To read news from the Farnborough International Air Show next week in England, go to AINonline on the mornings of July 17, 18 and 19.

A Third Beechjet Flameout Under Investigation
On June 14, Beechjet 400A N440DS lost all power from both Pratt & Whitney Canada JT15D-5 engines while the airplane was in cruise flight at FL380 near Norfolk, Va. Unsure if they could remain clear of clouds, the pilots decided to turn on the engine anti-ice. They told the NTSB that they turned on the engines’ igniters and then retarded the power from 101.5 percent to 89.5 percent N1, but before they could reach up to turn on the anti-ice, both engines flamed out simultaneously. The left engine restarted on its own at about FL300 and the right engine restarted on its own at about FL240. Testing of the fuel that was drained from the airplane confirmed that icing inhibitor was present and in the correct concentration and that the fuel was jet-A. The NTSB is also investigating two previous Beechjet dual engine flameouts—on July 12, 2004, over the Gulf of Mexico and another on Nov. 28, 2005, near Jacksonville, Fla. Both of these aircraft were being operated by Flight Options. Investigations of all three incidents are ongoing.

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Comp Air Aims To Certify Turboprop Single
Merritt Island, Fla.-based Comp Air recently unveiled plans to certify its 10-seat, all-composite Comp Air 12 turboprop single. The Honeywell TPE331-14GR-powered airplane is expected to enter flight testing in the fourth quarter, with certification slated for 2009. Since this is composite kitplane manufacturer Comp Air’s first foray into a certified aircraft, the company has enlisted Marsh Aviation of Mesa, Ariz., to help with certification of both the engine and airframe. Likewise, it has tapped Executive Aircraft Maintenance of Scottsdale to provide maintenance support for the type’s engine during and after certification. Comp Air 12 specifications include a 10,500-pound mtow, 4,700-pound useful load, 300-knot high-speed cruise, 900-foot takeoff roll (mtow, SL) and 1,458-nm max range. No price has been announced yet for the airplane.

NTSB Report Shows False Data by MU-2 Pilot
The pilot of a Mitsubishi MU-2 that crashed shortly after takeoff from Portland-Hillsboro (Ore.) Airport in May last year had falsified his records, according to the NTSB’s factual report. After the accident, which killed all four aboard, the NTSB found two sets of FAA records, the first for Michael McCartney, whose Social Security number ended in 0866. McCartney had a commercial pilot certificate, issued in 1968, as well as an instrument rating. By 1982 he reported 5,000 hours. After McCartney lost his license in 1985 because of several violations, he applied for a pilot certificate using the name Mychal and changing the last four digits of his Social Security numbers to 0688. In 1987 he obtained a commercial certificate with a multi-engine rating and claimed 1,400 hours. By August 2004 he claimed 17,500 hours. The pilot had logged 11.3 hours in the MU-2 since he purchased it. (The seller had expressed concern about his ability to fly the airplane.) His previous experience with an MU-2 included a gear-up landing in one in 1991. His reported total time in type was about 551 hours, the NTSB said.

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Mideast Business Aviation Event Expanding
Are the organizers of the Middle East Business Aviation (MEBA) conference planning to turn future meetings into yet another bizav show? During the event’s first run in November, the agenda was confined to speakers addressing various ways to use business aircraft in the region. In addition to deciding to make it an annual occurrence, “We are now working on expanding the event to include exhibition opportunities and a static aircraft park,” said Virginia Kern, chairman of the company that organizes both MEBA and the Dubai Air Show. In addition to being held every other year during the Dubai Air Show, the MEBA meeting will be held in other “regional destinations” (except Israel) in alternate years. The next MEBA is scheduled for December 3 and 4 in Abu Dhabi. About 250 business jets are owned by citizens of the six Arab nations that are members of the Gulf Cooperative Council.

Montrose Crash Copilot Suing Bombardier
Eric Wicksell is suing Bombardier for negligence, claiming the Challenger 601 is defective because operating and training manuals didn’t disclose what he alleges is the twinjet’s high susceptibility to icing. Wicksell was the copilot of the Challenger 601 involved in a crash at Montrose Regional Airport, Colo., on Nov. 28, 2004. Three people were killed in the accident, including a son of NBC Sports executive Dick Ebersol. Three others, including Wicksell, were seriously injured. Although the NTSB held Wicksell partially to blame for the crash, in its study of the accident the Safety Board said, “For many years we have been dealing with the fact that aircraft such as the Challenger with so-called ‘hard wings’ [that is, those without leading-edge high-lift devices] have been found to be more susceptible to the effects of icing.” The NTSB determined the probable cause of the accident to be “the flight crew’s failure to ensure that the airplane’s wings were free of ice or snow contamination that accumulated while the airplane was on the ground, which resulted in an attempted takeoff with upper wing contamination that induced the subsequent stall and collision with the ground.”