Volume 4, Number 1 — January 11, 2006

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BROADENING THE SPECTRUM: NEW DESIGN MAKES FIRST FLIGHT
Spectrum Aeronautical, LLC, last Saturday successfully flew its new Spectrum 33 twinjet for the first time from the company's facility at Spanish Fork, Utah, marking the next step in a development program that was largely unknown until its formal announcement at last year's NBAA annual convention. The Spectrum 33 is a lightweight bizjet built using a "next-generation, carbon-graphite construction process," according to a company statement, but designed to cruise at up to 415 knots and feature a 2,000-nm range. Spectrum's engineering plans say the new plane will consume half as much fuel as current-production aircraft of the same size, range and speed because of its lightweight construction. As we reported in November, Spectrum is headed by long-time industry veteran Linden Blue who led Beechcraft in 1983 when the Starship was born and later served as general manager at Learjet and was CEO of Learfan. “This marks an important point in our development program,” said Blue. “Weight reduction is key to boosting fuel efficiency and lowering operating costs. The first flight of Spectrum 33 is a testament to the dedication and hard work put in by an extremely talented team.” More...

BOISTURE OUT AT NETJETS
After slightly more than two years with the company, Bill Boisture last week resigned his position as president of NetJets, the U.S.’s premiere fractional operator. According to a company statement, Boisture will continue to work for NetJets as a consultant under a long-term agreement. That statement added that W. Boisture & Associates LLC -- a consulting firm headed by its namesake -- will support and assist NetJets on several strategic projects. Boisture joined the company, a unit of Berkshire Hathaway, in October 2003. “Bill has made a strong mark on the NetJets operations,” said Richard Santulli, chairman and CEO of NetJets. Boisture came to NetJets after some 10 years at Gulfstream, from which he retired as president in 2003. Boisture is a U.S. Air Force academy graduate; he was decorated for his military service, which included flying fighter jets. More...

ECLIPSE 500 CERTIFICATION DELAYED
Blaming supplier delays -- not regulatory issues -- Eclipse Aviation late last month formally announced a delay in certifying its Eclipse 500 very light jet (VLJ). Even though the Eclipse program is one of the best-financed and best-managed to come from a start-up company in recent years, the delay was not a surprise: Eclipse officials were telegraphing the postponement during the recent NBAA annual convention. Last month's announcement -- moving the planned certification date from March 2006 to late in the second calendar quarter of 2006 (read: late June) -- will obviously delay customer deliveries. "We have always been honest and forthcoming about our challenges, and today we are sharing an issue that will affect the timing of the Eclipse 500 certification program," said Vern Raburn, the company's president and CEO. "Over the last few months, we have been working with our suppliers to recover their schedules. Unfortunately, an in-depth assessment of the new schedules has made it clear that these slips will force a delay in our overall certification effort." More...

FAA CERTIFIES BEECHCRAFT KING AIR C90GT
If the hype surrounding VLJs -- including their pricing, performance, reliability and automation -- is any indication, companies marketing non-VLJ turbine airplanes in the sub-$3-million price range may have to come up with innovative ways to add value and retain customers. Which has a lot to do with Raytheon's latest offering, the Beechcraft King Air C90GT, certified by the FAA in December. Billed as "the latest evolution" of the baby King Air series, the C90GT features enhanced performance resulting from fitting Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-135 engines to the venerable airframe. In fact, the company is not at all bashful about targeting VLJs: Beechcraft President and General Manager Randy Groom said in a statement, “On typical missions, the C90GT will deliver its passengers in a nearly fifty percent larger cabin and within minutes of even the closest competitive very light jet." The King Air C90GT's certification brings to four the number of new types Raytheon certified in 2005. More...

RAYTHEON MARKS 300TH JPATS WITH PLANS FOR MORE
While Raytheon would love to sell you a re-engined King Air 90, they're just as happy selling single-engine trainers to the military. Earlier this month, the company announced it had begun producing the 300th copy of the T-6A Joint Primary Aircraft Training System (JPATS) aircraft, which both the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy use in their respective primary pilot training programs. Meanwhile, the services have decided to exercise their options on new copies of the two-seat trainer. This current option exercise extends deliveries into 2009. To date, the two U.S. military branches have ordered 418 T-6A aircraft; 283 have been delivered. “Raytheon Aircraft Company is proud of the success of the T-6A,” said Jim Smith, vice president of Government Business at Raytheon Aircraft Company. More...

PILATUS, PIAGGIO BREAK INTO NEW NATIONAL MARKETS
Two non-U.S. airframers this month announced their respective first-ever sales in third-party countries, providing further evidence of business aviation's increasingly global reach. Our first success story comes courtesy of Switzerland's Pilatus, which announced its first delivery of a PC-12 turboprop single to Brazil. OceanAir Táxi Aéreo, its exclusive dealer for Brazil, which was appointed in March 2005, sold the new aircraft to its end customer. Meanwhile, Italy's Piaggio Aero Industries matched Pilatus' entry into the Brazilian market by selling a P.180 Avanti II twin turboprop in -- where else? -- Switzerland. Maybe these two should get together in a smoke-filled room somewhere. More...

NTSB REACTS TO 2004 EUROCOPTER CRASH, RECOMMENDS SB COMPLIANCE
The National Transportation Safety Board this week formally recommended that the FAA require operators to comply with an existing service bulletin affecting Eurocopter model AS-350-BA helicopters in the wake of a 2004 accident that injured three. The accident, which involved a television news operation on May 4, destroyed the helicopter and resulted from a loss of hydraulic system power while hovering. The NTSB's investigation determined that the hydraulic pump drive belt failed in flight, approximately 160 flight hours short of its 600-hour life limit. Post-accident examination of the hydraulic pump drive belt at the NTSB's Materials Laboratory found the belt had been installed inside out. According to the NTSB, the belt's failure and subsequent lack of power to the ship's hydraulic pump meant a rapid loss of hydraulic system pressure. More...

JET AVIATION NAMES NEW GM AT TEB
Jet Aviation (Teterboro) has a new general manager. The FBO named John Langevin as the facility's senior vice president and general manager, succeeding Michael Szczechowski, who was promoted to senior vice president and general manager of Jet Aviation's aircraft management services in the United States. In his new position, Langevin will oversee the TEB FBO. More...

FAA NAMES NEW CIO
In another personnel change of import to business aviation, the FAA this month named David Bowen as the agency's new Chief Information Officer and Assistant Administrator for Information Services. Bowen replaces Dan Mehan, who left the FAA at the end of September 2005, and interim CIO Walter Iwanow. Bowen comes to the FAA from Blue Shield California, one of the largest not-for-profit health plans in that state, where he served as senior vice president and chief information officer. Bowen will formally join the agency Feb. 21. More...

WATCH YOUR INBOX...
...the next issue of AVweb's BizAVflash will be e-mailed to you on Jan. 25. More...

Business AVflash is a twice-monthly summary of the latest business aviation
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