GPS Delay?
WAAS contract canceled by FAA
Dissatisfied with the performance of its contractor, the FAA canceled a $483 million contract to build the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) needed to enhance GPS signals. FAA officials could not say last month whether the move would delay completion of WAAS.
Wilcox Electric was selected last August as the contractor for the huge project. In the months since, the FAA said that the Kansas City company has not correctly managed the schedule of the project and was heading for a delay of 10 months and a cost overrun of $100 million.
In response to the termination, Wilcox said that the FAA overreacted to the problems. According to Wilcox, the problems were related to misunderstandings over the respective roles and responsibilities within the FAA and Wilcox program management, rather than technical design. Wilcox believes that the problems could have been resolved.
The FAA will continue the WAAS program under a $50-million, 180-day contract with Hughes Aircraft Company. This contract will serve as a bridge to a final contract that will be announced within the 180-day period.
New Cessna 172 makes first flight
The first piston aircraft built by Cessna since 1986 flew on April 16 at the company's East Pawnee airfield in Wichita. Pilot Lionel Diamond circled the Cessna Pawnee Division where components for the production 172s to be assembled in Independence, Kansas, will be fabricated. Hundreds of Cessna employees gathered to watch the morning flight.
Since that first 25-minute flight in April, the prototype 172 has accumulated 10 flight hours and has completed a stall and spin series of tests. Current testing is aimed at development of a wing- leveler system for the 172. A second Cessna 172 is expected to be completed this month. Additionally, the first new Cessna 182 is scheduled to be completed in June or earlier and will make its first flight a few days after completion.
Cessna now has taken deposits of $2,500 each from 350 customers who are holding production slots for the 172. On August 1, Cessna expects to have both the 172 and 182 prototypes at the EAA Fly-In Convention at Oshkosh, where pricing information will be announced.
German Extra 400 to fight Malibu
A radical departure from Extra's traditional aerobatic designs, the Extra 400 is a six-place pressurized single designed to compete with airplanes like the Piper Malibu/Mirage. The aircraft is now flying in Germany in hopes of gaining German certification by year's end. With an all-composite airframe powered by a liquid-cooled 350-hp Continental TSIOL-550, the Extra 400 will cruise at 243 knots at 75-percent power, claims Extra. At the other end of the airspeed envelope, the company claims that the 400 will stall at 60 knots in the landing configuration. Range figures are pegged at 918 nautical miles with the seats full or 1,404 nm with five on board. Jim Moser, an Extra dealer in St. Augustine, Florida, said that the 400 is expected to cost between $850,000 and $900,000. Extra hopes to certify the 400 in the United States in mid-1997.
Former Eagles leader Charlie Hillard dies in Sun 'N Fun accident
Charlie Hillard, a prominent Ft. Worth, Texas, businessman who safely led the Eagles Aerobatic Flight Team through more than 1,000 airshow performances over 25 years, died in his Hawker Sea Fury aircraft in a freak accident following a solo airshow performance on April 16.
Hillard, 58, had just landed and was slowing to taxi speed when, according to an initial NTSB accident report, the brakes apparently locked pitching the aircraft on its nose before flipping it upside down. A medical examiner's report said Hillard died of "positional asphyxia" after his chest and back were compressed by parts of the cockpit.
The 15,000-hour pilot was the national aerobatic champion in 1967 and won the World Aerobatic Championship in 1972. As a member of the U.S. Skydiving Team in 1958, he and Steve Snyder became the first jumpers to perform a baton pass while in a free fall.
Hillard had fascinated the Sun 'n Fun crowd with the speed and power of his 2,380-horsepower radial-engine aircraft minutes before his death. He referred to the aircraft as the "Baghdad Fury" because it had no tail hook and came from Iraq. Officially named Lone Star Fury, the aircraft had been extensively refurbished and modified so that Hillard could continue his airshow career following the retirement of the Eagles last year.
Learjet now has three Learjet 45s flying, marking an acceleration in flight test activity. The third prototype flew on April 24 for the first time and climbed to 51,000 feet, the certification ceiling, during its 3.2-hour flight. All three aircraft were aloft simultaneously on April 25. Initial checkouts of the second Learjet 45 off the production line have been completed, allowing it to enter the development testing phase. The second aircraft flew for the first time on April 6.
S-76C+ nears certification
Officials at Sikorsky Aircraft say that with the expected certification of the beefier S-76C+ model, 1996 should be their best year for S-76 deliveries in more than a decade.
The C+ model is currently in final developmental flight testing stages at the company's West Palm Beach, Florida, facility. Twin Turbomeca Arriel 2S1 engines provide the S-76 C+ with more power than the previous Arriel 1S1 engines used in the C model.
The new engines increase useful load and cruise speed and reduce fuel burn. FAA certification was expected by the end of May with the first deliveries of the S-76C+ to begin this month. European certification is expected by July. — Stephen Pope
Veteran Aeronca returns home
An Aeronca 65TC that was damaged by Japanese machine-gun fire during the attack on Pearl Harbor has come home to Hawaii.
On the morning of December 7, 1941, Roy Vitousek and his 17- year-old son, Martin, lifted off from John Rogers Field near Honolulu in the rented Aeronca. The ferocious Japanese air attack began shortly after takeoff, and Vitousek and his son were caught in the air as fighters and bombers began pounding the U.S. Pacific fleet.
The Aeronca they were flying was struck several times by machine-gun fire, but the pair managed to slip away. Since then, this veteran of Pearl Harbor has passed through many hands; it was finally returned to Hawaii last November and placed in the care of the Pacific Aerospace Museum. The museum hopes to display it at Honolulu International Airport (formerly John Rodgers Field). — SP
Falcon 50EX makes first flight
Dassault Falcon Jet's new Falcon 50EX intercontinental business jet made its first flight on April 10 at the manufacturer's plant in Bordeaux-Merignac, France. The aircraft climbed initially to 10,000 feet and then to 41,000 feet, where it cruised at 320 knots (0.8 Mach). Test pilots performed stalls at reduced power settings and tested the aircraft's three AlliedSignal TFE 731-40 engines and liquid-crystal EIEDs (engine indicating electronic displays). The aircraft is expected to cruise at 41,000 feet, with a claimed 3,265- nm range at Mach 0.75 and 3,025-nm range at Mach 0.8. Certification is expected late this year. — SP
Flying laboratory studies low-level Ozone
A Beech King Air 200, used worldwide as a flying laboratory, recently completed an experiment that studied changes in ozone levels at lower altitudes associated with the passage of frontal systems. The aircraft conducted the experiment over the North Atlantic and operated from bases in Frederick, Maryland, and Bermuda.
Dubbed Aeroce, or Atmosphere Ocean Chemistry Experiment, the effort was headed by Dr. Russ Dickerson of the University of Maryland. Dickerson said that the study has found that increased levels of ozone in the North Atlantic are caused by a combination of natural phenomena and air pollution created by the major industrial centers on the East Coast.
The King Air, operated and funded by the National Science Foundation and based at the University of Wyoming, has participated in several experiments specific to aviation weather. One of the most notable studies was a series of downburst wind shear experiments producing results that have since become the standard data used by most flight simulators. Other experiments have included aircraft structural icing, thunderstorm research, and hurricane studies. — SP
Rans has started construction of its new Plant II west of Hays, Kansas. The company would have preferred to locate it at Hays Municipal Airport, where the firm's Flight Center is located, but found it was too costly. The new facility will be used for construction of the factory-built S-7C. The FAA is expected to certify the aircraft by late summer. It will sell for about $55,000. The facility's runway will not be open to the public.
A-65 Cylinders offered
Superior Air Parts to sell turbine division
Superior Air Parts has decided to sell its turbine parts manufacturing division in order to return to its roots — piston engine parts.
Superior has also announced new products, including brakes and vacuum pumps. Additionally, the company intends to increase its inventory of general aviation-related products, such as batteries, tires, valves, pistons, and guides.
Superior President David Sisson said that the company is entering into negotiations with several prospective buyers for the Superior Turbine Division. Superior Air Parts began in 1967 and launched Superior Turbine in 1992 to manufacture parts for the Pratt & Whitney PT-6 and Allison 250-series engines. The Allison parts are used primarily by the helicopter industry.
"We've never forgotten that our piston engine customers are the reason we exist," Sisson said.
True to Sisson's word, Superior Air Parts has begun offering cylinders for Continental A-65 engines. Superior's Millennium kit, priced at $4,641 (no core deposit), includes four cylinders, the supplemental type certificate, and installation instructions. For more information, contact Superior Air Parts at 800/487-4884.
Precision Aerospace Corporation has purchased the assets of Pacific Propeller in Kent, Washington. PPI specializes in the overhaul of propellers for airline, government, and military aircraft.
Learjet has opened a new production flight test facility at its plant in Wichita. The $2 million hangar allows all production flight test activities to be transferred from the main plant, where more room was needed for Learjet 45 production. Scotty Jergenson is Learjet's director of production flight test.
Squawk sheet
A new airworthiness directive has been proposed regarding cracking of the fuselage longerons in Pitts Special S-2A, S-2B, and S-2S aircraft. Over the past two years, four incidents in which one or two longerons had broken prompted the proposed rule.
The FAA has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would supersede AD 95-20-07 currently requiring repetitive inspections of the main gear side brace studs on Piper PA-24, PA- 28R, PA-30/39, PA-32R, and PA-34 aircraft for cracks. The NPRM retains the repetitive inspection and possible replacement requirements but adds additional modification and replacement options.
The FAA has revised airworthiness directive 94-ANE-47 regarding McCauley three-blade propellers installed on many popular light twins. The amendment specifies that a dye-penetrant inspection is needed only if crack indications are found or suspected during the visual inspection of C35, C72, C74, C75, C80, C86, C87, C92, and C93 propeller hubs. The AD requires hubs to be filled with oil containing a red dye as a terminating action.
Van's Aircraft, Inc. is advising owners of the RV-3 and -3A wings not to operate beyond Utility Category (4.4 G) limits until modification kits can be provided. Static load testing recently demonstrated that the wing has a compression buckling strength of 7.3 Gs, which is less than previous testing had indicated. Company officials said that operations below Utility Category can be conducted with an adequate margin of safety. The kit will include an alteration to the spar and will be provided free to RV-3 and -3A owners and builders. RV-4, RV-6 and -6A, and RV-8 wings are not included in the restriction. — SP
Aerospatiale General Aviation, the North American subsidiary of Socata Groupe Aerospatiale, has changed its name to Socata Aircraft as part of an overall strategy to establish the Socata name worldwide. The name change affects all operations, including sales, service, parts distribution, and technical support. Socata makes the Tampico, Tobago, Trinidad, and the TBM 700 turboprop. — SP
AOPA members in the news
Stephen Goodman, AOPA 1105816, has been promoted to director of flight operations for Rosie O'Grady's Aviation in Orlando, Florida. He supervises three G-164A Ag Cat aircraft used for skywriting and towing banners over Disney World to advertise Church Street Station, an entertainment complex in downtown Orlando. He also does skywriting over the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-in on opening day. Skywriting operations are conducted at 10,500 feet, and each letter is one mile long. To promote general aviation, he offers free rides to any of the 800 employees at Church Street Station.
Mary S. Feik, AOPA 592503, has received the FAA's Charles Taylor Master Mechanic award. The award honors the Wright brothers' mechanic and engineer. Recipients of the award must have more than 50 years of experience in aviation. Feik taught aircraft maintenance during World War II and later worked in aircraft restoration for the National Air and Space Museum. While there, she restored a Spad XIII World War I fighter, her favorite project, and a Northrop Alpha mailplane. Both are on permanent display. She continues to teach aircraft restoration courses throughout the country.
Bill Almquist, AOPA 099288, of the Maryland Chapter of Silver Wings is selling the videotape Flying Circus to raise money for Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome near Rhinebeck, New York. The documentary has been shown in 20 countries as well as on national public television and the National Geographic television show. Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome offers public weekend shows depicting the history of aviation through demonstration flights of antique aircraft. The videotape — made several years before the death of Old Rhinebeck founder Cole Palen — reports on Palen's efforts to keep his dream alive. To order a copy, send a check — made payable to SW Rhinebeck Aerodrome Museum Fund, for $39.95 plus $3.85 shipping ($43.80 total) — to Maryland Chapter, Silver Wings, 2903 Grindon Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland 21214. Each sale results in a $15 donation to Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome.
Miriam O. Seymour, AOPA 079944, has created a poster of a Titan missile for the Titan Missile Museum in Green Valley, Arizona, 30 miles south of Tucson. The museum is the only remaining site with a missile in place and has been designated a National Historic Landmark. Visitors can see the launch control center and view the missile — the tenth Titan built — that was used for training. To order the poster, send $14.95 (shipping is included) to General Aviation Perspective, Post Office Box 36417, Tucson, Arizona 85740-6417. To obtain information on visiting hours for the Titan museum, call 520/625-7736.
Lance Pamperin, AOPA 1196322, of Hartford, Wisconsin, and Don Hodson, AOPA 1252558, of Moses Lake, Washington, have been awarded the National Air Transportation Foundation Pioneers of Flight Scholarships worth $2,500 each. Pamperin is a junior aeronautical studies major at the University of North Dakota, and Hodson is a freshman aviation and airway science major at Central Washington University.
Peter Stelzenmuller, AOPA 1072819, has opened Penn Avionics at Perkiomen Valley Airport in Collegeville, Pennsylvania.
Ronald B. Stewart, AOPA 1003071, has been appointed district staff officer for air operations for Coast Guard Auxiliary District 14, headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii.
John R. Robbins, AOPA 1046200, has been named director of the Alabama Air Fair to take place in Huntsville, Alabama, in early October.
Jack B. Prior, AOPA 085415, has received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the FAA. Prior is founder and president of Prior Aviation Service at Greater Buffalo International Airport. The company is 35 years old.
Paul Bergen, AOPA 1226857, has expanded his book, The Gyroplane Flight Manual, which is available for $16.95 plus $2 shipping from The Abbott Company, P.O. Box 1172, Indianapolis, Indiana 46206.
Kevin J. Drozd, AOPA 1175798, of Santa Ana, California, has added private pilot single-engine-land privileges to his commercial glider certificate. He owns a 1978 Cessna 177B Cardinal based at John Wayne Airport/Orange County. Drozd is president of a company which manufactures aids for the disabled. He was instructed by AOPA Project Pilot mentor Thomas E. Cline, AOPA 806113.
Paul Carr, AOPA 1274069, of Chaumont, New York, and Marc Mosier, AOPA 741546, of Troy, Virginia, won Arc en Ciel's 1996 Air Race of the Americas in a Piper Lance dubbed Knight Flight. The racers left the Essex County Airport in Caldwell, New Jersey, on March 31, headed down the east side of South America to Ushua?a, Argentina — the southernmost city in the world — and back up the west side of the continent and returned to New Jersey. With the aid of a 185- gallon auxiliary tank, Carr and Mosier, in a tortoise-against-hare fashion, beat many turbocharged or turbine singles and twins to come away with the trophy for the 17,000-mile race.
Zora Arkus-Duntov, who took over design responsibilities for the Chevrolet Corvette in 1957 and transformed it from a novelty into a marketable car, died in April at age 86. An active pilot, he owned a Commander 114 until last year and was modifying a BD-5 with a 120-horsepower Suzuki engine (see "Pilots," April 1992 Pilot).
Women's Air Race Classic set
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University will host the 1996 Women's Air Race Classic June 20 to 23. More than 120 women will begin the nearly 2,400-mile cross-country race at Embry-Riddle's Prescott, Arizona, campus and finish at the university's Daytona Beach, Florida, campus, making six stops along the route.
The all-women Air Race Classic was formerly known as the Powder Puff Derby. Racers will fly fixed-wing aircraft with powerplants of between 145 and 570 horsepower. — SP
Alaska Aviation Safety Foundation faculty member Edward Wells (Ted) Huntley died on April 7 in Pascagoula, Mississippi, where he operated Airborne Laser Mapping. Huntley was a bush pilot in Alaska for many years and later flew for Pacific Northwest Airlines and Western Airlines, which merged with Delta. He was 65.
Zenaire has sold 10 Zenith CH 2000 aircraft to the government of Uttar Pradesh, India, to be used for flight training of future airline pilots. Most of the aircraft will be IFR equipped.
The Ninety-Nines International Organization of Women Pilots has established an Internet site at www.ninety-nines.org.
Sun 'N Fun
The Extra 200 arrived in the United States from the plant in Germany just days before its debut at Sun 'n Fun. It is a lower-priced version of the Extra 300L, costing about $150,000. German certification is expected on June 15 and will be followed in July by U.S. certification. The wings, tail group, and ailerons are identical to those in the single-place Extra 300 series flown by the past three national unlimited-class aerobatic champions. Construction is the same as that in other Extra models, using double wing spars. It is powered by a Lycoming AEIO-360 200-horsepower engine. Deliveries are expected to begin in August. For information, call Aero Sport of St. Augustine, Florida, at 904/824-6230.
Lowrance Avionics, a leader in the world of marine electronics, introduced its Airmap GPS. Sporting a 2.25-inch-square LCD screen and an extensive database, the Airmap depicts the usual airports, navaids, and special-use airspace. But it also contains a database of major roads and rivers, and can be outfitted with region-specific data cards to increase the map detail dramatically. Powered by six AA batteries and employing a five-channel parallel GPS receiver, the Airmap weighs 15 ounces and retails for $899. — Marc E. Cook
Velox introduces revolution Aerobatic airplane
Velox, Inc. of Stuart, Florida, displayed its new Velox Revolution, a mid-sized kitbuilt aerobatic airplane.
The Revolution is powered by a six-cylinder Lycoming IO-540 and has a wingspan of 24 feet with eight-foot-long constant-cord ailerons. The airplane is 19 feet, 7 inches long. The wings are removable, making the Revolution trailerable.
The airplane is constructed of carbon fiber with layers of Kevlar underneath and has an empty weight of less than 1,100 pounds. Velox plans to sell the basic kit for $57,000, not including engine, prop, and avionics. The airplane carries 38 gallons of fuel, with optional 50-gallon tanks available. A smoke system is also optional. For more information, call 407/286-5395. — SP
Garmin International captured considerable attention from the crowd with a sneak preview of its GPSMap 195 handheld unit with a moving map. The product appears intended to compete with Lowrance Airmap, in that it piles one mapping database atop another to provide more pictorial information to the pilot. The 12-channel Garmin receiver puts Jeppesen aviation data atop a sectional map- like background, showing cities, highways, railroads, state lines, lakes, and rivers. It is expected to be released in August at the EAA Fly-In and Convention in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. In addition, Garmin introduced a low-cost ($499) GPS 89 handheld receiver with a worldwide database.
Northstar Avionics of Acton, Massachusetts, expects its M3 Approach panel-mount 12-channel GPS receiver to win FAA TSO C129 approval for nonprecision approaches in June. The unit is already approved for en route and terminal IFR use. The M3 requires only three steps to set up for an IFR approach; it can also guide the approach even if the aircraft is being vectored to final approach. "Approval has taken this long because we asked the FAA to let us try a better way," one Northstar official said.
Aircraft Technologies of Lilburn, Georgia, introduced its new two- seat aerobatic aircraft, the Atlantis. It is stressed for plus or minus 10 Gs and is intended to be powered by a Lycoming IO-360. The complete kit purchase price is $36,800. It is estimated that a finished aircraft with engine will cost about $74,000, depending on the builder's preferences. The roll rate is estimated to be 180 degrees per second. For information, call 770/806-9098.
Klaus Savier, AOPA 1253210, of Santa Paula, California, won the Sun 'n Fun Sprint Air Race sponsored by Aircraft Spruce & Specialty. He flew his 120-horsepower VariEze over a 322-nautical-mile course from Troy, Alabama, to Bartow, Florida, at an average groundspeed of 201.6 knots.
BFGoodrich Aerospace Avionics Systems introduced the WX-950 Stormscope during a presentation on the opening day. It features a cell mode to map thunderstorms and a strike mode that displays initial strikes and gives an early warning of building storms. The price is $6,995.
AkroTech Aviation of Scappoose, Oregon, displayed its new Giles Aerobatic Aircraft G-202 and said that shipments of the kitbuilt aircraft have begun. The factory is now delivering two of the two- seat aircraft per month and has plans to increase that to three, starting in September. AkroTech claims that the G-202 has a roll rate in excess of 400 degrees per second and can climb 2,800 feet straight up.
Grob launches the G115C Acro
German aircraft manufacturer Grob introduced the G115C Acro, an aerobatic variant of their G115 line of airplanes. The Acro is powered by either a 160-horsepower or 180-horsepower Lycoming with a fixed-pitch propeller.
The aircraft is limited to six positive and three negative Gs, but it has no inverted fuel or oil systems and therefore is intended to perform only positive-G maneuvers. They include a loop, barrel roll, split-S, spin, and aileron roll.
The two-place airplane is certified for day, night, and IFR flight and is equipped with a quick-release canopy, stick controls, a five-point harness, and a G meter.
The 160-hp model sells for $143,990, and the 180-hp model costs $148,990. Both models come equipped with a basic VFR package including EGT and gyro instruments. For more information, contact Grob Systems in Bluffton, Ohio at 419/358-9015. — SP
Pushy Galore, the pusher-prop that keeps setting speed and altitude records (see " Pilot Briefing," March Pilot) won the Aeroshell 3D Speed Dash and kept the $5,000 winner's purse. The aircraft, flown by Bruce Bohannon and sponsored by Aeroshell, beat a Russian Sukhoi Su-31 aerobatic airplane flown by Eric Haagenson of Pompano Air Center in the final round of competition. The Su-31 first had to defeat all challengers for the privilege of meeting Pushy Galore. The winner's rate of climb was 4,575 feet per minute, reaching an altitude of 3,280 feet (1,000 meters) in less than 53 seconds. Pushy Galore is powered by a Continental O-200 engine.
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