NO SURVIVORS IN AEROMEDICAL CITATION CRASH
Monday afternoon's crash into Lake Michigan of a Cessna Citation Bravo engaged in transporting human organs for transplant killed all six aboard the flight, including the two crew and four medical team members. The jet, N550BP, had just launched from Milwaukee's General Mitchell International Airport (KMKE), headed for the Willow Run Airport (KYPS) near Detroit, when its crew reportedly declared an emergency and stated its intention to return to KMKE. Seconds later, after climbing to approximately 2,000 feet MSL, the jet was lost from radar as it descended through 600 feet. Within an hour, searchers discovered aircraft wreckage -- including human remains -- and a jet fuel slick on Lake Michigan's surface roughly a mile east of Milwaukee's lakeshore. Reported weather at KMKE within minutes of the crash included northerly winds at 10 knots with gusts to 19, nine statute miles' visibility in light rain, scattered clouds at 1600 feet, a broken cloud layer at 3000 feet and an overcast at 3500 feet. The Citation Bravo was leased from Southland, Mich.-based Toy Air and operated by Marlin Air for the University of Michigan Survival Flight air ambulance program. The medical team aboard the flight was composed of University of Michigan employees. More...

EMBRAER DENIES MALFUNCTION IN BRAZILIAN MIDAIR; PILOTS INDICTED
The aftermath of last September's midair collision between a Gol Airlines Boeing 737-800 and a brand-new Embraer Legacy 600 bizjet operated by U.S.-based ExcelAire has become more complicated in recent days. Last week, a Brazilian federal judge indicted the two Legacy pilots, Joseph Lepore, 42, and Jan Paul Paladino, 34, who prosecutors say accidentally turned off the plane's transponder. At the same time, additional indictments were made against four unnamed air traffic controllers, presumably for failing to monitor the Legacy. Meanwhile, the bizjet's manufacturer said this week that there was no indication its transponder had malfunctioned, a position echoed late last year by Honeywell, which made the equipment and denied it was subject to an Airworthiness Directive designed to prevent the unit from inadvertently going into standby mode. Embraer President Frederico Fleury Curado told a Brazilian congressional commission "there was no equipment failure" aboard the Legacy before the collision, which resulted in the deaths of all 154 aboard the 737. "We have to remove any affirmation that there was a problem with the transponder," he said, according to published reports. More...

HONDA: ENGINE PLANT LOCATION NOT YET FINAL
If Honda Aircraft Co. Inc. doesn't set up a plant to manufacture its forthcoming jet engines in Burlington, N.C., city fathers may have a local politician to blame. Last Friday, state Representative Cary Allred let it slip that North Carolina transportation department officials told him Honda and Burlington would announce a deal to locate the new plant "in about two weeks." Honda, which typically would frown upon letting such a cat out of the bag, took a predictably dim view of the shenanigans, allowing Jeffrey Smith, the vice president of corporate affairs for American Honda Motor Co. Inc., to say only, “Honda is considering its options both within North Carolina and within other states. Nothing is a done deal at this point.” Honda is gearing up to produce its new HondaJet at the nearby Piedmont Triad International Airport in 2010, but has yet to establish a facility to manufacture the HF120 engines it will use. According to published reports, Burlington has been -- or at least thinks it has been -- a candidate location for the engine manufacturing facility. More...

EBACE2007 DECLARED A SUCCESS
Time for a quick quiz: What has 11,267 attendees, 354 exhibitors, 1,423 booth spaces and 61 business aircraft on display? If you answered, "the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE2007)," held late last month in Geneva, you'd be correct. The event's sponsors -- the European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) and the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA), report this year's show was the "biggest and best in the show’s seven-year history." As evidence, both EBAA and NBAA compare the numbers above with last year's tallies of 9,743 attendees -- a 15-percent jump -- and 292 exhibitors, 1,206 booth spaces and "only" 56 business aircraft on display. The organizations report the three-day event helped promote safety and operational excellence throughout the region and was highlighted by the presentation of the EBACE2007 European Business Aviation Award to Judith Moreton, managing director of Bombardier Skyjet International, and to Mark Wilson, chief executive of the British Business and General Aviation Association, for their outstanding contributions to European business aviation. More...

CESSNA BOOKS 40 CITATIONS AT EBACE; EXPANDS PRESENCE AT LE BOURGET
Echoing EBAA and NBAA about EBACE2007's success, Cessna last week announced it took in commitments for 40 new Citation business jets at last month's event in Geneva. The commitments for 40 new airframes include an order for 25 Citation business jets received from JetAlliance, announced on May 24; Cessna expects deposits to firm all 40 orders by the end of June. The company also took orders for three Model 208 Caravans and one Model 206 Stationair piston single. Cessna also said it is expanding its presence at this year's Paris Air Show at Le Bourget, scheduled for next month. The company will bring its Citation CJ2+, Citation Encore+, Citation XLS and Citation Sovereign business jets; a Grand Caravan; a couple of piston singles; and a full-size cabin mock-up of its proposed Large Cabin Concept long-range business jet. More...

EUROCOPTER, FALCON AVIATION SERVICES AGREE ON MAINTENANCE
United Arab Emirates-based Falcon Aviation Services (FAS) last week said it inked an exclusive agreement with Eurocopter to make it the sole regional provider of helicopter maintenance services for the helicopter manufacturer. The agreement includes the launch of a Eurocopter Maintenance Center at FAS’s Al Bateen airbase to provide full maintenance services for Eurocopter helicopters in the Gulf region. Under the new pact, FAS and Eurocopter will work closely to develop systems and procedures for the new maintenance center, allowing FAS to benefit from Eurocopter’s global experience and strategic partnerships with some 100 similar facilities worldwide. Additionally, FAS said it was ordering an additional four helicopters from Eurocopter, increasing its fleet from eight to 12. More...

ROCKWELL, ARINC REINTRODUCE BROADBAND SERVICE
Rockwell Collins and ARINC said yesterday they have entered into an agreement to reintroduce the former's eXchange broadband connectivity service using ARINC's SKYLink satellite network. Rockwell's eXchange provides real time, two-way broadband connectivity of up to 3.5 Mbps to the aircraft and, when coupled with the SKYLink satellite service, customers aboard equipped aircraft will have access to the Internet and corporate intranet (VPN), e-mail, a flat-rate Voice over IP (VoIP) global telephone service, videoconferencing capability and more. Under the two companies' agreement, Rockwell Collins will supply airborne broadband hardware and after-sales support, while ARINC SKYLink will provide the Ku-band satellite service. ARINC also will continue to provide SKYLink system sales and support until the transition to Rockwell Collins eXchange hardware is completed. Coverage for eXchange using the SKYLink service is currently available in North America and Europe, with North Atlantic coverage to be added soon. Further international coverage expansion is planned for the Caribbean and portions of South and Central America. More...

IBAC ADMITS MEBAA
During last month's European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE 2007) in Geneva, the International Business Aviation Council's (IBAC) governing board voted to admit the Middle East Business Aviation Association (MEBAA) as a new member. The IBAC expansion gives MEBAA direct access to the latest developments occurring in the international business aviation industry, according to the association, which was launched only last year. The young association was formed by founding members Airbus, Bexair, Boeing Business Jets, Bombardier, Dassault Falcon, Emirates CAE, ExecuJet, Fairs & Exhibitions, Falcon Aviation Services, Gulfstream, Jet Aviation, JetEX, Lufthansa Technik, National Air Services (NAS), Royal Jet and Wallan Aviation. It now has more than 45 members and anticipates additional organizations will be joining soon. IBAC is a U.S-based non-profit, non-governmental association, representing business aviation's interests in international policy and regulatory forums. More...

SIGNATURE TO HANDLE NETJETS EUROPE FLIGHTS
Signature Flight Support and NetJets Europe last week announced the two companies have settled on a Europe-wide, multi-year handling agreement designating Signature as NetJets’ preferred handler at strategic FBO locations throughout Belgium, France, Greece, Ireland and the United Kingdom. The contract, which takes effect immediately, also includes Signature’s location in Cape Town, South Africa. The agreement also gives Signature an even greater market-share advantage over its competitors since NetJets Europe is the single largest bizjet operator in the region. More...

AMETEK ACQUIRES COMPONENT MANUFACTURER, OVERHAULER
Paoli, Penn.-based AMETEK Inc. this week said it is acquiring two Wichita-based suppliers to the growing business jet market, B&S Aircraft Parts & Accessories plus Advanced Industries Inc. B&S Aircraft Parts & Accessories is a third-party maintenance provider, including repair and overhaul services, concentrating on starter generators and hydraulic components, plus fuel systems, for a wide variety of turbine-powered airplanes and helicopters. Meanwhile, Advanced Industries Inc. makes starter generators, actuators cabin ventilation components and motors for similar aircraft. According to the Wichita Business Journal, the two companies have combined annual sales of $25 million. More...

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