From the editors of Aviation International News

This issue sponsored by Sky Connect, Cutter Aviation and Aviation industry Expo.
February 20, 2007

CF34 Break-up Prompts Emergency AD
The FAA issued an emergency AD on Friday to all owners and operators of GE CF34-3A1, -3B and -3B1 turbofans after NTSB investigators found an electrical arc-out defect in the fan disk of the engine that broke apart on a Mesa Airlines Bombardier CRJ200 during a revenue flight on January 25. The AD requires a one-time visual and tactile inspection of parts of fan disks on 31 specific engines, identified by serial number, within 20 engine flight hours of its receipt. The engines in question power 50- and 44-seat Bombardier CRJs and Challenger 601/604 business jets. After examining pieces of the engine found within a square mile of rural Colorado, the NTSB determined that an electro-chemical etch marking applied during engine assembly to align the fan disk and shaft caused the defect.

Cargo Pilots’ Aileron Roll Attempt Damages Learjet
At about 3:30 a.m. on January 10, the pilots flying a cargo-carrying Learjet 35 from Jacksonville, Fla., to Columbus, Ohio, for Airnet Systems attempted an aileron roll, according to the NTSB, but the maneuver wasn’t entirely successful. “The crew reported they did an intentional roll,” said NTSB investigator-in-charge Todd Fox. “There was substantial damage. The elevators were bent, and there was some stabilizer damage. Major damage was to the left wing; there was a large crease in the stainless-steel leading edge.” Fox was told that this was the last flight for the Learjet captain before he was to move on to a new job flying passengers for a Part 121 airline. Fox’s Chicago NTSB office will release, probably this week, a data-collection report on the incident. Data-collection reports are a new short form that is a combination of the typical preliminary and factual reports, Fox explained.

Runway Incursion Forum Scheduled
The NTSB will hold a one-day forum on March 27 focusing on runway incursions and accidents and potential solutions. “Eliminating runway incursions and collisions is a top priority of the Safety Board and has been on our Most Wanted List since 1990,” said NTSB chairman Mark Rosenker, who will preside over the forum. “The NTSB has investigated several near collisions in the past few years that could have been catastrophic if it hadn’t been for sharp-eyed flight crews and luck.” The scope of the problem, how to avoid runway incursions, educational initiatives and new technologies are expected to be highlighted by representatives from the FAA, DOD, Flight Safety Foundation, Air Line Pilots Association International, AOPA and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. The forum will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at NTSB headquarters in Washington, D.C. The public is invited. Pre-registration is not required.

Eurocopter Logged Record Orders in 2006
Eurocopter last year took orders for a record 615 new helicopters, 47 percent of them civil. In the U.S., civil and parapublic customers ordered 153 aircraft. Worldwide, the best seller is the Ecureuil/EC 130 line, with 257 on order, including military versions. The European manufacturer’s backlog now stands at about $14 billion. Eurocopter delivered 381 rotorcraft last year. Revenues increased by 18 percent, to $4.9 billion. Eurocopter at press time was awaiting figures from its competitors to determine if last year it maintained its 2005 civil market share of 52 percent. In its three home countries–France, Germany and Spain–Eurocopter last year hired 1,200 people. The company said it will hire another 500 workers this year.

Nav Canada To Launch ADS-B in Remote Areas
Nav Canada announced last week it plans this year and next to install ADS-B ground stations around Hudson Bay, which straddles high-latitude airline flight paths linking Asia, North America and Europe, but which has no radar coverage. Currently, aircraft overflying the area must observe “procedural” separations that keep them about 80 miles apart, compared with five miles under radar monitoring. Some 35,000 flights transit Hudson Bay each year. Nav Canada said ADS-B will save operators more than C$200 million in reduced fuel costs over 15 years. Following the Hudson Bay installations, ADS-B will be extended to cover other remote areas across northern Canada that lack radar coverage. Subsequently, systems will be installed in southern Canada, to link to FAA installations along the border with the U.S., with the long-term aim of phasing out conventional ATC radar. Sensis won the contract to install the stations.


 Operational Alert

SIC Pilot Type Rating – New FAA Notice N8000.351 provides procedures on how to complete the applications for the second-in-command (SIC) pilot type rating. The notice also explains the final rule that the FAA issued on Aug. 4, 2005, about the requirement for an SIC pilot type rating for flights where the aircraft’s type certification requires a crew of at least two pilots and the flight will be outside U.S. airspace involving a landing in a foreign country.


Also Noted...

Bombardier extended its CRJ line to its practical conclusion this week on the strength of three firm orders for a total of 38 newly launched, 100-seat CRJ1000s. Previously designated the CRJ900X, the CRJ1000 will measure some 10 feet longer than the biggest Bombardier airplane in production, come with larger windows and offer more overhead baggage space.

The FAA issued an emergency AD on Saturday to address cracked lateral mixer output link assemblies on the MD Helicopters MD600N. A service bulletin and urgent special airworthiness information bulletin were issued the previous day to address the problem. The AD is an interim action that requires removal of each mixer link and a visual and eddy current inspection before the next flight.

Former Helicopter Association International (HAI) president Roy Resavage died yesterday after a long illness. HAI said Resavage guided the association to improved financial success, better operational efficiency and increased attendance at Heli-Expo during his seven-year tenure. Before joining HAI, Resavage was a career naval officer, commanding NAS Jacksonville at one point.

Due to strong user interest in the loran continuation/cutoff decision, coupled with ongoing discussions within the Transportation and Homeland Security Departments, the comment period on a public input notice was extended from February 7 to March 30. More than 920 comments had been submitted by the original deadline.

Raytheon Aircraft is now offering electronic dimmable window shade systems for King Airs. The shades are being supplied by InspecTech Aero Service, which holds the STC. Due to the “excellent customer response to this new product,” Raytheon said, it is extending “promotional pricing” through April 20.


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