

Flyvbird has joined forces with Italian airframer Tecnam to develop the operation, dubbed Flyv, which will provide air services—with the 1,700-nm range of the Traveller piston-twin—to small rural and secondary airports around Europe. It will use an app-based booking system and scheduling platform.

Similarly, the company is eyeing possible new alternatives for its fleet, including the hybrid-electric short takeoff and landing aircraft being developed by U.S.-based start-up Electra, which is targeting entry into service in 2028. “It is vital that we get the aircraft selection right and if the Electra does not come to market on schedule, we will stick with the Traveller,” said Lang.

Germany is likely to be the launch country for Flyv with a core network of airports—Brunswick, Monchengladbach, Munster, Friedrichshafen, and Stuttgart—already determined. From this starting point, Lang hopes to expand flights to around 30 other airports.

Boeing has enlisted Pratt & Whitney and Collins Aerospace as key partners in the development of the X-66A aircraft for NASA’s Sustainable Flight Demonstrator project. The two RTX group companies will, respectively, supply geared turbofan (GTF) engines and nacelles and engine accessories under an agreement announced on Tuesday.

The X-66A airframe features a transonic truss-braced wing with extra-long, thin wings attached to the fuselage with diagonal struts. The Sustainable Flight Demonstrator project has attracted $425 million in funding from the U.S. Aviation Climate Action Plan, as well as some $725 million from Boeing and its partners.

According to Pratt & Whitney, its GTF engines are already delivering up to a 20 percent reduction in fuel burn on narrowbody airliners since they entered commercial service in 2016. The company reported that this has saved more than 1.4 billion gallons of fuel and eliminated over 14 million tonnes of carbon dioxide so far. Using the turbofans on the X-66A will allow Boeing and NASA to evaluate what further improvements could be achieved with a new airframe design.

The nacelles that sister company Collins will supply are made from lightweight durable composite and metallic materials. The company will also provide control system components for the GTFs, including heat exchangers, the integrated fuel pump and control, the air turbine starter, and electronic controls.