Briefings
ACI-NA — at the Annual Conference and Exhibition in Pittsburgh, airports urge governments around the world to take a second look at their aviation security regimes and to work cooperatively to develop a global, standardized approach.
ACI World — August PaxFlash and FreightFlash confirm the softening of growth expected for the second half of the year. International traffic expanded by 6.3 percent while year-on-year trailed by a 4.9 percent growth in domestic traffic, resulting in an overall passenger number increase of 5.6 percent in August.
Air Canada — will resume flights from the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport in February, offering passengers up to 15 daily non-stop flights from the airport.
AIRMALL — at Boston Logan Int’l Airport offers new retail and dining options; now located in Terminal B: Blackberry from Wireless Giant; Brookstone; Illy; and Vinea.
• AIRMALL at BWI, announces that the a Dunkin’ Donuts unit (300 sq. ft.) is now open landside, making it accessible to both airport visitors and ticketed passengers.
AJ Walter Aviation — is opening an office in Miami. The Florida-based operation backs up the company’s recent deployment of service-ready component inventories for Airbus and Boeing spares in Los Angeles and Miami and will underpin the range of sales, exchange, and loan services to operators and MRO service providers.
Alaska Airlines — launches daily round-trip service between Maui, HI, and San Diego.
American Airlines — and regional affiliate American Eagle increase service to and from Mexico.
Asheville Regional Airport Authority — reconstructs its gate area at the south end of the airport terminal. Formerly known as the A-Gate area, the space ($10.6 million dollar project) will begin serving passengers this October.
Boeing — announces a schedule change for the 747-8 Freighter with first delivery now expected mid-year 2011.
Cessna — will begin offering its annual Citation maintenance and overhaul sessions, normally held during the NBAA meeting and convention, several weeks earlier via global webcast as part of its ongoing thrust to change the way business jet support is offered to operators. \
• Cessna plans to reduce employment by another 700 workers and scale back production schedules. Textron lowered its estimates of manufacturing cash flow from continuing operations from the previous target of $500-$550 million to $400 million for the year. Cessna already has slashed its production rates for the Mustang to some 70 units this year.
CitationAir — forms alliances with three companies to offer more services to customers. Under the deal, CitationAir customers can take advantage of special programs with Barton & Gray Mariners Club, Brioni USA, and Lake Austin Spa Resort.
City of Chicago DOA — schedules a Pre-Submittal Conference regarding a request for proposals by qualified persons and businesses to provide program and property management services in all domestic terminals at O’Hare and Midway Int’l Airports. The services include the coordination of the planning and design of the space made available for the food and beverage, retail, duty free, and service concessions.
Colt International — moves into the aviation insurance business with the establishment of Colt Risk Management Services.
Constant Aviation’s — Cleveland-based maintenance facility delivers the first retail Pro Line 21-upgraded Beechjet 400XP.
Desert Jet — adds a Hawker 1000 to its operations.
Duncan Aviation — Authorized Service Center agreement with Bombardier Aerospace is officially extended to include Duncan’s newest maintenance facility, located in Provo, UT. Duncan Aviation-Provo joins Duncan Aviation’s full-service facilities in Lincoln, NE and Battle Creek, MI., as a Bombardier Authorized Service Center.
Eclipse Aerospace Inc — develops a new windshield application and is completing engineering requirements for an existing airworthiness directive that would enable the Eclipse 500 very light jet aircraft to return to operations at 41,000 ft.
European Business Aviation Association — increases its reach in the European region with the addition of five new affiliate national associations representing the local interests of business aircraft operators in the region.
FAA — adds three airport projects for $2.5 million in funding from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act dollars, which became available because of airport projects that came in under budget nationwide.
• FAA announces a new grant program designed to fund projects that develop and expand commercial space transportation infrastructure. The Space Transportation Infrastructure Matching Grants will be awarded to four separate projects located in Alaska, California, Florida, and New Mexico.
• FAA approves full-scale, nationwide deployment of the Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast satellite-based surveillance system. The move follows the successful rollout of the system in Alaska, the Gulf of Mexico, Louisville, and Philadelphia, the agency says. FAA expects the system will be implemented nationwide by 2013, noting that more than 300 of the planned network of 800 ADS-B ground stations already have been installed. Aircraft must be equipped with ADS-B “In” avionics by 2020, enabling controllers to track the aircraft.
• FAA awards Lockheed Martin a three-year contract extension to continue to provide automated flight service station services. The contract option that is being exercised is worth $356 million and is a follow-on to the initial contract awarded in 2005.
Flightcraft Inc — teams up with Cirrus Aircraft as a new Cirrus authorized service provider in the Portland, OR region.
Forecast International — projects that 1,941 rotorcraft will be built between 2010 and 2019. The value of this production is estimated at $23.4 billion in constant 2010 U.S. dollars. The Forecast International study generally defines a light military rotorcraft as one with a maximum gross weight of less than 6,804 kilograms (15,000 pounds).
• Forecast International projects that 4,016 regional aircraft, valued at some $123 billion, will be produced from 2010 through 2019. The forecast by the Connecticut-based market research firm includes both regional jets and regional turboprops, with jets accounting for some 64 percent of the total. FI projections indicate that Bombardier, Embraer, and ATR will be the leaders among regional aircraft manufacturers during the ten-year forecast period.
Frederick (MD) Municipal Airport — will receive a new $4.8 million air traffic control tower, funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
GAMA — General Aviation Manufacturers Assn. president and CEO Pete Bunce made the following statement following President Obama’s signature on the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010: “GAMA is pleased that President Obama has signed the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 into law. The bonus depreciation provision included in the bill, which can be applied to both general aviation aircraft purchases and components such as engines and avionics, will allow operators to take advantage of this critical incentive before the end of this year.”
Garmin International — is awarded FAA supplemental type certificate approval for its Helicopter Terrain Awareness and Warning Systems, clearing the unit for installation.
Goodrich Corp. — increases its interiors business with its $280 million acquisition of the Cabin Management assets of DeCrane Holdings. Cabin Management is a provider of seating, furniture, veneers, and cabin management systems for business jets.
Greater Toronto Airports Authority — approves reductions to the connecting Airport Improvement Fee and cargo aircraft landing fees for 2011 at Toronto Pearson. Additionally, aeronautical fees for passenger aircraft have been held in line with 2010 levels.
Hawker Beechcraft — unveils Bonanza XTRA, a program that offers the company’s most popular upgrades in a bundled package directly from Hawker Beechcraft Parts & Distribution.
• Hawker Beechcraft and Piper Aircraft warn employees of upcoming layoffs. Hawker chairman and CEO Bill Boisture told employees that “the market for new production aircraft has stagnated at a very low level,” prompting the company to lay off 350 more workers.
IATA — Int’l Air Transport Assn. reports that global scheduled traffic results for August show year-on-year increases of 6.4 percent for passenger and 19.6 percent for cargo. Capacity increases in passenger markets are accelerating. Since December 2009, air travel volumes have expanded by 4.3 percent while capacity has risen by 6 percent. Passenger load factors remain high (81.6 percent), but when adjusted for seasonal fluctuation this amounts to a drop of 1.5 percentage points compared to the February 2010 peak.
• IATA revises its 2010 industry outlook and is now projecting a profit of $8.9 billion for world airlines (up from the $2.5 billion forecast in June). In its first look into 2011, IATA estimates that profitability will drop to $5.3 billion.
Jacksonville Aviation Authority — working with its major airlines, is opening a new lane at the security checkpoint designed to accommodate frequent flyers at JAX. The new Preferred Passenger lane will help fill a need created when the Preferred Traveler Program was discontinued in June 2009.
• Jacksonville Aviation Authority announces that JetBlue Airways will begin daily nonstop service between Jacksonville and San Juan, Puerto Rico, beginning in May 2011.
JETNET LLC — releases the August 2010 results for the pre-owned business jet, business turboprop, and helicopter markets. Business jet inventory for sale shows the largest change (down 2.5 points), to 14.9 percent from 17.4 percent. All aircraft categories are taking longer to sell in 2010, ranging from 40 to 124 more days in the YTD comparisons.
Million Air - Salt Lake City — is added to the Air Charter Safety Foundation’s Industry Audit Standard Registry. Million Air – Salt Lake City is the sixteenth air charter company in the world to be included on the registry, which seeks to represent the premier standards of aviation through its advancement of safety, security, and service benchmarks.
Milwaukee County — executive Scott Walker announces that August 2010 saw a single-month record number of passengers traveling through General Mitchell Int’l Airport. The airport served 943,323 passengers, an increase of 19.89 percent (156,489 passengers) over last August’s 786,834 passengers. The August total marks 12 straight months of record passenger growth.
Mineta San José Int’l Airport — Terminal B Concourse achieves LEED Silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council in recognition of the airport’s significant commitment to environmentally sustainable design and construction. The Terminal B Concourse design team included Gensler, based in San Francisco, and Steinberg Architects of San José. Clark Construction was the principal contractor, and Gilbane provided construction management services.
NATA — National Air Transportation Assn. has expected the veto of AB 1889 since its passage by the California legislature and is in the process of working to get a delay in compliance implemented by other means. NATA will issue action calls as needed in the near future to ask its membership to contact their representatives in California to support this effort.
• NATA and AIC Title Service, LLC offer a program that allows for re-registrations to be professionally processed and tracked using a Web interface. The new program is in response to a recently published FAA final rule that will require all currently registered aircraft to complete an aircraft re-registration according to a specific schedule over the next three years, and then renew that registration every three years thereafter.
• NATA’s Safety 1st program releases its Newark Airport Flight Crew Briefing. Developed with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the customized online training tool provides safety information about the airport, including its location, layout, operations, regulations, and safety and security procedures.
National Aeronautic Association — announces that aviation advocate Harrison Ford will receive the prestigious 2010 Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy. The citation defining his achievement will read: “For engaging our nation’s youth in aviation and inspiring tomorrow’s leaders, innovators and enthusiasts to secure a strong future for all of aviation.”
NBAA — National Business Aviation Assn. lauds President Obama for signing into law legislation that includes a provision for “bonus depreciation,” to accelerate cost recovery of strategic business purchases this year, including business aircraft.
• NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen welcomes the confirmation of Duane Woerth as U.S. representative to the United Nations International Civil Aviation Organization. Thirteen aviation associations, including NBAA, urged Senate leaders to confirm Woerth.
• NBAA releases its 2010 Business Aviation Fact Book, a profile of the industry that offers real-world information and data about its value to citizens, companies, and communities across the country.
Nextant Aerospace — completes the first flight of a fully-equipped 400XT aircraft with Williams International FJ44-3AP engines. The engines replace the Pratt & Whitney JT15D-5 engines on the original Beechjet 400A.
NTSB — National Transportation Safety Board is investigating a landing-gear failure involving a CRJ jet manufactured by Montreal-based Bombardier — the fifth such case in the past two years. The crew of the Atlanta Southeast Airlines jet was unable to deploy the right landing gear; no one was injured.
• NTSB is offering a three-day course, “Transportation Disaster Response: A Course for Emergency Responders,” at the NTSB Training Center in Ashburn, VA November 16-18, 2010.
Office of Management and Budget — completes its review of a notice of proposed rulemaking calling for new equipment and operating requirements for commercial helicopter operations. The NPRM stems from concerns raised over the increasing number of accidents involving commercial helicopter operations and air ambulance operations in particular.
PATS Aircraft Systems — announces that FAA has issued a Supplemental Type Certificate for its B757-200 Auxiliary Fuel System. The approved fuel system has been successfully installed, tested, and certified in the six-tank configuration and can extend the range of the aircraft to more than 5,000-nm.
Piper — continues to expand its supplier list for its PiperJet single-engine personal jet with the selection of Millennium Concepts to provide the seats. The Millennium lightweight leather seats will be equipped with adjustable headrests, will recline, and include a break-over seat back.
• Piper workers are told the company will eliminate 60 positions, representing roughly 6 percent of the workforce.
Port Authority of NY & NJ Board of Commissioners — authorizes two actions that will help position Stewart Int’l Airport for immediate and future growth: $2 million in planning work for the future expansion of Stewart’s terminal; the board also authorizes a two-year air service development incentive program to entice passenger airlines and charter tour operators to initiate non-stop service to new markets.
StandardAero — officially reopens its engine shop at its Springfield, IL service center. At 265,000 sq. ft. of production and support function floor space, Springfield is StandardAero’s largest business aviation shop and services a significant volume of TFE731-powered aircraft.
Sun Air Jets — announces the expansion of its corporate aircraft maintenance division to provide high quality scheduled and unscheduled maintenance services to other jet operators. Located at the Camarillo (CA) Airport, the company has satisfied the FAA standards and has been issued a Part 145 Repair Station Air Agency Certificate.
Tampa Int’l Airport’s — five-member board of directors selects Dallas executive VP Joseph W. Lopano as Tampa’s new CEO.
United Airlines — and Continental Airlines Inc. close their mega-deal with the combined entity overtaking Delta as the world’s largest airline.
USA TODAY — reports that most airports in the U.S. have stepped up efforts to clean up their operations and generally do not find such “green” tasks to be overly taxing on their operations, according to a report released this month by the Government Accountability Office.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection — is partnering with the DHS’s Science and Technology Directorate to develop performance standards for container security technologies.
FBO Snapshot
Signature adds Fresno to its network
Signature Flight Support Corp. adds Fresno Yosemite International Airport (KFAT) to its network, offering convenient access to California’s Central Valley. Signature announces it has entered into an agreement with McDonald Aviation, LLC to manage its facility at KFAT. McDonald Aviation, LLC acquired the nearly new facility earlier this year and has completed an extensive refurbishment of the entire property, which has been used solely for their aircraft until now. The facility will be fully branded and operated as Signature.
The fixed base operation will offer its customers all the benefits of Signature’s portfolio of services including Signature Status and access to its global network of FBOs. The executive terminal is 6,100 sq. ft. and features a passenger lounge, crew lounge, two sleep rooms, executive conference room, and Signature’s standard refreshment area.
House, Senate pass another (#16) short-term extension
The U.S. House and Senate passed another short-term extension of FAA’s operating authority, pushing consideration of a longer-term reauthorization bill into a lame-duck session of Congress, at the earliest. The new extension will last through Dec. 31. Congress was due to go into recess for the November elections, and House leaders believe the long-term FAA bill can be addressed again during a lame-duck session after the election.
Southwest Airlines to acquire AirTran Holdings
Southwest Airlines Co. announces plans to acquire smaller rival AirTran Holdings Inc., in a $1.4 billion cash-and-stock deal that reflects intensifying consolidation in the industry. The friendly takeover would give Dallas-based Southwest a major presence at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Int’l Airport, the busiest in the world and AirTran’s main hub. It would also extend Southwest’s service outside the U.S. for the first time, with the addition of AirTran routes to Mexico and the Caribbean.
Global framework for aviation emissions; safety
IATA urges the governments of the world to reach an agreement on a global framework to manage international aviation’s emissions at the 37th Assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization in Montreal. The aviation industry is united behind three targets: (1) a 1.5 percent average annual improvement in fuel efficiency to 2020, (2) capping net emissions from 2020 with carbon-neutral growth, and (3) cutting emission in half by 2050 compared to 2005.
• IATA, together with ICAO, the U.S. DOT, and the Commission of the European Union (EC), signed a Memorandum of Understanding to create the framework and path forward to launch the Global Safety Information Exchange. The four organizations will start their cooperation by selecting the safety information each group currently collects, which would be the most relevant to the goal of improving safety by risk reduction. IATA will make the largest contribution of airline data by providing de-identified information from the IATA Operational Safety Audit program.
Calender
OCTOBER
17-19 11th Annual AAAE Airport Customer Service/Volunteer Ambassador Conference; Denver, CO; www.aaae.org
18-20 2010 ACI-NA/ACC/FAA Airport Planning Redefined Course & NEPA Workshop;
Long Beach, CA; www.aci-na.org
18-20 Cargo Facts Aircraft Symposium; Miami, FL; http://royalmedia.com
18-21 2010 ACI-NA/ACC/FAA Airport Planning Redefined Course & NEPA Workshop;
Long Beach, CA; www.faa.gov
19-21 NBAA 63rd Annual Meeting & Convention; Atlanta, GA; www.nbaa.org
22-24 1st Latin American ARFF Seminar; Cartagena, Columbia
24-26 15th Annual International Aviation Forecast Summit; New Orleans, LA; www.aviationforecastsummit.com
25-27 AAAE Airport Wildlife Trainer’s Course; Minneapolis, MN; www.aaae.org
25-27 16th Annual Central Europe/North America Airport Issues Conference; Prague, Czech Republic; www.aaae.org
31-2 AAAE Airport and the Rental Car Industry Workshop; San Jose, CA; www.aaae.org
30-1 Doha Aviation Summit; Doha, Qatar; www.dohaaviationsummit.com
NOVEMBER
2-3 AAAE Parking and Landside Management Workshop; San Jose, CA;
www.aaae.org
3-5 AVSEC World 2010; Frankfurt, Germany; www.iata.org
8-11 ACI-NA Airport Concessions Conference; Phoenix, AZ; www.aci-na.org
9-11 Airport Pavement Workshop; Boston, MA; www.faa.gov
15-17 Airports Going Green Conference; Chicago, IL; www.aaae.org
DECEMBER
6 10th Annual AAAE Aviation Security Summit; Arlington, VA; www.aaae.org
5-7 Military/Civilian Joint-Use Issues Conference; Denver, CO; www.aaae.org
5-7 Airport/Seaport Cruise Ship Conference; Charleston, SC; www.aaae.org
7-9 IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium; Instanbul, Turkey; www.iata.org
12-14 17TH Annual AMAC/AAAE Airports Economic Forum; Jackson, MS;
www.aaae.org
