Cessna to Use Bell’s European Parts Center to Enhance AOG Support
May 12, 2009
GENEVA, Switzerland, May 12, 2009 – Cessna Aircraft Company announced today at the annual European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibit (EBACE) it has reached agreement with sister company Bell Helicopter to use Bell’s European parts distribution facility at Amsterdam Airport Schipol (AMS/EHAM) to further enhance parts distribution to Citation operators in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Both Cessna and Bell are Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) companies.
“This announcement is a continuation of the process begun more than a year ago to increase Citation parts availability in Europe, and will greatly decrease our response time for AOG situations,” said Mark Paolucci, Cessna senior vice president, Customer Service. “We looked at a number of other options but chose Bell’s Amsterdam distribution group for their experience in aerospace, their leadership in customer service, and the synergies afforded by working with another Textron company.”
AOG, or Aircraft on Ground, means the aircraft needs a part to operate and is the most serious of any aircraft service requirement.
Paolucci said operators will continue to work directly with Cessna’s full customer support network of authorized service centers, the company’s own Paris Citation Service Center or Citation Parts Distribution.
“This new process is completely transparent to the customer, other than seeing their aircraft operational again much quicker as this new process moves the part one day closer,” Paolucci said.
Cessna’s First European Deliveries of XLS+ Go to Lufthansa
May 12, 2009
GENVEVA, Switzerland, May 12, 2009 – Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, has delivered two Citation XLS+ business jets to Lufthansa, the first deliveries of the model to a European customer.
The aircraft have entered service alongside two Citation CJ3s and one CJ1+ in the Lufthansa Private Jet fleet, which provides point-to-point flights among 1,000 destinations in Europe and Russia. The Private Jet service also offers customers of Lufthansa and SWISS International Air Lines long-haul flights exclusive, seamless travel to onward regional airports.
Three further CJ1+ aircraft are scheduled for delivery to Lufthansa later this year. Two will join the Lufthansa Private Jet fleet, while the other is to be used within Lufthansa’s pilot training program.
“We are delighted that Lufthansa has selected the XLS+, CJ3 and CJ1+ for its Private Jet fleet, as this underlines the suitability of Citations to intensive commercial service throughout Europe,” said Trevor Esling, Cessna’s vice president for International Sales.
”We are the only airline in the world to operate a successful private jet service alongside our portfolio of scheduled flights offering peerless flexibility and exclusivity,” said Dr. Karsten Benz, vice president Sales & Services Europe, Lufthansa. “With our new Cessna airplanes, we are once again setting the pace within one of aviation’s niche growth areas in Europe.”
The Citation XLS+, part of the mid-size Excel/XLS family, is the latest version of the world’s best-selling business jet model. It features the fully integrated Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics suite and electronically controlled (FADEC) engines from Pratt & Whitney Canada. Exterior and interior restyling is also integrated into the new model, most prominently the extended contour of the nose and expanded seat widths, both introduced to more closely resemble Cessna’s Citation X and Citation Sovereign models.
The Citation XLS+ travels as fast as 817 kilometers per hour (441 knots) with a range of more than 3,441 kilometers (1,858 nautical miles). At maximum takeoff weight it will depart from runways as short as 1,085 meters (3,560 feet) at standard sea-level conditions. It will land on runways as short as 823 meters (2,700 feet) at its typical landing weight.
Cessna to Open New Citation Service Center in Spain
May 12, 2009
GENEVA, Switzerland, May 12, 2009 – Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced today at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibit (EBACE) it will build its new European Citation Service Center at Valencia Airport in Spain.
After two years of studies, research and negotiations with Aeropuertos Españoles y Navegación Aérea (AENA), Spain’s aviation administrative office, Cessna and AENA signed a land grant contract for a location at the Valencia Airport (LEVC), located within the cities of Manises and Quart de Poblet, nine kilometers west of the city of Valencia.
“With over 1,000 Citations operating in Europe and more on the way, the new facility in Spain will be an excellent complementary location for our Paris service center, offering our customers yet another option for service in an area we did not serve before,” said Mark Paolucci, Cessna senior vice president, Customer Service. “Valencia Airport site was chosen because its location is convenient to destinations popular with many of our European operators, there is limited maintenance capability in the area and because we continue to see an increase in the number of Citations being based in North Africa. In addition we have had good cooperation with local authorities and there is an available qualified workforce.”
The Valencia Citation Service Center will be similar in size and capacity as the recently inaugurated Citation Service Center in Mesa, Arizona, with approximately 5,800 m2 (62,400 ft2) of hangar space and 3,500 m2 of office and administration spaces. Also, an additional second floor of office space is planned.
Within the next six months, a Cessna and AENA team will begin planning site development, with construction plans to be announced in the future. The service center will provide around-the-clock services as well as scheduled maintenance, and feature hydraulic and battery shops, parts support and avionics modifications.
GE Honda Aero Engines Readies for Significant Milestones on HF120 Engine Certification Testing
May 12, 2009
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND. – May 12, 2009 – The second half of 2009 will be
filled with significant certification testing milestones for the GE
Honda Aero Engines’ HF120 engine.
“The majority of the hardware for the first HF120 development engine has
arrived, and engine assembly will begin by June at GE’s Lynn,
Massachusetts, facility,” said Bill Dwyer, president of GE Honda Aero
Engines. “The first engine to test will occur by mid-summer, and testing
will continue into 2010.”
A total of 13 HF120 development engines will take part in the
certification testing at seven locations in the U.S., Canada and Japan.
Tests will include altitude fan blade out, crosswind, stress and
endurance testing.
GE Honda also plans to test the engine on a flying testbed before flying
on the customer certification aircraft. By entry into service, the HF120
is expected to have accumulated more than 15,000 cycles of ground and
flight testing.
The HF120 engine has already experienced one of the most extensive
engine test programs prior to the official start of FAA certification
testing. To date, GE Honda Aero Engines has built and tested 10 HF120
engine cores and 11 full engine demonstrators. The engine has produced
more than 2,100 pounds of thrust, exceeded its ambitious fuel efficiency
target and proven its durability.
HF120 engine production will initially begin in Lynn and transition to
Honda Aero Inc.’s new Burlington, North Carolina engine production
facility, which will be completed next month.
The GE Honda HF120 engine was launched in 2006 and selected to power
Honda Aircraft’s advanced light jet, the HondaJet, and the Spectrum
Aeronautical “Freedom” business jet.
Rated at 2,095 pounds of thrust, the HF120 engine succeeds Honda’s
original HF118 prototype engine, which has accumulated more than 4,000
hours of testing on the ground and in-flight. GE and Honda redesigned
the engine for higher thrust and new standards of performance in fuel
efficiency, durability, and low noise and emissions.
The HF120 technologies include:
* A wide chord, compound-swept front fan and two-stage booster
along with composite outlet guide vanes.
* A high-temperature, titanium impellor in the compressor for
maximum engine pressure ratio and stall-free performance.
* A compact reverse-flow configuration combustor and single-stage
air-blast fuel nozzles.
* Advanced materials in the turbine as well as a two-stage
low-pressure (LP) turbine and a counter-rotating high-pressure and LP
spool shaft system.
A key cost-of-ownership advantage of the HF120 will be the ability to
operate at a best-in-class 5,000 hours between major overhauls. The
advanced airfoil materials and coatings that GE and Honda are maturing
for the engine’s high-pressure turbine section enable this capability.
In 2004, GE and Honda formed its 50/50 joint company, based in
Cincinnati, Ohio, near the GE Aviation headquarters. The joint company
integrates the resources of GE and Honda Aero, Inc., a Honda subsidiary
established to manage its aviation engine business.
328 Support breaks into Middle East Announces contract for two Dornier 328 Jet 10-seat VIP conversions
May 12, 2009
EBACE 2009
328 Support Services GmbH is to place two VIP Dornier 328s into Dubai. Arriving in Geneva for EBACE this week, the Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany-based company announced the signing of a contract with a private individual who is arranging for the aircraft to be operated in the Middle East and Africa – solely for VIP use.
Through trading company HYSSOP Global, based in Nigeria, the customer has acquired two 31-seat airliner-configured 328 Jets – serial numbers msn 3120 and 3141, previously operated by oil company Shell of the Netherlands. Both are low time aircraft, with 6,000 hours logged. They will be modified by 328 Support into 10-seat VIP aircraft, replicating the 10-seat VIP layout the organisation showcased at the MEBA business aviation show in Dubai last November.
“The ratification of this deal came about as a direct result of that fortuitous visit to our 328 Jet on the static park. The customer came on board and simply said I want an aircraft like this. MEBA turned out to be a great showcase for us,” commented 328 Support Services Chief Executive Dave Jackson. This latest contract follows hard on the heels of 328 Support’s deal with Aviando Services from Miami, Florida. It is taking an ex Atlantic Coast Airlines N-registered 31-seater which 328 Support is converting to a 12-seat VIP Envoy.
Work will start on the first of the two aircraft immediately with the second following in September this year. The owner is also discussing the possibility of taking a third aircraft – msn 3151. The newly converted 328 Jets will complement the long range Gulfstream 300 operated by Infinity out of its Dubai International Airport base. Infinity is to set up an MRO facility to support the new type and 328 Support will provide spares and stock inventory in readiness for delivery in the fourth quarter of this year. The second aircraft will follow in the first quarter of 2010.
Special interior features will include an all new inflight entertainment system, De Crane soft leather seats. 328 Support Services’ engineering team will also fit long range fuel tanks to the aircraft, enabling a 2,000 nm range – for example, Dubai to Cairo. 328 Support will also carry out a series of heavy maintenance checks and other modifications prior to delivery.
“We are delighted to have won this business, especially in the face of immensely tough competition in the Middle East which has flattened off and become a buyer’s market,” said Dave Jackson.
328 Support is at Stand 893 in Geneva this week with a strong contingent of executives. Dave Jackson is joined by Head of Design Jorg Gorgenant; Head of Sales Ray Mosses and Head of Production, Karl-Heinz Klein. Robin Dunlop from interiors partner UK-based CTM Design will also support. Engineering and MRO specialist sister company Jet Engineering Technical Support (JETS), based at Southampton, UK-based engineering organisation is also sharing its Stand.
In the static park the company is showing off 328 Jet (Serial No 3139) owned by Cirrus Aviation, part of the newly expanded DC Aviation Group. 328 Support turned this aircraft into a 12-seat VIP layout from its previous 32-seat airliner layout. 328 Support carried out the modification and conversion to VIP layout of the five 328s operating with Icejet, which is on show at EBACE. Icejet is now basing two of its five 328 jets at Oxford Airport in the UK.
Comlux Creatives reveals the VIP interior design of the future A320 of Comlux at EBACE
May 12, 2009
This year, Ebace visitors in Geneva can discover a cut-away model scale 1/20 of the Comlux A320 VIP designed by Comlux Creatives. The model will be displayed in Comlux booth (# 1569 /Hall 6) revealing as well the new Comlux external livery specially designed for this aircraft.
Isabelle Bevilacqua, Head of Comlux Creatives says: “Comlux Creatives had already designed an A320 interior, 2 years ago for a private customer. This time, our challenge is to design an interior with VIP charter focus in mind. We have developed a new innovative concept design where “Business meets pleasure”: we are excited to present this original idea in our booth during the Ebace Air show”
Richard Gaona, President and CEO of Comlux Group says: “This A320 will suit very well the Middle East market: it is a wide body jet offering lot of cabin space, cargo space and a non-stop range to Europe: exactly what our clients in this region need. In addition, its new beige-sandy livery will fit very well with the colors of the desert! Fly Comlux division, in charge of Comlux fleet operations is planning to open an office in the Middle East in order to facilitate the arrival of the aircraft by end 2010 and to get closer to our VIP clients at any time.”
Comlux The Aviation Group is one of the leaders in VIP charter services operating worldwide with the highest standards of safety and quality.
Beyond charter operations, Comlux offers a comprehensive set of services to VIP customers who wish to have their own aircraft managed personally and professionally. This includes aircraft management, sales and acquisitions, cabin design and completion as well as maintenance services.
Comlux Completion USA becomes a Bombardier AOG/ Line Maintenance Facility (LMF)
May 12, 2009
Comlux Completion USA, a company of the Comlux Group, announced today that it has been designated a Bombardier AOG/ Line Maintenance Facility (AOG/ LMF) in Indianapolis, Indiana. The agreement authorizes Comlux Completion USA to perform work on Bombardier Learjet, Challenger and Global business aircraft.
The process for being designated a Bombardier AOG/LMF for business aircraft is stringent and requires an investment in technician training, special tooling and ground support equipment. With this authorization, Comlux demonstrates its strong experience and capability in maintaining Bombardier business aircraft.
Comlux Completion USA has developed its quality maintenance activities in parallel with VIP cabin completion services. Thanks to its two state-of-the-art hangars – one of 25,000 sq. feet and another of 22,000 sq. feet – located at Indianapolis International airport, the company can ensure simultaneous full completion of four to six aircraft and total care maintenance jobs. Comlux Completion USA has a team of 44 aircraft maintenance technicians, 12 support personnel and 24 completions employees.
“Comlux Completion USA complements our authorized service and line maintenance facility network. They have proven experience in maintaining our products, are customer- focused and provide top quality service and support,” said James Hoblyn, President, Customer Services & Specialized and Amphibious aircraft, Bombardier Aerospace.
David Edinger, CEO of Comlux Completion USA says: “We have had a strong and long-term relationship with Bombardier Aerospace for many years. This agreement consolidates the development of Comlux Completion USA and allows us to guarantee to our customers the highest level of quality and reliable maintenance services. Furthermore, this agreement brings additional synergy within the Comlux Group, which today operates nine Bombardier aircraft in its VIP fleet (four Global Express aircraft including two Global Express XRS aircraft and one Global 5000 jet, two Challenger 605 and two Challenger 850 aircraft).“
CAE expands its e-Learning portfolio for business aviation training
May 12, 2009
EBACE 2009, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND–(Marketwire – May 12, 2009) – CAE announced today at the European Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (EBACE) that it has expanded its portfolio of web based pilot and technical training courses for business aviation customers through its e-Learning training service.
“CAE has focused on providing web-based courses and solutions customized for business aviation utilizing the same best-practices and solutions used in commercial aviation,” said Jeff Roberts, CAE Group President, Civil Simulation Products, Training and Services. “We understand the value and operational effectiveness web-based training brings to customers and are working hard to continuously expand our offering.”
CAE’s e-Learning and courseware training solutions provide enhanced self-paced courses and practice tools for initial/transition, recurrent, refresher pilot and maintenance training. They can be integrated into a company’s existing training program or offered as part of CAE’s advanced training programs. These additional courses will all be accessible remotely via CAE’s learning internet portal through CAE’s Learning Management System (LMS).
CAE e-Learning courseware will now include:
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Pilot GOS courses Pilot Type-specific courses
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Aircraft Operations A320
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Airports and Runways B737NG – BBJ
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Basic Aerodynamics EMB 145
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Charts, Maps and Airspace Falcon 7X/900X/2000EX IAST
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Earth Orientation Phenom 100
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Human Factors C172 Garmin G1000
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Pre-Flight Planning Cessna 172S
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Radios and Communications Hawker 800 (launch June 2009)
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VFR Navigational Plotting
and Dead Reckoning
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Weather Theory Technical Training Type-specific courses
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TEM/CRM A320/B737 engine run-up
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ADS-B B737NG engine run-up
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Advanced Jet Upset Recovery Phenom 100 B1/B2
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Basic Jet Upset Recovery EMB145
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CAT
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Cold Weather Operations Technical Training GOS courses
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Dangerous Goods Human Factors
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ETOPS Maintenance Diagnostic Systems
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High Altitude
Physiology/Weather/High Speed Maintenance RVSM
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LAHSO Digital Principles in Aircraft Maintenance
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MEL/CDL ETOPS
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Polar Routes Dangerous Goods (launch June 2009)
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RNP
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RNP RNAV
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RVSM
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SMGCS
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TCAS II Version 7
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For further information on CAE’s e-Learning solutions and to view the entire product offering visit www.caelearning.com.
Embraer CAE Training Services receives European Aviation Safety Agency certification for Phenom 100 technical training courses
May 12, 2009
EBACE 2009, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND–(Marketwire – May 12, 2009) – Embraer CAE Training Services (ECTS) announced today at the European Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (EBACE) that it has received the European Aviation Safety Agency’s (EASA) certification for Phenom 100 technical training courses. This is a key milestone for the joint-venture, which provides pilot and technical training to Embraer customers of the Phenom 100 and Phenom 300 jets.
“We are committed to providing our Phenom clients a one-of-a kind training experience adhering to the industry’s highest standards and requirements,” said Jeff Roberts, CAE’s Group President, Civil Simulation Products, Training and Services. “Our clients will benefit from the courses’ line-oriented design aimed at bringing the aircraft into the classroom to increase a technician’s troubleshooting and judgment skills.”
“The safe and efficient operation of our customers’ aircraft is of utmost importance to Embraer,” said Simon Newitt, Embraer’s Director of Customer Training. “The EASA certification for Phenom 100 Technical Training is yet another demonstration of this commitment to our customers.”
The EASA certification covers the B1 (Type), B2 (Avionics), B1+B2 (BB) and C (Familiarization) courses. Phenom 100 technical training dates are currently available and scheduled to be conducted in the Burgess Hill and Dallas training centres. ECTS technical training can be conducted at the training centre or can be scheduled at the client’s location.
ECTS is a joint-venture between Embraer and CAE established in November 2007, to provide pilot and ground crew training to Embraer customers of the Phenom 100 and Phenom 300 jets.
Pratt & Whitney Canada Appoints Aero-Dienst Recognized Maintenance Facility
May 12, 2009
EBACE – GENEVA, SWITZERLAND–(Marketwire – May 12, 2009) – Pratt & Whitney Canada Customer Service Centre Europe GmbH, a joint-venture between Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) and MTU Maintenance, has appointed Aero-Dienst GmbH & Co. KG of Nuremberg, Germany, as a Recognized Maintenance Facility to provide maintenance support for PT6A , JT15D and PW300 series engines. P&WC is a United Technologies (NYSE:UTX) company.
“In complement to P&WC’s Amsterdam parts distribution centre, which increased parts availability in the region and reduced delivery time by over 50 per cent, we are continuing to build on our global customer support in Europe with the welcome addition of Aero-Dienst as a Recognized Maintenance Facility,” said Geoffrey Corbeil, General Manager of P&WC CSC Europe GmbH.
As an internationally approved maintenance organization according to EASA/FAR Part-145, Aero-Dienst serves customers from all over Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the U.S. and Southeast Asia in hangars at Nuremberg Airport in Germany.
“Aero-Dienst has been working with Pratt & Whitney Canada for over 40 years,” said Martin Bauer, CEO of Aero-Dienst. “We are delighted to continue providing reliable high quality support in cooperation with P&WC going forward.”
P&WC now counts over 10,000 operators all around the world – demonstrating that the company has a winning strategy in place with new-generation green engines and unmatched support. Customers can rely on over 30 company-owned and designated service facilities, a 24/7 Customer First Centre for expert and rapid assistance, and an extensive parts distribution network to deliver unmatched frontline service. With field support representatives on all major continents, mobile repair teams available around the clock, and the largest pool of P&WC rental and exchange engines in the industry, P&WC’s goal is to go the extra mile to keep its customers flying.
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