Air and Space Museum director chosen
Retired Marine Corps Gen. John R. Dailey, currently the deputy associate administrator of NASA, has been named to head the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. Dailey won the Distinguished Flying Cross while a Marine fighter pilot.
He succeeds Adm. Don Engen, the former AOPA Air Safety Foundation chief and Dailey’s close personal friend who was killed in a glider accident last July. One of Dailey’s chief responsibilities will be to supervise the construction of a new 710,000-square-foot facility at the Washington Dulles International Airport. It is scheduled to open in December 2003.
While at NASA, Dailey developed the NASA Strategic Plan and helped to refocus the agency’s programs in light of reduced budgets.
Jacksonville military field goes civilian
Once known as Cecil Field Naval Air Station, it is now just Cecil Field, and it goes by the identifier VQQ. Jacksonville, Florida’s Cecil Field has gone civilian. The first general aviation pilot to land at the new airport was AOPA member Ken Smallwood, AOPA 1365716, left. The airport is served by AirKaman Cecil Field ( www.airkaman.com). Not too many FBOs can advertise an on-premises golf course and gym built to Navy specifications.
If you really overloaded your Cessna 172, you’d better land on 18L/36R, because it is 12,500 feet long and 200 feet wide. The other three runways are all 8,000 feet by 200 feet. The airport has instrument approaches.
Cessna has delivered its 3,000th Citation business jet. A Citation X, serial number 96, was delivered to John Menard, president of Menard Inc., a home-improvement retail chain based in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The 145-store chain has owned Citations for 13 years. Cessna delivered the first Citation in January 1972. The production rate for Citations has increased from 101 in 1990 to 220 in 1999. During the decade, the Cessna work force has increased from 5,000 in 1990 to 12,000.
Red Baron Pizza Service announced a charitable partnership with Miracle Flights for Kids, a nonprofit organization that provides air transportation to sick children and their families who need to reach specialized medical facilities for treatment. A check for $20,000 was handed over to Miracle Flights at the Naval Air Station in New Orleans, the site of the Red Baron Stearman Squadron’s last airshow performance of 1999.
Embry-Riddle launches enhanced customized training program
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University has launched its Center for Aviation Training at Embry-Riddle (CATER). CATER offers customized, nondegree aviation training programs to corporations, governments, and individuals. The program, which was introduced on an experimental basis in 1996, offers training in flight, flight dispatching, aircraft maintenance, aviation English, and air traffic control at university facilities in Daytona Beach, Florida, and Prescott, Arizona (see "On the Flight Line," November 1997 Pilot), as well as a new facility in DeLand, Florida. Training is also offered at client locations anywhere in the world.
"It’s clear to us that there’s a growing need for training professionals," said Paul McDuffee, Embry-Riddle’s vice president for aviation training. "Our reentry into the training market is a logical and complementary outgrowth of the university’s outstanding academic programs."
Popular offerings include programs leading to FAA certification for private and commercial pilots, aircraft dispatchers, airframe and powerplant mechanics, and avionics technicians, as well as short courses in aircraft maintenance. For more information about CATER, call 904/226-7212 (from within the United States) or 877/904-3746 (worldwide), e-mail [email protected], or visit the Web site ( http://cater.erau.edu/).
Paul Sanderson, the "Sanderson" in Jeppesen Sanderson who started a pilot training firm that was later merged with Jeppesen, has been named an Elder Statesman in Aviation by the National Aeronautic Association.
Advanced ditching simulator to address GA needs
To increase your chances of surviving a ditching or other in-cockpit emergency, Survival Systems Training Inc. has opened a new aviation safety and survival training facility at the Groton-New London Airport in Connecticut.
The training center features an advanced ditching simulator with aircraft-specific emergency exits and exit mechanisms that match more than two dozen fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. The center also teaches courses dealing with smoke or fire in the cockpit, as well as land and sea survival. For more information, call Survival Systems Training at 888/386-5371 or 860/405-0002, or visit the Web site ( www.survivalsystemsinc.com).
Ferry pilots survive night ditching
Two pilots ferrying a New Piper Archer III to Australia from Vero Beach, Florida, survived a night ditching into the Pacific Ocean more than 300 miles from Hilo, Hawaii. This particular leg was from Santa Barbara, California, to Hilo.
The pilots initially reported that they had low oil pressure when the airplane was 600 miles from Hilo. A U.S. Coast Guard C–130 was dispatched and met the Archer. The two airplanes encountered a rain squall at about 7:30 p.m., and the C–130 crew lost sight of the Piper at about the time the Archer’s engine failed.
A second C–130, whose crew had night vision equipment, spotted the lights on the two men’s life vests five hours later. The C–130 crew diverted a Bahamian freighter en route to Korea to pick up the men more than nine hours after they had ditched. Both men were recovered uninjured.
Cirrus tops 400 orders, chooses training program
Cirrus Design Corporation announced that by mid-November the sales of its SR20 had reached 420—each secured with a nonrefundable $15,000 deposit.
Since October 1998, when the type certificate was awarded to Cirrus at AOPA Expo, sales have tripled. Since January, the company has sold 20 airplanes a month. Unfortunately, Cirrus is having a hard time keeping up with demand as only eight had rolled off the line and another nine were under construction in mid-November.
Cirrus has chosen a program developed by Wings Aloft of Seattle that will provide new SR20 owners with a two-day familiarization course at Cirrus’ Duluth, Minnesota, facility. For more information on the SR20, see " Fleet First," October 1999 Pilot.
Solotrek project gets boost from NASA
Millennium Jet, a Santa Clara, California-based maker of manned and unmanned vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft, has reached an agreement with NASA Ames Research Center to receive resources and information to speed the testing of the Solotrek individual VTOL aircraft.
The Solotrek XFV (exo-"skeletor" flying vehicle) is touted as the world’s first practical open-air, individual VTOL aircraft that will be able to transport an individual at speeds as high as 80 mph and remain aloft for 1.5 hours. It uses a 130-hp, two-stroke engine that burns automotive fuel and turns two counterrotating ducted fans. With NASA’s support, Millennium Jet hopes to complete its test program faster and more efficiently. Call 408/988-5800, or see the Web site ( www.solotrek.com).
BFGoodrich Aerospace’s Ice Protection Systems Division in Uniontown, Ohio, has announced the availability of a new Quick Disconnect System for electric propeller deicers. The QDS kit cuts labor time and costs by allowing field replacement of prop deicers and wire harnesses by disconnecting the connector plug and replacing the tie straps. For more information, call 330/374-3121.
For single-engine charters
NTSB recommends donning life vests when over water
If you fly a single-engine aircraft for hire, the NTSB thinks that all those aboard your airplane should be wearing life preservers when overflying bodies of water.
The NTSB recommended to the FAA that it mandate the wearing of life preservers by all occupants in any single-engine airplane or helicopter (float-equipped or not) unless it is operated at an altitude that allows it to reach a suitable landing area. The Board also recommended to the FAA that it require passenger briefings on ditching procedures and the use of required flotation equipment for all air-taxi and air-tour passenger flights that operate over water at altitudes that would not allow them to reach a suitable landing area. To read the full text of these recommendations, see the NTSB Web site ( www.ntsb.gov/recs/letters/1999/A99_57_58.pdf).
Pratt & Whitney exploring light turbines for GA
Pratt & Whitney Canada Inc. is studying the feasibility of a light turbine engine for use in general aviation and light business aircraft.
The PW6XX would be available in turbofan, turboshaft, and turboprop configurations and is targeted to significantly reduce ownership costs while providing turbine reliability and durability. Turbofan versions of the engine would produce in the area of 1,000 to 2,000 pounds of thrust, while turboprop and turboshaft engines are expected to crank out 600 to 900 shaft horsepower.
The Hayward (California) Proficiency Air Race is scheduled for May 18 through 20. For more information, call 408/481-7865, or visit the Web site ( www.hwdairrace.org).
AOPA members in the news
Wallace "Happy" Rogers, AOPA 1161975, of San Antonio, Texas, has a reason to be happy. He just bought the 500th Aviat Husky A1B. Rogers intends to use his Husky, equipped with oversized tires and an IFR Garmin panel, for flying around his Texas ranch.
Keith Smith, AOPA 1075975, of South Haven, Minnesota, won a drawing for a completely restored 1947 Luscombe 8E valued at $40,000. Smith paid $40 to The Don Luscombe Aviation History Foundation for the 1999 "Win Me" drawing. Next year, the foundation will be awarding the Millennium Luscombe. Raffle tickets, which benefit the foundation’s nonprofit aviation education and preservation programs, are available by calling 480/917-0969 or by visiting the Web site ( www.luscombe.org).
Chuck Suma, AOPA 1293364, president and CEO of The New Piper Aircraft in Vero Beach, Florida, has been elected chairman of the board of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. GAMA also honored Russ Meyer, AOPA 1178175, chairman and CEO of Cessna Aircraft in Wichita, with its Distinguished Service Award for his contributions and commitment to GAMA for more than 27 years.
Glenn Hertzler, AOPA 1079895, of Aurora, Colorado, has started Avtrak, a company that offers an aircraft record imaging service called E-Log. Records are scanned into a database, then indexed by date and aircraft, engine, or propeller total time. Data is placed on a CD-ROM and provided to the aircraft owner as a backup to all of the airplane’s maintenance records. AOPA members receive a 10-percent discount for the service. For more information, call 303/745-5588, or visit the Web site ( www.avtrak.com).
Lou Thole, AOPA 1183651, has just published his second book about Army Air Force bases and training during World War II. The book, Forgotten Fields of America, tells the stories of 12 training bases. It is available from Pictorial Histories Publishing, 406/549-8488.
Bill Shea, AOPA 010046, has been elected to the International Northwest Aviation Council. The group includes members from the Northwest and Canada. Shea was the FAA associate administrator for airports in the early 1980s.
Joe Weber, AOPA 908539, of Pensacola, Florida, a New York Times best-selling author, has written Primary Target, an aviation techno-thriller available in bookstores now.
A custom-designed Hartzell propeller system used on a Lancair IV that won the Sport Class championship at Reno last year may have future applications for personal and business aircraft. The 75-inch-diameter, three-blade constant-speed propeller features a compact aluminum hub with highly swept, wide-chord aluminum blades. The Lancair IV was flown by Dave Morss, who won the Gold race at Reno with an average speed of 277 kt.
AlliedSignal/Honeywell merger clears last hurdle
Clearance from the European Commission has cleared the way for completion of the merger of AlliedSignal and Honeywell. The result is a $24 billion global technology company operating under the Honeywell name.
The two companies expected to complete the merger in early December. The integration of the two firms was expected to be completed by mid-year. The new firm will trade under the HON symbol on the New York Stock Exchange. Company officials predicted that earnings per share will grow by 20 percent in 2000.
Honeywell expects major revenue growth from the free-flight air traffic control system now emerging.
Squawk Sheet
Recently the FAA issued NPRM 99-CE-27-AD, proposing an AD affecting more than 600 Lake aircraft. The proposed AD requires removing the wings and inspecting the left and right upper and lower spar caps and doublers for cracks, replacing any cracked parts and/or incorporating a modification kit, depending on the extent of the damage. The FAA cites reports of fatigue cracking found on the wing attachment bolt hole on one affected aircraft, and similar reports of cracking on seven other Lake aircraft as cause for the AD. The FAA estimates that completion of the proposed actions will cost more than $5,000 per aircraft, not including the cost of other parts replacements that may be necessary as a result of the AD. However, many sources indicate that cost of compliance may far exceed the FAA’s estimations. AOPA and the Seaplane Pilots Association are investigating this issue, and issued comments on behalf of members. The comment period closed December 14. For more information, and a copy of the proposed AD, visit AOPA Online ( www.aopa.org/whatsnew/regulatory/reglake.html).
A Cessna 210 owner filed a malfunction/defect report to the FAA following the failure of the airplane’s overvoltage relay. The relay is designed to trip when excess voltage passes through the electrical system, such as when the voltage regulator fails. In many Cessnas, a red light on the instrument panel warns the pilot that the overvoltage relay has tripped. This prevents the alternator from sending an unregulated charge to the battery. However, the submitter stated that the overvoltage relay in his airplane failed. When an overvoltage situation occurred, there was no way of knowing because the red light fails to illuminate if the relay fails. As a result, the battery boiled over and released explosive hydrogen gas into the engine compartment. There was damage to the airplane’s avionics and electrical system. The installation of a voltmeter would provide a solution to the problem.
Links to the full text of these proposals and rulemakings can be found on AOPA Online www.aopa.org/pilot/links/links0001.shtml.
A long-distance air race from England to Australia is being planned to commemorate the centennial of the Australian Federation in 2001. So far, 36 entries from various countries have been received to fly the London-Sydney Air Race 2001. The race is scheduled to start at Biggin Hill, England, on March 11. France, Crete, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, India, and Thailand are among the many planned stops for the race. The entrance fee for the month-long excursion is $50,000 per aircraft. For more information, e-mail [email protected], or fax (61) 2 9966 1807.
Upset training has become a hot topic for corporate and regional operators. To meet the demand, Texas Air Aces of Spring, Texas, near Houston, has created the Aviation Safety Training division. It is staffed by 11 instructors. Call 281/379-2237, or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Century Aerospace Corporation has completed low-speed wind tunnel testing of the six-seat Century Jet CA-100. The testing, conducted at the University of Washington’s Kirsten Wind Tunnel in Seattle, was designed to evaluate low-speed aerodynamics, substantiate stability and control, verify performance estimations, and explore deep-stall characteristics. According to Century, all test results were in line with expectations based on pretest analysis and computational fluid dynamics. The Century Jet is expected to cruise at 370 knots, have a 1,500-nm range, and cost $335 per hour to operate. First flight is expected in the third quarter of 2001. For more information, call 505/246-8200, or visit the Web site ( www.centuryaero.com).
Capstone program starts in Alaska
Another step toward what will be the future for all GA pilots took place recently. The FAA has approved installation of UPS Aviation Technologies equipment in 21 models of aircraft participating in the Alaska Capstone program.
The purpose of the program is to evaluate advanced aviation technology. Using an Apollo GPS Navigation system, a two-way datalink, and a multifunction display, pilots will be alerted to other traffic, receive weather information, and avoid terrain. At the same time, aircraft position data will be transmitted to air traffic controllers and to other equipped aircraft. Installation has begun on the first of 132 participating aircraft and will be completed by June.
AlliedSignal Aerospace has awarded Leonard M. Greene of Safe Flight Instrument Corporation the AlliedSignal Bendix Trophy for aviation safety. Greene invented the stall-warning indicator more than 50 years ago, and he has developed indicators and computers to help pilots control pitch, speed, and lift during critical phases of flight.
CarinaStar has announced the opening of a new sales and dispatch facility at the Monroe (North Carolina) Airport near Charlotte. CarinaStar offers new Raytheon Beech Bonanzas and Barons on a time-share basis (see "A Star is Born," May 1999 Pilot). CarinaStar also reported that it has received from the FAA its Part 135 certificate for CarinaStar Airways, a sister charter company that will complement the fractional ownership business. CarinaStar takes delivery of a new Bonanza and a new Baron this month. For more information, call 843/689-2936, or visit the Web site ( www.carinastar.com).
Aviation tourist attraction set for Michigan
An $80-million Legacy of Flight tourist attraction will open in 2003 near the Kalamazoo County/Battle Creek International Airport in Michigan.
The aviation center will be 15 stories tall and offer interactive attractions that may draw as many as 800,000 visitors a year. Preston S. Parish, chairman of the Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum, also known as the Air Zoo, said that he is encouraged by the prospects for financial support of the project.
"We see this as a place where the Smithsonian meets Epcot," Parish said.
Exhibit areas will include the 15-story Aerodrome, an open space central to all the attractions. The exhibits include Beginnings, a rotating orientation theater featuring two presentations: The Dream and Early Flight; Sentinels at Sea uses simulators to re-create the deck of an aircraft carrier; and Flights of Fancy takes visitors on a hypersonic flight to Hawaii. There will be rides in a Ford Tri-Motor over Kalamazoo, and a roller coaster designed to re-create the feeling of flight.
Iowa airport seeks customers’ help
In order to show continued need for 24-hour staffing of the control tower at the Eastern Iowa Airport at Cedar Rapids, airport officials are asking users to consider operations between 11:30 p.m. and 4:45 a.m. For 24-hour staffing to continue, the airport needs to show four operations per hour during that period, Airport Director Larry Mullendore said.
The Cedar Rapids Airport Commission has allocated $18,000 to the FAA since July 1999 to continue staffing between 11:30 p.m. and 4:45 a.m. American Eagle, Northwest Airlines, and Trans World Airlines currently have operations after 10:30 p.m., and United Airlines will add one scheduled flight during that time in January.
Cessna Aircraft’s Single-Engine Division in Independence, Kansas, has now delivered 2,000 single-engine aircraft.
Aero Vodochody of the Czech Republic is nearing completion of its Ae270 Propjet that is aimed at the regional and charter market. It is a low-wing, single-engine, pressurized turboprop capable of carrying 10 people, and it is powered by an 850-shp Pratt & Whitney PT6A-42A engine. It will also be offered as a nonpressurized, fixed-gear aircraft powered by a 670-shp Walter M601F engine. For more information, see the Web site ( www.ibisaerospace.com), or call 830/257-8200.
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