Vista Global Opens Charter Fleet to Ferrari Racers
Vista Global, the holding company of charter operators VistaJet and XO, will make its fleet and services available to Ferrari drivers competing in international GT races and the Prancing Horse mono-brand championships in Europe. Taking place across five continents—including North America, Europe, and Asia—the 20 international championship races and Ferrari Challenge races occur over 12 months and involve professional and amateur drivers.
“Racing has been a passion of mine for many years,” said Vista Global chairman and founder Thomas Flohr. “Alongside my team, I have experienced first-hand the demands of racing and the intense focus required to consistently deliver a winning performance. Vista Global is excited to be able to support all Ferrari drivers to get where they need to be, safely and in optimum condition, so they can focus on what is the most important—the competition and performance on the track.”
Flohr himself is a racer, serving on a three-driver team that expects to compete in Saturday's Le Mans in the No. 54 VistaJet/XO Ferrari 488 GTE.
AINsight: Is the Pilot Shortage Over?
“Well, that fixes the pilot shortage.” This has been the “word on the street” since the Covid-19 crisis hit in mid-March. Since then, thousands of airline pilots have taken early retirement packages and extended leaves of absence.
The good news? Private charter flights are more in demand and first-time aircraft buyers are entering the market. Despite Covid, most of the pilots in the business aviation segment remain safely employed. More than ever, the industry is proving that being a business aviation pilot is an outstanding, stable career.
At present, it’s important to support our current retention strategies. Let’s not allow the ranks of unemployed pilots to give us a false sense of security. Because when airlines start hiring pilots once again, there likely won’t be enough. Thus, the pull on business aviation could possibly be even more extreme than it was in the first quarter of this year.
This is the business aviation industry’s time to shine and for the next generation to understand why a piloting career in this segment is so wonderful. Let’s not lose critical ground by kicking the proverbial can down the road.
Fractional Hangar Facility Planned at Vancouver Airport
Canadian aviation services provider Fast Air expects to break ground next year on a new private aircraft hangar complex employing a “fractional ownership” model at Vancouver-area Abbotsford International Airport, meaning those interested in basing their aircraft there will purchase a share in the location. The company has operated an FBO at Winnipeg International Airport for the past three decades, in addition to providing aircraft charter, management, and Part 145 maintenance.
The $7 million-plus complex, intended to be the first in the country designed to accommodate both traditional and electric-powered business aircraft, will feature a 30,000-sq-ft heated community hangar that can shelter the latest large-cabin business jets. Fast Air will provide all ground handling and line services for its tenants, which will have access to the company’s fueling program.
In addition, the first phase of the development will include a terminal with an executive lobby, board room, customizable office space, and private ramp space. A second phase could include private individual hangars depending on demand. Fast Air expects to eventually transition the facility to handle transient aircraft as well.
“We just think this is an opportunity waiting to be developed,” Dan Rutherford, the company’s manager of business development, told AIN. “The economy in that area is growing strongly and Vancouver International Airport is congested.”
SmartSky Networks, which is hoping to launch its air-to-ground (ATG) network service next year, prevailed in a patent challenge brought on by aviation connectivity specialist Gogo. Gogo filed the challenge before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) against a patent that SmartSky said covers some of the most essential features of its ATG network, including beamforming and seamless cell tower handoffs.
USPTO declined to review the patent, saying Gogo “has not demonstrated a reasonable likelihood...in demonstrating that at least one challenged claim” among the 20 claims against the patent would prevail. In reaction to the USPTO decision, SmartSky chairman and CEO Haynes Griffin said, “We continue to believe [Gogo] will have great difficulty commercializing their future 5G network without infringing on SmartSky’s expansive intellectual property portfolio.”
Gogo responded that it disagreed with the decision, but Sergio Aguirre, president of Gogo Business Aviation, stressed, “Neither the PTO’s decision nor SmartSky’s patent portfolio in any way impairs our ability to continue to successfully expand, to launch Gogo 5G, or to enhance our position in the business aviation market.”
Aguirre also disputed SmartSky's patent infringement contention. “To be clear, Gogo reiterates our strong belief that we are not infringing any valid patent held by SmartSky,” he said.
WAI Launches Virtual Girls in Aviation Day Globally
Women in Aviation International is preparing to launch its Sixth Annual Girls in Aviation Day (GIAD) on September 26, but this time in a virtual format that will expand its international reach and, with the release of a new app, will have activities available year-round. Designed for girls ages eight to 17, the event will include a range of content and resources from virtual museum tours, hands-on activities, and book readings in multiple languages to career videos, introductions to positive female role models, and scholarship information.
In tandem, WAI is launching an Aviation for Girls app, sponsored by the U.S. Air Force, to provide access to this content year-round. In addition, digital issues of the Aviation for Girls magazine will be available through the app. Age-appropriate tracks are presented for elementary, middle school, and high school students. While available to download now, the content will be added to the app beginning on Girls in Aviation Day.
“WAI will continue our expanding program of encouraging and inspiring girls—no matter where they live or learn—all-year-round with a continuously growing library of content that is key to the GIAD experience,” said WAI CEO Allison McKay.
WAI held its annual international GIAD in 2015, hosting 32 events and 3,200 participants. That event grew to more than 20,000 attendees participating in 119 events in 18 countries last year.
Universal Avionics has obtained FAA TSO approval for its new sixth-generation Kapture series of cockpit voice and flight data recorders (CVR/FDR), which meet worldwide certification requirements such as ED-112A. Universal offers five options in the Kapture product line: CVFDR-1650 (combined CVR/FDR); CVFDR-1650R (combined CVR/FDR unit with embedded recorder independent power supply); CVR-1651 (baseline CVR); CVR-1651R (CVR with embedded RIPS); and FDR-1652 (baseline FDR).
Countries with upcoming regulatory requirements for recorders include Mexico, which mandates CVRs and FDRs starting Dec. 31, 2020, through Dec. 31, 2022, for commercially operated turbine airplanes with 10 or more passenger seats (including air taxis) and large turbine helicopters flying in Mexican airspace under an international air operator certificate. EASA will require CVRs in aircraft with an mtow of 59,500 pounds or higher manufactured from Jan. 1, 2021.
The Kapture CVR and CVFDR, which meet the EASA mandate, can record more than 25 hours of audio and also store more than 25 hours of non-audio content such as time, rotor speed, and datalink messaging. The FDR can store more than 90 hours of data.
For downloading data faster and performing field-loadable updates, Universal Avionics offers the Flight Archive Ground Maintenance PC Tool. The tool eliminates the need to install a separate quick-access recorder, which saves time and money, according to Universal.
Survey Finds Covid Spurring Industry Interest in AR/VR
Extended-reality specialist GridRaster is seeing a jump in aerospace companies interested in fast-tracking technologies such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) as the Covid-19 pandemic drags on. GridRaster, which provides AR/VR for aerospace manufacturers, released the results of a study finding 42 percent of the respondents planned to implement such technologies in the next 12 months. Meanwhile, 51 percent were researching the potential of AR and VR for future implementations.
The company commissioned the online survey of aerospace executives in July and said the results illustrate how industry manufacturers are planning to leverage more automation technology as they deal with Covid-19 social distancing, staffing shortages, and the need for production efficiencies. Of the respondents, 28 percent said Covid-19 factored heavily into decisions to fast-track these plans, while 39 percent already began that process. Those that have already implemented such technologies reported between 15 percent and 20 percent increases in efficiency and 5 percent and 10 percent in cost savings.
The survey also highlights how AR is being used, including applications for assisted workforce on production lines, maintenance and customer visits, employee training programs, and engineering design. “Highly scalable automation technologies such as AR/VR are proven to be extremely effective for aerospace manufacturers because of the ability to significantly increase efficiencies, reduce costs, and keep more workers safe,” said GridRaster CEO Rishi Ranjan.
Avidyne Obtains First Part 25 STC for IFD540 FMS
Operators looking to upgrade the avionics in Cessna Citation Excel/XLSs equipped with Honeywell Primus 1000 flight decks can now add Avidyne’s IFD540 Multifunction FMS under a new STC approved by the FAA. The STC enables replacement of one of the DU-870 CRT-type multifunction displays with dual IFD540s, and this is Avidyne’s first STC for installation of the IFD540 in a Part 25 jet.
The addition of the IFD540 adds modern capabilities to the Excel/XLS, including autopilot-coupled LPV approaches, synthetic vision, traffic display, and provision of GPS position information for ADS-B Out. The STC also paves the way for further Part 25 approvals for the IFD units, as well as Avidyne’s new Atlas console-mount FMS. The IFD/Atlas can interface with Primus 1000 or Collins Pro Line 21 avionics “without the exorbitant costs of external adapter boxes or EFIS factory upgrades,” according to Avidyne.
“This Part 25 STC moves Avidyne another leap forward as we expand into this market of otherwise highly-capable legacy turbine aircraft that are in dire need of affordable avionics modernization solutions,” said Avidyne CEO Dan Schwinn.
Avidyne has previously obtained STCs for dual IFD FMS installations in Part 23 jets such as the Citation 525 with a Pro Line 21 flight deck and FGC-3000 digital flight control system and a single IFD on the CJ1+, CJ2+, and CJ3.
An Expert Take on Cybersecurity for Business Aviation
Aircraft systems in both the cockpit and cabin are vulnerable to cybersecurity threats, and the vital connectivity on which aircraft owners and operators depend needs to be kept secure from security risks that are constantly evolving. Please join us on October 21 for a webinar that will offer expert perspective and guidance from leading companies providing connectivity and the security capability to protect it. AIN senior editor Charles Alcock will moderate this discussion with Rob Hill, regional sales director of CCX Technologies, and Rich Pilock, director of fleet accounts at SmartSky Networks.
Photo of the Week
This Gulfstream G200 rocks! According to Wing Aviation’s Haydar Kustu, who snapped this image of it at sunset, the twinjet features a unique paint job inspired by musician Eddie Van Halen’s guitar. The G200 is part of Wing Aviation's fleet based at Texas’s Sugar Land Regional Airport. Thanks for sharing this one, Haydar!
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