THE BURLINGTON JET FACTORY: HONDA CHOOSES ENGINE SITE
Honda Aero Inc. and the Alamance Airport Authority yesterday signed an agreement to bring the airframer's new engine manufacturing facility to the Burlington-Alamance Regional Airport outside Burlington, N.C. The deal, expected to provide 30 jobs by next year and some 140 by 2013, involves the authority's selling to Honda 90 acres on the airport's east side. The land will be used for a three-phase project slated to include Honda Aero's headquarters and a manufacturing facility for the GE Honda Aero Engines' HF-120, which powers the forthcoming HondaJet. GE Honda Aero Engines is a joint venture between GE and Honda Aero, established in 2004 for the development, certification and commercialization of jet engines in the 1,000 to 3,500 pounds thrust class. Additional phases at the Burlington facility likely will include a service center. According to early reports, nothing in the deal diminishes Greensboro, N.C., as Honda's choice for final assembly of the to-be-certificated light jet. More...

BRAZILIAN CONGRESS BLAMES LEGACY PILOTS FOR MIDAIR
An inquiry conducted by the lower house in Brazil's Congress just concluded U.S. pilots Jean Paul Paladino and Joseph Lepore, who were flying the Embraer Legacy operated by U.S.-based ExcelAire during a midair collision last September with a Gol Transportes Aereos Boeing 737-800, are partially to blame for the fatal accident. Meanwhile, another congressional inquiry, along with an investigation by Brazil's accident investigation team, continues. The completed report found Paladino and Lepore were insufficiently trained in operating the Legacy and negligently disregarded ICAO and Brazilian aviation regulations, engaged in "imprudent handling of the aircraft" and had "poor situational awareness." The inquiry concluded the two pilots should be charged with involuntary manslaughter by having placed an aircraft or vessel at risk. Additionally, the inquiry determined three air traffic controllers had committed the same crime, while one controller should be indicted on voluntary manslaughter. The two pilots and three controllers could face sentences of up to 12 years; the lone controller faces up to 20 years. More...

MEANWHILE, EMBRAER CREWS: WATCH WHERE YOU PUT YOUR FEET
Anyone flying an Embraer Legacy or EMB-135/140/145 regional jet should be very careful where they place their feet while airborne. That's according to the FAA, which earlier this month issued a Safety Alert For Operators (SAFO) [PDF] noting pilots "might inadvertently change VHF radio frequencies or place the ATC transponder into standby mode during flight." [Yes, AVweb is aware of the circumstances surrounding the midair collision covered in the story above.] Apparently, an FAA investigation into an undisclosed issue resulted in the agency's discovering "crewmembers who had the simple habit of placing their shoe on the footrest just below the instrument panel could inadvertently put the ATC transponder into standby mode" or change radio frequencies without the crew's knowledge. More...

SINO SWEARINGEN SAID TO BE EXPECTING NEW CEO
According to the San Antonio (Texas) Express-News newspaper, troubled airframer Sino Swearingen Aircraft Corp. is expecting Monday to welcome its fourth chief executive in five years. Although the new, seven-seat light jet is the fastest in its class, its manufacturer has had ongoing management and financial issues, which some blame for the company's leadership turmoil. Compounding the confusion, Ching-Chiang Kuo -- presumably to be the company's former chairman and CEO -- told the newspaper last week he had resigned effective July 2, yet other company officials said Kuo remained on the job. As if that was not bad enough, the Express-News reported Kuo told it his replacement is someone "he knows only as Dr. Lo, who is from Taiwan's Aerospace Industry Development Corp." More...

FAA PROPOSES CABIN-STANDARDS RELIEF FOR PART 25 OPERATORS
Those using Part 25 of the FAA's rules -- generally private operators of large transport category aircraft -- may get some relief from existing and often problematic regulations concerning how their cabins are laid out and equipped. If it happens, it would be courtesy of new regulatory changes the agency proposed last week. The FAA says its proposed rule would create new standards in lieu of the specific requirements affecting transport category airplanes operated by air carriers and would "provide alternative criteria for transport category airplanes that are operated for private use while continuing to provide an acceptable level of safety for those operations." Since it is a proposed rule, not a final one, the FAA is asking for comments from the public. Interested parties have until Oct. 11, 2007, to submit their reactions to the proposed rules. More...

FLIGHTSAFETY EXPANDS GULFSTREAM CUSTOMER TRAINING
FlightSafety International last week announced it will manufacture a fourth Gulfstream G200 aircraft simulator for use at the company’s Learning Center in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas. The new equipment is expected to be available for training during the fourth quarter of 2008. The new G200 simulator will be equipped with FlightSafety’s electric motion and control loading system, which the company says "offers the highest level of aircraft fidelity, enhanced performance and numerous environmental advantages compared to previous generation devices." The G200 simulator will also be equipped with FlightSafety’s new visual system, dubbed "VITAL X." It features continuous global high-resolution satellite imagery and accurately portrays environmental conditions experienced during all phases of flight. More...

FLEXJET EARNS 8TH FAA DIAMOND AWARD
Bombardier Flexjet, the fractional business jet ownership program of Bombardier Aerospace, this week said its maintenance organization has once again been recognized by the FAA with the agency's highest honor for maintenance training, the FAA Diamond Award. Flexjet says it is the only fractional jet ownership program that has received the award for eight years. The FAA created the awards program to encourage aviation maintenance technicians and their employers to actively participate in training programs. To qualify for the employer award, at least 50 percent of an organization’s maintenance technicians must pass specialized, continuous training in aircraft systems, regulations and FAA rules over a 12-month period. In addition to its latest Diamond Award, Flexjet added, it recently completed a full, three-year registration audit in May 2006, leading to being certified as an AS9100-compliant organization. The AS9100 program demands meeting a number of engineering and standards organization requirements throughout the world, along with those imposed by regulatory agencies. More...

NBAA NAMES MOSS, EPPS AWARD WINNERS
The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) this week said it selected Bryan T. Moss, president emeritus of Gulfstream Aerospace, to receive the association's 2007 Award for Meritorious Service to Aviation; E. Patrick Epps, pilot and founder of Epps Aviation, will receive its 2007 John P. "Jack" Doswell Award. This year's NBAA Annual Meeting and Convention is set for Atlanta, and the awards help recognize the two's strong ties to the business aviation industry and to NBAA, as well as to Georgia, according to the association. This year's convention not only marks NBAA's 60th annual meeting but also Gulfstream's 40th anniversary in Georgia and the state's 100th anniversary of powered flight. Not coincidentally, Georgia's first powered flight was conducted by Ben Epps, Pat Epps' father. A replica of the monoplane flown by the elder Epps will hang over the lobby of Hall C at the Georgia World Congress Center during this year's NBAA convention. Moss and Epps each will receive their awards during the association's Awards Luncheon on Tuesday, Sept. 25. More...

CAN TAPS PELTON AND ROSANVALLON FOR BOARD
The Corporate Angel Network (CAN) last week announced the election of two new members to its board of directors: Jack J. Pelton, chairman, president and CEO of Cessna Aircraft Company; and John G. Rosanvallon , president and CEO of Dassault Falcon Jet Corporation. Both Cessna and Dassault have been longtime participants in CAN, the national public charity that arranges free flights to treatment for cancer patients using empty seats on business aircraft. Pelton and Rosanvallon join existing board members Chairman Randall Greene, Paul Bollinger, Dave Hurley, Dick Koenig, Wilson Leach, Isabel Olcott, and Jim Schuster. More...

PHOENIX ACQUIRES JET AVIATION SERVICES INC.
Phoenix Associates Land Syndicate (Phoenix) last week announced it had acquired Jet Aviation Services Inc. (J.A.S.), based at the Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, Calif. Phoenix said its latest acquisition complements its existing facilities in other U.S. regions but for which, until now, it had no West Coast location. Phoenix, a public holding company, has assets and/or interests in a variety of industries beyond aviation, including land development, oil and natural gas, commodity brokering, plumbing, trucking, contract hauling, construction and swimming pool construction. The company also notes J.A.S. is located in Hangar #2 at Burbank, which was home to the Lockheed Electra flown by Amelia Earhart. More...

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.

Today's issue was written by Joseph E. (Jeb) Burnside (bio).

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