Aviation International News June 2023

CHARTER: WILL SUMMER TRAVEL HEAT UP?

TRAINING: WHY YOU NEED TO GET UPSET

ATC: FAA BALKS ON REMOTE TOWERS

SAFETY: KETCHIKAN AIR TOUR RISKS STILL HIGH

Maintenance Matters

Business is booming, but supply chain issues and labor shortages temper capacity

12 European charter firms ready for peak summer demand

32 upset training with APS

4 Bombardier deliveries grow, returns to Q1 profitability

6 After slow start, Gulfstream expects to meet 2023 target

8 Embraer reports flat bizjet deliveries, softer revenues

10 Textron Aviation deliveries, demand remain stable

20 Safety Talk: UAE's Aysha Alhameli

24 Special Report: Profound change moves the maintenance market

38 FAA regrouping on remote towers

42 Ketchikan air tour safety still lacking, NTSB finds

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WHEELS UP FOUNDER DICHTER STEPS DOWN AS CEO

Some 10 years after founding private flight provider Wheels Up, Kenny Dichter stepped down as the financially-challenged group’s CEO on May 9. While Dichter will retain a seat on the board of directors, CFO Todd Smith took over as interim CEO and board member Ravi Thakran is executive chairman. Wheels Up sustained $555 million in losses last year and reported a $101 million loss in the first quarter. “I’d like to thank our founder, Kenny Dichter, for his vision and work to make Wheels Up what it is today— the leading on-demand charter operator in the U.S. with more than $1.5 billion in revenue, more than 12,000 members and customers, and an iconic brand,” Thakran said.

Bombardier deliveries grow, returns to Q1 profitability

BY KERRY LYNCH

Bombardier delivered one more business jet in the first quarter than a year earlier for a total of 22. Revenues, however, jumped 17 percent to $1.5 billion, reflecting a skewing to larger aircraft following the discontinuation of the Learjet line last year, the Montreal- based OEM reported.

Excluding Learjet, deliveries were up by 22 percent.

Deliveries in the first three months comprised eight Challengers and 14 Globals, compared with six of the super-midsized aircraft and 12 of the ultra-long-range models in the same period last year. Bombardier also delivered three Learjets in the first quarter of 2022.

Bombardier affirmed that it remains on track to continue to ramp up deliveries topping 138 for the year. Even with the ramp-up, Bombardier maintained a bookto-bill of 0.9:1, just under the even ordersto-deliveries target it had set for the year. Backlog at the end of the quarter stood at $14.8 billion, similar to where it was at the end of the year and representing at least two years of production.

Bombardier president and CEO Éric Martel reiterated that this is a “quality” backlog and that “we feel pretty good our backlog will sustain even if there is a recession.”

FORMER ESCROW EXEC GUILTY

A U.S. District Court in Texas last month convicted Debra Lynn Mercer-Erwin, owner of Wright Brothers Aircraft Title and Aircraft Guaranty Corp. (AGC), of money laundering, wire fraud, and two counts of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute cocaine. According to the government, her Oklahoma City-based aircraft title and escrow services enabled cartels to use U.S.-registered aircraft, that AGC held in trust, for drug trade. She was also found guilty of operating a Ponzi scheme, advertising aircraft for sale that were actually not available, and using escrowed funds to repay money deposited by previous would-be buyers. She faces up to life in prison.

COMLUX DELIVERS 1ST COMPLETED ACJ TWOTWENTY

Comlux delivered the first VIP completed Airbus ACJ TwoTwenty to launch customer Five Hotels and Resorts on May 2. Comlux is designing and installing the interiors on the first 16 of the bizliners. The cabin has been EASA certified, and the completion rate is expected to accelerate going forward.

Both Bombardier Challenger and Global shipments increased in the first quarter despite supplychain challenges, but they aren’t expected to a ect 2023 deliveries.

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After slow start, Gulfstream expects to meet 2023 target

BY CURT EPSTEIN

Gulfstream delivered 21 business jets in the first quarter, three shy of its projections and four fewer than it delivered in the same period a year ago, according to parent company General Dynamics in its first-quarter earnings call in April.

Through the first three months of the year, the Savannah, Georgia-based OEM handed over four super-midsize G280s and 17 large-cabin aircraft. While bureaucratic registration delays in a customer’s home country impacted the delivery of one largecabin twinjet, General Dynamics chair and CEO Phebe Novakovic noted that this past quarter was the first in which the company missed an airplane delivery due to supplychain issues when a pair of G280s was delayed due to late engine arrivals.

“The shortage of parts-to-schedule from the supply chain, especially from Honeywell, has created significant out-of-station work, which is inherently less efficient,” Novakovic said during the conference call. “The other impact of late-to-schedule parts deliveries— apart from cost growth—is that we cannot increase our build rate until the supply of parts is more predictable.” She added that most Gulfstream suppliers expect that situation to resolve itself by the third quarter.

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GLOBAL 5500/6500 GET EPDS

“Up until now, we have managed to work around late-to-schedule parts deliveries,” Novakovic continued. “We have a very clear line of sight into the third and fourth quarters, and the majority of these suppliers fully anticipate getting better.”

General Dynamics’ aerospace unit finished the quarter with just $11 million less revenue than a year ago, despite delivering four fewer aircraft. The deficit was almost offset by Gulfstream services, special mission aircraft work, and Jet Aviation volume.

Gulfstream ended the first quarter with a book-to-bill of just below 1:1. “The quarter was looking quite good until the two regional bank failures in early March,” said Novakovic. “This created a pause in the market for about three weeks.” She added that since, strong sales activity and customer interest have resumed, with broad interest across the entire product line.

The company forecast that it will deliver 145 aircraft this year, and it is looking to deliver 26 in the second quarter with a strong ramp-up in deliveries anticipated in the second half of the year as the G700 comes online. “We’re pretty confident we can get there,” said Novakovic. z

Bombardier has expanded its suite of environmental product declarations (EPDs) to encompass the ultra-long-range Global 5500 and 6500. They join Bombardier’s Global 7500 and Challenger 3500 in securing an EPD, which details information about an aircraft’s environmental footprint throughout its life cycle. The Canadian aircraft manufacturer initially obtained an EPD for the Global 7500 in June 2020 after working with industry organizations and 45 Tier 1 suppliers to assess 200,000 parts. Bombardier followed the same methodology with the Challenger 3500, which received an EPD in 2022, and again with the Global 5500 and 6500.

PC- 12 FLEET PASSES 10 MILLION FLIGHT HOURS

The worldwide fleet of more than 1,000 Pilatus PC-12 turboprop singles has now logged more than 10 million flight hours. The fleet-leader PC-12 is based in Canada and has logged more than 35,000 hours, while 71 other of the turboprop singles have each flown more than 20,000 hours. The global fleet has made more than 9.3 million landings, with four aircraft alone reporting more than 50,000 landings each. Pilatus Aircraft also said it is increasing production rates as it closes in on its 2,000th PC-12 delivery.

NJASAP SUES NETJETS

In the midst of midterm contract negotiations with NetJets, the NetJets Association of Shared Aircraft Pilots (NJASAP) has filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio alleging the fractional ownership provider violated federal law by attempting to suppress union-related speech. According to the NJASAP, NetJets “threatened to discipline pilots for referring customers to the union’s website” that provides information about NetJets pilot salaries.

Gulfstream’s first quarter 2023 delivery totals were lowered after two G280s were sidelined by late engine delvieries from their manufacturer, Honeywell.

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Embraer reports flat bizjet deliveries, softer revenues

BY KERRY LYNCH

Embraer’s executive jet deliveries remained flat in the first three months, matching the eight handed over in first-quarter 2022, the company a ffi rmed when it released its first-quarter earnings report in early May.

Similar to a year earlier, Embraer handed over six Phenom light jets and two midsize Praetors during the quarter. However, at the same time, Embraer’s executive jets unit brought in $87.1 million in revenues, a 3 percent year-over-year slide that the Brazilian airframer attributed to the mix of light-jet deliveries.

Meanwhile, Embraer remained encouraged by the market in the first quarter, saying that customer orders for new aircraft have exceeded expectations. Backlog for its executive jets nudged up to $4.1 billion at the end of the first quarter, compared with $3.9 billion at the end of 2022 and $2.9 billion at the end of 2021.

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CAE EXPANDING BIZAV TRAINING TO CENTRAL EUROPE

CAE is expanding its business aviation training activities in Central Europe with plans to open a new center in the second half of 2024. The center would become CAE’s first business aviation facility in the region and have a capacity for up to six full-flight simulators, the company said. “CAE is expanding its business aviation training network in strategic locations to help the industry meet the global requirement for an additional 45,000 business aviation pilots over the next 10 years,” said CAE Civil Aviation group president Nick Leontidis.

FAA ACTING ADMINISTRATOR TO DEPART AGENCY

Embraer further noted its book-to-bill ratio remained above 2.5:1, an industry high watermark, and added, “Growth in the light and midsize business jet segments has continued into this year, and Embraer is well positioned to capitalize on this growth.”

While executive jets revenues softened in the quarter, Embraer’s commercial aviation unit handed over seven airliners, one more than a year ago. The mix also trended toward the larger E195-E2 model, with five delivered, compared with two in first-quarter 2022. Embraer also delivered two of the smaller E175s versus four a year earlier.

Commercial aviation revenues were up by nearly $30 million in the quarter, to $198.8 million. Even so, the manufacturer saw its net loss widen to $88.9 million, an increase from a $75.3 million loss a year earlier. z

Billy Nolen, who stepped into the role of acting FAA administrator in April 2022 just months after he joined the agency, announced in late April that he will be stepping down. “I will depart as a new nominee [for FAA Administrator] is named this summer,” he said. “I have given everything to this agency, and now it’s time to do the same for my family, who have…supported me during my time at the FAA.” Nolen brought a more than 30-year aviation career with him to the agency, having served in operations, regulatory, and corporate roles with airlines and with Airlines for America.

GOGO EXPANDING TO CANADA

Gogo Business Aviation is extending the coverage area of its 5G network into Canada. Having completed a critical design review of the 5G chip earlier this year, Gogo anticipates that its 5G service will launch commercially in the contiguous U.S. in the fourth quarter and expand to Canada next year. Gogo’s 5G service is expected to provide speeds of about 25 Mbps on average, with peak speeds between 75 and 80 Mbps, facilitating heavy-data applications such as videoconferencing, live TV, and gaming.

Embraer attributed the small dip in Executive Aviation revenues in the first quarter to a di erent mix of Phenom deliveries, even though the total number matched that of last year.

News Briefs

EASA NOD FOR KODIAK 900

Daher has secured European validation for its Kodiak 900, the larger and speedier variant of its Kodiak 100 turboprop-single utility aircraft. EASA approval follows FAA certification in July, when Daher also announced the aircraft at EAA AirVenture. The first European delivery is scheduled for the third quarter. Nicolas Chabbert, senior v-p of Daher’s aircraft division, said the Kodiak 900 is attracting significant interest from Europe for missions ranging from air ambulance and firefighting support to skydiving and surveillance.

Textron Aviation deliveries, demand remain stable

BY CHARLES ALCOCK

Deliveries of Textron Aviation business aircraft remained stable during the first quarter of 2023 with a slight uptick in commercial turboprops (34 versus 31 in the same period last year) compensating for a drop from 39 to 35 jets. In an earnings call with analysts in April, parent company Textron reported that revenues at its Textron Aviation segment grew by 10.5 percent during the first three months of this year to $1.1 billion, contributing to the $3 billion in corporate-wide revenues that were unchanged over 2022.

Textron Aviation contributed $125 million to the $259 million in corporate-wide profits, achieving an increase of $15 million. The company said this improvement was largely due to favorable pricing levels for its aircraft and higher volumes. The division’s order backlog at the end of the first quarter was valued at $6.5 billion.

By contrast, Textron’s rotorcraft division Bell saw revenues decline by 25 percent to reach $621 million, due to lower military revenues. But those revenues are expected

to recover in the wake of the Government Accountability Office’s recent ruling that rejected protests by competitors Sikorsky and Boeing against the U.S. Army’s award of the Future Long-range Assault Aircraft contract to Bell. During the first quarter, Bell delivered 22 commercial helicopters, down from 25 units in the first quarter of 2022. Its segment profit fell by $31 million to $60 million and the order backlog stood at $4.6 billion.

Textron’s eAviation business unit achieved revenues of $4 million, mainly from sales of trainer aircraft produced by its Europe-based subsidiary Pipistrel.

In response to continuing supply-chain issues that chairman and CEO Scott Donnelly said are “not getting worse or better,” Textron added more employees in the fourth quarter of 2022 so that, “now we’re largely staffed at levels where we want to be so that things improve.” He acknowledged that some business jet delivery dates were missed during the quarter due to supply-chain issues that held up parts. z

SMART LINK PLUS OK ’ D FOR CHALLENGERS, GLOBALS

Bombardier’s Smart Link Plus aircraft health monitoring system is now approved by Transport Canada, EASA, and the FAA for installation on most Challenger and Global models. The approvals permit operators of all in-service Challenger 300/350/3500s, Challenger 605/650s, and Global Express/ XRS/5000/6000s to install Smart Link Plus. Approvals for the Challenger 604 and Global 5500/6500 are expected by early 2024, Bombardier noted. Smart Link Plus collects crucial aircraft data that enables flight and maintenance crews to quickly prioritize and proactively troubleshoot essential in-flight alerts.

MAJOR SAF PLANT IN SPAIN

Global vegetable oil processor Apical is partnering with sustainable energy producer Cepsa to construct what will be the largest second-generation biofuel production facility in southern Europe. Second-generation fuels are those derived from plant wastes and byproducts rather than purpose-grown crops. The plant will be built at Cepsa’s La Rábida Energy Park in the Spanish province of Huelva. Scheduled to be operational in the first half of 2026, it will have a projected annual output of up to 500,000 tons of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and/or renewable diesel fuel.

Textron Aviation, reporting revenue growth and stable deliveries, celebrated the handing over of the 400th Cessna Citation CJ4 business jet to Koch Holdings.

Euro charter firms ready for peak summer demand

BY JAMES WYNBRANDT

Last summer, with the shackles of Covid removed, business jet demand in Europe hit record levels. Flight activity rose 13 percent above 2021 numbers during the season last year and was 23 percent above 2019’s summer peak, the previous high, according to Hamburg, Germany-based flight-data specialist WingX. In the charter market, that demand created shortages of aircraft, as well as of landing slots and parking spaces at popular destinations.

The good news for this summer: Part 135 operators, brokers, and support professionals report that the charter community is better prepared for the seasonal onslaught, which they anticipate could outpace the demand last summer.

Supply-wise, data “indicates that the pool of aircraft available for charter has

increased,” B2B booking platform Avinode Group told AIN , and the number of Part 135 aircraft marketed through its site has risen 5 percent since last summer.

“More aircraft are coming to the market,” echoed George Galanopoulos, Luxaviation UK CEO and managing director, some of them from new owners “who bought aircraft because of the difficulties they encountered accessing lift through charter and how much they had to pay for it,” he said. A spokesperson at UK-based global brokerage Air Partner agreed that operators are “increasing fleet size where they can,” in anticipation of the demand.

Some of the recent fleet additions are light jets and turboprops—aircraft wellsuited to European routes—which are bolstering capacity for lower-cost access.

Switzerland-based Global Jet added five aircraft to its charter fleet in recent months, ranging from an Embraer Phenom 300 and Pilatus PC-24 at the light end to a pair of Global 6000s (one with a threezone cabin with extensive entertainment systems, the other a 14-passenger executive configuration), as well as a Boeing 737700 VIP airliner.

Germany’s Atlas Air Service operates Pilatus PC-12, Daher TBM, and Beechcraft King Air turboprops, along with Cessna Citation, Gulfstream G150 and 280, and Hawker 400 business jets from five locations in Germany and Switzerland. With recently acquired MRO subsidiaries in Augsburg, Germany, and Altenrhein, Switzerland, Atlas now offers a full suite of support services, as well.

Sparfell, a Geneva-based charter- management firm, counts the Embraer Phenom 100 and Cessna Citation CJ2+ among its 30-some jets, as well as the Bombardier Challenger 300/350 and Global, Embraer Legacy and Praetor 600, Gulfstream G650ER, and Dassault Falcon 7X. Its network of partner providers offers access to many more.

But demand is keeping pace with the increased supply. Newly introduced jet card and block charter programs, offering more access options, are attracting new customers and increasing spend among existing clients, providers report.

And despite a cooling of charter activity early this year seen in some tracking data, “the summer months are ahead of where they were in 2022,” said an Avinode spokesperson, adding, “Based on the early demand in Europe, I wouldn’t be surprised if the summer months outperform current industry expectations.”

Moreover, some declines in flight activity this year were due in part to the number of aircraft down for maintenance following the heavy usage of the previous summer, noted Galanopoulos, who called the situation “unprecedented in the 28 years I’ve been in business.”

Air Partner, following its acquisition last year by U.S. charter and access program provider Wheels Up, expects to see demand from U.S. customers coming through its new parent company this summer, in addition to its Continental customer base. Wheels Up members can use funds on deposit to fly to Europe privately or on partner carrier Delta Air Lines, with Air Partner handling all their intra-Europe flights, the company noted.

To prepare for the traffic spike, Air Partner has been “investing in our operator

relationships,” which will be “vital” to deal with “anticipated demand and slot and airport capacity restrictions,” the company said, citing as top trending destinations Ibiza, Majorca, and Malaga, Spain; Faro, Denmark; Olbia, Italy; Mykonos, Greece; and Nice, France.

A growing array of access programs gives charter customers more options for getting to their hot spot of choice. VistaJet International recently introduced its VJ25 program to Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Aimed at travelers with flexible schedules flying 25 to 49 hours per year and o ff ered as a three-year subscription, VJ25 provides guaranteed on-demand access to the Vista fleet of more than 360 aircraft worldwide, including the flagship ultra-long-range Global 7500. Fixed

hourly rates apply 325 days per year, and dynamic rates on 40 high-demand days.

Last year, Vista, with the acquisitions of Germany’s Air Hamburg and Jet Edge in the U.S., added a net 117 aircraft to its fleet, and it has access to more than 2,100 additional alliance partner jets. The group’s business in Europe was up 29 percent yearover-year in 2022 as well, across both the VistaJet and XO online brokerage brands, the Dubai, UAE-based owner/operator said.

Switzerland’s Jet Aviation, a global business aviation services provider, operates a charter fleet of more than 100 business aircraft and has “access to thousands more,” all available through its on-demand block charter and jet card offerings. Jet Aviation’s new Freedom Access plan combines the best of its block charter and jet card features, which include global guaranteed availability and round-trip discounts.

In preparation for the summer season, Jet Aviation, founded in 1967, has worked “closely with our [managed aircraft] customers and partners to expand our fleet and make even more choices available,” the company told AIN, and last fall it added a BBJ to its charter fleet.

UK-based Air Charter Service has grown from its humble origins in the chairman’s basement in 1990 into a global brokerage with more than 500 employees that arranges some 23,000 charter flights annually. Its Empyrean Jet Card provides worldwide access and offers three pricing plans: Market (based on dynamic pricing), Gold (based on capped dynamic pricing), and Platinum (block charter at a set perhour rate). Deposited funds are held in a third-party bank account, ensuring financial security.

Air Partner is preparing for an influx of U.S. customers.

Last summer, high demand and fuel costs drove big increases in hourly rates. Despite lower fuel prices this summer, Air Partner anticipates comparable charter costs.

“For a light jet to operate from Farnborough to Ibiza on the first weekend of the school holidays in July, you would be looking at a rate of between £15k and £20k [$18,666–$24,895],” the company said, adding, “That’s not necessarily what you would end up paying if you left it to the last minute.”

Many operators and industry professionals had been saying for several years that charter rates needed to rise to keep pace with escalating costs, and they welcome the recent increases as long overdue. “Last year was the first I’ve seen when the rates were what they should really be to make it worthwhile for the owner and for us as an operator,” said Galanopoulos. The challenge now, he said, is “trying to reason with owners drunk on income after being parched so long.”

Luxaviation’s advice to its aircraft owner clients: “You need to reduce rates a bit now, or your aircraft will not be flying as much,” he said. “Reassess the market before the busy period and maybe [then] put rates back up to where they were.”

As for trending vacation hot spots, “People had a summer of partying after Covid,”

Galanopoulos said of last season, “So they’re probably looking for more discreet, quiet destinations.”

While brokers and operators handle the bookings and operations, ground support companies will provide the boots on the ground essential to seamless private flight activity. Support services can be especially helpful for getting needed permits at high-traffic destinations, as well as when traveling to locations off the primary jetset circuit, where private flight activity is less common.

by Covid. As it reopened last summer, Western Europe received the brunt of demand, but travelers may head east again this year, said Gareth Danker, a director at Prague-based support provider Euro Jet Intercontinental.

“A lot of people got their fix dealing with the crowds and the expense of flying to the south of France and the Italian Riviera last summer,” said Danker, and suggested that this year, “More people may say, ‘Let’s go back to Eastern Europe, let’s go back to Croatia and Montenegro.’”

In Spain, General Aviation Service, founded in 1979, handles both types of destinations, operating FBOs in Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga, Palma de Mallorca, Valencia, Granada, Gerona, and Ibiza, with some 100 service professionals on staff.

Many charter customers discovered Eastern Europe in 2021 when it remained open to vaccinated travelers while much of the rest of the Continent was closed

Euro Jet provides ground handling, flight permits, landing permits, and parking services at some 170 airports in 30 countries, and over the past two years has opened and renovated crew lounges in Serbia’s Belgrade and Pristina in Kosovo and is now renovating its flagship lounge in Prague, Czech Republic. It has also added office space at Jasionka Airport in Rzeszow, Poland, the airbridge for traffic to and from Ukraine.

Regionally based providers stand ready to assist with Eastern Europe charter needs. ABS Jets operates nine midsize and heavy jets from its headquarters at Václav Havel Airport in Prague, and Bratislava Airport in Slovakia. Turkey’s long-established PAN Aviation, operating air ambulance and other specialty charter services since 2003, recently introduced Pan Jet charter service, focused on providing business, personal, and family travel from its base at Ankara Esenboga Airport.

Latvia’s Flight Consulting Group (FCG) offers comprehensive flight support, ground handling, and charter arrangements, and has support contracts with some 100 business jets.

In more than 20 years of business, it has served more than 135,000 flights at 2,600 airports in 140 countries, the company said. Its subsidiary FCG OPS also provides international trip support and dispatch and ground handling services at more than 40 airports in the region. For traffic heading to Latvia, FBO RIGA,

EuroJet provides handling services at more than 170 airports in 30 countries.



Last year was the first I’ve seen when the rates were what they should really be... 

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another FCG holding, operates a state-ofart business aviation center at Riga International Airport.

But aircraft and permit shortages aren’t the only downsides of high charter demand: “Fraud and cybercrime increase during peak seasons,” Avinode said, as criminals seek to exploit the increased pressure faced by charter sales and finance teams, and temporary staffs. Greater security measures and automation may be in order “if the charter company’s payment routines rely too much on manual processes,” the Swedish company said, noting that Avinode’s Paynode platform provides such transaction security.

Some technology companies also o ff er software and other services designed to answer digital processing needs for business aviation.

Switzerland’s MySky offers cost and control software developed for charter operations, and its new MySky Quote can help with the summer surge via autoquoting, allowing operators to reply more quickly, with more accurate quotes.

“Obviously, you cannot have two times more people on the payroll the whole year to cope with the demand of four months,” said MySky co-founder and global strategy director Chris Marich.

“Bringing automation and IT to this process allows our customers to delegate work to the machine that is taking a huge amount of time and not creating a lot of value.”

The software’s quoting engine is informed by dynamic pricing algorithms, and the product also serves as “a revenue management tool” that supports customized revenue strategies, Marich said, enabling customers to “maximize the profit they can turn on the aircraft.”

MySky has some 300 customers with a total of 700 aircraft using its software. The quoting engine is available only for Europe, but MySky has announced plans to bring it to the Middle East and Africa and, later, to the U.S.

CHRIS MARICH MYSKY CO-FOUNDER

in 2000, it has a presence in more than 30 countries and embraces “game-changing technology solutions designed specifically for business aviation” to enhance operations and service delivery, it said. Last December, Riyadh-based charter operator Alpha Star named UAS its preferred partner.

Mediterranean Aviation Services, headquartered in Dubai, offers trip planning, air charter, flight permitting, and ground handling worldwide—including extreme locations. Founded in 2005, it has a network of operational partners and exclusive contracts with major fuel and aviation service providers to ensure customers high quality and value.

AN Aviation Services specializes in ground handling and flight support in Egypt and UAE, with offices at every airport in both countries, and an extensive network of supervisory agents throughout the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, built since its launch in 1991.

The Middle East is another region that has seen growing summer charter traffic with Europe, with several regional companies providing support services. Flight support specialist UAS International Trip Support has served heads of state, VVIPs, Fortune Global 500 companies, and business jet operators worldwide. Established

Looking ahead, market watchers can take heart in broker reports that operators are now “keen to chase the business that is out there,” as Air Partner said. That’s a change from last summer, when some operators, swamped by demand and quote requests, simply declined to take on additional business.

UAS International Trip Support is seeing more tra c flying between the Middle East and Europe.

 Obviously, you cannot have two times more people on the payroll the whole year to cope with the demand of four months...

To maximize efficiency for all, Avinode advises brokers to “carefully think through their sourcing and quoting workflow, and make sure the requests they send are relevant and up to date so that operators can spend their time on the right things.”

Concerns about the environment and sustainability could also impact the charter market, according to observers. This, even as “a lot of companies are putting a scheme in place for offsetting emissions that are voluntarily over and above the legal requirements of the EU,” noted Galanopoulos, adding, “That’s a message we need to get across to the world.”

One more key message that various providers expressed is that everyone needing charter lift this summer should note: “book now,” “book early,” and “book in advance.”

“This will ensure you achieve the best possible rates but also allows you to secure the preferred aircraft of choice,” said Air Partner.

Added Marich at MySky, “Book with a reliable partner, because if you’re let down, it’s going to be difficult to find a [last-minute] solution. Experienced charter brokers and operators know how to make sure you have your confirmed slot and parking.”

But even getting a jump on booking can’t guarantee you’ll avoid the charter crunch in today’s Part 135 world.

“Oftentimes parking and slots and other arrangements aren’t available if you book early,” noted Danker at Euro Jet. “But the likelihood of getting something close to what the [customers] want, or seeing what their options are, will be as high as possible.”

The need to reserve in advance seemingly flies in the face of one of the cherished bedrocks of private charter, but such is the new normal in lift access: “People are used to leaving at the last minute because that’s their idea of having a private jet—pick up the phone and there’s one today or tomorrow,” said Galanopoulos. “Those days are gone. You have to plan ahead and book when you know you have a requirement.” z

Aysha Alhameli highlights innovation in accident prevention in the UAE

BY PETER SHAW-SMITH

As assistant director general of the Air Accident Investigation Sector (AAIS) at the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) for the past two years, Aysha Alhameli plays a key role in aviation safety in the Middle East region. She previously spent 11 years as the UAE’s permanent representative to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). From 2007 to 2009, she was head of the Air Transport Department at the GCAA. She began her career as a pilot with Abu Dhabi Aviation, acquiring a type rating on the DHC-8 Series 202. She holds commercial and air transport pilot licenses. Captain Alhameli discusses safety in the UAE, and plans for the AAIS with AIN

What are the main drivers of your decision to accept the role of assistant director general-Air Accident Investigation Sector?

When I was offered the role by the leadership, I saw it as a great opportunity. The main objective is to prevent similar accidents and incidents from happening in the future. For me, taking up this role was a natural evolution on a strategic level to position in the UAE as one of the leading investigation authorities in the world, and at the same time utilize my international connections and personal experience to move the sector forward.

When and why was the AAIS set up?

The AAIS was established by a decree in 2011 to have full authority separate from the GCAA. I report directly to the chairman, which means that my team and I have full independence when it comes to investigation—either investigating the GCAA or the industry.

Could you give an overview of operations at the AAIS in 2022?

We recently issued revolutionary, one-of-akind regulations on assistance to the families of victims. Moreover, the AAIS developed the first-of-its-kind aviation pathology protocol,

which incorporates the state-level policies and coordination procedures for postmortem autopsy investigations on the pilots for the purpose of identifying physical, physiological, and psychological factors that could have impaired their performance and contributed to the accident. Several stakeholders have participated in the development of this protocol including the Ministry of Health and Prevention, Ministry of Interior, and the local Emirates police departments, in addition to specialists from the government and private sectors.

The Accident Prevention and Safety Recommendations Unit [was] a newly established unit assigned to follow the implementation of safety recommendations, as well as monitoring global trends of significant concerns and, at the same time, conducting studies on issues that we see trending.

You’ve mentioned aerial sports and recreational flying activities, is that a special operational category that you watch?

Our focus on aerial sports and recreational aviation activities is unique worldwide. Normally, aircraft accident investigation authorities in other states do not investigate occurrences of such category

of operations. I have decided to investigate almost every aviation activity to see whether, within the strategic framework, the regulations are correctly set up or if there are trends taking place that could affect safety.

In 2016, the GCAA celebrated ranking No.1 in the world for compliance with ICAO’s aviation safety standards. How did you achieve that in a part of the world where you would not expect to see the highest scores?

Why not? We have the biggest aviation industry and we have a visionary leadership that is empowering us to do our work. We are always working towards the UAE vision. If an idea comes from any employee, let’s say, to use technology for mapping the accident site to protect human health and collect evidence, let’s do it. There’s no money? Okay, let’s coordinate with the national authorities. Let’s coordinate with educational institutions. I will get the support because everyone in this framework works towards one vision. Since I started in this industry, I’ve seen the way we move; it’s fast, agile, and supported by leadership. Nobody has limits. Every employee within this sector is empowered to achieve and come up with ideas outside of just following the norm.

Do you want to project kind of an international presence as the AAIS and as the GCAA?

Absolutely. The aviation industry is international. If I do something alone, it won’t matter because if I do it perfectly it doesn’t mean that I’m going to get the support from other states or make it happen in a way that makes it efficient.

For example, the virtual reality program that we are developing with one of the local authorities in the UAE, will bring about a revolution in the world of investigation. You can reconstruct the accident site, train investigators in a way that measures their competencies, while setting in a safe environment.

Last year we developed the demo, and this year we are developing more complicated accident scenarios. It follows almost the same dynamics. This means the world will be able to utilize this program.

Another program we have worked on as a demo came from one of the pilots who joined my team recently. She said when you want to be a pilot, it’s not difficult because you have the competency list that you need to follow for you to get a license. For the aviation industry in general, there is no manual to tell you if you have these competencies [for roles such as an accident investigator]. The UAE first developed investigation competency-based training that was adapted internationally, which means that now we have clear guidelines to develop the investigator’s competencies from the time he/she joins the sector and going through all levels of job authorities.

Last year, we tested the electronic format [e-learning], which is going to be converting that competency-based training into an electronic format, where in addition to our team, it will provide a good training platform for our stakeholders, especially the first responders, and investigators from other states. The e-learning is more efficient than the traditional classroom training, it also saves money, saves investigators’ time, and creates a database of what

investigators need to know to develop in their career and to do the job efficiently.

Have you interacted with any countries where you have been able to share best practice, such as in Africa, or elsewhere?

We started by receiving requests from states where we shared best practices, benchmarked with, or helped to download the data of the cockpit voice recorders [CVR] or flight data recorders [FDR] in our Abu Dhabi Flight Recorders Laboratory and analyze it. We also provide technical assistance to the states in the Middle East and North Africa [MENA] region through a mechanism agreed by the MENA States. Last year we had Saudi Arabia benchmark with us on family assistance, and we also supported Jordan on the readout and analysis of the CVR and FDR for their investigation into a serious incident involving a commercial aircraft.

On safety, we see no limits. Wherever we can provide assistance, we do so without even a second thought.

What are you planning in 2023?

In 2022, we have done a lot of testing. This year, we’ll be working on the actual project: the virtual reality reconstruction of the accident site will provide a kind of simulator to train accident investigators on techniques for following to increase their competencies in a safe environment. Once it’s done, this will be promoted internationally because, as I said, this will be the first of its kind in the world. We are also working on developing training material for the e-learning system, and the team is working with a company to do that currently.

In addition, the aviation pathology protocol will be endorsed and activated. We are planning to provide training to the forensic pathologists and other specialized doctors and examiners (such as radiologists, histopathologists, toxicologists, etc.) who work for our aviation pathology stakeholders to give them the qualifications required to carry out post-mortem autopsy and

examinations on the pilots for identifying causes relevant to their body or to their psychological state that may have impaired their performance during the accident flight.

There is another challenge in the aviation community, whereby pilots, engineers, traffic controllers, people that hold licenses, cannot pursue their post-graduate education for obtaining a master’s degree, for instance, in their area of specialty. Today, their progress in office work is hindered because of lack of educational qualifications. Now we are working with institutes in the UAE to develop a program where, based on the qualification of that professional, they do a bachelor’s and master’s, which is recognized by UAE higher education, in three years.

Which academic institution will accept that responsibility?

I cannot reveal which institution it is because we haven’t signed an agreement yet, but you will hear about it. This is also very important for the international community because the master’s program will be launched for both national and international target populations.

Do you see virtual reality technology assisting in accident investigation?

Nowadays, we have here a 3D scanner where you reconstruct the accident site, and all you need is basically the initial information and information derived from the FDR. Using the 3D simulation, the investigator can “enter” the accident site as if he is on site. The technology is there. Sometimes, in the accident site, you are rushed, especially in those places where time and money are of the essence, or it is crucial to resume operations as soon as possible. For us, reconstructing the site and using these technologies help the team know the reasons or avoid missing a relevant [piece of] evidence or information because of the time pressure or chaos at the accident site. z

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Profound change moves the maintenance market

BY KERRY LYNCH AND MATT THURBER

The landscape of aircraft maintenance has changed profoundly. Yes, the industry was busy before the pandemic and technicians were hard to find.

But now capacity is limited, the technician shortage has accelerated, and, supply chain issues have continued, creating immense challenges for companies that maintain business aircraft.

Despite all of that, industry executives agree: business is booming.

“Business is getting better and there are many jobs being sold well into 2024,” said Ken Thompson, managing director of regulatory affairs for the National Air Transportation Association (NATA).

Thompson, who is the liaison for the association’s aircraft maintenance and systems technology committee, noted that the majority of NATA’s MRO members report that they are at capacity with hangar space. “The really good news is that a lot of our MROs are busy,” he said.

The downside, for owners, is backlogs and long lead times.

Owners and operators are acutely aware of the capacity constraints. But they also see opportunity. A recent JetNet iQ survey revealed that operators believe MRO capacity is among the top three issues confronting the industry over the next five years. In addition, JetNet iQ’s survey

further revealed more than 19 percent of respondents cited MRO when asked if they had $500 million to invest in the industry where would they invest for best returns, said Rolland Vincent, the creator of JetNet iQ and president of Rolland Vincent Associates.

“There has been a shift in the MRO space that could have significant implications for aircraft owners and operators. While progress is being made in terms of streamlining MRO processes, aircraft owners should expect a more seamless experience,” said Tim Ferrell, senior v-p of JSSI Tech Services. “It will be interesting to see how this trend develops

Bombardier

over time as more research is conducted into the area of aircraft maintenance and repair operations. On the engine side, there continue to be some bottlenecks with respect to facilities facing backlogs, with sometimes as much as 20- to 30-day delays.”

LEAD TIMES GROWING

Long lead times are particularly critical for MROs servicing large business jets, as one NATA member reported having to schedule heavy C checks for those aircraft well into 2025, Thompson added.

“Business is good,” said Ryan Huss, v-p of sales at Duncan Aviation, which is headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska, and has satellite and full-service locations throughout the U.S. “Certain product lines are booked well into next year. We don’t forecast this to end unless something in the economy changes the trajectory of business aviation. There are a lot of airplanes flying now.”

In addition to long lead times for scheduled heavy maintenance, large MROs are busy with major retrofit projects—interiors, upgrades, and additions of new technology. Such projects are also filling hangars, Thompson noted.

This means when a client needs a quick turnaround with a smaller aircraft, the hangar space is no longer available. “When they [MROs] have these longterm type projects going on that they’ve already built into 2024 or 2025, and then somebody has a quick-fix item with their smaller aircraft that they used to be able to support, they have no hangar space to do it,” he said.

Some MROs face the prospect of turning this work away, Thompson said. Others, however, are expanding and building new hangars, if they have a footprint on the airport that enables them to do so.

“There are larger companies that have that bandwidth and the area to build. They’re already building larger hangars to support the changing fleet,” he said. But in general, these shops are “going to be really careful on how much more they accept.” If a shop books into 2025, aircraft owners are probably going somewhere else to get their basic maintenance accomplished.

was a future slot open, “by Thursday it’s full. But Stevens always tries to accommodate customers and shuffle things around.”

“This is a conversation we’ve been having to have with customers over the last couple of years due to being at or near 100 percent capacity and the labor shortage,” said Phil Stearns, Stevens Aerospace director of sales and marketing. Customers need to warn their MRO ahead of time about changes in the work scope so the provider can arrange for the space, parts, and personnel. “The technicians can only work so much overtime,” he said. “With capacity issues, this becomes a much more important discussion.”

“We’re extremely busy,” said Travis Fleshman, general manager of Stevens Aerospace and Defense’s Greenville, South Carolina, MRO facility. “We have a lot of work and are processing it well, but we’re dealing with the same struggles as the rest of the industry.” Maintenance slots are filling quickly, he added, and if on Tuesday there

“I have never seen such a busy time, it’s unbelievable,” said Ruedi Kurz, director maintenance and production organization at AMAC Aerospace, the Basel, Switzerland-based maintenance and completions company. “We’re full, all our hangars are full. And we are constantly hiring qualified people. The biggest problem is the hangar space, we have to always shift around the aircraft.” But with multiple work shifts and overtime, AMAC is keeping up with the massive flow of work while not compromising quality.

“We’re very fortunate and glad to have this situation,” he said.

At Pentastar Aviation in Waterford, Michigan, the past three years have been so busy that regular overtime has been necessary. “It continues to be strong,” said Doug Levangie, v-p of maintenance and advisory services. “But looking at the sales side, I think we’re going to experience a little bit of a downturn. People I’ve talked to, [things] are getting back to normal. Last year was unbelievable.”

“It will probably return to normal rather than the frantic pace,” added Gregory Schmidt, Pentastar’s president and CEO. “We keep a close tab on sales, that’s

 I have never seen such a busy time, it’s unbelievable. 

AMAC Aerospace former trainee Hugo Marmonier and technician Wilfried Fidegnon.

a barometer.” Interest rate hikes and inflation seem to be causing a bit of cooling off in business aviation activity.

“We are experiencing a slowdown on pre-buy [inspections],” added Levangie. “We’re still getting calls, but it seems like some sales are falling through, people are backing off. It happened a couple of times [in March].”

At West Star Aviation, “We’re still incredibly busy,” said CEO James Rankin. The maintenance provider is adding new hangars at its Chattanooga, Tennessee; Perryville, Missouri; East Alton, Illinois; and Grand Junction, Colorado facilities to accommodate growth. “We exceeded our budget for the first quarter,” which saw growth over last year’s first quarter and the final quarter of 2022, he said, “and we’re staying very busy. [Last year] was one of our largest growth years in terms of new members joining West Star.”

“Avex is focused on limiting how long we have an aircraft,” said Chad Cundiff, CEO of Camarillo, California-based TBM sales and maintenance specialist Avex and

also New State Aviation Holdings, which acquired Avex in 2021 and Blackhawk Aerospace in January. “It doesn’t do any good sitting in our hangar.”

One area that may be easing is avionics upgrades due to a lack of regulatory mandates, but NATA’s Thompson noted even that trend may be short-lived. With new airborne connectivity products coming online such as Gogo 5G and SmartSky’s recently completed air-to-ground network and low-earth-orbit satcom from SpaceX (Starlink) and OneWeb (Gogo and Satcom Direct), those projects are anticipated to pick back up—and, with it, other projects. “When people upgrade [connectivity] they might as well upgrade their panels and do everything else,” he said.

Another trend emerging is some shops have stopped taking work on certain aircraft types, particularly older, out-ofproduction models. That is a function of supply shortages and the time it takes to get unique or hard-to-find parts. Those parts are in such demand that operators are looking overseas to get their hands on

them and paying close to three times the price. These are components on aircraft that are out of service and being parted out. But those parts need to be approved and repair stations need to make sure that they are airworthy. That adds in time to the entire process.

“So, we’re hearing a lot of these [older] aircraft are not being taken on because they occupy hangar space,” Thompson said. “If you have an aircraft that has one of these parts, then you may have to wait longer times to get repair of it.” These owners are being warned of the backlogs and supply chain difficulties on parts.

SUPPLY CHAIN CHALLENGES

Legacy aircraft aside, the concerns surrounding the supply chain have lingered since Covid. “In a nutshell, the supply chain goes back to the factories,” Thompson said, as they fall behind on output. Some component manufacturers have struggled getting workers back or finding new ones for those that moved on during the pandemic to jobs that may provide more flexibility, he noted. “Now we’re starting to see a little bit of it coming back” but it remains a problem. “Covid provided a whole new lens” on work-life balance, he said.

MROs are “having to plan well out in the future, getting a hold of what they know the aircraft might need during certain scheduled inspections, what that supply chain will support and forward scheduling those inspections,” Thompson said.

JSSI Parts & Leasing has been forecasting the need for parts that will come up for inspection to try to circumvent longer lead times, said president Ben Hockenberg. “When this occurs, we are able to anticipate these issues before they happen and ensure those parts are pre-ordered,” he said. “Alternatively, one of JSSI’s key differentiators is our ability to offer high-quality alternatives to new parts. This proactive

Pentastar Aviation technicans (left to right) Tony Ryan, Greg Cole, and Eric Niedjelski at the MRO, FBO, and charter provider’s facility at Michigan’s Oakland County International Airport.

approach not only saves time but also money as companies can plan ahead and make sure they have all the necessary components on hand without having to worry about delays or additional costs due to waiting periods. It also allows us to be more efficient with our resources by ensuring that nothing goes unused or wasted during production processes.”

“There has been little to no improvement to the supply chain across the board, whether engine, airframe, avionics, all three categories are seeing a significant struggle,” said Tony Brancato, president of StandardAero’s business aviation division. Although he expects improvement by the end of the year, delays in getting parts from major manufacturers has resulted in knock-on delays that require moving input dates later “because we don’t have the space,” he said. “It’s not as simple as moving aircraft around and parking them outside. We might do that for a few hours or half a day, but owners prefer to have their aircraft inside, and we like to respect that as much as possible. We’re trying to prioritize, and it’s very challenging.”

Like most MRO facilities, ACI Jet is facing supply chain and workforce issues while the hangar is the fullest it’s ever been, according to David Jensen, ACI Jet senior v-p of aircraft maintenance. “The supply chain issues weren’t something we experienced on a regular basis pre-pandemic,” he said.

“It’s causing everybody to be more proactive, with scheduling, more downtime, and ordering parts ahead of time. We do have times where an airplane is sitting in the hangar and nothing can be done until a certain part shows up.

“There’s a snowball effect that happens when an airplane is delayed. We want to see return to service on time. When parts come in there are other airplanes there as well, [so we’re] juggling airplanes continually.”

While ACI Jet employs every resource to find parts, he added, “The reality is the manufacturer is often the only one making

it. At the end of the day, we can use all the resources but end up waiting.”

Some of these efforts include trying new vendors and working with engineering firms on alternatives, he explained, “anything that fits in the FAA guidance of what we can and can’t use.”

Duncan has the advantage of a massive parts inventory and has also developed an in-house parts manufacturing capability called Duncan Manufacturing Solutions (DMS).

“We’ve been trying to help with things we can produce,” he said. “Our DMS side is doing as much as possible. But things like windshields are tough to get. I wish we could build windshields. Tires have gotten better, there are still a few airframes affected, mostly legacy types. In-house, anything out of metal other than cast, but anything milled or formed we can do. We also have an autoclave and can do composites and plastics.

Ultimately, Jensen said, aviation will move away from on-demand, just-in-time manufacturing, which failed during the pandemic. “We will see something come out better out of this.” Additive manufacturing, for example, “will play a bigger role as we learn what caused these supply chain issues.”

At Duncan Aviation, v-p of sales Huss is well aware that manufacturers are “doing everything they can” to speed up the flow of parts. With its many facilities and the huge amount of work it accomplishes,

“We have had to shuffle quite a bit but have not had to decline a customer to come in. We’re always able to maneuver around enough to find a spot.”

For Pro Star Aviation, a busy maintenance facility in Manchester, New Hampshire, part of solving the supply chain problem means sticking with products that are available. “We’re going to install what we can get,” said Jeff Shaw, director of sales and marketing.

Demand for airborne connectivity equipment is high, and Pro Star has been successful

Duncan Aviation

 We have had to shu e quite a bit but have not had to decline a customer to come in. 

in obtaining Gogo products so that is what it is installing. “There’s no sense in me trying to sell Honeywell satcom or Collins radar if we can’t get it,” he said. “Right now we can’t get either. All the right ingredients for creating demand are there, but supply is not.

“We used to be a boutique avionics shop and would work on any airplane,” Shaw said. But as integrated avionics grew more complex and avionics technicians had to become more specialized to work on each type of product, Pro Star stopped offering services to all comers. “We focused on airplanes we maintain,” he said. “Rather than install avionics on a bunch of aircraft, we focus on aircraft we have good supply chain on. Meantime we grin and bear it.”

Avex deals with supply chain issues by working with aircraft operators well in advance of the scheduled work. “You’re coming in September,” said CEO Cundiff, “so let’s get prescheduled and get ahead of that. We’ve seen some of that start to recover and some places where it still is a struggle to get new equipment to do upgrades or overhauls.”

“Tires are an up and down issue,” said Stevens Aerospace general manager

Fleshman. “Hawker windshields are nearly impossible.” Customers are being told they’ll have to wait until the third or fourth quarter for a windshield. This is also affects the King Air market, he said. “[Supply chain] requires more planning now, we have to have a pulse on the availability of parts and equipment, what we can get and can’t. It changes really fast. What we’ve done more in the last few years is educate the customer base on the fluidity of supplies.

“Our procurement folks are fantastic,” he enthused, “the network they have, the way

West Star Aviation is adding hangars at all of its main facilities in the U.S. so it can accommodate more work on customer aircraft and keep up with last year’s record growth.

they have to find parts, they’re really good.”

To keep its defense customers flying, Stevens Aerospace has started making and obtaining FAA parts manufacturer approval for some parts on the legacy King Airs operated by the military. “We’re trying to serve a base [of customers] that’s been neglected,” he said.

At AMAC Aerospace, supply of Boeing and Airbus parts for its VIP customers hasn’t been an issue, because the business/VIP versions of airliners use the same parts. “Corporate aviation is a small fraction of that volume,” said director of maintenance Kurz. “Gulfstream and Bombardier, they struggle. There are shortages of windows and tires. It starts with Covid, everybody did lean production, and now we have these busy times. We can see some suppliers cannot follow up, whether it’s an OEM [original equipment manufacturer] or subcontractors. Through our good network we’ve been able to establish over the last 15 years, so far we’ve overcome this situation. It’s not easy, sometimes it doesn’t go as planned, but so far we did not have to cancel a delivery or delay a big project.”

 Rather than install avionics on a bunch of aircraft, we focus on aircraft we have good supply chain on. Meantime we grin and bear it.

“Supply chain is definitely an issue,” said Pentastar Aviation CEO Schmidt. “We have had delays. There are so many issues, who would ever think you couldn’t find a tire?”

One move that vendors have put in place to prevent hoarding is to require a photo of the old windshield or the wear on brakes before allowing the MRO to order new parts. Pentastar has also seen a shortage of carbon material for carbon brakes.

“We’ve had some customers get angry when we can’t deliver on time,” Schmidt said. “They’re getting tired of [everyone] blaming the pandemic. We reach out to customers proactively.” He urges customers to engage early in the maintenance process. “Don’t wait to the last minute because we won’t be able to [handle the work]. Transparent communications [are essential]. We’re doing the best we can.”

“The first thing is to try to build good partnerships with our suppliers,” said West Star Aviation CEO Rankin. “We try to help them out, and they work hard to help us. A lot of that is prioritizing and understanding when we need the parts. We don’t want to sit on a part for six months if another customer needs it. Vendors have done a good job, they’re in a tough spot, and a lot of the time it’s sub-vendors. We have tried to do advance purchases and stocked up on things we know we use often. We try to have them on hand so we’re not slowing down the project.”

Most members of the Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA) are the shops that install avionics, and the association regularly receives feedback from members. “The number of shops I’ve talked to said [supply chain] is improving,” said AEA president and CEO Mike Adamson. “They’re still experiencing some pains with certain products, but they’re not complaining about it like a year ago. There is optimism, and they’re not saying the sky is falling. They’ve learned to adjust.”

MANAGING THE WORKFORCE

Compounding all of the challenges facing maintenance providers are workforce

issues. Some MROs have been creative, creating apprenticeships and other educational programs to draw new talent into the field. For example, ACI Jet worked with the local community to build a new A&P school at Cuesta College in central California. The first cohort of 25 started school in January and more than 100 students have signed up for slots.

“We’re putting in a lot of effort to make sure this is a high-end school, focusing on instruction and the students, not cranking through as many as possible,” said ACI Jet’s Jensen. “Bill [Borgsmiller, ACI’s founder] and I recognized 10 years ago our biggest challenge is labor. We wanted to do our part to contribute, and we produce technicians not only for ACI but for local companies, and we’re making a decent impact on the state of California. This has been received well by the community, and interest is high.”

Filling the pipeline with technicians is one problem, but there is also the retention issue, figuring out how to encourage people to make a career of aviation maintenance. “Companies that do all this training must have hard-fast contracts in place to keep them for a few years,” said NATA’s Thompson. “If they don’t have that program in place, they’re losing these mechanics to people who pay more.”

But there are also steps companies can take to promote careers. ACI Jet’s executive team spends a lot of time on this. “It’s always been the culture here,” said Jensen. “This is more important for the new generation coming into aviation. They’re looking for something special, they want to contribute, and we try to make that happen.”

Visitors to ACI Jet’s San Luis Obispo, California, facility can see an example of the company’s efforts, a wall decorated with

WE’RE FLYING HIGHER WITH THE SUPPORT OF OUR SPONSORS!

“mission patches,” which, he said, “commemorate momentous accomplishments.”

For big projects, like the first installation of a major upgrade, ACI Jet director of marketing and communications John Tucker designs a patch that captures the challenges of the job, and each team member receives a patch. “Everybody feels good about it,” Jensen said.

Beyond such recognition, ACI Jet leaders realize that career progression is different for each individual. Newly hired technicians are invited to help develop their career paths, which includes a two-year program to help launch their next step, whether it’s becoming a manager, being director of maintenance on a jet, or moving into a different department. “It’s inspiring for the employee,” he said, “they’re more motivated, and it feels like a partnership, they’re on a path. There is loyalty gained out of that. It’s been received well and been successful, [it shows] we’re listening to them.”

Maintenance providers have also reached out to other industries for help where a broader knowledge may be sufficient or an A&P may not be necessary, such as in paint or upholstery. In addition, the military is a source of prospects, NATA’s Thompson said.

“We recruit across the nation,” said Duncan Aviation’s Huss. “It’s important to

have all aspects feeding in, whether they’re homegrown, from outside [companies], tech school graduates, or military. We need all those resources.” That said, when Duncan Aviation is able to train a mechanic from the ground up, “we do instill the company culture quickly,” he said.

Last year, Duncan Aviation spent more than $8 million on training. And this includes leadership training, which starts fairly early in a new hire’s career. “It really helps us develop leaders,” Huss said.

With its long experience working on military contracts, Stevens Aerospace has a unique advantage in helping military personnel transition to civilian careers. One way it approaches this is to recruit from nearby military bases. The company also recently was approved in the Department of Defense’s SkillBridge program, which helps companies hire experienced military personnel and launch their post-military careers.

“They bring a lot of energy and they’re a sponge,” said Stevens Aerospace’s Fleshman.

Stevens also sponsors youth in the Aviation in Action program, putting aviation technician community college students to work part-time and then hiring them when they finish their courses

AMAC Aerospace works with European aviation schools to help students gain practical experience, which ultimately benefits the company. “A lot of these young people, after they finish school, they knock on our door,” said AMAC’s Kurz.

AMAC also hires people without the EASA Part 66 B1 and B2 technician licenses, “and we train them and bring them to the license standard,” he said. “We have people with us who made their way from nonexperienced all the way to supervisor. We can offer a career path if they’re interested and have the right qualifications. It makes it good for us, these are people who have the AMAC spirit in their blood.”

“We have a robust leadership training program,” said West Star’s Rankin. “We want them to understand if they’re coming in as an apprentice, we want them to be able to see the career path they can help form.

“We want them to stay with us for the remainder of their career, and we want these to be valuable years for them,” he said. “We have done a lot with pay and benefits the last few years and a lot to support people during the pandemic, it solidified that we do care. The pandemic was a difficult time, but we came through stronger as a company.” z

ACI Jet

FUTURE OF THE AEROSPACE

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A higher level of upset training with APS

BY STUART “KIPP” LAU, PHOTOGRAPHY BY IAN WHELAN

For decades, loss of control inflight (LOC-I) events have killed more people than any other type of aircraft accident. There are several sobering facts about LOC-I; the threat persists on any flight, at any time, and pilots can have only a few seconds to initiate the proper flight control inputs to safely recover from an aircraft upset.

Many inflight upset events—including those with a perfectly good aircraft—when mismanaged, can quickly escalate into a LOC-I event where the pilot is unable to recover from an unintended extreme deviation from the intended flightpath due to either a lack of skill, altitude, or time, leading to a serious incident or fatal crash. Reliable LOC-I intervention requires early

recognition and upset prevention, combined with specialized training to address skill deficiencies for recovery.

Recent LOC-I events suggest that current upset prevention and recovery training (UPRT) programs—those limited to use of flight simulation training devices (FSTDs)—may be missing the mark.

According to Aviation Performance Solutions (APS) CEO Paul “BJ” Ransbury, “Advanced flight simulators, while effective at addressing some of the needed UPRT experience, knowledge areas, and competencies, cannot robustly replicate the psychophysiological effects such as startle factor to a sufficient level of fidelity to reliably prepare pilots for the

severity of potential impairment of the pilot’s and crews’ faculties in a real-world upset event.”

UPRT programs were first mandated for airline pilots in the U.S. in March 2019. These programs use an FSTD certified for extended envelope training (EET). UPRT sessions in a simulator have some major limitations and if not used properly may introduce negative training.

FAA Advisory Circular 120-111 Upset Prevention and Recovery Training provides guidance to operators establishing UPRT programs and provides some cautions for instructors using FSTDs as a training device. The document notes, instructors must understand that FSTDs are limited

to the parameters that have been programmed and evaluated. Operating outside of these parameters may result in the FSTD responding differently than the airplane to a pilot’s control inputs.

Likewise, motion-cueing information may not always accurately simulate the associated forces and rates that could be felt in the airplane. As such, due to the limitations of an FSTD, there is no way to provide effective g-awareness training to the student and it is not possible to demonstrate flight in an all-attitude environment (both physiologically and aerodynamically).

The lack of g-awareness training and accurate motion cueing combined with physiological conditions representative of a real-world upset while being exposed to all-attitude flight profiles have been identified as some of the greatest shortcomings of current “simulator-only” UPRT programs. These areas can only be effectively and safely accomplished “on-aircraft” in aircraft that are capable of all-attitude maneuvering while overseen by an instructor with specialized training in the delivery of UPRT.

PEAK UPRT EFFECTIVENESS

APS—the Mesa, Arizona-based UPRT specialist—tailors its training to match a pilot or company’s operational profile, aiming to achieve what it calls “peak UPRT effectiveness” to lower or mitigate the risk of a LOC-I incident or accident. To help pilots stay safe throughout their careers, APS recommends initial and recurrent UPRT training.

The core of the APS UPRT program is the “Every Pilot in Control Solution Standard” or EPIC-S2, based on lessons learned during the past 27 years of training thousands of pilots. This includes training by APS-certified UPRT instructors at air carriers, flight schools, and training centers, including APS facilities. EPIC-S2 includes six critical factors: instructor qualifications; an integrated program (academic, on-aircraft, and simulation); training

APS operates the largest fleet of unlimited-category aerobatic Extra 300Ls at its headquarters in Mesa, Arizona, with eight of the type available for upset prevention and recovery training.

Clarke “Otter” McNeace, APS executive v-p of compliance and standards, highlights elements of aerodynamics related to upset prevention and recovery training during a pre-flight training class.

Before taking o for his first round of upset training, AIN writer and airline pilot Stuart “Kipp” Lau gets a full safety briefing from APS flight operations support specialist McKenna Breinholt.

program duration for the required intensity; compliance with best practices; and appropriate use of training platforms and other elements such as initial and recurrent training. In addition, APS’s UPRT solutions incorporate safety management system (SMS) principles.

A typical three-to-four-day program would include academics (for awareness and primary concepts) and on-aircraft and simulator training. The on-aircraft training helps engage human factors concepts (startle, surprise, and fear), immersion in the all-attitude environment, application of the recovery strategy, g-awareness, and repetition to proficiency. Simulator training reinforces crew and single-pilot resource management principles, provides a transfer of skills, knowledge, and recovery strategies on an aircraft more representative of what the pilot flies regularly, and enables practice of upsets at low-altitude and in poor weather.

The training reflects an analysis of a pilot’s operational profile. As an example, the typical business aviation or airline pilot operates a jet-powered aircraft, with two pilots, often at night in IMC, and above FL250. This pilot’s recommended training plan would include academics, on-aircraft training (both piston and jet), instrument UPRT (IFR), simulator (multi-crew jet), and a high-altitude jet flight. Ideally this would culminate with a VR session in the operator’s model of airplane.

After training the student to master APS’s all-attitude upset recovery strategy to assure resilience and proficiency, APS would offer a long-term UPRT recurrent training plan. This is designed to help the pilot maintain proficiency, competency, and confidence throughout their flying career and would include access to online learning to reinforce academic knowledge between practical training sessions that typically take place every two to three years.

APS’s new headquarters and training facility is located at the Phoenix-Mesa

Gateway Airport, and it houses classrooms, briefing rooms, observation decks, two simulator bays and simulators, and maintenance and storage facilities for its 10 training aircraft.

PURPOSE-BUILT PLATFORMS

According to APS, a critical factor in safe and e ff ective UPRT programs is purposebuilt training platforms. On-aircraft training in an all-attitude, aerobatic-capable aircraft is essential for pilots to develop manual handling skills and overcome the critical human factors and physiological effects that often derail successful upset prevention and recovery during a reallife event.

At APS, pilots train within the acceptable load limits of the aircraft that they normally operate. Most transport category aircraft are certified to a load limit of +2.5 to -1.0 g. APS’s philosophy is to train in aircraft that have a large safety margin above those limits. APS operates both piston and jet aircraft capable of aerobatics in its integrated UPRT program, and they are equipped with a high-definition camera with an audio system to be used as a debrief tool.

The Extra 300L is an unlimited aerobatic category aircraft certified to +/- 8 g with two occupants (+/-10 g with one occupant) and no prohibited maneuvers, which makes it a great UPRT training platform. Performance

Kipp Lau (left) and Otter McNeace practicing upset scenarios in the Alsim ALX simulator.

To further enhance its upset training, APS adds virtual reality to the simulation experience.

is not a problem with the Extra 300L. It is powered by a 300-hp Lycoming AEIO540 piston engine and has a snappy roll rate of 400 degrees/second. APS is the largest operator of the Extra 300L with eight, all based in Mesa.

The SIAI-Marchetti S.211 jet trainer was designed for all-attitude flight instruction of military pilots, and the jet has strong aerodynamic and structural safety margins (+6 to -3 g). It is a subsonic trainer with a moderately swept mid-wing design and has a tandem-configured cockpit. APS offers advanced jet training—including high-altitude UPRT—in two S.211s that are based in Mesa. Each aircraft has Garmin avionics similar to the presentation in modern business aviation transports. Powered by a single Pratt & Whitney Canada JT15D-4C turbofan engine, the aircraft is capable of speeds up to Mach .80 and has a low stall speed of around 80 knots. In addition to being a fantastic trainer, the aircraft is pressurized and air-conditioned.

In addition to the training aircraft, APS has two simulators at its Mesa headquarters. The Alsim ALX convertible simulator can be configured to represent multiple aircraft classes from light to medium multi-engine turboprops to business jets

to transport category airliners. APS offers class-specific UPRT with this device. The Alsim device is used within its validation envelope with a modern glass cockpit and transport category control responses. In addition, APS recently introduced virtual reality (VR) technology to provide an additional layer of training for its students. This immersive approach to training allows pilots to finish o ff their UPRT experience in their own make and model of aircraft, virtually.

APS UPRT IN ACTION

APS offers an integrated UPRT program. A typical business aviation or airline pilot would ideally complete an initial training curriculum that includes academics, onaircraft, simulator, and VR training sessions. Most pilots spend three days at APS for initial UPRT with extended programs out to four days.

For the professional pilot, the on-aircraft portion would include four flights—often

split into three flights in the Extra 300L and one flight in the S.211 or two flights in the Extra and two flights in the jet. During the later flights, considerable time would be spent flying in simulated instrument conditions.

Additionally, for pilots who fly above FL250, it is highly recommended to add the high-altitude UPRT course. The S.211 is helpful to explore upsets in a high-performance aircraft with swept-wing aerodynamic characteristics; the high-altitude course provides a high-fidelity comparison between performance at lower altitudes (below 15,000 feet) to higher altitudes (above FL300).

APS’s instructors each have significant amounts of all-attitude flight experience including flight time in unlimited aerobatic aircraft and/or military jet fighter and training aircraft. Each will provide sage advice on why UPRT is important and reminders that the objective is early recognition, upset prevention, and avoidance.

Each day the course begins with a facilitated academic discussion on aerodynamics, maneuvers, accident case studies, aircraft-specific discussions, and a review of the upcoming mission profiles. Throughout the academic phase, students

A safety briefing on the helmet and oxygen mask in preparation for high-altitude upset training in the SIAI-Marchetti S.211 (right).

 On-aircraft training in an all-attitude, aerobatic-capable aircraft is essential for pilots to develop manual handling skills and overcome the critical human factors... 

will develop a newfound appreciation and understanding of two diagrams: the coefficients of lift and drag versus angle of attack (AOA) and the velocity versus load factor (g) or VG diagrams.

Lessons are filled with emphasis items such as awareness and prevention strategies to recognize operational and environmental conditions that increase the likelihood of an upset event and further discussions on aeronautical decision-making or the effects of automation and undesired outcomes.

As an example, during a recent visit by this writer, APS executive v-p of compliance and standards Clarke “Otter” McNeace reminded class members that “the objective is to become upset-, stall-, and spin-avoidance experts.” As one example, he surveyed the class by asking, “What two aerodynamic factors are needed for a spin to develop?” We all stumbled a bit but arrived at the answer: “continuous stall and continuous yaw inputs.”

Discussions on the basics of aerodynamics are far removed from most professional pilots’ day-to-day lives, but they nevertheless are relevant and important. Remember that there are four characteristics of an aerodynamic stall. A stall is characterized by any, or combination of: buffeting (which could be heavy), lack of pitch authority, lack of roll control, or inability to arrest the descent rate; these are usually accompanied by a continuous stall warning. Each student will be reminded of these characteristics during the in-flight training sessions where pilots experience a full aerodynamic stall (in both the Extra and the S.211).

G-AWARENESS TRAINING

Beyond stall recognition and recovery, one of the most important aspects and greatest takeaways of on-aircraft training is g-awareness, upset motion cuing

immersion, overcoming spatial disorientation, and exposure to flight in an all-attitude realm. The ability to understand the forces and proprioceptive cues required to reliably “load and unload” the aircraft in the real world, as discussed, cannot be fully replicated in a simulator.

The first, most critical, step in any upset recovery procedure—including APS’s all-attitude upset recovery strategy after recognizing and confirming the situation—is to manage the aircraft’s AOA. This is the “push” part of the recovery where the pilot reduces the AOA of the wing and in doing so reduces the load factor on the aircraft. Without on-aircraft G awareness training, pilots are not “calibrated” to know how much to push on the control yoke or stick to assure transferability to any fixed-wing airplane.

HIGH-ALTITUDE UPRT

At higher altitudes (above FL250) air density affects available lift and thrust. This complicates a LOC-I event due to vastly different aerodynamic and aircraft performance characteristics when compared to flight at lower altitudes.

The high-altitude UPRT course at APS begins with a thorough academic discussion on high-altitude concepts such as a decrease in maneuvering margins, the lack of available thrust, and reduced aerodynamic damping. The key takeaway from this discussion is that a pilot must be patient, smooth, and deliberate with the application of the upset recover y strategy.

These discussions are a great reminder that flight at higher altitudes is in a very dynamic environment. As an example, as altitude increases the margin between the low-speed buffet (stall) and high-speed buffet (Mach) decreases. In older jet aircraft, this was described as the “coffin corner” where only a few knots of airspeed separated the stall and Mach buffet. This makes maneuvering much more challenging.

At APS, the target to “unload” the aircraft is to consistently achieve a “light in the seat” feeling of less than 1 G (0.25 to 0.5 G is the target in most situations). Only through repetition and practice in the on-aircraft phase of training can a pilot consistently achieve this outcome.

In reviewing recent accident reports, those where the aircraft crashes or passengers are injured or killed often have recorded cyclic g (vertical positive and negative g) values that are two to three times the structural limits of the typical transport category aircraft. At these values unrestrained occupants (and objects) are forcefully tossed around the cabin causing severe injuries or death.

Additionally, a decrease in air density dramatically reduces the amount of available thrust in a turbine engine. The fan section of a high-bypass turbofan engine produces a large percentage of its total thrust, thus it is affected more by the decrease in air density when compared to a turbojet engine.

Due to this reduction in available thrust (thrust-limited), it takes longer for an aircraft to accelerate, especially at slower speeds below L/D max speed, where speed control is inherently unstable, typically generating a continued slow down at constant thrust as the angle of attack increases. In a thrust-limited situation in this slow flight condition, the aircraft may not be able to accelerate in level flight and a descent may be necessary to be able to accelerate.

 The ability to understand the forces and proprioceptive cues required to reliably ‘load and unload’ the aircraft in the real world, as discussed, cannot be fully replicated in a simulator. 

Adding to the challenges of an upset recovery at a higher altitude is a lack of stability combined with an increased rate of aircraft movement to control inputs, which leads to the potential to overcontrol the aircraft. The lack of stability is a result of a decrease in air density while the increase in controllability is a result of an increase in dynamic pressure or airspeed (reduced aerodynamic damping).

In addition to the academics, prior to flight in any APS aircraft, there are several required safety briefings that cover emergency procedures on the ground and in flight, egress, and the use of a parachute. For the high-altitude flight, the student is also fitted with an oxygen mask because the cabin altitude of the S.211 increases above 8,000 feet when the jet climbs over FL180.

The on-aircraft portion of the highaltitude course is comprised of three different phases at low, medium, and high altitudes. This provides an opportunity to compare the effects of each maneuver at

various altitudes. Since the medium and high-altitude phases are flown above FL180, APS must coordinate to get a clearance to maneuver in a nearby military operations area.

The objective of the APS high-altitude UPRT course is to enhance pilot awareness and increase upset prevention knowledge and skills. Throughout the flight phase of the programs, pilots get to practically apply high-altitude concepts and refine manual flying skills. Maneuvering above FL300 requires consistent and smooth control inputs.

Throughout the high-altitude mission profile, pilots experience thrust-limited conditions, stalls, wake turbulence encounters and upsets (nose high, nose low), and various aerobatic maneuvers to build confidence. In each case, the flight reinforces the academic lessons and requires patience and discipline to safely recover from each upset.

For the business aviation or airline pilot, the opportunity to fly a jet, at altitude (my flight was at FL320), throughout the

aircraft’s entire flight envelope, in an all-attitude environment is an outstanding experience and educational opportunity that undoubtedly will improve manual handling skills and prepare a pilot to better manage an unintended aircraft upset.

Often overlooked, yet critical as specified by ICAO, IATA, and the FAA, in training programs are the instructors. APS has an impressive cadre of instructors that have one mission—to effectively teach UPRT to pilots. Beyond instructors, APS has the training platforms, facilities, and programs to provide pilots with a higher level of UPRT. LOC-I accidents are almost always fatal—in SMS terms the severity level of these events is very high—and only a multi-faceted approach to UPRT can effectively lower this risk.

The goal of any UPRT program is to prevent the occurrence of an in-flight upset but should an APS graduate encounter an unexpected extreme departure from the intended flight path, they should be wellequipped to handle the situation. z

The view of the Arizona desert while upside-down in the S.211 can be intimidating, but APS trainees learn exactly how to recover.

FAA regrouping on remote towers

BY DAVID HUGHES

Remote tower technology is reaching maturity and going operational in Europe, Asia, and Canada. But in the U.S., one of two such projects is being shut down by the FAA and the other has received a stop-work order.

European suppliers and one in Canada have dozens of remote and digital tower projects under development or in operation at airports of various sizes in Europe and Asia. Even projects at large airports are moving ahead, including experimentation at London Heathrow in shadow mode with nearly 475,000 movements per year.

Nav Canada has a couple of operational systems and has a tender out for bids to construct multiple remote tower (RT)

centers to serve airports in various regions.

At the same time, though, the FAA is shutting down one of its two RT projects— at Leesburg Executive Airport (KJYO)— after the vendor Saab pulled out.

And, in November 2022, the FAA placed a stop-work order on the other one, at Colorado Northern Regional Airport (KFNL), which is supplied by Searidge Technologies of Ottawa, Canada.

The FAA gave Searidge six months to make modifications, including improving visual acuity. In early March, Searidge demonstrated a few 4K cameras at KFNL showing improved performance over existing 1080 HD cameras.

Bill Payne, project manager of the Colorado Department of Transportation’s Remote Tower Project, is hopeful that Searidge can produce the needed system design approval documents soon so the FAA will continue to evaluate the system at KFNL in Fort Collins, Colorado. The state has invested $8.8 million in the project.

The FAA now wants all RTs to be evaluated at a testbed at its Tech Center in Atlantic City, New Jersey, before they are approved. This comes after eight years of FAA testing of the system at KJYO before Saab pulled out, not seeing a path to certification. The FAA said in an email: “The RT at KJYO will not be operational because

A developmental digital room in Heathrow’s traditional tower works in shadow mode and is winning the hearts and minds of controllers.

the company [Saab] terminated its request for approval. Continued use of this unapproved system poses an unacceptable level of risk.”

Said Payne: “Going to the Tech Center may have some real benefits but it may take two or three years to get system design approval, then another two years to deploy it to an airport and get it certified.” The Colorado DOT sees no reason to take the Searidge system to Atlantic City after years of testing at KFNL. Payne is optimistic that KFNL certification could take advantage of the remote tower facility already in place so that similar systems can be installed at other airports in the state.

“With the failure to certify the KJYO system, a success at KFNL will not only be a win for the state of Colorado and the airport but also the FAA, which is under considerable pressure from Congress to deliver on the mandate to develop a remote tower pilot program as contained in the 2018 FAA Reauthorization Act,” Payne said.

In a March 10 letter to Leesburg mayor Kelly Burk, an FAA NextGen official wrote, “Saab has stated it wishes to focus its efforts on pursuing system design approval for its future RT product offering.” The system at Leesburg is a first-generation Saab system and second-generation ones are now deployed and operating around the world.

LFV, the air navigation service provider (ANSP) of Sweden, and Saab pioneered the operational use of the first RT in the world eight years ago at Sundsvall, controlling traffic at Örnsköldsvik Airport about 75 miles away. Four airports are controlled from Sundsvall now.

Searidge is wholly owned by UK ANSP NATS Services but remains a separate business. NATS and Searidge have major projects at Heathrow, Hong Kong International Airport, Singapore Changi, and Hamad International Airport in Doha. NATS is not directly involved in the KFNL project.

Andy Taylor, chief solutions o ffi cer for NATS, said the digital system at Hong Kong using Searidge systems displays images from 200 cameras to three units on the airfield: the digital tower, the digital apron tower, and the digital operations center. “It is the biggest digital tower in the world,” he said. It is moving into the certification stage.

TESTING NEW SYSTEMS

Meanwhile, Raytheon has teamed up with Frequentis of Austria to offer RT systems in the U.S. and will begin testing at Atlantic City rather than deploy their system first at a client airport. The FAA said by email that it is working with the Raytheon/Frequentis team, which is the first to request testing and evaluation at the FAA Technical Center.

The Frequentis system proposed by Raytheon will use 360-degree, high-resolution cameras to produce images stitched together to create a panoramic display of airport runways and taxiways similar to the Searidge system at KFNL. Frequentis DFS Aerosense says dozens of airports in the U.S. are interested in getting a digital tower instead of a concrete one because the cost/benefit is significant.

The FAA’s preliminary analysis, cited in a presentation to its research, engineering, and development advisory committee on March 15, shows RTs are “likely a costeffective alternative to brick-and-mortar for most airports, but it is site-specific.”

But the FAA still seems to favor traditional towers. In April, it announced it will replace 31 traditional towers at municipal or smaller airports using standardized buildings 60 to 119 feet tall with

The RTC in Leipzig, Germany, manages about 10,000 movements a year each at Erfurt-Weimar and Saarbrucken airports. Dresden, with 27,500 movements, will be added at the end of 2024.

environmentally friendly sustainable materials and energy systems. The agency is setting aside $500 million from the infrastructure bill to support site evaluation, preparation, and early construction activities.

The total count of remote tower projects worldwide shows the FAA’s lagging position in the use of this technology. Think ATM and Airports Consultancy in the UK has a web page cataloging all of the RT projects underway. It lists 20 that are operational and more than twice that many in various stages of study and development. Ten are about the size of KJYO and KFNL in terms of the number of movements. More than 10 projects are at international hubs with 150,000 to 300,000-plus movements per year.

MAGIC IN THE SOFTWARE

The RT industry segment loosely uses terms such as RT, digital towers, and hybrid towers depending on the applications but regardless of where the equipment is deployed, it relies on commercial off-the-shelf cameras, servers, and displays driven by proprietary software.

“The magic is done in the software,” said Taylor. “In addition, cameras mounted on masts at airports can ‘see’ better than

humans during dusk as the camera manages the low-light levels more effectively than human eyes and where arrays are placed around an airport to provide additional views of more distant or obscured areas [such as behind terminal buildings, hotels, and hangars].” And infrared cameras can be added. Controllers are not limited by lines of sight from a single physical location and as visibility reduces, the views are better than from a single physical tower.

Payne doesn’t think that simply trying to reproduce the out-of-the-window view from a legacy air traffic control tower and not taking advantage of the technology makes sense. Putting cameras at the end of runways that can zoom in on arriving aircraft and provide a better view of the hold short line is superior to the out-of-the-window view, even using binoculars, he said. Some U.S. airports want to add that capability to traditional towers. “It’s more efficient for a controller to view an aircraft on a display located at the controller’s console or as a picture-in-a-picture on a video wall,” Payne added. “And it also favors the use of surveillance radar to mitigate shortcomings in electro-optical cameras for situational awareness at airports with 50,000 movements.”

There are RTs that are rooms with displays fed by cameras on masts at airports, and these can be in a building on or near the airport or in some cases at a tower hundreds of miles away—as is the case with a center operated by ANSP DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung in Leipzig, Germany. The equipment is supplied by Frequentis DFS Aerosense, a joint venture between the German ANSP and remote tower equipment supplier Frequentis of Austria.

DIRECTING MULTIPLE AIRPORTS

The Leipzig center has DFS controllers now directing traffic at two airports with about 10,000 movements per year each: Erfurt-Weimar is 60 miles away and Saarbrucken is 280 miles from Leipzig. The 21 controllers at Leipzig are cross-trained now to work at either airport. Remote services for Dresden Airport with 27,500 flight movements in 2019 will be added at the end of 2024 as the controller workforce reaches 30.

Other remote centers aim to control dozens of airports from one location. In addition to the RT center controlling four airports from Sundsvall, Sweden’s LFV ANSP and Saab have one in Stockholm designed for 25 airports, several of which are already connected.

The remote Kongsberg camera at Rost Airport in Norway can “see” better than human eyes at dusk and in low visibility, and multiple cameras can eliminate line-of-sight issues.

Remote towers in Germany controlled by 21 controllers at the RTC-Centre in Leipzig.

Norway’s Avinor ANSP has an RT center as well as a contingency center set up in Bodo serving 11 airports now with 1,200 to 7,000 movements per year, including air ambulances. This consolidation of towers and services at airports in communities as much as 620 miles away involves aerodrome flight information service (AFIS) specialists, not controllers. AFIS specialists provide information including weather and traffic on the runway but don’t tell a pilot what to do.

Avinor has decommissioned 11 towers and will decommission four more as these airport services are moved to Bodo and then possibly 10 more airports after that. In the future, one AFIS specialist could handle two or more airports simultaneously, and the affected unions are on board with this. Kongsberg, a Norwegian aerospace and defense company, provides the remote tower systems.

NATS and Searidge have digital tower equipment installed for developmental use at Heathrow’s traditional tower where controllers can move from their perch high above the runway controlling traffic to the ground floor to see the camera equipment that is tracking movements in shadow mode. With 4K camera systems installed,

Taylor said, new controllers say “wow!” the minute they first walk into the digital room. NATS is winning the hearts and minds of controllers with this approach.

The plan at Heathrow is to control a new runway, not yet under construction, with camera assistance without building a second traditional tower at a cost of over 100 million pounds. In addition, NATS plans to replace the current contingency tower at Heathrow, which has no view of the runways and depends on radar-based procedural control, with an all-digital room with camera displays onsite at the airport. The new digital room will handle 100 percent of normal traffic versus only 70 percent with the current setup.

The use of digital panoramic and pantilt-zoom camera display equipment with enhancements such as head-up labeling and overlays in a traditional tower with controllers looking out the window is called a hybrid tower. This hybrid solution is what has been introduced in Hong Kong and also at Doha and will be used on Heathrow’s new Runway 3.

“RTs are mature and accepted by regulators in Europe, including the United Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority,” said Taylor. Some

The Integrated Airport Centre at Hong Kong International Airport, where information from the Searidge Technologies Digital Tower and Apron Management System, with 240 camera sensors, is fed to controllers who manage operations at the busy airport.

of the airports in the UK are comparable in activity to traffic at KJYO and KFNL, especially Farnborough Airport where controllers handle small business jets. NATS is in RT talks with some of these airports.

But most regulators, not just the FAA, have struggled to get their arms around technology that can do things for controllers they have never done before from a traditional tower.

When NATS began controlling traffic at London City International Airport in 2021 from an RT 70 miles away, it became the first major airport to do so, controlling 40,000 movements per year. Saab supplied the system using 16 HD cameras on a 164-foot-tall mast at the airport feeding displays at the control center in Shanwick. There was extensive testing before the London City RT was cleared for use. Certifying the novel technology wasn’t easy. The process for the first one won’t be a model for how it is done in the future. z

The latest news, data, and analysis on the future of civil aviation.

Ketchikan air tour safety still lacking, NTSB finds

BY COLLEEN MONDOR

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recently added three more recommendations to those already issued surrounding air tour safety in Ketchikan, Alaska.

The latest recommendations, included in a short report, call for a special federal aviation regulation (SFAR) to be developed for Ketchikan air tour flights, the imposition of weather minimums more conservative than Part 135, and a pilot training requirement focused on reducing continued VFR into IMC.

In that report, the Safety Board highlighted five fatal accidents in the region between 2007 and 2021 and found that

despite FAA efforts over the past 15 years to motivate voluntary adoption of safety procedures, tour flights were still “vulnerable to the hazards unique to the area’s terrain and weather conditions.”

Unfortunately, the report ignores information from comparable accidents involving non-air tour operations and fails to consider the impact of funding limitations on FAA oversight and critical weatherreporting infrastructure.

Ketchikan is a Southeast Alaska community with about 14,000 year-round residents. As a primary destination on the cruise ship circuit, and gateway to Misty

Fjords National Monument, the town welcomes an estimated 1.1 million annual visitors. From May through September, scenic air tours are a significant part of the local aviation industry.

While these flights are operated by both helicopters and airplanes, the NTSB focused on fixed-wing operations in its recent report. The report also did not address the area’s commuter and charter activities, which are generally flown by the same companies at the same time.

The NTSB previously issued 13 safety recommendations to the FAA directed toward Ketchikan air tour operations. The

first four, in 2008, were directed broadly to all of Southeast Alaska and in response to five specific regional accidents that occurred between 1999 and 2007. They called for the installation of weather cameras in the Southeast, formalization of FAA tour flight surveillance, and mandated specialized training requirements concerning flight operations and weather-related decision-making.

In the latest report, three of those accidents, which involved helicopter companies, are included only as a footnote. (A fourth, involving L.A.B. Flying Service in the town of Haines, is largely ignored. That company was shut down by the FAA via an emergency revocation of its operating certificate in 2008.)

From the original list, the NTSB references a 2007 Taquan Air Service crash and then adds four subsequent Ketchikan air tour accidents (see chart below).

Two years after the 2015 Promech Air crash, the NTSB issued nine more recommendations to the FAA, four of which specifically addressed Ketchikan operators. One encouraged use by all companies of more modern terrain databases and instrument system software.

Three others focused on air tour operators and called for improved training programs to reduce the risk of weatherrelated accidents, ongoing analysis of ADS-B route data (and meeting with companies to discuss hazards in a nonpunitive manner), and the development and implementation of special operating rules to establish VFR minimums more conservative than Part 135.

As noted in the current report, some of those recommendations languished, particularly the development and implementation of more conservative VFR minimums. Initially, the FAA responded that it was “evaluating policy and rulemaking options,” which was deemed an acceptable response.

But after three years without specifics, the Safety Board reopened the recommendation in 2020. By then, the FAA was building a working group to investigate overall Part 135 air safety in Alaska, an initiative that was formed in response to yet another NTSB safety recommendation, which was issued after the board’s 2019 Anchorage roundtable on the subject.

cannot satisfy this demand with its typical Juneau FSDO staffing levels. The evidence of this longstanding problem can be found in the NTSB’s Ketchikan-area Part 135 accident dockets, starting with the investigation into the 2007 crash involving Seawind Aviation. (The 2007 Taquan Air accident docket includes no interviews with FAA personnel.)

The principal operations inspector (POI) for Seawind told investigators that he had responsibility for about 33 Part 135 operators at the time of the crash. One of only two POIs at the FSDO, he was based in Juneau and traveled to Ketchikan once a month. At this time, the Juneau FSDO was responsible for oversight of 51 operations. According to the manager, it had curtailed services due to decreased staffing.

The FAA informed the NTSB in 2022 that the group’s report, the FAA Alaskan Aviation Safety Initiative (FAASI), discussed a need statewide for “improved weather reporting facilities.” As it did not mention Ketchikan nor the recommendation’s requirement for more conservative weather minimums, the NTSB was unimpressed. And so, returning to the issue again, the most recent NTSB report declared that as air tour accidents continue to occur, recommendations for the FAA to develop an SFAR, increase training, and establish more conservative VFR minimums are necessary.

Essentially, the NTSB wants the FAA to finally fix whatever is wrong with Ketchikan. The problem is that the NTSB has not addressed the fact that the FAA

There are no interviews of FAA personnel in the docket for the 2010, 2012, and 2013 Pacific Airways, Southeast Aviation, and Promech Air accidents. Following the 2015 Promech crash that killed nine, the POI told investigators he was responsible for 21 certificates and also one of only two inspectors at the FSDO able to conduct checkrides, which took up a lot of his time.

In commenting on the events over the year, he admitted, “2015 had been a challenge.” He tried to visit Ketchikan twice a month during the summer season but prior to the accident had been there only once. At this time, the Juneau FSDO was responsible for oversight of 71 operators.

In 2018 and 2019, Taquan Air Service was involved in three serious accidents that

 2015 had been a challenge.

brought the company national attention. In the investigations that followed, it was discovered that Taquan had five different POIs between January 2018 and March 2019. These included three from the Juneau FSDO, one of whom told investigators he was responsible for 20-30 certificates then later said: “over 25, less than 50.” He described the number as difficult to pin down because it was “changing weekly.”

Another said he was responsible for about 40 separate operators and the third, who served as POI from March 2019 to September 2020, said his workload varied widely from 30 certificates as a low and 67 as a high.

The other two POIs for Taquan were assigned from Columbia, South Carolina. According to one of them, South Carolina inspectors were assigned about a dozen Part 135 operators from Ketchikan for a period of several months beginning in August 2018 as “Juneau had only one ops inspector for the district.”

He made one trip to Ketchikan, and the POI who took Taquan after him did not go to Alaska at all. According to the FSDO manager, during this period, the Juneau FSDO was responsible for oversight of about 160 operators. According to the front-line manager, the inspectors were responsible for oversight of about 80 certificates. Neither man was certain of the

actual number or type of operations.

After the 2021 Southeast Aviation accident, its POI described his workload as heavy, telling investigators, “a lot.” He managed 21 Part 135s including all of the Part 135 operators in Ketchikan but lived in Juneau. There were four POIs assigned out of the FSDO at that point but since then the number has reduced; there are now three listed on the employee directory (and an aviation safety inspector). Also, one of the current POIs is remotely based in Ketchikan.

It is unclear how many certificates the FSDO was responsible for in 2021 as management was not interviewed.

Overall, the NTSB’s “Implement Special Federal Aviation Regulation for Air Tours near Ketchikan, Alaska” report joins a litany of previous studies, initiatives, reports, and analyses on Alaska that have each concluded a lack of weather information is a crucial factor in the state’s flight safety concerns.

The FAASI report, cited by the board, includes 85 mentions of the word “weather,” and increased weather reporting, both via cameras and certified weather sources, is a dominant theme in its appendix of stakeholder comments.

By demanding the establishment of more conservative VFR minimums for Ketchikan scenic air tour flights

without addressing the dearth of weather resources and continued FAA staffing issues, the NTSB may be asking for solutions that are impossible to provide. In the process, it contributes to the seemingly endless discussions of the problems in Alaska, while the FAA lacks the funding to fix them.

In December the FAA held a webinar providing an overview of its weather camera program and plans for expansion; participants were directed to a form where prospective sites could be submitted. In Alaska, the last FAA weather camera was installed in 2016.

When asked by AIN about expansion in the state, the agency responded that it “is evaluating whether it can install additional weather cameras in Alaska and the Continental United States. Approvals for installation will be decided later this year. No immediate plans for new sites exist.” z

Accidents in NTSB docket since 2007 surrounding Part 135 Ketchikan operations

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Autonomy is key for fast aerial firefighting response

BY MARK HUBER

Rain Industries recently demonstrated the ability to remotely command a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk via satellite link from its California command center to the aircraft, located in Tennessee. With safety pilots aboard, the Black Hawk self-dispatched and flew to a hypothetical destination as part of a fireresponse demonstration.

“This is a critical first proof-of-concept to illustrate how our software will allow uncrewed aircraft to support firefighting missions,” said Ephraim Nowak, Rain’s chief engineer. The flight in April is one of several projects with customer fire agencies scheduled in 2023, Rain said.

The Black Hawk flight comes six months after Rain unveiled its remotelypiloted, unmanned MK2 firefighting rotorcraft, based on the ultralight Mosquito

kit aircraft. Designed for rapid wildfire response, the MK2 can carry up to 30 gallons of retardant, stay airborne for one hour, and has a 23-mile radius. The MK2 can deliver compressed foam for indirect suppression to draw a containment line ahead of an advancing fire front, and Rain envisions situations where several could be pre-positioned in high-risk areas and respond to threats in small groups.

Remotely piloted and ultimately autonomous aircraft provide the best solution to jumping on wildfires during their nascent and most manageable stages, contends Rain co-founder and CEO Max Brodie, who noted that wildfires produce 18 percent of the total world CO2 emissions and are only going to get worse. “Catastrophic wildfire has emitted eight billion tons of CO 2 on average globally per year. If we look at just

Rain Industries has unveiled a remotely piloted and unmanned MK2 firefighting rotorcraft to respond to fires. Adapted from the Mosquito ultralight helicopter kit, multiple MK2s could be flown to an advancing fire front to help prevent it from spreading.

the 2020 wildfire season in the state of California, it undid all greenhouse gas emissions progress in California over the past 20 years,” Brodie said. “Fire agencies at all levels are witnessing fire behavior that they have never seen before. This is not business as usual. There are not the same boundaries we’re used to, and we need to do something different. Wildfires grow exponentially. There is a huge difference between getting to a fire in eight minutes versus 20 minutes. A rapid initial attack has been a concept in the fire community for a long time, but getting to ignitions before they reach the inflection point makes all the difference.”

A UN study recently predicted that extreme wildfires will increase by 50 percent by the end of the century. Fires already are perennial issues in the Western U.S., northern Siberia, central India,

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and eastern Australia. California, often hit hard by massive and fast-moving wildfires, has deployed a network of 1,000 fire watch cameras that continuously monitor 90 percent of the state’s high-threat fire areas. Rain’s system integrates these camera feeds with early detection sensors with the goal of dispatching nearby autonomous firefighting helicopters within seconds to contain fires in minutes, before they spread and grow exponentially.

“There’s a ton of companies working in this space to use cameras to do widearea early detection, including lightning detection systems, and there’s a fantastic amount of work being done in early satellite detection,” Brodie said. “It’s not quite there yet for early incipient small fires, but it’s coming and so we are very happy to partner and work with all of these early detection data sources in order to bring that into [our] network control software.”

At a recent Helicopter Association International webinar, Brodie explained he got the idea for Rain after living through one of the worst wildfires in Canada’s history in 2003 when a bolt of lightening hit a tree in Okanagan Mountain Park, B.C. and ultimately consumed 64,000 acres. Brodie recalls the fire “ended up taking out a third of my hometown and caused the largest mass evacuation in Canada since the Second World War.

Rain was founded in 2019 and today is based at the repurposed Alameda Naval Air Station near San Francisco. The company is dedicated to leveraging automated fire detection technology and fire prediction and behavior analytics, already in use in parts of California, with autonomous quick response aircraft. “The technology that we bring to the table is really the convergence of distinct technologies in sensing and AI [artificial intelligence], robotics and drones, looking at fire-growth models and designing the technology in order to reliably get to ignitions before they go out of control.”

Brodie does not see Rain’s technology as a replacement for manned firefighting aircraft, but rather an important augmentation that not only enables quicker response, but that takes pilots out of aircraft during high-risk situations.

Aerial firefighting currently “is not a safe job,” Brodie said, noting crashes including a Coulson 737 tanker that hit a ridgeline during a retardant drop in Australia earlier this year. “When we look at the history of robotics and where robots are typically applied, we send robots to the bottom of the ocean, to outer space, to the places where it’s really dangerous for humans.” Brodie said applying Rain’s technology will “support and make the world safer for pilots in the near term.”

It also should bring down the cost of air operations, Brodie said, inasmuch as rapid response will limit the size of fires and the number of flight hours required to suppress them. “The early stages are going to look very familiar and rely on existing infrastructure and personnel at helitack bases at airports, with personnel on the ground required to support a small platform versus a large platform like Black Hawk. But we think more about what the impact on maintenance will be from not flying a lot of flight hours because small fires don’t require a lot

of flight hours. And flight hours are a key driver of maintenance,” he said.

However, Brodie stressed that autonomy is the key to maximizing the value of unmanned aircraft in aerial firefighting. “The trajectory of the spectrum begins with automation and moves towards autonomy,” Brodie said, using a football analogy. “In a football game if the coach were to go around telling every single player, okay, turn left, turn right block, tackle, throw the ball— there’s just way too many commands that the coach would have to give. Autonomy is more like the football coach that says okay, we’re going run, play 47 B and then everyone just knows what to do.”

While “building full autonomy is not required to help bring this technology into the world and for it to start being useful and deployed,” Brodie said, “To truly write down regional wildfire risk and to respond with enough suppressant, quick enough with enough aircraft, that is going to require more of that autonomous capability.”

However, there is a cost, he noted. “We need to hear from decision makers within the fire agencies and government that this technology is something that folks are willing to pay for and wanting to integrate. As we all know, this stuff is expensive.” z

Rain Industries recently operated a Black Hawk by remote commands delivered via satellite.

(NBAA-BACE), taking place from Oct. 17-19 in Las Vegas. View fixed-wing aircraft of all sizes – from single-engine airplanes and turboprops to long-range jets. See today’s helicopters and tomorrow’s advanced air mobility (AAM) aircraft.

NBAA-BACE is the biggest and most productive event of the year for business aviation.

On the Ground

space for additional parking. A separate 10,000-sq-ft maintenance facility is leased to sister company Jet Out.

Skyservice Opens Vancouver FBO

Canadian aviation services provider Skyservice has expanded its network to include all three of the country’s largest cities with the opening of its FBO at Vancouver International Airport (CYVR). In February, the company obtained the former InterDel Aviation Services facility in a lease from World Fuel Services.

Million Air Expands to Alabama

Million Air will assume control of one of the two FBOs at Alabama’s Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (KBHM) after being selected as the winner in an RFP process. Atlantic Aviation previously controlled both facilities, but to foster competition the airport authority decided to place the east-side location at the field up for proposals. Atlantic will continue to operate the west-side FBO.

Houston-based Million Air was awarded a 22-year lease with an eight-year extension. In return, the company, which operates 35 FBOs mainly in North America, will spend $32 million on a new facility. This investment will include a 10,000-sq-ft terminal, a pair of 30,000-sq-ft corporate aircraft hangars, and a 24,000-sq-ft hangar dedicated to smaller, privately owned aircraft.

Incorporating iron and red brick to pay homage to the city’s brick and steel industry, the new FBO will replace the current 1960s-era facility. While the groundbreaking date for the new complex has yet to be determined, Million Air will operate from the east-side FBO starting on June 1.

Milwaukee Airport Now O ers Three FBOs

Milwaukee General Mitchell International Airport (KMKE) has received its third FBO. The recently completed $11 million Jet In facility includes a 10,000-sq-ft, twostory terminal with a land-side vehicle arrivals canopy, passenger lounge with refreshment bar and balcony overlooking the main runway, 10-seat conference room, pilot lounge and snooze room, gym and locker room with showers, and build- to-suit office space. It is open 24/7.

The adjoining 40,000-sq-ft heated hangar with its 28-foot-high-door can shelter the latest ultra-long-range business jets, and the complex has three acres of ramp

The complex, one of three FBOs on the field, consists of a 14,000-sq-ft multi-story terminal with a passenger lounge offering views of the Pacific mountains, business center, conference rooms, pilot lounge with snooze rooms, showers, and ramp-side vehicle access. It has three 20,000sq-ft heated hangars and 175,000 sq ft of apron parking. For Skyservice, this represents its 11th FBO in North America and its sixth World Fuel Air Elite location in Canada.

Atlantic Aviation Wins RFP at Aspen Airport

Colorado’s Pitkin County has selected Atlantic Aviation as the winner of its RFP to operate the sole FBO at AspenPitkin County Airport (KASE). Atlantic—the incumbent service provider—was selected from an initial group of seven respondents, which was further winnowed down to three last month. The Texas-based chain will now enter into contract negotiations with the county for a new long-term lease.

According to the county’s procurement office, the selection process was based on several criteria: approach to FBO services at KASE, financial proposal, environmental goals for the airport set by the Board of County Commissioners, ability to finance and build new FBO facilities, development plans for the airfield, and past performance and industry experience. z

FBO AND AIRPORT NEWS BY CURT EPSTEIN

Provo Air Center: a Secret No More

When the Provo Air Center (PAC) first opened its doors in 2001, aside from knowledgeable scuba divers, few could place the Turks and Caicos Islands on a map. But these days it has become one of the region’s busiest destinations for private aviation.

Located at Providenciales International Airport, the full-service FBO—one of two service providers on the field—moved into its current 9,350-sq-ft terminal in 2015. “We’re very big on privacy here, so we tried to design the building so that upon arrivals and departures everyone can have their own space,” explained PAC CEO Deborah Aharon, who has been with the company since its founding. “Customers have four different lounges to themselves; we even have a special lounge just for kids with a pirate cave.” Other services and amenities include a large pilot lounge, snooze room with four private rest areas, shower facilities, conference room, laundry, dishwashing, and concierge. “We have the world’s first drivethrough customs hall,” said Aharon, adding guests are picked up planeside and whisked inside. “You can stay seated in the golf cart right through the building as you deal with the customs and immigration o cers.”

Like many leisure destinations, traffic at the FBO has experienced a post-Covid surge with the past year seeing 1,100 more flights than the period prior to the pandemic lockdown. Between private aircraft and commercial carriers, the facility pumps approximately 5 million gallons of fuel a year. However during the pandemic, the entire island locked down for three months. While most companies in the suddenly-idle tourism industry began shutting down and laying o employees, PAC eked through after Aharon sought permission to remain open to handle medevac flights or fuel stops. As staffing needs at the FBO declined drastically, the

workers requested that nobody be furloughed. “For three months only two people were in the building at a time,” she told AIN. “What little hours there were, they shared them, and then they shared food, they shared information. It was the most amazing thing I have ever seen a group of people do, the way they took care of each other.”

The company has also forged lasting relationships with its clients. The day the country reopened, a regular customer arrived from Europe on his large-cabin jet and delivered a large supply of personal protection equipment (which was unavailable on the island), instructing Aharon to distribute half to her sta and families and give the remainder to the government anonymously. Realizing the hardships the business endured, he then proceeded to give her a check for $25,000 to disburse equally among the sta PAC is normally open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m., but that is not usually the case given the number of after-hours medevac flights and other emergency activities. Several years ago, when the facility’s leading concierge returned to his home in the Philippines, the company decided to take

advantage of the time zone change, retaining him as the night concierge, and fielding all overnight handling requests. “We might leave work at 7 p.m. thinking that tomorrow we have 30 planes and when we wake up in the morning and look to see what Don’s done, we have 70,” said Aharon. “If we didn’t have him all night, we would be in terrible shape, struggling to catch up.”

While the facility was built with a fullyequipped kitchen, it wasn’t until the company had to step in to replace the subpar catering at a guest’s meeting that it decided to launch its own in-house catering operation, PACKitchen. It has proven so popular that the company is investing in a $1 million expansion, with separate cold and hot preparation kitchens and more sta . Among its most popular o erings are “ready meals,” microwaveable gourmet dinners for crews that arrive late after restaurants are closed.

While PAC does not have any hangar space, that will change as the company plans to break ground this year on a 29,200-sq-ft structure with a maximum ceiling height of nearly 40 feet, capable of holding a pair of G650s side by side. C.E.

Provo Air Center, one of two service providers at Providenciales International Airport in Turks and Caicos, has seen a post-pandemic surge in business aviation tra c.

CenTex King Air 350/360 Halo Mod Ups Weight, Safety

CenTex Aerospace has received FAA approval for its Halo 350 increased gross weight modification for Beechcraft King Air 350s and 360s. The upgrade ups mtow from 15,000 to 15,950 pounds and raises payload by 946 pounds. To accommodate these higher weights, high-strength bolts replace the original main landing gear hinge bolts.

Two additional safety systems are installed under the upgrade: a takeoff warning system and stall warning “ice mode.” The former alerts the pilot when the pitch trim is not properly set and a takeoff is initiated. Meanwhile, ice mode improves the accuracy of a stall warning when ice is present on the wings.

According to CenTex, the Halo 350 upgrade requires about 20 hours of installation time and increases empty weight by four pounds. The Halo 350 kit is available immediately.

True Blue Power Adds Lithium-ion Batteries for Light Aircraft

True Blue Power unveiled two main ship lithium-ion batteries designed for smaller general aviation aircraft at the Aircraft Electronics Association Convention. This fills in the company’s line of lithium batteries for all segments of aviation, from experimental aircraft to business jets and commercial and military aircraft. The batteries are available for 14- and 28-volt electrical systems.

Both new batteries retail for $2,499 and have on-condition maintenance, “intelligent cockpit communication via discrete output and RS-232,” and integral charge current limiting. Weight savings compared to lead-acid batteries is about 20 pounds; each battery weighs 10 pounds. The TB14 for 28-volt aircraft is a 13-amp-hour battery, while

BY AIN STAFF

the 14-volt TB28-12V is a 26-amp-hour battery. True Blue Power plans to obtain supplemental type certification for the TB14 and TB28-12V in a variety of aircraft models.

In addition to the weight savings, lithium main ship batteries provide faster and more reliable engine starts, according to parent company Mid-Continent.

Duncan Aviation Expands Honeywell Engine Facility

Duncan Aviation remodeled its Honeywell HTF7000 engine shop, effectively quadrupling the dedicated engine maintenance services space at its Lincoln, Nebraska, facility. The company also named Shawn Schmitz as its HTF7000 program manager.

The move brought all engine services and back shop capabilities into one place, including a dedicated on-site nondestructive testing lab, a flow and balance room, a large engine cleanroom with an overhead crane, a large-capacity media blaster, a state-of-the-art paint booth, and a mixing room.

Gulfstream Expanding Savannah Service Center

Gulfstream Aerospace is committing $98.5 million for the second stage expansion of its MRO facility at its customer support center at Georgia’s Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport (KSAV). This expansion comes in addition to the new-build 202,000-sq-ft service center that the company opened at its KSAV headquarters in 2019.

Slated for completion in early 2024, the new sustainablydesigned facility will add 250 jobs and 200,000 sq ft of hangar space and back shops to enhance Gulfstream’s array of MRO services in Savannah. These services include scheduled aircraft maintenance, avionics installations, interior refurbishments, and ground services.

Beyond Chauffeurs

#BizAv #PrivateAviation #PrivateChauffeur

Accidents

BY DAVID JACK KENNY

Preliminary Reports

Air Tour Helicopter Crashes in Vietnam

Bell 505 JetRanger X, April 5, 2023, Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

The aircraft crashed into the ocean shortly after takeoff on a planned 10-minute sightseeing flight over Ha Long Bay, killing the pilot and all four passengers.

Search-and-rescue e ff orts were mobilized shortly after contact was lost; two bodies and portions of the wreckage were located about two hours after the accident. Two more bodies and the majority of the wreckage, including the lightweight flight recorder, were recovered the following day. The flight’s operator, Vietnam Helicopters, suspended all air-tour operations in the immediate aftermath of the crash.

Ha Long Bay, a UNESCO world natural heritage site, is a popular tourist destination renowned for its dramatic geologic formations. Initial press reports stated that all four passengers were Vietnamese nationals; the pilot’s nationality was not initially reported.

Go-around Accident Ends Flight Review

Daher TBM 940, April 7, 2023, Ashland, Oregon

The pilot and the instructor conducting his flight review escaped unharmed after the single-engine turboprop failed to respond as expected during an attempted go-around, instead descending into trees and shrubs off the left side of the runway. Tree branches blocked the pilot’s door, so both evacuated the aircraft through the passenger airstair door as “a small fire” ignited. The fire eventually “engulf[ed] much of the airplane.”

According to the pilot, some two and a half hours into the flight review the instructor posed a scenario requiring a weather diversion to Ashland. The pilot determined that winds favored Runway 30, entered the traffic pattern, and extended the downwind leg while configuring the airplane to assure a stabilized approach. Final approach was uneventful, with the landing gear and full flaps extended, engine torque greater than 10 percent, and airspeed “between 80 to 95 knots.”

As they crossed the threshold, the instructor described “a simulated obstruction on the runway” and called for a go-around. The pilot increased power to 70 percent torque and attempted to level the airplane, which instead yawed left despite right rudder and continued to descend until impact. There was no stall warning or any indication of an impending loss of control. The 2,650-hour pilot reported about 1,400 hours in TBM 700-series airplanes, during which he’d executed “many” go-arounds both with and without instructor supervision.

Final Reports

Night Ditching Prompts Call for NVIS Reassessment

MBB/Kawasaki BK117-C1, April 22, 2019, Auckland Islands, New Zealand

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) called on New Zealand’s Civil Aviation Authority to reevaluate its pilot and flight crew training requirements for using night vision imaging systems (NVIS) after a medical evacuation helicopter descended into the ocean while attempting to land at a planned overnight camping site. The pilot, paramedic, and winch operator were all wearing immersion suits and

were able to escape from the sinking aircraft with minor injuries and reach shore; another rescue helicopter found them the following day. The sunken wreckage was recovered about three weeks later.

The crew had planned to arrive at Enderby Island before dark and stay overnight before rendezvousing with a fishing vessel to extract a sick crew member. Unexpected delays in departure pushed their arrival time back past nightfall and they continued a visual approach to their planned landing site using night vision goggles (NVGs), which enabled them to identify the hills around Port Ross and “part of Enderby Island.”

Believing the landing area to be covered by cloud, the pilot attempted to descend below the cloud level in clear skies over the sea before following the coastline back to their landing zone. As they turned toward land, the paramedic pointed out cliffs directly ahead, but the pilot was unable to react quickly enough to prevent impact.

The TAIC defines NVIS as the suite of “elements…required to safely operate an aircraft using NVGs,” including radar altimeters and compatible cockpit lighting systems, crew competence and recurrent training checks, and procedural requirements. Its review concluded: “The [current] minimum requirements…do not equate to proficiency” and recommended more stringent requirement for recurrent training in NVIS operations and crew resource management.

Misplaced Pick-up Downs Skydive Supervan

Cessna 208B Supervan 900, June 25, 2021, Teuge International Airport, the Netherlands

A mechanic’s error in replacing the magnetic pick-up in the propeller governor

The material on this page is based on reports by the o cial agencies of the countries having the reponsibility for aircraft accident and incident investigations. It is not intended to judge or evaluate the ability of any person, living or dead, and is presented here for informational purposes.

that provided data to the engine’s exhaust gas temperature (EGT) gauge led to contact between the pick-up and the governor’s toothed gear, eventually leading to a total loss of engine power on initial climb. Seventeen parachutists were on board when the Supervan’s engine flamed out while climbing through 400 feet; one su ff ered minor injuries in the ensuing forced landing. The pilot was unhurt, but the airplane “sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, wings, landing gear, and propeller.”

Prior to the flight, high and erratic EGT readings with the engine o ff prompted replacement of the pick-up. The mechanic followed the first four steps of the maintenance procedure but did not notice steps five through eight, which were therefore not carried out.

These included a system voltage check to confirm correct installation. A post-accident teardown found that the pick-up had been threaded into the governor assembly in the gap between two teeth of the rotating gear; the resulting contact fractured both the pick-up and the gear teeth, producing metal debris that restricted free movement of the ball head assembly and displaced the metering valve aft.

This in turn allowed the oil to drain from the propeller dome. As the propeller moved toward the feathered position, decreasing the rpm of the single-shaft engine, compressor discharge (P3) pressure in turn decreased, leading the fuel control unit to reduce fuel flow and initiating a feedback process resulting in engine stoppage.

The Dutch Safety Board’s report notes that the propeller governors of Honeywell TPE331 engines fitted with hydromechanical fuel controls, including that on the accident airplane, use 15-tooth gears. The gaps between teeth are wide enough to allow incorrectly installed magnetic pickups to penetrate the space between them, subjecting both components to the sort of impact damage that precipitated this accident. Those equipped with electronic fuel

controls use gears with 29 teeth that do not provide enough clearance for the pick-ups to intrude between teeth.

Lack of Recent Experience Faulted in Fatal Stall

Beech E90, Nov. 15, 2021, Boyne City, Michigan

Modifications to the aircraft, including installation of five-bladed propellers that increased its deceleration rate, and the eight-month lag since the corporate jet pilot’s previous flight in the accident aircraft were cited as contributing to its apparent stall on final approach. The pilot and the only passenger, reportedly a student pilot interested in pursuing a professional flying career, were killed when the King Air crashed on final approach in heavy sleet.

Additional workload associated with exercising the airplane’s de-icing systems and the aerodynamic effects of the sleet itself were also cited as possible contributing factors.

The accident occurred on a Part 91 business flight from the Oakland County International Airport in Pontiac, Michigan, to Boyne City. ADS-B track data showed that on the final segment of the RNAV approach to Runway 27, the King Air’s groundspeed slowed from 129 to 88 knots in the course of one minute.

The last ADS-B fix came 3.2 nm from the threshold at an altitude of 600 feet and 88 knots groundspeed; the impact point was 600 feet further along the final approach course. An Airmet for moderate icing was in effect, and witness reports suggest that bands of heavy sleet were passing through the area. The airplane flight manual called for a minimum airspeed of 140 knots in icing conditions.

The 1974-model turboprop “had been modified numerous times” and was the original testbed for development of a supplemental type certificate (STC) for installation of Honeywell TPE331-10 engines and

five-bladed McCauley propellers. At the time of the accident, it was one of only two with this STC installed.

The owner of the second modified airplane told investigators that moving the propeller controls to their high-rpm position caused rapid deceleration on final approach, prompting him not to do so until short final, and another jet pilot who had flown the accident aircraft recalled being surprised when it quickly slowed from 135 to 100 knots during level-off.

The 61-year-old, 13,000-hour airline transport pilot usually flew a Challenger 604 jet. While he had about 700 hours in E90 airplanes, his most recent flight in the accident airplane was during recurrent training on March 22, 2021.

Excessive Taxi Speed Leads to Runway Excursion

Swearingen SA226-AT Merlin IV, Feb. 26, 2022, San Andres Island-Gustavo Rojas Pinilla Airport, Colombia

Taxi speed well in excess of the manufacturer’s published limit was blamed for the loss of steering control that resulted in the twin-engine turboprop departing the left side of the runway. The crew was on an air ambulance flight to Medellín with one patient and two medical crew members on board and was cleared to back-taxi to the approach end of Runway 06.

About 200 meters (660 feet) into the taxi, the right engine increased power and the aircraft accelerated to 36 knots and began veering left. The crew’s e ff orts to counter the excursion were unsuccessful, and it drifted off the runway into the grass before they attempted to use the brakes. Braking proved ine ff ective due to poor traction on the grass, and the airplane continued until its nose struck the concrete wall bordering the airport, sustaining damage to the nose and left forward area of the fuselage. The airplane’s flight manual cites a maximum authorized taxi speed of just 10 knots. z

Compliance Countdown

BY GORDON GILBERT

JUST AROUND THE CORNER

June 7, 2023

Europe: ADS-B Out Mandate

Aircraft that obtained their certificate of airworthiness (C of A) between June 6, 1995, and Dec. 7, 2020, must arrange for retrofits to meet the ADS-B Out mandate by June 7, 2023. The ADS-B Out requirement in Europe was Dec. 7, 2020, for aircraft receiving their C of A on or after December 7. Aircraft with a C of A dated before June 6, 1995 are exempt from European ADS-B requirements. The ADS-B requirements apply only to aircraft with an mtow exceeding 5,700 kg (12,566 pounds) or having a maximum cruising true airspeed capability greater than 250 knots.

June 12, 2023 and Sept. 9, 2024

U.S.: Pilot Records Database

By June 12, 2023, operators under Parts 91, 91K, and 135 must complete submissions of reports to the pilot records database (PRD) of all historical records concerning training, alcohol testing, qualification, proficiency, and disciplinary actions dating on or after Jan. 1, 2015. Final compliance date for reporting historical records before Jan. 1, 2015, is Sept. 9, 2024. Also beginning on Sept. 9, 2024, the Pilot Records Improvement Act ceases to be effective and will not be an available alternative to the PRD.

July 24, 2023

Europe: Flight Dispatcher Rules

An EASA notice of proposed rulemaking (NPA) establishes minimum requirements, responsibilities, and qualifications for serving as a flight dispatcher, a position mandated for European-registered commercial aircraft operations, including most business jet charter companies. Because current requirements are “confusing,” the proposed amendments are designed to standardize flight dispatcher training across EASA member states and to ensure a level playing field. The NPA also contains requirements for the training of “operational control personnel,” which includes flight operations officer qualifications, and designates an “advanced qualification” level for flight dispatchers. Comments are due by July 24, 2023.

July 31, 2023

U.S.: Aviation Noise Policy

The FAA invites public comments to review and suggest updates to the agency’s civil aviation noise policy. The policy sets forth how the agency analyzes, explains, and publicly presents changes in noise exposure impacts from aviation activity, including unmanned aircraft systems, spacecraft, and emerging-technology aircraft. The FAA specifically seeks comments on how revisions to the policy may improve agency decisions regarding community annoyance and health issues, and to suggest how the agency can better manage and respond to a community’s aviation noise concerns. Comments on the policy review are due by July 31.

Aug. 1, 2023

U.S.: Maintenance Schools

As part of an interim final rule overhauling aviation maintenance technician school regulations (Parts 65 and 147), the FAA is transitioning from using the mechanic practical test standards (PTS) as the testing standard for obtaining a mechanic certificate. As a part of this transition, the FAA developed the mechanic airman certification standards (ACS), which adds task-specific knowledge and risk-management elements. The FAA will use the PTS as the testing standard until July 31, 2023. Starting Aug. 1, 2023, the FAA will use the ACS to conduct mechanic certification tests.

Aug. 10, 2023 and May 16, 2024

Canada: ADS-B Out Mandate

Due to continued supply chain impacts stemming from the Covid pandemic, the previously announced implementation date for ADS-B Out in Canada is delayed beyond the original date of Feb. 23, 2023. As a result, the mandate will come into effect as fol- lows: Class A Canadian airspace on Aug. 10, 2023; Class B Canadian airspace on May 16, 2024; and Class C, D, and E airspace to occur no sooner than 2026. The new dates have been developed from stakeholder feedback regarding supply chain limitations and backlogs to acquire and install the appropriate equipment.

Nov. 30, 2023

Europe: Travel Information and Authorization System

ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorization System) is an online pre-travel, and pre-boarding requirement applying to visa-exempt third-country nationals planning to travel to European states. Expected to be implemented in November 2023, the information is submitted via an online application ahead of their arrival at borders, enabling pretravel assessment of irregular migration risks, security, or public health risk checks. ETIAS is one of two European travel authorization programs scheduled to go into effect in 2023. The other program is EES (Entry/Exit System).

April 24, 2024; Oct. 24, 2024; April 25, 2025

U.S.: Airport SMS

Under new regulations certain air carrier airports certified under FAR Part 139 will be required to submit an implementation plan for a safety management system (SMS) on the following deadlines: April 24, 2024 for airports designated as hubs; Oct. 24, 2024 for airports with 100,000 or more annual operations over the previous three years; and April 25, 2025 for airports classified as port of entry, landing rights, user fee, and international facilities. In each case, the SMS must be implemented no later than 12 months after receiving FAA approval of the certificate holder’s Implementation Plan. Most general aviation airports will be able to obtain a waiver from the SMS requirement.

Dec. 2, 2024

Europe: Part 145 SMS

Starting on Dec. 2, 2022 EASA Part 145 maintenance organizations were required to meet revised regulations. However, there is a two-year transition period, to Dec. 2, 2024, to allow them to correct any findings of noncompliance with the new Part 145 requirements. The main change is the required implementation of a SMS.

May 29, 2026

Canada: CVR and Data Link

Multi-engine turbine-powered aircraft configured for six or more passenger seats and requiring two pilots have been granted a temporary exemption from new cockpit voice and data link recorder requirements that were e ff ective on May 29, 2023. The exemption is due to Covid-related delays in parts production, supply chains, and transportation, as well as labor shortages at manufacturers and installers. This exemption is in effect until the earliest of May 29, 2026, or a date when the exemption is canceled by Canada’s DOT. z

For the most current compliance status, see: ainonline.com/cc

White, Bright & Cozy

Every shop at our full-service facility in Provo, Utah, had a role in the complete transformation of this 2001 GLEX. The aircraft’s interior was completely gutted and the paint stripped before it was transformed into something truly spectacular. The result is undoubtedly the nicest aircraft of its age.

www.DA.aero/brightwhite

People in Aviation

BY KAIT WILSON

Helicopter OEM Erickson appointed Barry Kohler CEO. Kohler has more than 40 years of experience in aerospace, at least half of that time in the helicopter industry. He has a background in technology development and business leadership, having held senior leadership positions with Honeywell, BAE Systems, and Bell.

Bob Lockett was hired as chief people officer by flight-training provider CAE. Lockett has more than 20 years of experience in human resources (HR), previously working at ADP as a diversity and talent officer and v-p of HR, Harland Clarke as senior v-p and head of HR, and with USAA in HR and marketing.

GE Aerospace appointed Germaine Hunter as chief diversity officer, effective May 1. Germaine most recently served as the chief diversity executive and talent acquisition leader at Marathon Petroleum. He previously spent more than 20 years working in the consumer-packaged goods industry in strategic planning and brand development roles and served as the first chief diversity officer at The Clorox Company.

Luciano Froes was named partner and chief marketing officer at mobility investment firm UP.Partners. Froes has more than 20 years of experience across the aerospace and financial sectors having held senior roles at Embraer including as chief marketing officer for the company’s Executive Jets division and as head of investor relations.

Air charter specialist Chapman Freeborn appointed Katie Holmes as senior v-p of business aviation, Nick Kelly as senior v-p of aircraft, crew, maintenance, and insurance (ACMI) leasing, and Claire Geary to the newly-created role of group marketing director. Holmes has more than 15 years of private aviation industry experience, most recently as a director of key accounts for an on-demand charter provider. Kelly has 18 years of industry experience in ACMI leasing and cargo operations; Geary previously served for two years as marketing director EMEA with

Cirium, has held marketing management positions at South African Airways, and was manager of corporate communications, marketing, and brand at Emirates Airline.

Honeywell Aerospace named Dave Shilliday v-p and general manager of urban air mobility and unmanned aerial systems, replacing Stephane Fymat, who is now leading Honeywell Ventures. Shilliday has been with Honeywell for more than 15 years and most recently served as v-p and general manager for Honeywell’s power systems business.

Aviation insurance firm Global Aerospace appointed Sarah Porges v-p and aerospace client executive. Porges joins Global Aerospace from Piiq Risk Partners, where she was a senior partner in its aviation and space insurance and risk advisory division. She also has held senior broker roles at aviation and space insurer Marsh for 23 years in its New York and London offices.

Ado Sanusi was hired by ACASS as director of business development for Africa. Sanusi served most recently as CEO of NG Eagle and previously was CEO for Aero Contractors in Nigeria, as well as a Boeing 737 captain, trainer, chief pilot, senior v-p of operations, and deputy managing director at Arik Air.

Jennifer Veilleux was hired as director of sustainability for helicopter services provider PHI Aviation . Veilleux’s career in corporate social responsibility and sustainability spans 20 years in industries including consumer goods, retail pharmacy, medical devices, and aviation. She most recently was director of corporate social responsibility at Atlas Air.

Engine Assurance Program appointed Yorkk Swick director of engine solutions. Swick has 30 years of experience in the industry and, while working at Garrett Aviation (now StandardAero), created and implemented the first mobile service team for AOG support worldwide. He previously served as director of operations for StandardAero at Los Angeles International Airport.

DAVE SHILLIDAY

ADO SANUSI

BOB LOCKETT

LUCIANO FROES

Dennis Pearson was hired by Aerocor as a flight training instructor to meet demand for Eclipse 500 type-rating training. Pearson has prior experience as a military flight instructor, professor of aviation at William Jessup University, FAA safety inspector, aerobatics instructor, and the founder of Mach 5 Aviation flight school.

Polaris Aero hired Ian Lumpp as Midwest regional sales executive. Lumpp has more than eight years of experience in aviation, most recently serving as the director of business development and publisher for BusinessAir magazine. He also co-founded the Iowa Business Aviation Association and serves as the co-chair of the NBAA YoPro Council.

Industry stalwart Larry Flynn, 71, whose career spanned more than four decades and culminated in his role as president of Gulfstream Aerospace and v-p of parent General Dynamics, died on April 12 after a battle with cancer. Flynn retired from his full-time role with the Savannah, Georgia manufacturer in 2015 for health reasons but he remained on boards of companies including Duncan Aviation and Heads Up Technologies.

Born Feb. 13, 1952, Flynn had grown up in a flying family. His father, a TWA pilot for 38 years, had taught him and his two brothers to fly. Flynn obtained a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in manpower management from the University of Kansas and, according to his obituary tribute, “was a diehard Jayhawk.”

DUNNE

Colin Dunne was promoted to U.S. Midwest sales director at Jetcraft. Dunne has more than a decade of experience having previously held roles across the aerospace, energy, and construction industries in design engineering, project management, and business development capacities. He joined Jetcraft as a sales manager in 2019.

Christin Sherwood was hired by Aircraft Specialties to head aftermarket sales. Sherwood has prior industry experience in part sales and purchasing. In her new role, she will be responsible for domestic and international aircraft part sales. z

AWARDS AND HONORS

The NBAA maintenance committee awarded Gabrielle Janicki and Jacob Pendleton with the association’s Hank Hilsmann Memorial Scholarship. Janicki is a student at The National Aviation Academy working toward her A&P. Pendleton is an A&P student at Solano Community College and a U.S. Marine Corps veteran with a goal of becoming a business aircraft maintenance technician. The scholarship is awarded annually by NBAA—in coordination with Dassault Falcon Jet and Dassault authorized training providers CAE and Flight Safety International—to aspiring aviation maintenance technicians and military personnel transitioning to business aviation.

His aviation business career traces into the early 1980s, when he held several roles within the FBO sector, including as v-p for Stevens Aviation, where he managed six facilities; as regional v-p and general manager for AMR Combs; and as regional v-p for Signature Flight Support. He joined Gulfstream in 1995, holding positions of increasing responsibility, serving as senior v-p of marketing and sales, and then president of Gulfstream Product Support. He was named president of the company in 2011.

Flynn is survived by his wife Sarah; daughters Kathrine Morehead and husband Ron, and Kelley Young and husband Adam; and five grandchildren and step-grandchildren.

Roger Humiston, Learjet aficionado and founder of Best Jets, JetMakers, and Artist-Aire, passed away unexpectedly on April 19. Humiston earned his pilot license in 1967 and became an aircraft structural repair specialist in a Kansas Air National Guard reconnaissance group.

In the late 1970s, he became a Learjet instructor at FlightSafety International in Wichita and later served as president of jet charter operation SternAir, and then as president of Continental Aviation, flying Gulfstream jets, before launching his first company, Best AeroNet.

His aviation career spanned more than 50 years with 45 years actively involved in aircraft maintenance and flight operations. In that time, he earned 10 jet type ratings and amassed over 20,000 flight hours. Just prior to his passing, Humiston finished authoring and publishing a book, What You Need to Know About Owning & Flying 20 Series Learjets in the 21st Century, documenting his knowledge of the aircraft. He leaves behind wife Kate Woolstenhulme.

COLIN

 continued from page 4

This is a “different environment than we’ve had before” when the backlog may have had speculators that would be affected by the economic cycles. Bombardier CFO and executive v-p Bart Demosky noted the regular progress payments required for aircraft orders, resulting in “much less variability.”

“Demand is right where we want it to be,” Martel added of the order activity, noting that North American business is stable, Europe has softened slightly, but the Asia-Pacific region is “showing very positive signs.” He added that customers stress “they still need to move around” and that message was emphasized in Asia-Pacific.

While conceding that Bombardier has faced the same supplier challenges as others in the industry—“[this is] the third year in a row where it’s been challenging”— Martel said the company has remained as deeply involved in working with the supply chain as it has ever done, down to Tier 3. Demosky added that the company has a line on the parts necessary to meet its delivery targets this year.

The results came despite the regional banking failures, although Martel said Bombardier did feel the effects of them for about two to three weeks. He added that “unfortunately,” those two to three weeks came at the end of the first quarter when activity typically has ramped up, but added that activity normalized after those weeks.

Encouraging to the company, its aftermarket remains on the trajectory it had hoped, contributing $424 million, a 17 percent increase and a new high for the company that has invested heavily in services over the past decade.

Also encouraging to the company is the turnaround in profitability, reporting an adjusted net income of $113 million in the first quarter, compared with a $69 million loss in the same period of 2022.

“This is the best first-quarter net income Bombardier has had in more than five years and the first time it’s been positive since 2018,” said Demosky. z

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2nd Annual

Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

July 10-12, 2023 | Pendry Park City Hotel | Park City, Utah

Corporate Aviation Leaders: During this fully-hosted event, collaborate with peers, meet with OEM and aviation service providers, and hear from thought leaders during leadership sessions, peer breakouts, and curated networking to discuss the growing complexities of corporate aviation.

Sponsors: The Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit is a curated event that places you right in front of vetted decision-makers without the long nurturing process.

Sponsors will have guaranteed one-on-one meetings, plus board room style presentations to high level decisions makers. Additional sponsorship opportunities are available to raise your companies awareness. The number of sponsorships will be limited.

Flights, hotel, onsite meals, and registration are provided for all qualifed attendees. Submit an application to attend Submit

Bringing together a trusted group of corporate aviation leaders in a private, invitation-only setting.