After 64 years and building more than 1,300 helicopters, Enstrom will cease operations tomorrow, terminate all employees and product support, and file Chapter 7 liquidation bankruptcy. The Menominee, Michigan-based helicopter manufacturer was acquired by China’s Chongqing General Aviation Industry Group (CGAG) in 2012.
“Enstrom’s management team is aware of multiple groups who have expressed a strong interest in buying Enstrom assets and reopening the company post-bankruptcy,” director of sales and marketing Dennis Martin said in a letter announcing the company’s fate. However, Martin added that he could not predict when or if that would happen.
The company was spawned by Michigan mining engineer Rudy Enstrom, who built prototypes in his garage in the 1940s and 1950s. It was formally incorporated in 1959 and its first production helicopter, the F28, was certified in 1965. An additional piston-engine model, the 280 Shark, was added in the 1970s. Current-production models included the F28F and 280FX turbocharged piston engine models and the turbine 480B-G.
Enstrom’s attempts to bring several other new models to market, including the four-place 280L and the two-seat TH180 stalled, never progressing beyond the flight-test stage, and in recent years deliveries of in-production models have lagged. Through the first nine months of 2021, Enstrom delivered just two helicopters, according to GAMA data; in 2020, it delivered five aircraft.
Citing confusion surrounding the 5G rollout, the Flight Safety Foundation (FSF) called on the FAA and wireless carriers to definitively identify which U.S. airports are affected by the 5G implementation in C-band, saying it was concerned about “the disjointed approach taken to resolving potentially significant aviation safety issues."
According to FSF, the FAA and the wireless carriers need to cooperate on a definitive plan so accurate and timely guidance and/or restrictions can be released for aircraft operators. Further, the association urged the FAA to accelerate identification of which aircraft types will be approved to perform low-visibility landings at the affected airports. FSF reminded that the 5G implementation affects more than just large airports and air carriers, but also operations at smaller community airports and helicopter operations.
“The unclear and sometimes conflicting restrictions and notices on 5G near airports are creating confusion globally and have led to disruptions and cancellations of hundreds of flights,” said Conor Nolan, chairman of the FSF board of governors. “It is imperative to expedite mitigations and approvals, clearing as many aircraft as possible to operate without restriction at airports.”
“The greater the confusion and uncertainty, the greater the risk to safety,” said FSF president and CEO Hassan Shahidi. “The process of resolving or mitigating the safety risks needs to be accelerated and not allowed to drag on for months.”
Charter operator Tradewind Aviation has launched a new carbon offset program that will automatically cover all of its flights throughout North America and the Caribbean. The move expands on the company’s initial offset initiative in 2020 that allowed customers to voluntarily offset carbon emissions generated through their flights. That contribution was calculated at $7 per flight hour. At the end of 2021, participants in the program had offset 160.3 tonnes of CO2.
This new system will see Tradewind cover 100 percent of the cost of the carbon offsets with an automated technology that will apply to every one of its legs regardless of destination, duration, or aircraft type, with all proceeds raised through the offset going to TerraPass, a Houston-based concern that invests in greenhouse gas capture projects.
“Climate change is among the pressing issues of our day, and we’ve made the decision for Tradewind Aviation to be on the right side of it, funding sustainability through carbon offsets on every flight at no cost to our clients,” said co-founder and CEO Eric Zipkin. “Indeed, our new carbon offset program is structured in a way that passengers needn’t even think about it to make a contribution to combatting climate change, though, of course, we hope they do.”
The heads of NBAA and AOPA are warning of what they see as an appreciable uptick in general aviation accidents since late last year and are encouraging pilots to slow down and go back to the fundamentals of professionalism. Speaking this morning during an NBAA webinar, “Big Year, Big Issues for Operators—CEOs’ Perspectives,” AOPA president and CEO Mark Baker called the recent uptick “a bit frustrating and concerning” particularly since “we came through last year with the safest general aviation record in all time, and we all know the activity was up significantly.”
While proud of the 2021 result, the accident and fatality trajectory in recent months has increased, he said, adding they are involving experienced crews that are still making mistakes. “This is a time for people to pause and say, ‘What have we done here to make sure that we’re launching safely and we’re not taking risks…and following the procedures and checklists,’” he said,
NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen agreed: “What we’re looking at in the last part of last year is very troubling because of [their involving] trained pilots operating sophisticated equipment in places they’re familiar with in situations where applying the professional discipline that we are accustomed to and that we promote doesn’t seem to have been reflected.”
Jet Edge International will occupy Signature Aviation East’s facility at New Jersey’s Teterboro Airport (KTEB) under a new agreement announced today between the aircraft management and charter provider and FBO operator. The agreement gives Jet Edge a foothold at the nation’s busiest business aviation airport for its charter program members, aircraft owners, and its fleet via a dedicated hangar and maintenance space.
Through the long-term agreement, Jet Edge will gain a “re-envisioned” passenger terminal, as well as office and workshop space, in a 44,000-sq-ft portion of Signature Teterboro East’s Hangar 202. Jet Edge anticipates occupying the Teterboro facility in the fourth quarter.
“The New York metropolitan area has been the largest market trailing three years for Jet Edge and complements our already established Signature facility in Los Angeles,” said Jet Edge CEO Bill Papariella. “New York will be a strategic focus for Jet Edge in 2022 and beyond. We couldn’t be more excited to partner with Signature to provide our clients coast-to-coast access to our dedicated facilities at Teterboro and Van Nuys.”
A preliminary report indicates asymmetrical spoiler deployment may be a factor in the December 15 crash of a Gulfstream IV-SP in the Dominican Republic that killed all nine on board. Registered as HI-1050 to Helidosa Aviation Group, the twinjet was operating as a charter flight to Orlando, Florida.
According to the report, HI-1050 arrived at Higuero/La Isabela-Dr. Joaquín Balaguer Airport earlier that day, following a flight from San Juan, Puerto Rico. En route, there was communication between the crew and the company about replacing the right-wing spoiler actuators. After arrival, the aircraft was towed to the Helidosa hangar, where the company worked for three hours to replace the right-wing ground spoiler actuators.
After the crew and passengers boarded, CCTV footage shows the pilots doing a control check. The spoilers on both wings extended, but only those on the left wing retracted again. The aircraft was seen taxiing for departure with the three spoilers on the right wing still extended. An image of the airplane in flight captured by a witness on the ground showed that the right-wing spoilers were still extended, but the ones on the left wing were not.
After takeoff flight control problems developed immediately, and the flight crew declared an emergency. They decided to divert to Las Américas International Airport and hit trees and terrain about 650 feet to the right of Runway 35.
Charter operator GrandView Aviation is relocating to a new headquarters at the end of the month. The company, which operates a fleet of Embraer Phenom 300s and helicopters, is moving to an 18,000-sq-ft office that is three miles from its base at Martin State Airport (KMTN) in Middle River, Maryland.
Over the past year, GrandView has swelled employment from 65 people to more than 120, with plans to hire more than 100 pilots, flight dispatchers, mechanics, and other support staff in 2022. Last year, the company recorded more than $50 million in revenue and logged 11,000 flight hours. Besides KMTN, it operates bases in Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Austin, Phoenix, and Denver.
“Maryland has traditionally ranked as one of the smallest general aviation workforces,” said GrandView Aviation chief operating officer Jessie Naor. “But we are rapidly changing that; we have ambitious growth plans for our headquarters here in Middle River and look forward to growing our team, as well as our positive impacts on our community.”
Teri Bristol, who has held federal government roles for nearly 30 years and is currently the chief operating officer for the FAA, is retiring at the end of February. FAA Administrator Steve Dickson announced the retirement, saying, “Teri has led 30,000-plus employees who keep our skies safe, broken glass ceilings throughout her career, and has inspired us all.”
Bristol joined the Department of Transportation’s Acquisition Management Training Program in 1992 and worked for the FAA, U.S. Coast Guard, and Federal Highway Administration. Her career led her to become deputy COO in 2012 and then in her current capacity in 2014. As COO, she is responsible for an organization of 32,000 employees that manages air traffic services for the approximately 50,000 aircraft operating over nearly 30 million square miles.
NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen called Bristol a “thoughtful, dedicated professional who has moved our industry forward.” Bristol has served as a “champion” of the NextGen modernization of the nation’s air traffic control system, NBAA said, adding she further has served as an advocate and role model for women. She has worked to help recruit and retain women and minorities in air traffic control and throughout the agency.
The National Air Traffic Controllers Association further recognized Bristol’s efforts to enhance collaboration between the FAA and the organization, calling her “a strong, inspiring leader.”
As telecommunication companies roll out 5G C-band around U.S. airports, AIN is seeking feedback from pilots and aircraft operators about any anomalies with radar altimeters and associated systems they've seen. Let us know what you’ve experienced after the January 19 activation; be sure to also submit any reports of faults to the NASA ASRS database.
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