WITCHING HOUR? ECLIPSE NEARS CERTIFICATION DEADLINE
Eclipse Aviation's self-imposed June 30 deadline for FAA certification was looming large in Albuquerque this week as the company worked to clean up details and heave itself over the finish line. All signs -- public and private -- point to a photo finish later this month when company officials hope both the stars and its suppliers will align perfectly with the FAA's paperwork requirements to produce that magic piece of paper. While no one at Eclipse would go on the record with AVweb when we asked the inevitable "howgozit" question, we can read between the lines as well as the next guy or gal and offer up this not-so-earthshaking prediction: It's too close to call. Indications are that a small handful of items remain to be finalized before the FAA can act. Whether those challenges can be met and the airplane certificated by June 30 is anyone's guess. And we're not going to stick out our neck that far. More...

"YOU'RE GONNA NEED A LONGER RUNWAY"
Just when you thought it was safe to land on that rain-slick runway, the FAA may be about to change the rules. A formal FAA document, published in the Federal Register on June 7 and labeled an "advance notice of policy statement," says the agency on June 30 will issue a revision to existing policy governing turbojet operators and the landing distances they require. The change in policy stems from December 2005's landing overrun accident at Chicago's Midway Airport, involving a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 and a fatality, the carrier's first. As a result of that accident -- helped along, no doubt, by the NTSB -- the FAA says it conducted an internal review of regulations, orders, notices, advisory circulars, ICAO and foreign country requirements, airplane manufacturer-developed material, independent source material and the current practices of air carrier operators to develop its new policy. And what does that policy say? Just this: "No later than September 1, 2006, turbojet operators will be required to have procedures in place to ensure that a full stop landing, with at least a 15% safety margin beyond the actual landing distance, can be made on the runway to be used, in the conditions existing at the time of arrival, and with the deceleration means and airplane configuration that will be used." In other words, according to the FAA, "absent an emergency, after the flightcrew makes this assessment using the air carrier's FAA-approved procedures, if at least the 15% safety margin is not available, the pilot may not land the aircraft." To implement the policy change, the FAA will issue mandatory OpSpec/MSpec C082, "Landing Performance Assessments After Dispatch," for all turbojet operators. The FAA says all "turbojet operators shall be brought into compliance with this notice and [its requirements] no later than October 1, 2006." The new OpSpec/MSpec C082 will be available from the FAA by June 30. 2006. More...

BOMBARDIER CELEBRATES LEARJET 45/65 MILESTONES
Bombardier Aerospace last week said its Learjet program had reached two major milestones: delivery of the 300th Learjet 45 and the 300th Learjet 60 aircraft. In commemoration, Bombardier conducted the two delivery ceremonies at the same spot where Bill Lear designed and built the original some 44 years ago. The 300th Learjet 45 was delivered to a U.S.-based distributor of agricultural products while a Finnish company accepted the 300th Learjet 60. "Sixteen years ago, Bombardier made a commitment to invest in new Learjet aircraft programs. This twin delivery milestone is a testament to the wisdom of that vision and to the enduring popularity of the legendary Learjet business jet,” said Mike Kanaley, vice-president and general manager, Learjet. Since acquiring Learjet Inc. in 1990, Bombardier has launched eight new Learjet models, the most recent being the Learjet 60 XR, which is currently in a comprehensive flight test and certification program. More...

FIRST CITATION MUSTANG DEMONSTRATION AIRCRAFT TAKES FLIGHT
Cessna's first production Citation Mustang took flight last week, according to the company. The aircraft, the first jet assembled in Independence, Kan., flew two weeks ahead of schedule. Cessna said the new "baby" Citation will enter service in December as its first Mustang demonstrator aircraft. It is the fourth Mustang produced, and the first one that will not be used for FAA flight testing. Mustangs 0004 through 0015 are currently on the production line at Cessna's manufacturing facility in Independence. The three Mustangs dedicated to certification are the Mustang prototype and serial numbers 0001 and 0002. Certification flight hours on the three airplanes now total more than 1,250. FAA certification is expected later this year. The first Mustang customer delivery is scheduled for the first quarter of 2007. More...

EMBRAER CUTS METAL FOR PHENOM 100 JET
Embraer earlier this month said it has begun cutting metal for the first Phenom 100 business jet at the company’s main assembly plant in São José dos Campos, Brazil. The first part, a fuselage component connecting to an engine pylon, was milled from a block of aluminum alloy by a fully automated machining center driven by data from a "digital mock-up," according to the company. After the operation's completion, a quality-control process employing ultrasound and laser devices for validation with the digital mock-up approved the part. "We are very pleased to announce the first metal cut of the first Phenom 100, a landmark event for the program,” saidLuís Carlos Affonso, senior vice president, Executive Jets. “This achievement is solid proof of Embraer’s focus and commitment to the Phenom program and to delivering a revolutionary jet that will offer the very finest in flight experience.” The entire Phenom 100 production process was planned and simulated with digital manufacturing in mind, as well as the use of production simulations of aluminum and composite parts, assembly operations and ergonomics More...

DAYJET NAMES FIRST FLORIDA SERVICE LOCATIONS
DayJet, the "per-seat, on-demand" start-up operation planning to use a fleet of Eclipse 500 VLJs to provide regional air service, last week announced its first five service points, which the company dubbed "DayPorts." The cities, all in Florida, are Boca Raton, Gainesville, Lakeland, Pensacola and Tallahassee, which DayJet says were selected for their strong business climate and limited transportation infrastructure (read "limited or no scheduled service.") The company said it is in "final negotiations" with FBOs and airports in each of the five cities to operate its DayPorts, the concept for which includes passenger facilities, maintenance, dispatch and administrative space requirements. “Limited transportation is the most common growth impediment for smaller, economically diverse and socially vibrant communities,” said Ed Iacobucci, DayJet president and CEO. “The Florida cities we have selected to launch our service each have a strong business climate, a well-educated and technology savvy workforce, and an unsurpassed quality-of-life but each is underserved by existing transport networks, inhibiting their full economic potential." Sounds tailor-made for general aviation, doesn't it? More...

GULFSTREAM V EXAMPLE RACKS UP 10,000 FLIGHT HOURS
A Swiss-based Gulfstream V (GV) business jet operated as a charter aircraft earlier this month surpassed 10,000 flight hours and 2,411 takeoffs/landings, Gulfstream Aerospace said. The GV reached the milestone during an overnight flight from Lilongwe International Airport in Malawi, Africa, to London-Luton Airport in England. “The GV has proven to be extremely reliable,” said Peter Fried, executive chairman and chief executive officer of the aircraft's operator, G5 Executive. G5 Executive took delivery of the GV on May 5, 1998. More...

JET AVIATION DUSSELDORF NAMED FAA REPAIR STATION
Jet Aviation this week said its Dusseldorf facility was recently named an FAA certified repair station, allowing it to perform scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, airframe and engine repairs, avionics modifications, inspections and defect rectifications on U.S. registered aircraft. With the approval for Dusseldorf, Jet Aviation now has two FAA-certified repair stations in Germany, including Hannover. The newly certified facility offers complete maintenance, repair and overhaul, avionics, refurbishment, FBO and 24-hour AOG services. It is an authorized service center for the Cessna Citation series and the Raytheon Aircraft Beech series, including the Premier I, as well as for the Embraer Legacy ERJ 135CJ and Avanti Piaggio. Maintenance work can also be performed on the Hawker 400 XP and 800 More...

PILATUS ANNOUNCES PC-12 REGIONAL OPERATORS CONFERENCE
Pilatus Business Aircraft earlier this month announced launching the first in a series of regional Operators Conferences for its popular PC-12 turboprop single. The first PC-12 regional Operators Conference is scheduled for Aug. 17, 2006, in Manchester, N.H. All PC-12 owners, operators and Service Center personnel are invited to attend. The conference will be a full-day, interactive meeting focusing on maintenance and operational issues. For additional information, interested parties should contact Piotr “Pete” Wolak, Pilatus vice president of customer service. More...

CONTRAILS' IMPACT WORSE AT NIGHT?
It's been a while since we heard from the chemtrail crowd -- the foil-hatted bunch who believe jet contrails are really the deployment of mind-control chemicals -- but news coming out of a UK-based university may have them howling at the moon again. The reason is a new study that concludes -- get this -- that nighttime jet operations may have a greater impact on the world climate than those formed during daylight hours. The study -- conducted by the Meteorology Department at Great Britain's University of Reading and published this week in Nature -- suggests that a widespread adoption of night-flying restrictions could help minimize the impact. The study shows that even though only one in four flights over the UK occur during the night, these flights are responsible for at least 60% of the climate warming associated with aircraft condensation trails (contrails). More...

PLAN YOUR NEXT TRIP WITH AVWEB'S FUEL FINDER

For local prices, enter your U.S. ZIP Code or Airport Identifier: Fuel prices provided weekly by AirNav, based on prices from the past 2 weeks. Changes are relative to last week.

Ever wonder what the national average is for a gallon of avgas? Need to find up-to-the-minute fuel prices at all the FBOs along your route? Starting this week, you can answer those questions and plan your flights with AVweb's new Fuel Finder (to your right). Featuring data provided by AirNav, the Fuel Finder will appear in every issue of AVwebBiz -- listing the latest prices for 100LL and Jet A and showing you how much those prices have risen or fallen in the last seven days. To get local fuel prices, just enter a U.S. ZIP Code or a 3- or 4-letter Airport Identifier into the Fuel Finder and click "Go."

WATCH YOUR INBOX...
...the next issue of AVweb's BizAVflash will be e-mailed to you on July 5. More...