AIG PROBLEMS AFFECT AVIATION SECTOR
Aviation's relative immunity to a host of political, economic and even social issues that have dragged down virtually every other sector couldn't last forever and the potential failure of American International Group Inc. (AIG) could be the fly in the ointment. MarketWatch, The Wall Street Journal's online newsletter, says AIG may have to sell its commercial aircraft leasing arm, International Lease Finance Corp. to stay afloat and that will undoubtedly send ripples through the whole industry. In fact, Boeing has 102 firm orders through ILFC and if the company's credit rating is downgraded, that could mean higher prices for the end customers of those aircraft. More...

THIELERT ENGINES UPDATE
The Thielert engine factory in Liechtenstein is continuing to build and deliver diesel engines and spare parts while sorting through various offers from new investors who hopefully will rescue the company from insolvency, company representatives told the media in a conference call from Europe on Tuesday. Asked whether a new owner will honor the warranties that are currently worthless paper in the hands of engine owners, spokesman Christoph Moller said that will be up to the new investors to decide. "We are not authorized to tell the new investors what to do with their company," he said. Gunter Kappler, head of technology at Thielert, said that even if Diamond Aircraft switches to their own Austro diesel engine, as they have said they plan to do, Thielert has enough other customers to keep the company viable. Also, the company is focused now on extending the life of life-limited components from 300 hours to 600 hours, though Moller said he couldn't give a timeline for when that goal would be reached. He also said it would be up to the new investor to figure out the problems associated with a lack of service centers in North America -- engines now must be shipped to the factory in Europe for inspection and repair. And he added that since the factory is still operating and the service center is open, "There is no reason from our side that aircraft are AOG" -- a claim that aircraft owners whose Thielert engines are now up against life limits and no apparently viable options to keep them in the air, are sure to dispute. [more] Todd House, the founder of the Thielert Engine Owners Group, also called in to the conference, but his questions were politely defrayed by the company representatives. "This is a press conference, and you are welcome to listen in, but we are taking questions from the media only," they said. They added that a meeting with representatives from the owners group is scheduled for later this week and all of House's concerns would be addressed at that time. For more on this story, click here for analysis from Paul Bertorelli, editor in chief of Aviation Consumer, in the AVweb Insider Blog. More...

JET EXPO OPENS IN MOSCOW
Against a backdrop of international tensions over Russia's involvement in Georgia, Russia's biggest business aviation exhibition opens today. Geopolitics notwithstanding, JetExpo 2008 promises to be bigger than ever with all the major manufacturers represented in the static display at Vnukovo Airport and hundreds of exhibitors filling the Crocus Expo exhibition center. The message seems to be that business aviation continues to be on a growth curve in Russia and some of the seminar topics reflect that. More...

FAA RELEASES ECLIPSE REPORT
The FAA has posted online its report reviewing the certification of the Eclipse E500 jet. FAA Acting Administrator Bobby Sturgell said last week the FAA is committed to acting on each of the six recommendations from the review team, headed by former Boeing executive Jerry Mack, but the full text of the report was not released until this week. "The team did not identify any unsafe condition needing immediate attention within the areas reviewed," the report states. It lists eight "findings," which include the panel's observations that issues with the jet's stall warning, screen blanking, trim, and flaps were all adequately checked in the certification process. However, "The FAA flight-test function of the certification program was not staffed with an appropriate mix of flight-test engineers and pilots," the report says, and "communication among parties was not effective." More...

EMBRAER BULKS UP SERVICE CENTER NETWORK
Things appear to be happening in the correct order for Embraer as the company prepares for the entry into service of its first very light jet, not to mention aircraft barely off the drawing board. On Monday, Embraer opened a 47,700-square-foot service center in Mesa, Ariz., to look after the Phenom 100, Phenom 300, Legacy 450, Legacy 500 and Legacy 600 business aircraft. "The grand opening of this service center reinforces Embraer's long-term commitment to providing a full-service support network for its growing fleet of executive jets in North America and signals its readiness for the Phenom 100 to enter service," said Edson Carlos Mallaco, Embraer Vice President, Customer Support and Services, Executive Jets. More...

NTSB WANTS BETTER-TRAINED PILOTS AND SEATBELTS FOR SKYDIVERS
The NTSB on Tuesday released a special report identifying several recurring safety issues with parachute jump operations, and recommended improvements in aircraft maintenance and pilot training. The report was prompted by a crash in July 2006 in Missouri, when an engine failed shortly after takeoff in a de Havilland DHC-6-100. The pilot and five parachutists were killed, and two other parachutists were seriously injured. Since 1980, 172 people have died in 32 skydiving-related accidents that had nothing to do with the act of actually jumping from the airplane and deploying the chute. The board found a "pattern of safety deficiencies" in aircraft maintenance, pilot training, and FAA oversight. For example, the board found in its final report on the 2006 accident, released this week, that more parachutists may have survived if better restraints had been used. "This clearly emphasizes the importance of implementing our recommendations designed to increase survivability when an accident does occur," said NTSB Acting Chairman Mark Rosenker. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: THIELERT'S RECOVERY — CALL US SKEPTICAL
Thielert's insolvency master says it has found investors for the troubled diesel engine maker. AVweb Editorial Director Paul Bertorelli doesn't see how they find value in the company, and that's the subject of his latest post to the AVweb Insider Blog. More...

HELP AVWEBBIZ SPREAD YOUR NBAA NEWS
The world's most important business aviation event, the National Business Aviation Association's annual convention, is coming up Oct. 6-8 in Orlando and there will be hundreds of product announcements and updates. AVweb will be there with daily coverage of the events, news conferences and announcements that make this show so important but if your company has something more than 100,000 business aviation decision-makers need to know about, we're encouraging you to let us know in advance. That way we can give your news the full attention it deserves and make sure it's released in a timely fashion during our coverage. Don't worry. We'll strictly observe all embargos. Send your advance material to rniles@avweb.com and thanks for your help in making our coverage the most comprehensive available. More...

HOW TO FIND CHEAP(ER) GAS
There's no such things as cheap gas. Nonetheless, prices vary as much as $3 per gallon from one FBO to another and that's more than $100 on a typical fill-up. Our sister publication, Aviation Consumer, is conducting a survey on how pilots find the best prices on gas. To chime in, e-mail avconsumer@comcast.net.

(The results will appear in a future issue of Aviation Consumer. For subscription information, click here.) More...

AVWEB'S NEWSTIPS ADDRESS ...
Our best stories start with you. If you've heard something 200,000 pilots might want to know about, tell us. Submit news tips via email to newstips@avweb.com. What have you heard? More...

CLARE IN OEM ROLE

Robert Clare

Robert Clare is the new Director of OEM Marketing for Universal Avionics. He's been with Universal for 15 years.
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KENAGA TO PATENT PARTNER

Michael Kenaga

Michael Kenaga brings his 20 years of experience to Patzik, Frank & Samotny Ltd. in Chicago. A private pilot and former electrical engineering, Mike's patent practice includes all mechanical and electrical related matters. Mike owns a Cessna 195 and is the AOPA ASN volunteer at C09.
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ISHAM PROMOTED AT PARKER HANNIFIN

Shawn Isham

Shawn Isham has been promoted to Marketing Manager for Parker Hannifin Nichols Airborne Division Customer Support Operations effective immediately. Isham joined Parker Hannifin in 1998 and has held various positions in Customer Support within Parker Aerospace.
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WHO'S WHERE? YOU TELL US
Get a promotion or a new job? Your colleagues want to know about it, and AVwebBiz can get the word out. Drop us a line about the staff appointment, with a nice recent photo, and we'll do our best to include it in our new section, "Who's Where." The items will be permanently archived on AVweb for future reference, too. More...

MEET THE AVWEBBIZ TEAM

AVwebBiz is a weekly summary of the latest business aviation news, articles, products, features, and events featured on AVweb, the internet's aviation magazine and news service.

The AVwebBiz team is:

Publisher
Timothy Cole

Editorial Director, Aviation Publications
Paul Bertorelli

Editor-in-Chief
Russ Niles

Contributing Editors
Mary Grady
Glenn Pew

Features Editor
Kevin Lane-Cummings

Webmaster
Scott Simmons

Contributors
Mariano Rosales
Jeff van West

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