Bart International 128

EDITORIAL

QR CODES

FROM THE DESK OF…

Fernand Francois

MAYBE YOU ARE TOO YOUNG to remember when the wrist radio and wrist TV of Dick Tracy were only pipe dreams. Such pet projects were considered as preposterous two generations ago as Buck Rogers flying around the world in a rocket was in the Thirties. But it all happened: wrist radios, wrist TVs and men on the moon.

You remember when the world’s masters of murder were pulling out all the stops to destroy Agent 007 in the James Bond movies? Exotic espionage equipment, bobby-trapped attaché cases, spy ball pen DVR cameras and battle-ship gray Aston Martins were just fiction in the Sixties and Seventies. But again, all this happened: cheap spy ball pens, spy sunglasses, GPS tracking, wireless video cameras, pen recorders, etc…

What once amazed me – snapping a picture with my mobile phone and emailing it to a friend – is today just routine. The Internet, email and e-commerce are now an integral part of my way of life.

And I am delighted by the fact that BART readers can now routinely access their magazine by simply logging onto our website.

In fact, I thought I had seen everything until last week when we received the advertising material for the ad you will discover on page 35. From the marketing desk to the production department, we all thought it was an error, maybe a virus in the file. Boy were we wrong! We neglected the fact that the material was coming from a company that is always on the cutting edge of new information technologies – gathering and conveying information faster.

It’s a long time that you are familiar with the bar code. But here comes the QR code – QR because they offer a “Quick Response” to readers with mobile phones and web enabled Smartphones. You take a picture or video scan of the QR code with your phone and wait.

A short message may display a web page could immediately load, a video might launch, an animation could start…anything is possible.

QR codes will replace or supplement traditional barcodes in many applications. The possibilities of interactive advertising are endless, since they provide a direct link to rich media online, are designed to be scanned much more quickly than linear barcodes, and can contain anywhere from a dozen to a hundred times more information.

Meanwhile, the role of paper advertising will not disappear, as newspapers and magazines may deeply involve specific interest groups and provide editorial authority. The same for E-books.

E-books are great, but they cannot provide the physical feel of the cover, paper, and binding of the original printed work. Skype communications with your computer webcam is great, but do we prefer to see a loved one on a laptop or talk to him or her in person?

Make no mistake about it, hi-tech will come on strong. The explosion of electronic communications services to business and industry has become nothing but startling.

Yet there will never be a substitute for personal contact in the business world. Although technology has made some things obsolete, magazines and business aircraft are here to stay.

4 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

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Editor and Publisher Fernand M. Francois Senior Editor Marc Grangier Managing Editor Nicholas J. Klenske. Senior Writers Liz Moscrop, Jack Carroll Contributors Brian Humphries, Michel R. Grüninger, Capt. Giancarlo Buono, Markus Kohler, Aofie O’Sullivan, LeRoy Cook, Louis Smyth, Derek A. Bloom, Eugene Gerden Business Aviation Consultants Walter Scharff, Guy Visele Director Marketing & Advertising Kathy Ann Francois +32 472 333 636 e-mail advertising@bartintl.com Production Manager Tanguy Francois Photographer: Michel Coryn Circulation and Editorial Office: BART International, 20 rue de l’Industrie, BE1400 Nivelles, Europe Phone +326 788 3603 Fax +326 788 3623, e-mail info@bartintl.com BART International Business Aviation Real Tool (USPS #016707), ISSN 0776-7596 Governed by international copyright laws. Free subscription obtainable for qualified individuals. Bank account: Fortis 271-0061004-23. Printed in Belgium. Bimestriel.

Bureau de depot B-1380 Lasne. Responsible editor Fernand M. Francois, 38 rue de Braine 7110 La Louviere. Periodicals postage paid at Champlain, N.Y., and additional mailing offices. Address changes should be sent to IMS of N.Y., 100 Walnut St. #3, PO Box 1518, Champlain, N.Y. 12919-1518. For details call IMS at 1 (800) 428 3003

SECTIONS EDITORIAL FAST TRACK EURO/BUSINESS NEWS EBAA: CEO CORNER INSIGHT

SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2010 Volume XXI - No 4 BART No 128 WWW.BARTINTL.COM

OUR ADVERTISERS AND THEIR AGENCIES 25 9 37 63 2-3 20 27 57 71 11

Air BP Aircell LLC AMSTAT Avinode Bombardier (COSSETTE MEDIA) CRS Jet Spares EBACE 2011 FlightSafety International (GRETEMAN GROUP) Future Business Jet Conference Gulfstream (BLITZ MEDIA)

84 13 17 31 35 21 78 23 5 19 15 83 47

Hawker Beechcraft Corporation HondaJet (ROUND 2) Jet Aviation (PUBLICIS WERBEAGENTUR AG) JetExpo 2010 JetNet LLC Jet Support Services Inc. (JSSI) NBAA 2010 Powerplan Raisbeck Engineering Ruag Aviation AG (OTTIGER & PARTNER BSW AG) StandardAero Universal Avionics Universal Weather and Aviation

B USINESS A VIATION R EAL T OOL Member

CONTENTS

28

64

TO THE KREMLIN With Jet Expo set to take off in Moscow, this issue BART zooms in on the Russian market. Starting off with a Show Preview and Regional Report by Eugene Gerden, Derek A. Bloom then opens the Docket on Regulation in Russia and Universal Weather and Aviation’s Louis Smyth reports on Access to Moscow while Liz Moscrop checks in on the country’s FBO scene.

KEEP IT SAFE With a double-edition of From the Cockpit, LeRoy Cook zeros in on Situational Awareness and Complete Resource Management.

And the guys at Great Circle Services ask the question “Who’s flying the plane anyways?”.

52 KEEPING YOUR WINGS Effective recurrent training is the only way to keep your wings.

LeRoy Cook gives us an update on the Pilot Training sector, while Liz Moscrop covers Simulators and Senior Editor Marc Grangier talks about Pilot Training Aircraft.

74 READ ALL ABOUT IT!!

Liz Moscrop catches us up on all that took place at last summer’s Farnborough Airshow, and LeRoy Cook reports from rain-soaked Wisconsin, home of the annual Oshkosh Airshow.

And finally, Jack Carroll provides a profile of SmartAir and its ‘eureka’ moment.

UP TO DATE Developed by Sukhoi, the SuperJet 100 symbolizes the new generation of Russian aircraft.

OUR COVER Part of CAE Global Alliance, Sabena Flight Academy is one of Europe's oldest and most respected pilot and ab-initio training organizations.

FIRST DO 228 NEW GENERATION GETS AIRBORNE

AGENDA JETEXPO 15 - 17 SEPTEMBER 2010 Moscow, Russia NBAA CONVENTION 19 - 21 OCTOBER 2010 Atlanta, U.S.A MEBA 7 - 9 DECEMBER 2010 Dubai, U.A.E

AVIDYNE ANNOUNCES MONEY BACK GUARANTEE

Avidyne Corporation, a leading provider of integrated flight deck and safety systems for general aviation aircraft, announced they are offering a full Money Back Guarantee for customers who purchase a new DFC90 Digital Flight Control System with Flight Envelope Protection. Under the terms of this offer, if for any reason you are not satisfied with your DFC90 Autopilot Flight Computer compared with the performance of the S-TEC 55X, Avidyne will refund the entire cost of your upgrade and reinstall the S-TEC 55X.

CORPORATE ANGEL NETWORK FLIGHTS SET RECORD The organization that transports cancer patients to treatment in the empty seats of corporate jets arranged to carry 307 patients to treatment in July.

This is the largest number of monthly flights in its nearly 30-year history. Corporate Angel Network has arranged for almost 35,000 flights since its founding in 1981, working with physicians, corporate flight departments, and leading treatment centers to coordinate patient travel needs with the scheduled flight activity of participating corporations.

8 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

The extended type certification of the Do 228NG New Generation was granted to RUAG by EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) on August 18, 2010. It was two and a half years after project go-ahead that this important milestone was achieved. The successful first flight of the first series aircraft with the S/N 8300, which was completed in Oberpfaffenhofen after 14-month construction time, was already conducted on July 30, 2010. After a flight time of more than two and a half hours the Do 228NG returned to Oberpfaffenhofen.

GULFSTREAM G550, G500 CERTIFIED FOR NEW ZEALAND

Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. has received Type Certificate Validation (TCV) from the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand for the Gulfstream G550 and G500. The approvals allow operators to register the business jets in that country. The two aircraft join the large-cabin, longrange GIV, GIV-SP, G400 and G300, which New Zealand approved for registration in 2003.

AGUSTAWESTLAND UNVEILS THE AW169 AgustaWestland is proud to unveil the AW169, a new generation multi-purpose twin engine light transport utility helicopter designed in response to the growing market demand for higher mission flexibility and multi-role capability in the 4.5 ton class. The AW169 has been designed to meet the current and anticipated stringent requirements of commercial and government operators worldwide. The aircraft incorporates several new technology features, incorporated to provide the highest levels of safety and operational benefits for customers. A new generation, advanced aerodynamic rotor design will deliver excellent performance in the most demanding operating environments. The AW169 eco-friendly design also benefits from extensive use of composites, advanced airframe aerodynamics, next generation navigation avionics and state-of-the-art systems.

For those who are addicted, consider us an enabler.

With a SwiftBroadband system from Aircell aboard your aircraft, passengers can use Wi-Fi enabled devices such as PDAs, laptop computers and smartphones as easily as when they are on the ground. They can surf the Web, send and receive e-mail with attachments, download files and much more without interruption — wherever you fly in the world.

Aircell’s SwiftBroadband system is the lightest, smallest and most affordable Inmarsat package ever offered, backed by the recognized global leader in airborne voice and data communications. Now anyone can get a digital fix in the air, as we’re taking orders today.

For additional information, contact Jean-Luc Rosenfeld. jlucrosenfeld@aircell.com or +41 (32) 841 2838

©2010 Aircell Business Aviation Services LLC. All rights reserved.

HBC EXPANDS PRESENCE IN CHILE WITH AVIASUR Hawker Beechcraft Corporation (HBC) has appointed Aviasur as its exclusive Chilean authorized distributor for all Hawker and Beechcraft aircraft models. Aviasur is based in Santiago, and took delivery of the first Beechcraft King Air 350i in South America earlier this year. The firm recently completed construction on a $2.5 million facility and plans to offer aircraft charter, management and maintenance, as well as line service.

WEST STAR AVIATION INSTALLS F2000 SERIES BLENDED WINGLET

West Star Aviation, Inc. announced that they completed their first installation of an Aviation Partners, Inc. F2000 series Blended Winglet on a Falcon 2000EX. The proven winglet technology is beneficial to all Falcon 2000 series aircraft, as it increases both performance and fuel savings.

HBC CELEBRATES 15 YEAR PARTNERSHIP WITH LÍDER AVIAÇÃO

This year, Hawker Beechcraft Corporation (HBC) is celebrating its 15th year of partnership with Líder Aviação, its authorized distributor in Brazil. During this time, HBC’s family of turboprop and piston-engine aircraft has maintained a strong share of the marketplace in Latin America, especially in Brazil. For example, throughout the past three years, Latin America accounted for 22 percent of HBC’s King Air, Baron and Bonanza sales, with Brazil accounting for half of those transactions. Líder has been responsible for 58 percent of those piston-engine aircraft and turboprop sales during that same three-year period.

10 -BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

StandardAero MARYVILLE DELIVERS 5,000TH APU In August, StandardAero’s Maryville facility delivered its 5,000th auxiliary power unit (APU) since the program started in 1995.

StandardAero’s APU program in Maryville focuses on repair of Honeywell 36 and RE220 series engines as well as Hamilton Sundstrand APS2300 units for commercial airline and military operators via their OEM relationships. The site is a one-stop shop that not only repairs the APU, but all Line Replaceable Units (LRU’s) associated with the APU. Focused on repair versus replacement of parts, StandardAero works to reduce life-cycle costs of operation for its customers through increased reliability, and industry leading turnaround times.

LET THE JOURNEY

The Gulfstream G450 is the best business jet in its class. What’s more, the large-cabin, long-range aircraft shares some of the advanced technology of the Gulfstream G550, while also retaining the qualities of the highly successful GIV/GIV-SP series.

And that was the best-selling aircraft in its category.

Let the journey begin.

To learn more, please contact our regional vice presidents: Northern / Southern Europe: Steve Jones, +44 118 977 0180, steve.jones@gulfstream.com Central / Eastern Europe: Wolfgang Schneider, +49 172 811 1458, wolfgang.schneider@gulfstream.com Central Europe: Rebecca Johnson, +41 78 924 1420, rebecca.johnson@gulfstream.com

www.gulfstream.com/g450

BAE SYSTEMS WINS BOEING 767 REMARKETING MANDATE

SIGNATURE FLIGHT SUPPORT ADDS HANDLING SERVICES IN GERMAN

BAE Systems has won an exclusive mandate from aviation management group SETE Aviation of Switzerland to remarket a Boeing 767-300ER wide-body airliner on their behalf.

This aircraft, built in 2000, is a GE CF6-80C2B6F-powered variant that is currently configured in a corporate layout with 50 first class seats reflecting the fact that until recently it had been operating with Privatair, one of the world’s leading corporate aviation operating groups.

Before operation with Privatair, the aircraft was originally delivered to KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, which operated the aircraft in a three-class airline configuration.

In line with Signature’s Service Promise to deliver exceptional customer service, Signature Flight Support now offers assistance to its customers in coordinating flight support services such as ground handling, fuel, catering, hotels, limousines and more at airports throughout Germany.

Through agreements with a network of existing fixed based operators (FBOs) and airport authorities at 12 airports across Germany, Signature Flight Support’s Munich location can now schedule flight support services for its customers, arrange credit and billing and offer a single invoice for all services received for the customer’s flights in Germany.

GE AVIATION UNVEILS CF34-3A2 UPGRADE GE Aviation is now offering an on-wing engine upgrade program for certain configurations of the CF34-3A2 engine that will allow the engines to go from a hardtime maintenance schedule to an on-condition maintenance schedule. The upgraded engines will have longer time on wing and greatly reduced maintenance costs with no scheduled hot section inspections or overhauls.

AIRCELL REBRANDS AS GOGO BIZ Aircell, the world’s leading provider of inflight connectivity announced that the company’s air-to-ground high-speed Internet service for the Business Aviation market – formerly known as Aircell High Speed Internet – has been rebranded as Gogo Biz™ Inflight Internet. The move will more closely align the company’s service in its two primary markets – Business Aviation and commercial airlines. The increased brand familiarity and new value-add programs will make it easier for travelers to enjoy the productivity-enhancing benefits of inflight Internet, regardless of the type of aircraft they’re aboard.

Gogo Biz is the only solution in business aviation that provides a true high speed Internet experience with equipment that is small and light enough to fit on virtually any business aircraft.

HONEYWELL ANNOUNCES JETMAP III UPGRADE

PANAMA GOVERNMENT ORDERS SIX A139

Honeywell announced JetMap III, a new moving map upgrade featuring worldwide three dimensional perspective views of terrain, ocean topography, enhanced graphics, and polar ice views.

JetMap III provides real-time flight data, passenger situational awareness information, and data services for news, business, weather, and sports.

AgustaWestland is pleased to announce the signing of a contract by the Government of Panama for six AW139 medium twin engine helicopters. The contract also includes pilot and maintainer conversion to type training. Four aircraft will be equipped to perform a wide range of national and public security roles, one will be used for utility missions and the last aircraft will be used to transport senior government officials and other VIPs.

12 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

JSSI FOCUSES ON LATIN AMERICA GROWTH WITH EXCEPTIONAL TEAM Jet Support Services, Inc. (JSSI), the largest, independent provider of hourly cost maintenance programs for the Business Aviation industry, continues to focus on expanding JSSI’s presence in Latin America with an exceptional team of industry professionals and additional repair facility agreements. JSSI has thousands of aircraft engines, airframes and APUs enrolled on their hourly cost maintenance programs all over the world and for decades, many of the enrolled aircraft have been based throughout South America, the Caribbean, Central America and Mexico.

To keep pace with this growth, JSSI continues to build on their network of preferred maintenance facilities around the globe. Recently, JSSI and RollsRoyce Brasil LTDA negotiated a new service center agreement which provides excellent terms and service for JSSI clients.

P180 AVANTI II OFFERS ECO-FRIENDLY AND EFFICIENT ALTERNATIVE Piaggio Aero announced its entry into the important Brazilian Business Aviation market during the LABACE Air Show in Sao Paulo. The company announced that it would begin sales at LABACE with first deliveries of its world-renowned P180 Avanti II aircraft expected for January/February 2011, upon completion of the aircraft’s already well-progressed Brazilian certification.

The P180 Avanti II brings a completely new business aircraft to Brazil – one that uses 40 percent less fuel and has the lowest carbon footprint in its class, while providing ultimate performance and cabin comfort. The P180 Avanti II is eco-friendly, efficient and economical - an ideal aircraft for the Brazilian market and topography of the country.

PPG AEROSPACE EARNS NETJETS SELECTS GULFSTREAM SUPPLIER AIRCELL HIGH SPEED INTERNET SERVICE OF THE YEAR AWARDS Aircell announced that NetJets Inc, the pioneer and unquestioned The aerospace transparencies group and the Atlanta Application Support Center (ASC) of PPG Industries’ aerospace business have earned 2009 Supplier of the Year awards from Gulfstream Aerospace Corp.

market leader in fractional aircraft ownership, will equip more than 250 of its midsize and large-cabin aircraft with Gogo Biz Inflight Internet service. Installations begin this month. Aircell’s program with NetJets represents the largest order for high-speed Internet service in the history of Business Aviation. Reflecting its continued focus on innovation and continuous improvements in customer service, NetJets plans to have all future fleet aircraft, including light cabin models, delivered from the factory with high speed Internet service.

JET AVIATION BASEL SIGNS 3 NARROW-BODY COMPLETIONS AGREEMENTS Jet Aviation Basel recently signed agreements with undisclosed clients for the completions of two Airbus 319 CJ and a BBJ3. Completions work on the cabin interior of these aircraft will commence within the next few months. The company also announced that it has outfitted and delivered two A319 CJ and a Boeing 737-800. Jet Aviation Basel was recently contracted by undisclosed clients for the VIP cabin interior completions of two Airbus 319 CJ and a BBJ3 aircraft. The spacious cabin interiors of two of the three aircraft will be designed by the company’s in-house interior design studio. Layouts for all three aircraft include living and dining areas and private bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms. One narrow-body aircraft is already onsite in Basel; the other two aircraft are expected to arrive within the next few months.

14 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

Fastlane

™

The New Standard In TFE731 MRO Cost Savings.

CZI 25

INDUSTRY AVERAGE

30 Days 25 Days

OPERATOR EXPECTED

Days

20 15

14 Days

10 5

FASTLANE

™

Days

30

MPI 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

12 Days

9 Days

5 Days

Recently, 284 MRO customers with TFE731 engines in their fleet reported that industry-standard turn times for Compressor Zone Inspections (CZI) and Major Periodic Inspections (MPI) take too long, costing them money.

With Fastlane™ we broke the code on CZI and MPI turn around times by optimizing workflow, investing in equipment and critical parts.

This speed means lower costs for you. By taking advantage of Fastlane™ reduced turn times, CZI customers have reported savings of up to $50,000 on their operating budgets.

www.tfe731fastlane.com © Copyright StandardAero 2010. All Rights Reserved.

StandardAero has unique expertise in Honeywell engines from our legacy as Garrett Aviation Services. We’re using this experience and our innovation to set a new standard for TFE731 MRO Cost Savings. Call Dan Pradel for Fastlane™ +1.281.685.7442

PIAGGIO AERO EXPANDS SERVICE NETWORK IN NORTH AMERICA Piaggio America, announced the addition of three North American authorized service centers to support the company’s Italian manufactured P. 180 Avanti II aircraft. With nine North American service centers already in place, Piaggio America continues to strengthen its network through a partnership with Crownair Aviation, providing services in San Diego and Carlsbad, Calif. in addition to Constant Aviation with a center in Birmingham, Ala. To deliver convenience and superior customer service to a growing number of Avanti II owners, Piaggio chose two of the most respected business aircraft maintenance organizations in the country that understand the importance of aircraft accessibility, predictability and cost.

LEGACY 650 JET MAKES FIRST PUBLIC APPEARANCE AT LABACE

GULFSTREAM BUILDS ON LONGSTANDING PRESENCE IN INDIA

Embraer exhibited its Legacy 650 executive jet at the Latin American Business Conference and Exhibition (LABACE), August 12-14. The event took place at the Congonhas Airport (CGH), in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, and marked the debut of the Legacy 650, which was officially presented to visitors on opening day.

Gulfstream has placed the first ultra-long-range G550 aircraft on the Indian civil registry on July 19th, after winning type validation from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) an attached office of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India. The G550 is the current range leader in the business-jet market, with the capability to fly 6,750 nautical miles nonstop.

HONEYWELL IS OFFERING EU-ETS MONITORING SERVICE

BEECHCRAFT BARON AND BONANZA RECEIVE CHINA CERTIFICATION

Honeywell announces it is offering a new emissions monitoring service for business jets operating in the European airspace to comply with European Union-Emission Trading Scheme (EUETS) requirements. Honeywell will compile and store carbon emissions data based on flight plans, number of passengers and freight information for business jet operators. The service is part of Honeywell’s Flight Support Services, available through its Global Data Center (GDC) at www.mygdc.com.

Hawker Beechcraft Corporation (HBC) announced it has received certification for its Beechcraft Baron G58 and Beechcraft Bonanza G36 piston-engine aircraft from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). Both aircraft were approved by the CAAC on June 21, 2010. The first Bonanza in the region, which is scheduled to be delivered in third quarter 2010, will be based in Shandong Province in Northern China.

16 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

Jet Aviation and Midcoast Aviation: A global MRO network that safeguards you and your investment Strength, stability and skill: three benefits you gain when working with Jet Aviation and our U.S. affiliate, Midcoast Aviation.

Two brands. One team you can rely on. Solid ownership, 43 years experience and an unsurpassed level of talent – available at 16 independent MRO centers of excellence worldwide – offer you and your aircraft global support delivered with our uncompromising dedication to quality, safety and service. Whatever your aircraft type or size, whatever the work scope – routine inspection, unscheduled or heavy maintenance, overhaul or even structural repair or AOG services – we can help.

Personalized to Perfection. www.jetaviation.com l www.midcoastaviation.com

Jet Aviation l Basel l Boston/Bedford l Dubai l Dusseldorf l Geneva Hannover l Hong Kong l Jeddah l Kuala Lumpur l London Biggin Hill l Moscow Vnukovo l Riyadh l Singapore l Teterboro l Zurich Midcoast Aviation l St. Louis

LONDON OXFORD AIRPORT INVESTS IN MAJOR APRON DEVELOPMENT

BOMBARDIER LEARJET 85 PRODUCTION SECURED IN WICHITA

London Oxford Airport will shortly start work to create a further 17,800m2 (4.4 acres) of new high strength apron. At the same time it is resurfacing a further 5,000m2 of established surfaces with both projects scheduled for completion by year end. This US$3.4m (£2.2m) project comes hard on the heels of the announcement of a new 4,440m2 (47,800 sq.ft.) hangar, which has just commenced construction on the south side of the main airport site.

Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson and Bombardier Business Aircraft President, Steve Ridolfi announced the details of a formal agreement that will secure production of the all-new midsize Learjet 85 aircraft at Bombardier Learjet in Wichita. The agreement includes $27 million in bond financing from the State of Kansas which will be invested in improvements to Learjet’s Wichita facility in order to prepare for the eventual production of the Learjet 85 business aircraft. Modification plans to the Learjet campus include an all-new paint facility, customer delivery centre, production flight test facility and expanded production hangars for the final assembly of the Learjet 85 aircraft.

CESSNA INTRODUCES “MUSTANG EASE INTO THE SADDLE” PROGRAM Cessna Aircraft Company announced, at the Experimental Aircraft Association’s annual week-long conference – AirVenture 2010, the “Mustang Ease Into the Saddle” Program for new Citation Mustang customers. “This limitedtime program is designed to remove apprehension some customers may feel as they transition from a single-engine or a turboprop aircraft into a business jet,” said Roger Whyte, Cessna’s senior vice president of Sales and Marketing.

PILATUS DELIVERS THE 1000TH PC-12

VistaJet PLACES $277 MILLION FIRM ORDER WITH BOMBARDIER

Bombardier Aerospace announced at Farnborough that VistaJet of Switzerland has placed a firm order for four Global Express XRS aircraft and two Challenger 605 jets. The total value of the order is approximately $277 million US, based on the 2010 list price for typically equipped aircraft.

18 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

Pilatus Aircraft Ltd announced that it has completed the delivery of the 1000th PC-12 at a special ceremony at its wholly owned subsidiary Pilatus Business Aircraft, Ltd. in Broomfield, Colorado. Oscar J. Schwenk, Chairman and CEO of Pilatus Aircraft Ltd, marking the significance of the occasion, said “The traditional Pilatus qualities of high performance, rugged durability, versatility, and superior operating economics have been the foundation of every PC-12 we build. Today’s PC-12 NG, represented by the 1000th example here, is generations ahead of the first one Pilatus delivered back in 1994. But it still holds to these same principles that have made the PC-12 program such a great success.”

Make your choice: Premium aircraft services.

Business jet services are a matter of comfort, functionality, punctuality and most importantly of safety. Therefore no requirement is too high, no effort too big, when it comes to aircraft maintenance, neither in terms of service quality nor engineering. At the four RUAG Aviation one-stop-shops only highly qualified and experienced experts are taking care of your aircraft. Whether it is MRO services, avionics upgrades and retrofits, exterior painting or interior refurbishment: You can rely on our first-class workforce and a service level that is in line with our customers’ discerning needs. As an official OEM partner and Major Service Center for Bombardier, Cessna, Dassault Falcon, Dornier, Embraer, Hawker Beechcraft, Piaggio, Pilatus and Twin Otter, we know exactly what matters. Always delivering a bit more that you would expect.

RUAG Aviation Seetalstrasse 175 · P.O. Box 301 · 6032 Emmen · Switzerland Legal domicile: RUAG Switzerland Ltd · Seetalstrasse 175 · P.O. Box 301 · 6032 Emmen · Switzerland Tel. +41 41 268 41 11 · Fax +41 41 260 25 88 · info.aviation@ruag.com · www.ruag.com

From the cockpit to the hangar…

PEOPLE Air Partner Air Partner has promoted Celine Shabbas to Director of UK Trading

Cessna Cessna has named Jim Heasley as General Manager at the company’s Greensboro Service Center. The company further announced that Peter Wilkinson will head Cessna’s McCauley Propeller Systems operations as General Manager, and that Bill Collier will assume control of both the turbine and propeller aircraft distribution groups for Cessna.

Dassault Gilles Gautier has been appointed Dassault’s Vice President, Falcon Sales for the Eastern Hemisphere.

Celine Shabbas

ExecuJet Asia Darren McGoldrick was appointed Managing Director Asia Pacific at ExecuJet Asia.

Baldwin Aviation Robert Conyers has joined Baldwin Aviation as Director of Safety Management.

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Robert Conyers Bombardier Bombardier announced the appointment of Chiko Kundi as Manager, International Pre-Owned Aircraft Sales, Bombardier Business Aircraft and Gary Martin as Head of Aftermarket Sales, Marketing and Service Programs.

Gulfstream Gulfstream made the following appointments and promotions: Randy Brown, Vice President and General Manager of Mexicali Site; Roger Sperry, Regional Senior Vice President for International Sales; Tarek Ragheb, Regional Senior Vice President for International Sales; Shannon Taylor Iwanski, Director of Initial Phase Procurement; Richard Shaw, Planeparts Program

Manager; and Joanne Davis, Director of Government Contracts.

Faye Goodyear

Randy Brown Hawker Beechcraft Hawker Beechcraft made the following appointments and promotions: Clive Prentice, Vice President and General Manager of EMEA

Jet Aviation Florent Feltrin was appointed as the new MRO Regional Sales Director for Central Europe at Jet Aviation.

NORDAM The NORDAM Group announced the election of Mike Shonka to its Board of Directors.

PrivateFly PrivateFly has moved to enhance its online platform by appointing Alex Nott to the new role of website manager.

Clive Prentice Operations, Global Customer Support; Peter Walker, Vice President, Beechcraft Sales, EMEA; Garett Jerde, Regional Sales Director, Beechcraft Sales, Southwestern Europe; Julie Donaghy, Regional Sales Director, Beechcraft Baron and Bonanza Sales, Europe; Faye Goodyear, Marketing Communications Manager, EMEA

Rockwell Collins Scott Gunnufson has been appointed Vice President and General Manager, Service Solutions at Rockwell Collins.

The company also appointed LeAnn Ridgeway Vice President and Managing Director, Americas; Ken Estelle Senior Director, Business Development; and Thierry Tosi Vice President, Strategy and Mergers & Acquisitions.

StandardAero StandardAero named Dale Hawkins Airframe Sales Manager for Business Aviation and Jeroen Schouten as Regional Sales Manager for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

EUROPEAN UPDATE

MORE PARTNERS JOIN SESAR FAMILY Partnership with all relevant aviation players in the modernization of the European air traffic management is the key principle of SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research). As a consequence, the SESAR Joint Undertaking (SJU) endorsed 13 associate partners to contribute to the SESAR work program. Among others, the Boeing company, Thales Australia, the Polish Air Navigation Services Agency and the Moroccan Airports Authority (ONDA) will from now on participate in the work program. Associate partners were proposed by SJU members, which will remain their primary point of contact.

SESAR’s aim is to bring about an evolution in air traffic management systems, eliminating the fragmented approach of European air traffic management (ATM), bringing both public and private stakeholders together. Since its set-up, the SJU secured the additional involvement of airspace users, staff associations, air forces and the scientific world. With this latest enrichment, the SJU not only broadens the number of stakeholders, but includes more organizations from third countries in Europe’s ambitious ATM modernization program.

“Our new associate partners will bring in their specific experience and know-how. We now have 21 air navigation service providers participating in the EU ATM modernization program. We are particularly delighted to also welcome non-EU members on board of the SESAR ship; this demonstrates our commitment to developing interoperable solutions,” says Patrick Ky, Executive Director of the SESAR Joint Undertaking.

SJU members were invited to propose candidate associate partners to assist in the execution of the member’s tasks. The creation of this new category of stakeholders in the SESAR work program answers to the need to secure the additional input and added value of critical partners in the ATM research and development activities.

Out of the 13 selected associate partners, seven are air navigation service providers and five industry partners; one is an airport operator: Associate Partners NAV Portugal AVTECH Sweden The BOEING Company Consortium LVNL SKYGUIDE ONDA (Moroccan Airports Authority) BELGOCONTROL LOCKHEED MARTIN UK LIMITED ( UK ) POLISH AIR NAVIGATION SERVICES AGENCY NATS SERVICES SEA Aeroporti di Milano S.p.A. THALES AUSTRALIA THALES RAYTHEON Systems (TRS)

Fostered by AENA AIRBUS AIRBUS DFS, DSNA, ENAV DFS, DSNA DSNA DSNA Indra Indra NATS En Route SELEX THALES THALES

The acceptance of the proposed associate members by the SJU is the first step towards the conclusion of an agreement between the interested member and its respective associate partner(s). This process is expected to be finalized during the last quarter of 2010.

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SESAR UNITES AVIATION WORLD FOR QUICK GREEN RESULTS The SESAR Joint Undertaking (SJU) selected 18 projects involving 40 airline, airport, ANSP and industry partners to expand the Atlantic Interoperability Initiative to Reduce Emissions (AIRE).

Under the initiative, the SJU supports integrated flight trials and demonstrations validating solutions for the reduction of CO2 emissions for surface, terminal and oceanic flight operations. Seven of the 18 proposals include green gate-to-gate projects, among others between France and the French West Indies. One highlight of the program will be a series of green transatlantic flights with the Airbus A380, the world’s largest airliner.

AIRE was launched in 2007, designed to improve energy efficiency and aircraft noise in cooperation with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The SJU is responsible for its management from a European perspective. In 2009, the SJU supported 1,152 green flight trials under the AIRE umbrella. 18 partners in five locations participated in the trials.

As a result of a complementary call for tender, more partners will be involved in AIRE in additional pioneer locations such as Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, Canada, Morocco, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. “AIRE 2 means more partners in more locations with more trials for more results.

We will demonstrate that green flight operations can be applied everywhere immediately, when partners agree to work together with a common goal. This is not the future, this is SESAR’s reality”, says Patrick Ky, Executive Director of the SJU. Other new features of the program are, for example, gate-to-gate flight trials performed between European city pairs as an addition to complete green transatlantic flights. Some of the validation projects will be conducted in the most congested European airspaces and on the busiest European airports (e.g Schiphol). Some projects will focus on vertical and speed optimization, while partners who have already participated in 2009, will expand on the results achieved so far with a strong link to routine use of green procedures. AIRE is building the first blocks of the SESAR Concept of Operations by testing SESAR 4D trajectory-based operations and SESAR’s concept of performance-based navigation.

The second AIRE call for tender sought for commercial flight trial projects for energy-efficient air traffic management (ATM) operations enabling lower engine emissions and aircraft noise.

Two proposals were selected for green surface trials. The project “Greener airports operations under adverse conditions” executed

by DSNA in partnership with Aéroports de Paris and Air France will for example study operational situations in adverse conditions, caused by bad weather or other factors that constrain runway use.

Out of the five projects selected for terminal operations, one is conducted by Lufthansa in cooperation with DFS and Germanwings.

The partners propose to trial a new procedure coupling the arrival flows of Dusseldorf and Cologne. This area has a high traffic density and is a complex area entailing the achievement of significant environmental benefits when implemented.

For en-route/oceanic, four projects are selected covering five new locations (Portugal, Canada, Morocco, the United Kingdom and the

United States). NAV Portugal will for example with TAP Portugal and the Moroccan ONDA (Office National des Aéroports) aim to offer shortest flight paths across the flight information regions of Lisbon and Casablanca to heavy long-range aircraft that operate those routes. The miles and minutes saved using this procedure entail significant fuel savings and CO2 reduction.

In total, seven gate-to-gate projects will be conducted through the program. Amongst others, Airbus, Air France, NATS, and NAV Canada will perform a series of transatlantic green flights with the A380. Another one is looking at green shuttle flights between Paris and Toulouse.

✈

EBAA WELCOMES ELIMINATION OF COMPLEX US TSA INTERNATIONAL WAIVER REQUIREMENTS The European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) welcomes the

announcement by US Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano that US-bound international operators will now benefit from a simplified procedure for in-bound flights to the United States, signalling the end of the current, onerous TSA International Waiver process.

The EBAA, in concert with the National Business Aviation Association, has been in discussions with US government officials over the past five years in order to introduce a modified waiver procedure that would ease the high administrative burden of filing for flights to the US, while still safeguarding the integrity of US security policy.

The new simplified procedure is based on the webbased Electronic Advance Passenger Information System (e-APIS) overseen

by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Under this system, each time an operator sends data through the eAPIS, the CBP will forward a copy to the TSA providing them with the required information. For its part, the undemanding eAPIS system, which collects electronic traveller manifest information for international travel both in to Janet Napolitano and out of the United States, has been widely received by the aviation community since its introduction a few months ago.

This new process will streamline the process for pre-screening passengers and crew for all Business Aviation commercial and noncommercial foreign operations by allowing pilots and operators to submit a single manifest to the e-APIS as from 1 September this year. The greatest advantage compared to the waiver system is thatoperators will get almost an instant response from the system.

✈

EMBRAER INCREASES GUIDANCE FOR 2010 REVENUE BY 5%

FLEET REPORT MID-YEAR UPDATE: SLOW AND GRADUAL RECOVERY

Embraer released its financial results for the second quarter of 2010 (2Q10) in US GAAP. Net revenue was US$ 1.35 billion, and net profit totaled US$ 70.3 million. The operational cash generated – US$ 236 million – was one of the period’s highlights, contributing to the higher net cash position of US$ 659 million on June 30.

The recovery of the market seen since the beginning of the current year is showing good opportunities for Embraer, mainly in the commercial aviation business, some of which have resulted in new orders. As a consequence, the Company now expects annual revenue of US$5.25 billion, instead of US$ 5 billion; and operational margin of 6.5%, instead of 6%, for 2010.

During the past quarter, Embraer delivered 69 airplanes, 29 of which to the commercialaviation market and 40 to business aviation. In the same period of last year, a total of 56 aircraft were delivered – 35 commercial, 19 executive, and two for defense. The firm order backlog at the end of 2Q10 was US$ 15.2 billion, which is equivalent to three years of current projected annual revenue.

Net revenue in the second quarter of 2009 was US$ 1.46 billion, and decreased 7.5%, mainly due to the mix of products delivered.

The commercial aviation segment represented 61% of 2Q10 revenue, followed by executive aviation, with 14.4%, and defense, 13%.

On the other hand, net income increased 3.7%, compared to US$ 67.8 million for the same period of 2009. Furthermore, the strong operational cash generated indicates higher industrial efficiency. Net cash increased by 43.6%, from US$ 459 million in 2Q09 to US$ 659 million in 2Q10. The cash was generated mainly as a consequence of stronger operational financial results, together with reduced inventories and increased trade accounts payable.

The total loan position decreased from US$ 1.8 billion, in the previous quarter, to US$ 1.5 billion, on June 30. The average maturity of loans increased from 5 to 5.8 years.

$ 24 - SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

JETNET LLC, the leading provider of corporate aviation information, has released the June 2010 results for the pre-owned business jet, business turboprop, and helicopter markets.

In pure market numbers, June 2008 appears to be when the resale market demonstrated it was in obvious peril. This was significant because it was the last time the For Sale business jet market was under 2,000 aircraft. In October of that same year, there was an increase of 216 airframes for sale from the previous month—a single month increase of 9.8%. This was a substantial number and it happened even before the Big Three automakers flew to Washington D.C. asking for a bailout in November of 2008.

Beginning in August of 2009, For Sale inventories began to decline, and have continued to do so through the first six months of 2010. The fall in values of select pre-owned jets may have convinced some less-thanserious sellers to remove them from the market. Others decided to start flying again.

On the flip side of the For Sale inventories are Full Sale Transactions. There was a

rapid decline in Annual Full Sale Transactions for two years in a row (2008 and 2009) for both business jets and business turboprop aircraft. In the first six months of 2010 we are finally seeing an increase in the monthly and first half year Pre-owned Full Sale Transactions compared to 2009.

As the For Sale inventory has declined, the number of Pre-owned Full Sale Transactions has increased by 33.6% in the first six months of 2010 versus 2009, which is very welcome news. However, when the first six months of 2010 (at 854) are compared to the first six months of 2008 (at 1,011), we see that Pre-owned Full Sale Transactions are down 15.5%.

Domestic flight operations account for about 85% of all flight operations in the U.S. These have been increasing rapidly in recent months, but are still well below the 350,000 recorded during 2007 (by about 106,000).

International flight operations reached a new record peak in March 2010 at 60,906.

However, since the volcanic ash problem in Europe, Flight Operations activity from April to May 2010 declined by 24%.

The inventory levels for pre-owned business turboprop aircraft for sale at the end of June 2010 have followed the same pattern as the business jet aircraft market. The percentage of pre-owned business turboprop aircraft for sale was 10.9% in June 2010, and has declined from the peak set in both May and June 2009 of 12.0%. The number of business turboprops for sale at the end of June 2010 was slightly less than 1,400 aircraft, nearly half the number of business jets currently for sale.

The number of Pre-owned Full Sale Transactions for business turboprop aircraft increased by 9.5% in the first six months of 2010 compared to the same period in 2009, which is good news. However, it is taking longer (more days) to sell in the current market environment. The average days on the market before business turboprop aircraft sold was 307 from January to June 2010, an increase of 10% or 28

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EBAA

CEO’s CORNER

SOME LATE SUMMER THOUGHTS

Brian Humphries

For the third consecutive month, Business Aviation traffic in July grew by six percent compared with the same month last year – indicating continued recovery from the 2009 crisis. This sustained growth coincides with the expected summer peaks, but is still below the figures of the busiest years 2007 (-9%) and 2008 (-8%). According to the classical traffic patterns, we must expect some reduction in activity in the coming months, but the big question will be by how much!! Meanwhile, although Brussels has been effectively away on summer vacation, work continues in the key areas of rulemaking and airport access.

ARGUMENT n concert with the European Helicopter Association, EBAA went Slot allocation at to Cologne in July to meet with community airports remains senior EASA Officials to clarify key poliEBAA’s stock cy issues raised during earlier working answer. meetings between EASA and our

I

26 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

experts on Ops rulemaking. A particular problem is what constitutes commercial and non-commercial flying, as the ability to alternate between the two represents an extremely important part of the business model for our sector.

EASA explained that they did not require the owner to have OpCon for a flight to be categorized as noncommercial, but rather to have “some control” of the operation in the broadest sense. While this is encouraging, we expressed our concern about the proposed deletion of the relevant text in OR.OPS.GEN – not least because it did not itself authorize the operating mode, but rather specified the procedures to be followed if this did take place.

Moreover, its deletion was being taken by some Member States as a sign that such “flip-flopping” should not be permitted.

To prevent future misunderstandings, EASA agreed to include an explanation for the deletion in the text of the CRD, making it clear that the topic would be the subject of a separate rulemaking task and emphasizing that, meanwhile, existing national practices should continue. However, almost immediately after the meeting, the industry delegation was delighted to hear that the missing text had been revised and re-inserted, underlining the effectiveness of Association “lobbying”.

Concerning the practicalities of the on-going consultation with industry experts, EASA acknowledged there had been delays in the production of rulemaking material and that the structure and content of the documents presented to the Review Groups might be complex.

This had been mainly because of the large number of inputs received, the limited time and the various commitments that led to the need to work on “living docu-

ments”. We insisted there was an urgent need for industry experts to work on “frozen documents”, and then to have enough time for a review of these final drafts with colleagues prior to the next CRD process. Although timelines remained critical, EASA agreed to make such documents available to the review groups as soon as possible.

Finally, in my last column I mentioned the work we are doing with the European Commission to retain fair access for Business Aviation in the face of growing pressure at the regional airports from low cost carriers. We have now met with the consultants appointed by the EC to undertake an impact assessment on possible revisions to Council Regulation (EEC) 95/93 on the allocation of slots at Community airports. We were pleased to be able to discuss the particular difficulties experienced by Business Aviation in respect of access to slots, especially because of our lack of grandfather rights, which means we have no rights of tenure at airports where we have made huge investments to meet the needs of our sector. We were certainly given a fair hearing as we ran though how well (or badly!) the current slot allocation process works under the existing rules. We further discussed possible changes to the regulation for it to better reflect the needs of today, rather than when the rules were written back in 1993 in a very different European aviation operating environment. Meanwhile, we shall all have an opportunity to submit our views on the impact of these options in writing through an open stakeholder consultation process, which is expected to be launched at the end of August. So watch this space!!

✈

MAY 17, 18, 19

PREVIEW

JETEXPO 2010

BRANDING BIZAV IN RUSSIA

By Eugene Gerden

BENCHMARK

JetExpo organizers consider EBACE as the standard for their exhibition.

28 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

The fifth anniversary of Jet Expo Moscow will take place in the city’s exhibition center, Crocus Expo, from September 15-17 and at the static site at Vnukovo-3. Since 2006, the exhibition has become the biggest forum for Business Aviation in Eastern Europe, thanks to its high level of organization and well-known participants. This year more than 80 Russian and foreign companies will be among the participants, along with representatives of the aviation industry, businessmen, politicians and journalists.

et Expo 2010 is currently considered among the world’s largest Business Aviation shows, taking a spot alongside its NBAA and EBACE counterparts.

Each year the exhibition area continues to grow, as well as the number of overall participants. According to experts, the level of organization at Jet Expo is in no way inferior to that of EBACE – with many people seeing today’s Jet Expo reminiscent of the early years of EBACE. This is quite logical, taking into account that

present, Jet Expo is favored by many large ground handling companies, as well as Europe’s well-known brokers and operators.

This year the static display will include: a Falcon 2000 LX, Falcon 7X, Legacy 600, Gulfstream G200, G450, G550, Piaggio and Pilatus PC-12. In addition a Bell 407 and various AgustaWestland helicopters are expected to be presented in Crocus Expo pavilion. According to organizers , other participants will be announced on the exihition’s official site (www.jetexpo.ru).

The Business Edge of Jet Expo

the EBACE format is considered by Jet Expo organizers as the standard for their exhibition.

In addition to the business jets, on the static, the show is also a well-known exhibition for Business Aviation-orientated helicopters. Among the regular participants of the show are Eurocopter, Robinson, MD, Bell and Agusta.

Anyone who has previously visited Jet Expo knows well that the long distance between the static site at Vnukovo-3 and the main exhibition pavilion in Crocus Expo is as one of the main disadvantages of the show.

But even with this logistical issue, most of the foreign exhibitors consider the exhibition as an extremely promising event, due to an opportunity for visiting with the movers and shakers of some of the little-studied markets in the region and finding new potential customers, who only plan to start taking advantage of the many services that Business Aviation. offers

view with the Russian media that, despite the effects of the recession, there may be even more of an opportunity for light and midsize aircraft, which are still fairly new in this market: “People now realize that airplanes such as our Citation Sovereign and Citation XLS+ can do the same job as wide-body business jets, but at a considerably lower cost. I think this rising awareness will see lighter aircraft such as ours do increasingly well in Russia.”

The exhibition is of interest not only to owners and buyers of expensive business jets, but also to the world’s leading manufacturers of business and private aircrafts, which consider Russia and the other CIS countries as a promising market.

So far, JET EXPO 2008 was the largest exhibition. The total exhibition area in 2008 was 8600 sq.m., which

J

Something for Everyone “Our exhibition can now be considered established. Currently, it is a wellknown brand in the world of Business Aviation,” says Alexander Evdokimov, General Director of Jet Expo.

According to Evdokimov, the exhibition is a B2B event for such professionals as brokers, operators, airports, etc.. He notes, however, that this is not an event specially designed for rich people who want to buy an aircraft.

Most of the largest players in the world of Business Aviation visited Moscow for the first time in 2007 and since then have become regular visitors – despite the fact that Russia still remains a relatively small market . At

Even during the first years of Jet Expo’s run, many foreign manufacturers of business jets were able to significantly increase the sales of their aircrafts, thanks to rich Russian clients who prefer to buy not only the most prestigious models of jets, but only those with the most expensive equipment.

Trevor Esling, vice president for International Sales at Cessna Aircraft Company, said during a recent inter-

STATIC

The long distance between the static site and the exhibition hall is the downside of JetExpo.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 29

PREVIEW

JETEXPO 2010 ers of Jet Expo do not expect any announcements of major business deals.

A similar view is shared by Sergei Lelekov, a well-known Russian analyst in the field of Business Aviation “Jet Expo is not positioned as a trading platform, so we do not expect the announcements of any big contracts.”

According to him, along with the Western companies, which always try to show their latest models during the Moscow forum, this show has a strong draw for Russian companies, despite the fact that most of their aircraft are just modifications of old planes.

FACETS

Static display, exhibition hall and round table debates are typical ingredients for a successful show.

was double the size of the first exhibition held in 2006. According to Alexander Evdokimov, this year the exhibition area will fall in the middle, at around 6000-6400 sq. m.

“Post-crisis effects are still being felt.

This year the number of exhibitors, as well as profits, will be less compared to previous years. Nevertheless, the quality of the exhibition will not suffer. We expect a large number of visitors from abroad. Many operators, brokers and manufacturers are planning to come to the exhibition this year as visitors”.

He also added that in contrast to NBAA and EBACE, where participants are lining up for contracts, the organizA Promising Future According to the head of the Joint National Business Aviation Association of Russia, Leonid Koshelev, after the crisis, the exhibition will significantly grow: “Certainly Jet Expo is a big platform for the presentation of business aircrafts by the world’s leading manufacturers. The exhibition is in big demand, not only among the major players in the market, but also for start-up companies, which specialize in different aspects of Business Aviation. Steps will be taken to ensure the participation of state authorities in Jet Expo in order to make sure the exhibition is a real business meeting, which could contribute to the further development of the Russian Business Aviation sector.”

✈ 30 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

RUSSIA AND THE CIS

A GRADUAL The Russian Business Aviation market is gradually recovering from the consequences of the recession, which significantly affected the business activity in the market and brought the industry back to the level of 2007.

At present, the Russian Business Aviation industry is characterized by its own, special way of development. An ever-growing demand for Business Aviation in the country is closely associated with the general development of Russia’s economy, as well as the country’s mentality, where flights on private aircrafts are becoming an integral part of the image of business success.

urrently among the major features of the Russian Business Aviation market are the dominance of foreign operators, the intense concentration in the Moscow region, lack of clear legislation in the field and the virtual absence of domestic production of business jets.

Since 2002, the number of business flights in the Moscow aviation hub has increased by 45 percent annually.

Before the crisis the annual growth of Business Aviation in the Moscow region alone reached 30 percent. In 2005, Moscow matched London in terms of the number of flights on business jets. Nevertheless, since the beginning of the crisis, the number of flights in Russia decreased by 35 per-

C

cent compared to 2008, while the operator’s revenue fell by 60 percent.

However, in 2010, the industry has started to recover.

Leonid Koshelev, who chairs the Russian United Business Aviation Association (RUBAA) said: “about two months ago, the total number of business flights in Russia reached pre-crisis levels and continues to grow.”

According to him, the demand is also increasing, promising a bright future for the market.

Meanwhile, the recession has resulted in no significant change in the structure of the Russian Business Aviation market, which is still mostly occupied by foreign operators, who carry out up to 90 percent of all bizav flights in the country. Among the largest of them are VistaJet, NetJets and Global Jet Concept.

At the same time, local operators are still not able to compete with foreigners – due to the imperfection of the Russian legislation – reflected in high import duties and VAT, which is levied on imports of foreign aircraft into the country and thus preventing the access of the Russian operators to modern aircrafts.

Complicated certification rules for operators and the need to receive multiple approvals for each flight also contribute to the inability of Russian companies to efficiently compete with foreigners. The official policy implemented by the Russian authorities aimed at consolidating the country’s aviation market has also resulted in a reduction in the number of domestic operators of business jets by two times during the period of 2008 - 2009.

GROWTH

RUBAA Chairman Leonid Koshelev, predicts continued growth for Business Aviation in Russia.

Vnukovo 3 is one of the key entries into Moscow.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 33

REGIONAL REPORT

RUSSIA AND THE CIS been working in Russia since 2005) is considering Russian consumers as “ideal for its further development”.

Meanwhile, Global Jet Concept carries out nearly 100 flights in Russia per month. The company is not only the owner of the aircraft, but also a major operator of aircraft owned by some Russian citizens, which provides it with a big market share.

Among other large foreign operators are Finnish Airfix Aviation, which carries about two flights a day, and the UK-based Ocean Sky. As for Russian operators, currently “Rusjet” remains Russia’s largest owner of business aircraft and management company. At present the company has 17 aircraft, which are

However, among the most effective state measures implemented in recent years was the abolishment of import duties on some types of business jets.

This has resulted in the significant expansion of the Russian fleet of business aircrafts, which in the second half of 2009 increased by 18 jets.

Russia’s specific legislation is also restricting the activities of the major European and US operators working in the Russian market, which still fail to complete any major transactions, such as acquiring a majority interest in a Russian companies.

COMPETITION

Netjets (top) and Finnish Airfix Aviation (center) are among the regular players in Russia.

Company Overview The current Russian market of is occupied by foreign operators, who carry out up to 90 percent of all Business Aviation flights in the country.

Leonid Koshelev commented: “Today, the Moscow market is mainly dominated by European charter companies. Since the permission for cabotage flights is granted only in rare cases, the demand for VIPcharter flights in the country is steadily increasing, resulting in high prices. The number of Russian charter companies still remains insignificant, due to the fact that the number of aircrafts imported to the country is low and because of a current ban on the opening of new Air Operator’s Certificate”.

According to Aviaport, Russia’s aviation business paper, among the major players in the Russian

34 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

Business Aviation market are VistaJet, NetJets, Global Jet Concept and some others.

Swiss-based VistaJet holds a significant share in the Russian market, thanks to its large fleet and low prices.

According to estimates, the number of flights organized by the company to/from Russia is about 100 per month.

NetJets is another major player in Russia. According to the company, the number of annual flights to/from Russia is about 1,000 – or more than 80 flights per month. From the 6,000 NetJets customers around the world, about 100 are representing Russia.

According to sources in NetJets Europe, the company, (which has

based at Vnukovo-3 Terminal. Of these aircraft, there are eight Russian (Tu134 and Yak-42) made models.

Jet-2000 can also be considered as an active player in the Russian market, carrying out nearly 60 flights per month, of which about 80 percent are international.

“Large, long-haul business jets are in great demand among the Russian customers,” says Alexey Korolev, chief editor of JetsRu magazine. The Russians prefer to buy these jets, which are able to carry out nonstop flights to remote Western European countries and the Middle East. The most popular models are Gulfstream, Challenger, Embraer, Learjet and Cessna.

Know More.

REGIONAL REPORT

RUSSIA AND THE CIS

Taxation Lack of proper regulation remains the major problem facing the current Russian Business Aviation market.

There is still no clear legislative regulation, formulating the concept of business air carriage and business aircraft.

So far, the industry is still mostly regulated by the rules and regulations aimed at commercial aviation.

Alexander Evdokimov, General Director of Russia’s Jet Group, says the unsettled Russian legal system is a major obstacle for the development of the country’s industry: “Russian Business Aviation needs civilized legislation, like what has already been designed in the developed world.

There is a big demand for Business Aviation in Russia, which resulted in ever growing number of companies involved in the business, as well as big investments. However, domestic legis-

REGULATION

Russian Business Aviation is mostly regulated by the rules of commercial aviation, says Evdokimov.

TU134 (left).

Yak42 (right).

lation still remains undeveloped, although the situation is gradually improving”.

One example of recent improvements is the abolishment of a 20 percent tariff on the import of business jets to the country with a capacity of no more than 19 passenger seats, which, according to some Russian experts, was considered to be one of the main obstacles for the industry’s further development.

However, this decision has not resulted in the mass imports of business aircrafts into the country as was hoped.

Despite the abolishment of customs duties, a high VAT still remains a barrier to the import of aircrafts into the country. According to Russian analysts, in the case of used or small-sized aircraft, the amount of VAT is rather low.

But for more expensive models such as

36 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

the G-IV or Global Express, it can reach tens of millions of dollars, which is too expensive even for wealthy Russian owners.

In addition, most of the aircraft in Russia are bought on borrowed funds, provided by the Western banks on the security of the aircraft itself. Most of these banks are preventing registration of an aircraft in Russia, due to the imperfection of local legislation that does not guarantee property rights in the case of a borrower’s default.

There is also a need to pay transportation tax, which must be paid even if the aircraft is not used. It amounts to 100 rubles (EUR 2.2) per kilogram of thrust force for aircraft with jet engines and, in the case of a Gulfstream G550, reaches almost 1.4 million rubles (EUR 40,000) per year.

Production The production of business jets in Russia remains undeveloped.

Russian Tu-134 and Yak-40, which are the most frequently used models for VIP-flights in Russia, currently have no access to the international air routes due to their high noise level. The Russian aviation industry has never produced Business Aviation-specific aircraft as the industry is still considered part of commercial aviation.

According to recent comments by Alexander Evdokimov, despite the fact that the domestic production of business aircrafts is still absent, there are lots of interesting projects in this field, which could be implemented in the near future.

Using a globally focused, multi-lingual research team, and a unique combination of live data and portability, AMSTAT provides the most timely and accurate market information available.

More importantly, AMSTAT provides the tools needed to convert that information into effective marketing programs and valuable sales opportunities – turning knowledge into revenue.

Information that moves you forward

REGIONAL REPORT

RUSSIA AND THE CIS

VENTURE

Eclipse Aerospace and the authorities of the Ulyanovsk region plan to produce the Eclipse TE-500 in Russia.

PROMISING

Possible competitor to the ACJ and BBJ, the Sukhoi SuperJet 100 is produced in partnership with Western aerospace companies.

Currently the industry is mostly occupied by the US Boeing, Cessna Aircraft Company, Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, Bombardier Aerospace, Embraer Company (Empresa Brasileira de Aronautica SA), Dassault Aviation and some others.

According to some experts, since the middle of 1990, only about 100 business jets have been produced in Russia. Moreover, some of these aircrafts are modernized used models of old Tu-154 and even Tu-134.

According to Leonid Koshelev, there is a possibility of launching the mass production of a VIP version of the AN148, which is considered very promising project in the country’s Business Aviation future. Some analysts also expect the design of new models on the base of the Sukhoy SuperJet, which, however, can not be considered a light aircraft.

In addition, Eclipse Aerospace, in cooperation with the authorities of Russia’s Ulyanovsk region, is planning to launch the production of very light Total Eclipse TE-500 business jet in the territory of the local special economic zone in Ulyanovsk. Russian analysts believe that the launch of the production of Total Eclipse TE-500 in Ulyanovsk could be beneficial for Eclipse Aerospace in terms of costs, due to the status of the zone as the territory with numerous economical preferences for the commercial production of business aircrafts.

38 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

Registration Most of the owners of business jets in Russia usually prefer to register their aircraft outside the country, in particular in the EU, US or offshore zones. According to JetRu magazine, in 2008, more than half of business jets owned by Russian citizens were registered in the EU, 28 percent - in the offshore zones, nine percent - in the US and only eight percent in Russia. In the spring of 2009 only 20 foreign-made business jets were registered in Russia.

It makes no sense to register a foreign aircraft in Russia, if the brand is not certified here. In general, registration of aircrafts in Russia remains unprofitable for its owners. Leonid

Koshelev says lack of Russian certification for many types of aircraft and high prices that are required for the validation of such certificates as EASA and FAA are the main problems in the field of registration.

Despite the fact that in March 2009, the Russian government decided to abolish 20 percent customs duties in the import of aircraft weighing up to 20 tons, these changes do not apply to such aircraft as the Global Express or Gulfstream G550, both of which remain highly popular among Russian businessmen. These aircraft weigh more and will cost an additional $10-11 million. Together with VAT, the additional charges may reach 42 percent of the cost of the aircraft.

Airports So far, Russia does not have any airports exclusively dedicated to Business Aviation, which are replaced by business terminals.

Currently, most of the country’s business flights are concentrated within the Moscow region, in particular in its three major airports: Vnukovo, Domodedovo and Sheremetyevo, which have their own business-terminals.

According to Koshelev, there is a clear tendency for the construction of separate terminals for Business Aviation in Russia’s largest airports.

Moscow’s Vnukovo-3 Complex is an absolute leader in tterms of the airports’ infrastructure, the frequency of flights and the number of based business jets. At present it accounts for about 70 percent of Business Aviation flights in the Moscow aviation hub. Pulkovo (St. Petersburg) is the second biggest Russian airport in terms the number of business flights.

Meanwhile, Sheremetyevo International Airport is also planning to strength on its presence in the market through the recent announcement to start the construction of a specialized terminal for Business Aviation (Terminal A), which is scheduled to be completed in the middle of 2011.

The new terminal will have a total area of 2700 square meters and a passenger capacity of up to 75 thousand per year. By 2030, the growth of Business Aviation traffic in the airport is expected to reach 36 thousand take-off and landing operations annually.

There is also a chance that the first airport for Business Aviation may be established in Russia, thanks to private investors. Last year, Russian media reported on the plans of Suleiman Kerimov, one of Russia’s richest businessmen and the owner of NaftaMoscow Company, to start the constru ctio n o f th e f i r st a i r p o r t exclusively dedicated to Business Aviation. The project was expected to be implemented in the territory of the Kubinka military airfield, however its implementation – for some reason – was suspended.

FBO Currently, Russia experiences a shortage of fixed base operators with the first and only one Business Aircraft Maintenance and Repairs Center being established in Ostafyevo, a “B” class international airport near Moscow owned by Gazpromavia.

The center is EASA Part 145 certified to provide maintenance and repairs on Falcon-900 and Falcon-900 EX EASy Aircraft.

At present, most of the maintenance procedures for business aircraft are not executed in Russia. In this regard, the majority of the Russian owners of business jets prefer to fly to Western Europe, in particularly Switzerland, the UK, Germany and France If the plane is not registered in Russia, then its owner will have to choose the provider in accordance with the requirement of the country where the aircraft is registered, otherwise it should be served either in the Russian service center, certified by the Russian authorities or, when in the foreign centers, approved by the Russian authorities.

One way to address the shortage of FBOs in Russia is to create conditions for the entry of foreign providers to the Russian market – however in this case they will have to apply for Russian certificates, which may be issued only to the companies where

the controlling interest is owned by Russian investors.

However, despite the legal nuances, foreign companies are still trying to come to Russia. For instance, in July 2008, Swiss Jet Aviation opened its own base in the territory of Vnukovo airport. The company currently works with such aircrafts as the GulfstreamV/450/500/550, Bombardier Global Express/Challenger-604/605, Embraer-135/145 and HS125700/800/800XP. The company expects to expand this list in the near future.

In addition, the UK Jet Engineering Technical Support (JETS), is also considering the establishment of its own base in Moscow for maintenance operation on Hawker and, possibly, Challenger jets.

There is also a possibility that in the near future, Russian owners will be able fly to the Baltic countries, in particularly to Latvia, where a new Business Aviation center was recently opened in Riga International Airport.

The new center can be considered as one of the largest in Eastern Europe and specializes in providing maintenance and repairs for Business Aviation in Scandinavia and Eastern Europe, as well as the Moscow and CHARTER St.Petersburg regions.

Gazpromavia offers a VIP operation, including a ✈ Dassault 7X. BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 39

THE DOCKET

REGULATION IN RUSSIA

THE REGULATION OF BUSINESS AVIATION IN RUSSIA TODAY

By Derek A. Bloom e all know that the Business Aviation market in Russia is growing. Currently, there are between 400-450 aircraft reportedly owned by Russian businesses and individuals. Speaking from experience, it’s hard to prove this number. I know as in my practice I have worked on a number of transactions in which aircraft were bought by Russian individuals. Beneficial ownership of the aircraft is in the hands of Russian-controlled corporations, but formal title to the aircraft belongs to a bank trust department. There is nothing in the public records that would indicate that these are Russian owned aircraft.

W CONTESTANTS

Six sales reps on the territory assure a dominant position for Gulfstream in Russia (G450 top).

Two Challengers were recently custom-cleared in Russia with no tax issues (down).

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So, this is where one needs to start when talking about the legal aspects of the Russian Business Aviation market‌ Impeded Progress This is one of the primary characteristics of the market, and one of the reasons why it’s hard to make progress, because so many of the owners are not present here and they are not actually operating Russian-registered aircraft. As a result, the Russian market and the regulation of Business Aviation in Russia are in an unsatisfactory state.

There are essentially twelve reasons for this state of affairs: 1. 95 percent of Russian owned aircraft are registered outside the counOf the 400-450 aircraft owned by Russian businesses and individuals, very few are registered here in Russia.

I’ve seen two sets of statistics.

According to the Ministry of Transportation there is a total of 103, and many of these are not business jets but propeller aircraft. On the other hand, according a recent issue of Top Flight magazine, it is reported there are 25 foreign manufactured business jets registered in Russia. That is only 25 out of the total of up to 450.

Interestingly, Top Flight reports that there are 108 foreign manufactured business jets based in Russia. These 108, except for the 25 that are registered here, are presumably being regularly flown to other countries so they are not triggering Russian customs clearance requirements. try, are not subject to Russian law, and their owners are not pressuring for reform of the Russian ministries that register and regulate aircraft in Russia. These 95 percent of owners of Russian controlled aircraft are not responsive to the need for regulatory reform. They are not cooperating in efforts to amend the rules because they feel no need. They have Swiss and US registered aircraft, and Russian laws do not really apply to them.

2. When this 95 percent of Russian owners bring their aircraft to Russia to fly domestically, they very frequently engage in illegal cabotage flights. They obtain one-time permits to make a planned domestic flight and arrange that Russian cus-

QUESTION

Cessna with the Citation X (top), HBC with their Hawker series (center) and Embraer with the Legacy series (bottom) prefigure the Russian business aviation fleet.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 41

THE DOCKET

REGISTERED

Very few of the 450 aircraft owned by Russian businesses and individuals are registered in Russia.

toms will not interfere in that domestic flight. But, if something goes wrong there may be severe consequences.

3. The business of arranging chartering of foreign-registered aircraft is mostly conducted as a grey market activity. These are illegal flights, and people know that. These flights may have a flight permit, and there may be arrangements that Russian customs will not interfere. But these are illegal flights where passengers are picked up in Russia and are told to say, if ever asked, that they are guests of the owner. There is no “normal” way for the market to develop in a grey market situation.

4. Representatives of both the Ministry of Transportation and the industry have begun to talk about how this is “unfair competition” from foreign charter companies that they can fly their aircraft in Russia, as well as outside Russia. Everyone is complicit in allowing the market to function as a grey market, yet the foreign operators and Russian owned aircraft who participate are presenting “unfair competition”.

5. O v e r a l l , t h e m a r k e t i s n o t achieving its potential. There are a lot of opportunity costs. There are jobs that do not exist because businesses have not been created to support aircraft that could be registered and based here. Jobs that are in existence today are under threat of elimination due to the dominance of the gray market. If a legally-conducted business here is not more successful in the near term, then it

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REGULATION IN RUSSIA

may have to be closed. The Russian people working there today will be put out of work due, largely, to customs clearance problems for imported parts.

6. As a result of all the above, there is a significant loss in tax revenue since there is a lot of business activity that could be here. 7.

The monopolization of airports in Russia results in high costs for operating business aircraft here.

8. There are few fixed base operators (FBOs) across the country.

9. There are few maintenance facilities across the country.

10. The government is controlling the debate about what regular reform should be in Business Aviation.

Government officials are the ones advancing different proposals when in fact it should be the private sector that is advancing these proposals.

11. M a n y w e a l t h y p e o p l e w h o have bought a very expensive jet do not want to put their aircraft on Russian registry and be exposed to Russian legal risks, including having aircraft seized, or in getting these valuable assets out of the country again.

12. All of the above eleven factors are internal Russian factors. These are the factors that are completely under the control of the Russian government to address. All of this is, in fact, not a foreign conspiracy. These are Russian regulatory problems that can be removed, if clear proposals to do so would be developed and a political constituency for the necessary reforms assembled.

Predicting the Future Turning now to likely regulatory developments in the near future, here are five predictions: 1. While today 95 percent of the business aircraft owned by Russian individuals and businesses are registered outside the country, there is some reason to think that there will be more Russianregistered aircraft in the future.

Particularly, more Russian companies will register aircraft here.

There are some examples, in particular the recent successful importation of two Bombardier aircraft. These aircraft were customs-cleared with no tax issues. The company did not pay custom duties to import the aircraft because aircraft weighing less than 20,000 kilograms are not subject to custom duties. This company did pay import VAT, but then recaptured it within a matter five to seven months.

There is a property tax to be paid. But, the company reported that it is very satisfied with the results of importing two Challenger aircraft and registering them in the Russian registry. They are today flying domestically completely legally. They can fly internationally without any issues.

I think this example makes a very convincing argument that any major Russian corporation that is operating an aircraft should be operating a Russian-registered aircraft, if, under today’s regulations, it weighs less than 20,000 kilograms and is exempt from custom duties. So, I think we can safely predict that there should be more Russian aircraft in the future.

2. Over the next couple of years, there will be more Russian and foreign finance for Russian-registered aircraft.

Today this is a significant problem. In Canada and Brazil, for example, there is some export credit agency money for aircraft sold to Russian buyers. This may be back-to-back financing through a Russian bank. Or, it may be a foreign bank loan to Russian buyer. Today there is low cost Western bank finance available where a wealthy Russian buyer can show, and can give a guarantee based upon, assets outside of Russia. So, there is foreign financing available. There may be domestic financing, particularly if a back-to-back deal can be structured involving a loan to a Russian bank that on-lends the funds domestically. This mechanism is more likely to be used if the transaction is the sale of a regional jet to a regional airline. But this mechanism may apply to business jets as well.

3. There will be more liberal rules for the use of Russian-registered business aircraft.

Staff members in the Ministry of Transportation have indicated that they are actually willing to analyze and apply here in Russia the US rules for charter operators. These are found in Part 135 of the Federal Aviation Regulations (the “FAR”). In fact, the Ministry of Transportation would like to work with whoever will work with it to develop Russian regulations like Part 135 in the FAR. That is an invitation which nobody has yet taken up.

There are a lot of rules for Business Aviation and charter aviation that exist in Europe and in the US, but are absent in Russia. There is no reason for that.

Russia should adopt similar rules and learn from the experience of Business Aviation in Europe and the US. When we talk to professionals, people tell me the US regulations in Part 135 are superior to the European regulations. The European regulations were written for airlines and need to be simplified.

European charter companies themselves feel at a competitive disadvantage relative to US charter companies operating under more liberal US aviation regulations for Business Aviation.

4. There will be more liberal rules for the use of foreign-registered business aircraft here in Russia.

In this connection, there is a draft Decree by the Russian government on the Ministry of Transportation website.

According to sources, this Decree is set

to be passed in September. This is an amazing document, meaning that domestic charter flights of foreign-registered aircraft will no longer be illegal cabotage flights in the Russian Federation. One would not have to go to Rosaviatsiya, but to the Ministry of Transportation for these one-time permits. There would still be the issue of customs clearance, but this issue may be solved by arranging a “temporary import” of an aircraft with the customs duties to be paid over three years (34 months). If customs duties are paid, then a foreign registered aircraft may be flown domestically in Russia on charter flights.

5. There will be more Russian customs clearance of foreign-registered aircraft.

Conclusions In conclusion, just from looking at the foregoing information, we can analyze what this industry should be doing. I think, objectively, few things jump out.

1. There should be more private sector leadership in the industry, as compared to the situation today.

2. There is a need to bring owners of aircraft into this discussion as currently too many Russian owners of aircraft are very detached.

3. Russia could become a desirable place to register aircraft. Theoretically, this is possible. Other countries do it.

The Isle of Man has in just two years become a very popular registry, with more than 200 registered aircraft. Why doesn’t Russia create the ideal aircraft registry?

4. There should be more legally flown Russian-registered aircraft, creating jobs in the Russian aviation industry. Customs clearance problems should be removed.

5. The legal risks associated with cabotage flights within Russia of foreign-registered aircraft should be reduced by creating stronger incentives for Russian registration of Russian - owned aircraft. Rather than one-time permits for domestic flights, Russian aviation regulations should be revised to permit free operation of Russian-registered business aircraft domestically, as per the US regulations in Parts 91 and 135 of the FAR. 6. The industry needs to put up budget to finance the necessary legal and political work 7. Additional trade associations in Russia should become involved in Business Aviation, particularly a group like the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs that include many Russian companies that are owners of business jets, and all interested parties should agree on an agenda.

For more information, contact Derek Bloom at Capital Legal Services. Capital Legal Services is a full-service law firm based in Moscow and St. Petersburg, which maintains close relations with aircraft brokers, management companies and legal co-counsel on aviation matters in Europe and the United States. dbloom@cls.ru tel: +7 495 970 1090 - www.cls.ru

✈

DREAMLAND

Like the case with the Isle of Man, Russia could become a desirable place to register aircraft.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 43

FLIGHT OPERATIONS

ACCESS MOSCOW

SMOOTH(ER) ACCESS TO MOSCOW Just a few years ago, the prospect of traveling to Russia was likely to stir feelings of angst in operators confused and confounded by the country’s seemingly endless changing permit process. With Russia’s Federal Air Navigation Authority now having several years to streamline the permit process and witness firsthand the benefit of corporate aviation, operating to Russia is now a fairly straight forward process… as long as operators properly pre-plan. time the permit is approved, it could be past the time of the original departure.”

Another thing to keep in mind is that all permits for the entire country are approved in Moscow.

“If you are operating from Anchorage, Alaska to Asia and want to revise an overflight permit, you have to remember that everything is processed in Moscow’s time zone, so you could be delayed.”

or many of those operators, a trip to Russia begins and ends in the capital city of Moscow, which will host the fifth international Business Aviation exhibition JET EXPO Sept. 15-17, 2010.

F DIFFERENT

Operators have the choice between three major Moscow airports, but our expert at Universal Weather advises they are not equal in quality or conveniences.

Permits The process may be much less confusing and arduous, but according to Daniel Crouch, Senior Trip Owner, Universal Weather and Aviation, Inc., it’s still the first thing operators must plan for no matter where in Russia they plan to travel.

“Even streamlined, obtaining a Russia permit still takes a minimum of five days and a maximum of 15 to process,” said Crouch. “The good

44 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

news is that if you take care of all of your pre-planning and file all of your paperwork, the system allows you to move about the country pretty freely.”

Crouch added, however, that making changes to a permit could cause delays if the operator tries to change to an earlier departure time.

“If there is a delay to your schedule and you are leaving a few hours later, that’s usually not a problem. But if you want to move your departure time up – say the passenger decides he wants to leave at 2 p.m. instead of 4 p.m. – that has to be approved by the civil air authority and could take several hours to get approved. I advise clients it’s not in their best interest because by the

Moscow Airports Corporate operators traveling to Moscow have their choice of three major airports: Vnukovo (UUWW), Domodedovo (UUDD) and Sheremetyevo (UUEE). But Crouch advises that these three are not equal in quality or convenience.

“None of the three are really close to downtown, and they are all about equal distance away, with the closest, Sheremetyevo, being about 18 miles and the other two about 22 miles away,” he said. “However, even though Sheremetyevo is the closest in distance, it has the potential to take the longest – up to three hours – to reach downtown due to traffic.

Vnukovo takes anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours, and Domodedovo about an hour to two hours.”

In addition to potentially taking the longest amount of time to reach downtown, Sheremetyevo also requires slots and sometimes has a shortage of parking.

“At Sheremetyevo, you must get slots and parking, but it can be difficult compared to the others.”

Crouch also noted that his second choice in Moscow airports is Vnukovo, the city’s oldest airport and the one most corporate operators are familiar with.

“A lot of clients request Vnukovo because they are just accustomed to going there. But there are some potential issues with Vnukovo that don’t make it Number One in my mind.”

For instance, Vnukovo is used as a government/military airport. All of the government’s aircraft are kept there, meaning if there is a military exercise or a presidential flight, the entire airport comes to a grinding halt with no advance warning. Crouch says that he has had clients delayed for several hours because of an unannounced military exercise that shut Visas

down the rest of the airport. Needless to say, the passengers were not happy.

“I advise all of my clients that when you use Vnukovo you are taking a risk that you could potentially be delayed. Another potential issue at Vnukovo is a lack of hangars, which go very quickly in winter. I have seen trips canceled because a hangar was not arranged early enough.”

“For all these reasons, I urge clients to choose Domodedovo,” Crouch continued. “It’s the most general aviation friendly airport in Moscow – no slots are required, parking is not an issue and everything runs smoothly.”

Although crew visas can be arranged on arrival at all three Moscow airports, Crouch recommends obtaining them in advance.

“Crews can get visas on arrival, but it takes a minimum of two hours. All passengers must have visas prior to departure,” he said. “The problem with obtaining visas on arrival is that you are operating on customs’ hours. If customs is not available when you arrive, you have to wait.”

While crew are not required to have visas for tech stops, Crouch provided examples of why it’s still a good idea to have them.

“I know of a crew that was going from the Northwest United States and tech stopped in Petropavlovsk on their way to Astana. Enroute from Petro, they were advised that Astana’s weather was down and they wouldn’t be able to land, so they stopped in Novosibirsk. We were able to get them a landing permit for Novosibirsk, but because they didn’t have visas for Russia they had to overnight until the authorities would issue visas to everyone. The passengers were allowed to go to a hotel of their choosing, but the crew was ordered to stay in a cramped hotel near the airport with a guard outside their doors. ” To avoid such scenarios, Crouch recommends working with a service provider to obtain all visas in advance of the trip.

ALTERNATIVE

With no slot required and plenty of parking, Domodedovo is the most general aviation friendly airport in Moscow.

Despite some potential issues, Vnukovo 3 is the busiest executive airport in Europe.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 45

FLIGHT OPERATIONS “Service providers can arrange support visas before departure once a hotel has been booked and confirmed,” he said. “The hotel will send a support letter that the operator can then take to the embassy before the trip.”

Selecting a Handler is Critical One of the biggest mistakes an operator can make is operating to Moscow without first making arrangements with a trusted ground support provider.

“I had a client that was shopping in one of the local markets in Moscow and had the sense that they were being followed,” he said. “This crew had hired security to escort them and had secure transportation. Because of this, they were able to quickly flee the scene and avoid any potential problems.”

ENJOY

A smooth and relaxing first evening in Moscow is not guaranteed if you do not have a handler to greet you upon arrival.

“When you go to Moscow, you almost have to have a handler in advance,” Crouch said. “Without a handler to greet you at the aircraft upon arrival, you cannot be sure what services you are actually agreeing to. I know of a scenario where an operator arrived in Moscow and was approached by a fueler. The fueler didn’t speak English and the crew thought it was the fueler they hired and watched him proceed to refuel the aircraft only to find out it was the wrong company when the correct fueler arrived a short time later.”

Another reason to select a trusted handler is to avoid any type of compliance violations.

“Without a trusted handler, you’re opening yourself up to risks,” said Crouch. “US and Russian authorities are cracking down on compliance violations. Because of language issues, your handler will be your contact for working with customs and immigration. If you hire an unscrupulous handler that tries to bribe a government official, you could be culpable even if you had no knowledge of what was taking place. It is absolutely essential that you hire a handler you trust before a trip.”

46 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

Security Like any large city, crew and passenger security should always be considered when operating to Moscow.

Although taxis can be arranged from the airport, Crouch usually advises clients to arrange secure transportation.

“I recommend hiring secure transportation for several reasons,” he said.

“With secure transport, you will know the name and vehicle information of the driver before he arrives, so you can confirm everything before getting in the car. Also, with secure transportation, you can ensure the driver speaks English or whatever language you require. If you do decide to use a taxi, let your handler set it up. They will be more familiar and can setup a licensed taxi rather than one that is just sitting at the airport.”

Using common sense is key when it comes to security in Moscow. Avoid wearing flashy clothes or jewelry and carrying large amounts of cash.

Although he hasn’t heard of too many issues within the city, Crouch did recall one client’s close call.

Hotels Moscow isn’t considered one of the world’s most expensive cities without reason. An average Western-style hotel can easily go for $400 per night.

“Operators need to be aware that this is not a cheap place to visit,” said Crouch. “Again, I recommend working with a service provider or a handler to arrange hotels. The information you may get by doing your own research may not be entirely accurate. I’ve heard of clients that researched their own hotel, only to find when they arrived that it wasn’t in the most desirable neighborhood and had very questionable activity taking place. Service providers and local handlers will have more current information and the contacts to ensure a safe and comfortable hotel is chosen. Like with any other aspect of a trip to Moscow, if you preplan you shouldn’t have many problems with hotel accommodations.”

✈ Article provided by Universal Weather and Aviation. For more information and urgent operational updates, operators can visit www.univ-wea.com/operationalupdates/ or contact Universal’s Global Regulatory Services team at 713378-2734.

RUSSIAN FBOS

Hangar at Vnukovo (top).

VIPPORT owns Vnukovo 3 Business Aviation terminal (bottom).

A The burgeoning fortunes of Russia’s elite is pushing the executive aviation sector to flourish. But where are the FBOs? Liz Moscrop reports. ussia’s oligarchs have dusted off the debris of the global financial crisis and are amassing huge new fortunes, according to a recent report by the country’s Finans magazine. The 10 richest Russians saw their personal pots swell by over 80 percent last year, bolstered by a worldwide price hike for oil and raw materials.

They are worth a combined $139.3 billion, while the total wealth of all those listed stood at $470 billion.

The surge has had a knock-on effect on the domestic Business Aviation market, which - say the major players is back to pre-global financial crisis

R

48 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

levels. This offers abundant opportunities to invest in FBOs since there is plenty of scope for development in this vastly underserved sector.

Many crews and passengers that fly deep into the old Soviet Union report that FBOs are non-existent. Instead, their handling agents hurry passengers through airline terminals. This is significant since there are up to 10,000 passengers, including major business people and CEOs of top Russian companies, using corporate aviation regularly.

can cost 3,500 euros [to fly into Vnukovo], which is at least twice the price of London.”

He praised the innovative transparency of the web tracking system at the FBO. “Operators are able to w a t c h t h e s t a t u s o f t h e i r f li g h t remotely on screen. Each stage of the preparation is documented and appears live on a webpage. So, for example, when the passengers are checked, the screen shows this, as well as when the luggage is loaded

He added that 90 percent of Ocean Sky’s clients prefer to pay more to stay in Vnukovo3. “VIPPORT has a modern way of dealing with its clients. The service is good. In other fields we have been to where there are lots of commercial flights we are not a priority. In Vnukovo, they really help you.”

At present, VIPPORT has the monopoly at Vnukovo. However other FBO chains are chomping at the bit to have a presence there – and with good reason. Pastukhov said: “Moscow traffic

Homegrown VIPPORT is pioneering FBO development. The company owns Moscow’s flagship Vnukovo-3 Business Aviation terminal, which is the busiest executive aviation airport in Europe. The FBO consists of a domestic and international terminal, plus a 7,000 sq.m building, comprising of six fully equipped conference rooms, a duty free shop and two bars situated at the reception and departure hall.

There is 24/7 immigration and customs clearance, and state-of-the-art equipment on site – including tow trucks and tow bars for all types of aircraft (even for a BBJ). There is also a deicing truck, ground power units, water and lavatory trucks, plus passenger steps, including one with a canopy.

VistaJet regularly uses Vnukovo3 and Eric Weisskopf, executive VP of sales said: “Although it is expensive, there is a good level of service. We have daily contact with VIPPORT. It

or the aircraft is refueled and, indeed, every other part of the process.”

VIPPORT has built 20 hangars, which are at least 2,000 sqm. Some are private and some are rented out on an ad hoc basis. The company also has an onsite joint venture line maintenance facility with Jet Aviation, which is the first authorized maintenance facility in Russia for Gulfstream and Bombardier products. VIPPORT’s commercial director, Artem Pastukhov, said, “In the future the facility will also cater to Embraer and Falcon aircraft.”

Another regular operator to Russia is Ocean Sky. Managing director, Russia and Commonwealth of Independent States (C.I.S.), Irakli Litanishvili, pointed out that Vnukovo 3 is closest to Moscow city center. “It is also friendly to business jets, since there are not many commercial flights during the day, so it is easier for business jets to get a good slot.”

was down 30 percent during the recent crisis, but it has picked up already and we are seeing demand back close to how it was before the downturn. We see a bright future for Vnukovo 3. We have 80 percent of Moscow’s market share and are even stronger after the crisis.”

Other Executive Aviation Airports There are two other airports in Moscow that business operators use.

Sheremetyevo offers some VIP services, however, it is more geared to the commercial sector. According to Weisskopf, for many, it is less convenient than Vnukovo: “Sheremetyevo is far from the city. If there is lots of traffic during the day, it takes two hours to reach the airport.”

Domodedovo International Airport also offers some Business Aviation facilities. Earlier this year onsite Avcom-D Business Aviation Centre erected one of Europe’s largest mobile

REGULAR

Ocean Sky Global XRS in Yuzhno – Sakhalinsk – Khomutovo.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 49

REGIONAL REPORT

RUSSIAN FBOS

hangars for corporate aircraft storage and maintenance. The hangar is able to accommodate aircraft up to the size of a G650 and Global Express XRS. Moscow accounts for the greatest Russian growth in Business Aviation activity. The capital city is home to Russia’s most wealthy individuals and has become the nucleus of Business Aviation in the country.

However, the net is spreading wider. St Petersburg’s Pulkovo Airport has seen steady growth, although nothing like at the same rate as Moscow. There are currently around 220 corporate aircraft handled there every month. Since October 2009, JetPort has had exclusive rights to the airport and provides 24/7 ground handling for non-scheduled flights.

Pulkovo has its own VIP facilities onsite and all staff speak English with most speaking other foreign languages too. The company is working on a 100,000 sq.m. Business Aviation center with ramps that can accommodate more than 20 aircraft, hangars, and a 4,000-sqm-passenger terminal. The first-floor area will serve up to 1,500 passengers per day and offer duty free, as well as bars, pre-flight security, customs, passport control and meeting rooms. The second floor will house the offices.

Sochi is also increasingly becoming popular as a destination, thanks to its proximity to the 2012 Winter Olympics. Weisskopf said that over the last six months he has seen a high increase in the number of flights there. Pashkovsky Airport in Krasnodar is also getting busier. He said: “We have seen a massive boom in trips to cities around the South and the Black Sea. The Winter Olympics mean good business and we’re also seeing VIPPORT planning VVIP to develop airports into real FBOs, Comlux Aviation which is a good move for the sector has three aircraft here.” based in However, client expectations are Moscow to tempered by their experience in provide their Russia. Weisskopf said: “Most of our clients with the clients are aware that many airports same VVIP outside Moscow do not offer the treatment they same VVIP treatment they are used are used to. to. Some have VIP waiting rooms, 50 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

which helps if when they arrive we need to deice the aircraft.

This is why such companies as Comlux Aviation, which has three aircraft based in Moscow and available for Charter (a Bombardier Challenger 605, a Global Express XRS and an Airbus A318 Elite), take extra time ensuring clients understand the Russian experience.

Comlux chief Richard Gaona said: “Each time we fly anywhere the Captain waits for the customer in the lounge and explains exactly how the flight will be. We have several Russian-speaking crews. We also employ people to interface with the FBO to assist on the ground.”

Russia is huge and crosses 11 time zones and other cities that are seeing increasing number of Business Aviation flights include: Nizhniy Novgorod, Yekaterinburg, Rostov on Don, Novosibirsk, Tomsk, Khabarovsk, and Volgograd. There is also development in C.I.S. states including Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Moldova.

Other FBO Services Availability of spare parts is a major issue in Russia. They are expensive to import and can be delayed for several days at customs. Most foreign operators opt to use Jet Aviation at Vnukovo for line maintenance and minor repairs, preferring to do heavy checks elsewhere in Europe.

Ocean Sky’s Litanishvili said: “Legislation means that you can’t easily import spare parts, so it takes lots of time and energy, plus taxes.

We prefer to perform our maintenance in Europe, Manchester or Luton. Jet Aviation in Moscow is useful for small AOGs (aircraft on ground situations).” He also said that to accelerate the development of Business Aviation, Russia needs to develop core facilities. “It would be nice to see alternates or new players and handling companies to stimulate business and find what’s best for the market.”

There are several ground handling agencies in Russia, which is essential for areas that are ill-served by executive aviation airports. Many have fuel contracts and help ensure quick turns for technical and refueling stops. It is helpful to have air navigation fees paid, as well as no headaches with hotel, tour, and transport arrangements.

The largest is the Center for Civil Aviation Services RusAero (CCAS RusAero). Founded in 1994, RusAero is the leader in the Russian ground handling market. The company assists with approximately 2,000 flights a month, providing a wide range of ground handling services and operates all over Russia and the C.I.S. EVO Jet Services is another major player. It set up shop in 2009 as the latest inception of the now defunct

Russia and C.I.S.-wide ground handling agent FERAS. EVO coordinates all its support services from a single 24-hour operations center in Moscow. The company also provides free departure flight plans and weather information to over 200 executive jet operations per month from small Learjets to BBJs. Visa assistance is essential since obtaining a Russian visa is not always straightforward. There are visa consuls at only three of Russia’s major cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Khabarovsk in the Russian Far East.

The facility is also available at Moscow’s three main airports.

However, some of the Moscow airports visa consul offices are not open 24-hours, rather they open at 8:00 am and close at 8:00 pm. An aircraft arriving at 10:00 pm would have to wait until 8:00 am before it could depart.

There is a 24-hour consulate department available at Vnukovo airport, however, and VIPPORT says it takes about one hour and 30 minutes to prepare visas, if operators contact the operations department in advance. Yet, according to Weisskopf, it takes three days to prepare a visa for most people. “It depends on the status of the passengers. If you apply with the relevant authorities and they see the status of VVIP passengers, they grant permits quickly.”

The Future Weisskopf believes that improvements to infrastructure are the key to developing Business Aviation in the country. “It is even more impor-

tant as oil and commodity prices pick up. There is lots of development business.” He pointed to the complexities of obtaining permission to operate flights further into Russia, although he added that this process is eased depending on the status of those on board.

In terms of getting around, having good local connections is essential.

Litanishvili said, “In Vnukovo3, we work with VIPPORT. It is more convenient to work with people who understand the market. I can’t see a place for another company there.”

He also said that although Sochi would be a strategic location in which to invest, it would be difficult to get involved at the moment as there are not enough movements to make it worthwhile yet.

He added that Ocean Sky has a strong interest in the C.I.S, “We m o r e s e e o u r s e l v e s i n C IS , i n a place such as Ukraine or Kazakhstan. If anybody approached us to say, ‘let’s do something’, we would be more than happy to work with them.”

Although Ocean Sky and many others would be happy to set up an FBO in Moscow or St. Petersburg, Litanishvili believes it would prove just too difficult. He did hint at a new venture though: “We are looking at some potential airports near Moscow. We may set up a JV and park our aircraft there, which would be cheaper than parking in Moscow or St Petersburg. We are looking for something 30 minutes flight time away from Moscow.”

New local investors are also coming onto the scene. Nafta Moskva chief Suleiman Kerimov is building a Business Aviation facility at Kubinka air force base near Moscow. His company acquired 115 acres of land on the field, which accounts for 10 percent of the base. Although plans are still under wraps, sources believe that Nafta Moskva may well allow other users to use the facility.

Despite the creaky nature of some of the infrastructure outside Moscow, the future is looking decidedly rosy.

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EXPERIENCE

VIPPORT have a good understanding of the Business Aviation requirements at Vnukovo 3

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 51

TRAINING

CONTINUING EDUCATION

By LeRoy Cook

Recurrent training is frequently viewed as both a nuisance and a necessity. Required by most regulatory agencies and insurance underwriters, the need to go back to school annually on one’s equipment is often perceived as a pointless exercise.

As one of my professional pilot friends said of his recent training, “We spent several days shedding light where there is no darkness”.

His attitude is, regrettably, much too common. Too many experienced pilots think they already know it all and, therefore, need no further training.

BACK TO SCHOOL

hat’s really too bad, because an opportunity to gain knowledge and proficiency is lost. Sadly, the recurrent training I received last year seemed to be focused on checking off the boxes and collecting the fee, so I understand the frustration. We did review some new federal procedures, which contributed nothing to our capability other than a resolve to avoid the process as much as possible. Again, I came away with a sense of loss at passing up an opportunity.

T MOTION

It helps to go to the training center prepared to learn, instead of just going through the motions.

It Cost Money!

As any chief pilot/flight department manager knows, it costs a lot of money to fulfill recurrent training requirements. The price of a five-day course for one popular business jet is currently $23,300. Now, that figures out to something like $5,000 per day, or $625 an hour for an eight-hour day. It makes sense to get the most for your money or, as is typically the case, the boss’s money.

How is this accomplished? By negotiating the best rate available, shopping for competitive alternatives, and asking for specific benefits applicable to your operation, like training at certain airports or on particular subjects. It also helps to go to the training center prepared to learn, instead of just going through the motions.

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What’s The Point?

Most unproductive training results from failing to set goals and working toward them. It’s necessary to go back to the purpose of training, which should be to improve and update the skills needed to fly safely. Meeting the legal obligations should be entirely ancillary – if we’ve done the required training, we’ve met the intent of the rule. That’s not to say no record of achievements should be kept. But if

the goals of honing skills and knowledge are met, the logged record should be clear and easily documented.

A professional trainer once told me, “Training should be effective and efficient.” This simple statement addresses the two main points of recurrent education: establish goals – towards which one directs the learning – and don’t waste valuable time (which translates into money). Doing so fosters willing participation, now and in the future. I try to keep these tenets in mind when I am called upon to provide check flights and periodic updates.

Train as You Fly If there’s a founding father of corporate flight training, it would be A.L. Ueltschi, who saw the need for focused initial and recurrent training for business aircraft crews some 60

years ago. He modeled his early classes on what he considered the best flight crew training of the time, provided by his own airline, Pan American Airways. Thus began FlightSafety International, with its early reliance on scenario-based flight simulation. The other training companies that have arisen follow much of the FSI format, with their own unique “flavor” added.

Effective training should follow the actual use of the aircraft in real life,

don’t like to use the term “weakness” – I prefer to think of any deficiencies as opportunities. At one of my FlightSafety encounters, the instructor explained his end goal, which was to bring each participant’s performance up one level higher than it was when they came to his class. This may not mean that every individual flew to the same standards, but they would leave better than they were and would meet the completion requirements if they had it in them.

including simulation of approaches into airports used and situations that might come up in the actual airplane.

This should include winter flights, where icing would be a challenge, and summer conditions, when highand-hot degradation affects performance. In between, monsoon and plains thunderstorms, low fog and late-night haze are part of the diet.

Training in a simulator allows operations closer to the edge of danger – and beyond. Of necessity, one can’t induce failures in the actual aircraft while climbing out of high terrain with a heavy load. If you’re going to try something risky, the “sim” is the place to do it.

As much as possible, effective training has to be targeted to the individual or crew involved. When giving instruction, I often have to shift my emphasis to fit the person I’m training, once I learn their style of flying and needs. I

How Do We Get There?

Now that we’ve established goals to be met during the training, whether it’s a type rating issuance or review of current equipment, it’s time to establish the means we’ll use to reach that end. Like most instructors, I must work to fulfill a curriculum, but I often alter the syllabus to meet the needs of the student. Objectives have to be achieved, but the methods used to reach them can vary.

A frequent training failure is to rush headlong into hands-on aircraft operation without acquiring sufficient knowledge of the airplane’s systems, procedures and failure modes. For example, if power is lost to the primary instruments, it’s critical to know the most likely cause and what you can do to resolve it. You may be a super-sharp pilot who can manage a return-to-base without the failed items, but wouldn’t

FURTHER

Effective training should reflect ‘real-life’ uses of the aircraft.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 53

TRAINING

CONTINUING EDUCATION

it make sense to know how to restore lost functions, so the task would be easier?

Therefore, we have to endure, or let’s say enjoy, enough classroom training and self-study to thoroughly know the airplane before we attempt simulator or actual aircraft training.

Otherwise you’re setting up a training failure, with a pilot who’s unable to meet the standards of completion because he or she wasn’t drilled on the fundamentals. Each airplane has its quirks and characteristics – our job, as pilots, is to listen to those who’ve gone before us and not have to discover them on our own.

SERENITY

We have to enjoy enough classroom instruction and self-study before we attempt actual aircraft training.

To Each His Own Yesterday, a student asked me “How much time in type did you have before your landings were satisfactory to you?” To which I replied “200 hours”, which was received with some misgiving. I explained that, prior to that number, I was, shall we say, still liable to make a disappointing arrival without understanding the cause. With experience, I learned why my landing was off the mark, even if I still made the occasional pavement-crushing touchdown.

I now had to meet the challenge of matching skill to discernment.

The important thing, I stressed to her was that your learning curve would be different from my own, and you could very likely surpass my performance in 50 hours or 100 hours time on type. My job was to pass along what I observed to benefit those who need not repeat every one of my mistakes.

Not every student wants to become a master of the art. I have found only a few such persons, whom I distinguish by their inquisitive nature and self-flagellation when perfection eludes them.

Not satisfied with slipping by the testing standards, their goal is know as much as possible and fly within a tighter tolerance.

Are all of these persons instructor material? Not necessarily. Being able to fly well and soak up trivia are not the same as being able to impart knowledge and ability to others. I’ve trained many individuals to certification as instructors, but once licensed, they found that teaching was an on-the-job learning experience and not all of them turned out to be suited for the work.

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Motivation to teach comes from several origins, not always linked to the personal satisfaction it brings. Money and resume enhancement are often enough to maintain the pace for a while, but eventually the less-dedicated would-be instructors will drift away to seek satisfaction elsewhere. Should you encounter a true teacher, consider yourself fortunate and avail yourself of his or her services at every opportunity. Training obtained from such a master, who’s able to transfer knowledge, is pure gold.

Ah, but the Cost...

There’s always the cost of training to be considered, but it has to be viewed in the context of the alternatives. First, if the required training was done in the company airplane, there would be the operating cost, lost availability and crew time. Second, not obtaining effective training could risk loss of the aircraft and its valuable human cargo, which, aside from the tragic consequences, could very likely jeopardize the company’s existence. Third, using a training center’s simulator allows scenarios to be practiced that would be avoided in the actual airplane. A high-and-hot V1 cut is not something to be conducted lightly in the actual airplane.

Putting a price on safety, which is the whole reason for training, is an impossible task. The value of an accident that never happened doesn’t get calculated anywhere in the budget. It is true

that training requirements are often tied to obtaining insurance and perhaps maintaining an operating certificate if conducting commercial operations, but the need for preserving proficiency is always there, no matter what standards are supported.

Obviously, efficient training is always a desirable goal, so it’s a good idea to pursue multi-crew discounts and contract rates. Competitive bids for the training are welcomed, but make sure you’re comparing equivalent services and that you’ll be satisfied with the training center being used. If the distance is further and extra days are required, any savings can be swallowed up by the added overhead. The most costly training, however, is not adequately preparing pilots for what they would encounter in actual operation.

Getting Your Money’s Worth Never consider that you’re at the mercy of the training provider. As a customer, your needs should be primary – and if you’re not getting the training you want, be sure you’ve made your wishes known. The place to bring up your specific needs is at the outset, not after it’s too late to include them. It is true that certain portions of the syllabus can’t be changed, but there should be room for tailoring the course to include a new piece of avionics that’s been added or reviewing certain systems for the benefit of a crew member. Work with the

training center; don’t passively accept or complain after it’s too late. You might also consider alternating among the available training centers, sampling the facilities and staff at each.

If you find a certain instructor more effective, request that individual for the upcoming training session. It would be best to specify a next-best choice, in case the chosen one is unavailable, rather than leave it to the luck of the draw. Be sure to fill out the end-of-course evaluation forms, even though you’re wanting to get out the door as soon as possible to catch the flight back home. Giving feedback is important to fostering any improvement in training. The debriefing should continue at home with your fellow company pilots, sharing what you’ve learned from notes taken. Even the contacts made at the break room with other operators of similar airplanes can yield valuable information.

Far too much significance is attached to the heaving flight simulator box, which is the heart of most training courses. However, it’s by no means the only organ supplying the flow of training. The sim is a tool, and as such it’s only as good as the program utilizing it. Before the line-oriented simulated flight is begun, a thorough review of the airplane’s workings should be conducted and any new procedures and requirements incidental to the company’s flying have to be gone over.

A good briefing by the simulator instructor should proceed each training session, so there are no misunderstandings. Yes, surprise failures are de regle, but the purpose of them is training, not torture.

You really have two choices when it’s time to go through the training exercise. You can just ride the wave and smile while the instructors check off the boxes, keeping your mind on the forthcoming refreshment break, or you can participate in the process by making out a training plan, specific to your needs, and work to make it productive.

There’s no excuse for avoiding our obligation to our passengers and employers by failing to be prepared for whatever comes up during a trip.

Effective training turns the unexpected event into a successfully handled conquest – with no one the wiser.

✈

ALLIANCE

Belgian Sabena Flight Academy is part of CAE Global Alliance.

REQUIRE

If you find a certain instructor more effective, request that individual for upcoming training sessions.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 55

TRAINING

There is something new in the air this summer. Students are changing. The first Phenom 300 simulator is attracting a new breed of jet pilots, and for the first time ever providers are seeing more new recruits opt for business aviation training rather than flocking to the airlines. Liz Moscrop reports t has finally happened. The first authorized pilot and maintenancetraining courses for Embraer’s Phenom 300 light jet are up and running, endorsed by the US FAA, the European Joint Aviation Authorities, and the Brazilian civil aviation authority.

Embraer’s joint venture with Canada’s CAE - CAE Training Services (ECTS) - is delivering the training, which began in July at CAE SimuFlite in Dallas, the world’s largest Business Aviation training center. The program uses a CAE 5000 Series full-flight simulator (FFS), including the latest CAE Tropos-6000 visual system with

I

TREND

For the first time ever, providers are seeing more new recruits opting for Business Aviation training.

56 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

SIMULATORS

WINDS OF CHANGE advanced weather effects and detailed airport databases. The course offers accelerated transition from the Phenom 100 to the Phenom 300, and vice versa, plus full initial and recurrent training on the Phenom 300.

Roland Desjardins, general manager, ECTS said: “The quality of the training for the Phenom 100 and now the 300 has continuously and substantially improved as the airplane is maturing.

The two aircraft cockpits are matched pretty well now that the updated avionics suite from the 100 is baselined in the 300.”

Sven Lepschy, ECTS head of training added: “One of the unique challenges of Phenom training is that this is the first turbojet aircraft for some of the owner-operators who are transitioning from single-engine piston aircraft.”

ECTS has consequently tailored training in a number of ways to reflect that they also have a business to run, using e-learning and one-on-one training.

Elsewhere, a new phenomenon is sweeping through the classrooms of Flight Safety International (FSI). For the first time ever, most new students are opting for careers in corporate aviation, rather than heading to the traditionally more popular airline jobs.

Steve Phillips, director of communications, said: “We have seen a significant uptick in people going to our Flight Safety Academy, especially from Europe and Asia. This is a good thing for the long-term. The overwhelming majority is looking forward to a career in Business Aviation rather than with airlines. They are seeing more opportunities in the sector.”

FSI’s corporate aircraft training business dipped a little in Q1 2010 compared to Q2 last year. However, Phillips said it has now picked up and he expects the whole year to outperform 2009. Europe is performing slightly ahead of North America, which Phillips attributes to the fact

“At Falcon, teaming with FlightSafety reflects our passion for technology.”

“At Cessna, we view FlightSafety as a big part of our value equation.”

John Rosanvallon President and CEO Dassault Falcon Jet

Jack Pelton Chairman, President and CEO Cessna Aircraft

“Honda chooses FlightSafety because we both place the highest emphasis on safety.”

“ Bombardier and FlightSafety share a commitment to enhance safety through innovation.”

Pierre Beaudoin President and CEO Bombardier

Michimasa Fujino President and CEO Honda Aircraft Company

“ FlightSafety and Gulfstream, two aviation leaders united in a single goal: safety.”

“Sikorsky builds safety into its design. FlightSafety trains for it.”

Jeffrey P. Pino President Sikorsky Aircraft

Joseph T. Lombardo President Gulfstream Aerospace

“With the industry’s broadest product lineup, no one counts on FlightSafety more than Hawker Beechcraft.”

“Piaggio teams with FlightSafety because of its unmatched training and simulation technology.”

John M. Bingham President and CEO Piaggio America

W.W. “Bill” Boisture Chairman and CEO Hawker Beechcraft

“ FlightSafety training has been integral to Bell’s legacy of accomplishment.”

John Garrison Jr. President and CEO Bell Helicopter

Manufacturers Who Build for Safety Put Their Trust in Us: FlightSafety Nobody knows its aircraft better than the manufacturer. Or the profound value of safety. Just ask Gulfstream, Cessna, Bell or Dassault. HondaJet, Hawker Beechcraft, Bombardier, Sikorsky or Piaggio. These manufacturers all build safety into their aircraft – and the world’s best aviation training into the value equation they offer to their customers. Because a commitment to the most advanced aircraft and technology must go hand in hand with a zealous commitment to safety. These leading manufacturers rely on the world leader in aviation training, FlightSafety International, to provide initial and ongoing aviation training of the highest standards. Like them, we are focused on customer service. We are committed to developing the latest technology. And we strive to deliver the total confidence that comes from training with the best. FlightSafety is proud to serve these manufacturers and the customers who fly their aircraft – in our common mission to enhance safety.

For information, contact Scott Fera, Vice President Marketing sales@flightsafety.com

•

flightsafety.com

•

•

718.565.4774

A Berkshire Hathaway company

TRAINING

SIMULATORS

SPECIFIC

FlightSafety International boasts scenariospecific trainers as fire and smoke emergencies. that manufacturers have delivered more aircraft into the region over the last couple of years. Interestingly, demand for Business Aviation training activities in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) has increased significantly since 2005.

Although FSI saw a slight decline last year in its CIS business, demand there is projected to increase by 10 to 12 percent in 2010 over 2009.

FSI also trains corporate flight attendants at its centers in Paris, Atlanta, Savannah, and Teterboro. The facilities are equipped with full-scale aircraft cabin trainers complete with amenities, systems, and safety features similar to those found in actual aircraft. They also boast scenario specific trainers used for such emergencies as fire and smoke, and conduct water landing and sea survival training using a pool featuring a full size cabin mockup that can be lowered into the water, plus an emergency evacuation slide. Phillips said: “We put a big emphasis on emergency training.”

Demand for flight attendant training has increased slightly so far in 2010.

New Technology FSI invests a great deal in R&D to cater to its military clients. This has a direct benefit to Business Aviation users, since the software also appears in simulators for corporate fight training. Phillips added: “We do lots of work in visual systems using glass 58 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

mirror technology. All that development goes inside simulators for Business Aviation, giving higher quality images, expanded detail and continuous flight, as opposed to going into an airfield and then going away.”

Aware of the many problems people may have in communicating with air traffic control departments, FlightSafety’s simulation division is developing an “artificial intelligence” based system that will enable pilots to have a “real-time” synthetic conversation with air traffic control while flying a simulator. Philips said: “When a pilot is on approach to a particular airport, he or she will be able to have an audio interaction with the tower and request and receive specific approach and landing instructions. The pilot will also see a visual of the tower, runway and surrounding area as well as any other aircraft that are in the area.”

Although both Paris and Farnborough are doing well, FSI has no plans to make further investments in either center for the next couple of months. Phillips said: “We are being very cautious. We already have a robust network, so there is no need to expand. We already did a lot of expansion in anticipation of Business Aviation’s growth.”

Burgeoning Burgess Hill Meanwhile, CAE’s flagship UK center is flourishing. Peter Niemy, regional business development and sales leader, Europe & Africa said: “Burgess Hill is doing well, serving both Business Aviation and commercial customers, despite the current challenging business climate.”

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) recently qualified a Citation II simulator in Burgess Hill, bringing the total number of aircraft models served there to fifteen.

Burgess Hill has also added hypoxia awareness training through partner FACTS Training International. Niemy continued: “The course uses an artificial decompression to provide a safe and convenient means for people to experience the signs, symptoms and their personal response to high-altitude hypoxia.”

Additionally, CAE and Bombardier Aerospace continue to expand their long-term relationship. Under

Bombardier’s 20-year Authorized Training Provider agreement with CAE, the first Learjet 40, Learjet 40 XR, Learjet 45 and Learjet 45 XR Full Flight Simulator (FFS) in Europe was qualified at Burgess Hill in April.

A further simulator is in development for Challenger 300 aircraft, which will be added at a CAE location in Europe in the third quarter of 2010.

There is already a Challenger 604 FFS in Bombardier’s training center in Montreal, which will be relocated to the CAE Training Centre in Amsterdam in early 2011.

CAE also caters to maintenance staff. Niemy said: “The HoneywellCAE Training Alliance is now offering maintenance-training courses for technicians in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Among the courses to be offered in Europe are maintenance training for the TPE331 turboprop engine, CFE738 line maintenance and TFE731-20/-40/-50/-60 line maintenance, as well as seminars for the FMZ/NZ2000 flight management system (FMS), Honeywell Epic FMS, and understanding weather radar.”

There will be further technical training offered in Dubai-based Emirates CAE Flight Training (ECFT) for Honeywell Epic / Gulfstream Planeview line maintenance and

Honeywell Epic / AgustaWestland AW139 line maintenance. The center is also due to expand its business aircraft training programs with the addition of a CAE 7000 Series Level D full-flight simulator in Dubai for the Dassault Falcon 900EX and Falcon 2000EX models. The simulator will be ready for training in the first quarter of 2011.

CAE also markets excess capacity on an A320 full-flight simulator at Aeroflot in Moscow. Like FSI, the company is seeing the most activity in emerging markets. “We are seeing active market growth in Africa and CIS in particular,” says Camille Mariamo, managing director of ECFT. “We have a good relationship with the CIS countries.

Our Russian customers like to train in Dubai, though like other regions the business has not come back fully to previous levels.”

Looking to the future, Niemy predicts that we will see the increasing use of evidence-based training with real-world flight data from aircraft. He said: “Through our CAE Flightscape business we offer a flight operations quality assurance service for business aircraft operators similar to what the airlines use to analyze trends and incorporate safety and efficiency improvements. The same data can be used to tailor training by creating evidence-based scenarios and interactive

3D flight animations that help instructors and pilots visualize actual aircraft or simulator events.”

CAE is also installing its first 3000series helicopter mission simulator at a facility in North America. The Level 7 flight-training device, which the company unveiled in February at the HeliExpo conference, will replicate an AS350 cockpit. A CAE-built Bell 412 helicopter Level D full-flight simulator is also now ready for training at the company’s Bangalore joint venture training centre with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). There is a further Bell 412 full-flight simulator in Dubai.

Both companies offer a comprehensive training service across a variety of types. Phillips said: “The most important thing we’re seeing today is that customers want a one-stop shop. A flight department wants to turn to a provider and get training on different products from a variety of manufacturers.” This could be because of the glut of relatively inexpensive pre-owned aircraft on the market recently. Many operators have expanded their fleets to include more than one type. Phillips added: “When we look at all current production business aircraft, both fixed wing and helicopters, we provide training on 94-95 percent of them.”

✈

TRAGEDY

Water landing and sea survival training are conducted by FSI at Paris, Atlanta, Savannah and Teterboro.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 59

TRAINING

AIRCRAFT

THE TRAINING CONUNDRUM

REVOLUTION

The arrival of the Cessna 150 on the market fundamentally changed training methodology.

When manufacturers have to find a cross-over between simpler and lighter, and heavier and more complex.

By Marc Grangier

60 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

started flying fifty years ago when training aircraft were very rugged.

The wooden and canvas Jodel D112 that I first flew had no avionics and the fuel gauge was a floating rod coming out of the gas cap in front of the windshield.

Navigation aids consisted of paper maps and a magnetic compass. Many training schools appreciated this type of plane easy to fly and economical.

I

In fact, the training fleet of the Western world really started to change a few years later, with the arrival of two aircraft: the Cessna 150/152 and the Piper PA28 Cherokee, which then evolved to become the Piper Warrior. Tens of thousands of pilots spent their training flight hours in these aircraft.

If the Cessna and Piper trainers are undoubtedly the most popular aircraft in most parts of the world, training schools on the Continent have also used trainers made in Europe, such as Robin and Socata in France, Partenavia and SIAIMarchetti in Italy, Slingsby and Scottish Aviation in the UK, Dornier and Grob in Germany, just to mention a few.

When the original Piper Aircraft Corporation first conceived a new trainer in the mid-1970s, the company polled flight instructors to determine what traits this airplane should have. The 1978 to 1982 Tomahawk delivered what these special customers ordered: an airplane that provided honest response to pilot inputs, a comfortable cabin with great visibility, and big-airplane-style handling. The control forces and sensitivities matched those of the Learjet 35, making transitions to larger aircraft easier than with any basic trainer, hence the Tomahawk gained popularity with a number of air force flying schools.

It’s commonly said that since then end of World War II, more pilots have learned to fly in the Cessna 150 or 152 than any other type of airplane. These models are so easy to fly that they’re often affectionately called the ‘Land-O-Matic’ after a term used by Cessna in one of their deeprooted marketing campaigns. These Cessna models leave complexity behind in favor of low operating costs, reliability and ease of use.

However, these same easygoing flying qualities can make transitioning to a larger aircraft more difficult.

The cross-over between simpler and lighter, and heavier and more complex, is not always easy – though Cessna and Piper have modernized their models to increase their training efficiency.

THE REFERENCES Piper J-3 Cub The Piper J-3 Cub is a very simple aircraft. When you look at it, it’s not more than an engine attached to a tube structure covered by canvas. But according to many instructors, the Cub is actually a ‘poor airplane’. It is slow, its stall breaks predictably when forced into it, and the pilot/student can’t see over the nose on landing. But all of its shortcomings as an airplane are its strong points as a trainer because it does everything slowly and gently enough that the student has plenty of time to play catch up. It is light enough so the student has to work hard to overcome the gusts and adverse yaw.

Cessna 150/152 Successor of the C-120/140, the C152 is still the same, basic airplane.

Much lighter than a PA28, the Cessna is more demanding on the student.

Although most of the adverse yaw has been engineered out of the 150/152, the instructors consider it easier to teach coordination in a C152 than in a PA28. The Cessna also has a slightly pronounced stall, so the student can actually feel it coming and see it. Spins up to three turns are also approved in the airplane.

marked by the recent delivery of the 12th 172 Skyhawk to a Russian training program.

Piper PA28 Warrior All members of the PA-28 family are all-metal, unpressurized, four-seat, single-engine piston-powered airplanes with low-mounted wings and tricycle landing gear. All PA-28 aircraft have a single door on the copilot side, which is entered by stepping on the wing. The first PA-28 received its type certificate from the FAA in 1960 and the series remains in production in 2009 Socata TB20 Trinidad The Socata TB is a series light single engine piston aircraft manufactured by Socata and designed in the late 1970s.

The aircraft has a variable pitch pro-

peller. The TB series has become widely used instruction and touring aircraft and are often used for instrument training.

Piper Seminole With its sleek exterior, powerful twin 180 hp Lycoming engines, competitive price and low-cost operation, the Seminole has been for many years the smart choice for multi-engine training.

It has stayed in production and up-todate because its simplicity and safety have made it a mainstay of training programs worldwide. But outside of its training missions, the Seminole is also a business and pleasure aircraft with a 168 kts maximum cruising speed, 15,000-foot service ceiling and a 770 NM range. All Seminoles are now equipped with Garmin GNS 430 moving-map GPS.

IN STYLE

The Piper Warrior (top) and the Trinidad (down) are widely used for instruction and as touring aircraft.

Cessna 172 Skyhawk In the aircraft popularity contest, there is one undisputed winner - the Cessna Skyhawk. With more than 43,000 aircraft delivered, it is the bestselling, most-flown airplane ever. And it success continues. At the end of July, Cessna announced that it had sold new aircraft to nine global training fleets in the first half of 2010, BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 61

TRAINING Diamond D from D20 to D42 NG Diamond offers a complete fleet of training aircraft, from the spin-certified DA20 and single-engine DA40 with the Garmin G1000, including the latest technology like Synthetic Vision Technology, to the DA42 for multiengine training and the D-JET. Powered by two 336 hp engines, the DA42 has a true airspeed of 183 kts.

Its service ceiling is 18,000 ft and it can maintain 14,000 ft on one engine

AIRCRAFT look at military trainers. As opposed to civil aviation, most of the aircraft used for this type of training have a tandem configuration. This configuration has the advantage of being closer to the normal working environment that a fast jet pilot is likely to encounter.

One of the main leaders in this field for many years, Pilatus Aircraft Ltd has recently developed the PC-21, designed from the initial concept stage to provide flexibility to the cur-

Powered by a P&WC PT6A-68B developing 1600SHP, the PC-12, which flies at over 320 kts at low altitude and dives at 370 kts, has three large 6in x 8in displays in each cockpit. In addition to the integrated mission system, the PC-21 has an option of twin civil Flight Management Systems and an autopilot. The PC-21 has a unique power management system that regulates power as a function of airspeed, which improves its handling characteristic for students in the early phase of training.

On the other side of the Atlantic, Hawker Beechcraft Corporation (HBC), is offering the T-6A Texan II turboprop trainer. HBC has been delivering T-6s since 1998 and the total fleet in operation now exceeds 600 aircraft. The T-6A can lead the student from ab initio through primary and well into advanced training curricula. With a top speed of 316 kts and an advanced digital cockpit, it can be used to teach advanced aerobatic maneuvers and simulated combat training tasks - tasks that could previously be accomplished only in far more expensive aircraft.

The latest breakthrough is the T-6B. To replicate today’s high-tech frontline aircraft, the T-6B cockpit includes an integrated glass cockpit, with a

riculum developers and training schools, both in the use of the aircraft and systems, but also in the ease of changing software and displays.

Head-Up Display (HUD), Up-Front Control Panel (UFCP), and hands-on throttle and stick.

JET TYPE-RATING

JET

Diamond offers a complete fleet of trainers, including the D-JET (center).

Students at Phoenix East Aviation are trained with a Cessna Citation Jet (bottom).

Ideally, Jet-type rating should be carried out using jets! For example, Phoenix East Aviation, based at Daytona Beach, Florida, trains its students using a Cessna Citation Jet. But other flight schools, for financial reasons, are evaluating the possibility of using single-engine turboprops like the Daher-Socata TBM 850, which has a maximum cruise speed of 320 KTAS at 26,000ft. Or even light jets such as the single-engine Diamond DJet, which will come standard with a three-screen Garmin G1000 avionics, or the Embraer Phenom 100, though the sales price of the latter is roughly twice that of the D-Jet. Another competitor that could be aggressive in the future is the single-jet Vision SF-50 developed by Cirrus Aircraft.

In terms of jet-type rating, though it concerns essentially military aviation, it may be interesting to have a quick

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FROM THE COCKPIT

SITUATIONAL AWRENESS

AVOIDANCE

Pilots still manage to find ways to crash, despite sophisticated tools intended to prevent CFIT (Honeywell TWAS).

CONTROLLING FLIGHT INTO TERRAIN

By LeRoy Cook

As a defined cause, accidents labeled CFIT, or “controlled flight into terrain”, represent a large percentage of the fatal mishaps experienced by business aircraft. The Flight Safety Foundation reported that CFIT remained the second greatest cause of commercial aircraft fatalities in 2008. And, historically, more deaths have resulted from CFIT than any other type of accident.

Avoiding this often-inexplicable consequence requires both study and resolve, first to recognize the signs of a set-up for CFIT and then to encourage an early decision to remove the aircraft from its clutches.

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he FAA’s definition of a CFIT accident reads “...an airworthy aircraft...is flown into terrain with no demonstrated prior awareness of the impending collision on the part of the crew.” Clearly, a lack of situational awareness took the place of normal caution.

By this denotation, CFIT means the crew took no action to mitigate the crash, or did so only in the final seconds of flight when the calamity became starkly obvious. The flight continued with no awareness, or a disregard of any uncertainty, until the ground met the machine. Because the aircraft was often flown into the ground at normal speed, with no attempt made to avoid impact, the results are likely to be particularly disastrous.

CFIT accidents emanate almost entirely from a loss of situational awareness. For whatever reason, the flight crew misinterpreted the aircraft’s relationship with the ground; believing or assuming that terrain clearance existed at their location.

This can involve a mistake in lateral navigation, as when the aircraft’s actual location is miles from where it should be, or a vertical error, as when an altitude limit is ignored or a descent is begun too early. Further confusion can occur when an electronic navigational aid is misread, mistuned or disregarded.

Disorientation, as in simply being lost, is not the same as losing situational awareness. One might well be unsure of one’s location, but be cognizant of that fact, proceed accordingly and take steps to maintain or regain a safe orientation. CFIT need not occur just because you’re off track. It is most likely to become a true threat when you “don’t know what you don’t know”.

T

Horrible Examples In August 1997, Korean Air Flight 801 was flown into rising terrain on the island of Guam with the GPWS sounding a “sink rate” alarm, which was disregarded because there was no excessive sink rate. However, what the “prox box” was telling the Boeing 747’s crew was that the distance to the ground was rapidly diminishing; the airplane crashed into a slope three miles from the runway, the victim of a premature descent on a non-precision approach.

An earlier crash by an American Airlines Boeing 757 at Cali, Colombia in 1995, illustrated the ease with which unfamiliar circumstances can cause a loss of situational awareness.

In his haste to land, the captain selected the wrong VOR station, and then misprogrammed the FMS, all while descending to an inappropriate altitude for their location.

Disoriented and confused, the crew flew into a ridge after receiving a lastsecond warning from their early-generation GPWS. Banishing CFIT Through Technology Over the years, our tools to prevent CFIT have grown ever more impressive, yet pilots still manage to find ways to crash. When GPWS (ground proximity warning systems) were developed, and improved in various iterations, it was thought that CFIT was gone for good because the “prox box” could deliver an aural pull-up warning of impending ground contact.

However, the original GPWS equipment of 40 years ago was never designed to take the place of situational awareness, but merely to be a lastditch barrier to flying into the ground.

The first ground proximity warning units relied on downward-looking radar altimetry to detect rising terrain, later to be supplemented by an onboard terrain database to create look-ahead capability.

To successfully employ GPWS, now replaced by TAWS (terrain awareness warning system) in its latest form, pilots have to be trained to react INSTANTLY to its warning, legalities aside. Without such prioritizing, it’s tempting to succumb to a desire to troubleshoot the unexpected alert—”where are we, what’s going on?”—While the aircraft draws ever closer to the terrain. When the “pull up” command sounds, an

ORIENTATION

Situational awareness is crucial when flying in mountainous environments.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 65

FROM THE COCKPIT

SYNTHETIC

With a VMC-like picture on the PFD and a MFD map, there should be little reason for a CFIT ending.

immediate pitch up and power application must be started, leaving deliberation and debate for the moment.

With the advent of satellite navigation and more capable computing power, the development of TAWS has brought not only aural alerts, but also detailed mapping of terrain threats into the cockpit. Regulatory mandates have made TAWS standard for all but the smallest turbine-powered aircraft (six or more passenger seats), and most business-class airplanes will be so equipped.

The finest weapon in our arsenal is synthetic vision for glass-cockpit displays, a presentation of the world ahead that’s derived from a database of terrain coupled with GPS-based position information. With a VMC-like picture on the PFD and MFD map to aid with orientation, there should be little reason for a CFIT ending to any flight.

But, pilots can be terribly creative at defeating any system designed to protect them. The crew must stay in the loop, even with SV and other tools.

When the autopilot is coupled to an arrival routing, there’s a tendency to disengage from flight management, particularly when distracted by ATC requests, cockpit duties, or an airplane problem. At a minimum, the pilot flying must maintain situational awareness throughout, other factors notwithstanding.

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SITUATIONAL AWRENESS

The Record Is Clear

Avoiding a Set-up for CFIT

The most hazardous phase of the flight, from a CFIT standpoint, is obviously the period encompassing approach and landing. A Dutch study of 156 commercial CFIT accidents showed that nearly 70 percent occurred during approach and landing. The study also showed a precision approach to be a definite benefit, because 60 percent of those accidents involved aircraft on a non-precision approach.

It’s also important to avoid complacency just because there are no mountains nearby. In the aforementioned study group, the majority of the CFIT accidents were at airports with no significant terrain in the vicinity. The pilots simply flew the airplanes into the ground short of the runway, due to a lack of awareness of their true altitude. With a loss of situational awareness, it’s easy to miss an altitude limit at a step-down fix or misprogram the altitude alerter.

Most critical to situational awareness is knowing where you are, and what altitude is appropriate for that location.

Never presume immunity because of your array of flat panel displays. GPS moving maps tend to embolden a crew into total reliance on the MFD to keep the airplane out of the rocks, when in reality it should be used as a confirmation tool, assuring us that the procedure we’re following is indeed the correct one.

The Flight Safety Foundation (not to be confused with Flight Safety International) has an excellent CFIT Prevention Checklist that rates a flight’s potential for a CFIT confrontation. For many years, FSF has offered products that have been successful in preventing CFIT accidents. The checklist and other tools can be found at flightsafety.org/ current-safetyinitiatives/ controlled-flight-into-terrain-cfit/cfit-reduction-products.

Common ingredients for blissfully flying into the ground include those responsible for loss of situational awareness; poor weather, darkness, hurried flying and complex approach procedures with overlooked restrictions. Fatigue often plays a role, as the arrival comes at the end of a long duty day, perhaps when the crew is fighting lethargy on a night approach.

The lack of vertical guidance from an electronic glideslope amplifies the CFIT risk; thankfully, the increasing number of LPV and LNAV/VNAV satellite-based approaches can be expected to reduce the exposure. In the case of rapidly sequencing step-down fixes, it’s all too easy to lose track of oddly named points and the twists and turns along the way. And it is often the airports in mountainous terrain that require just such restrictions, in order to make an approach possible.

DME distances can be misinterpreted when more than one facility is present, requiring careful attention to the identifier associated with the mileage.

In the press of preparation for landing, misreading the distances and altitude restrictions when flying off the wrong facility can be fatal. An alert pilot might spot something that doesn’t look right, but a tired crew is a set-up for disaster.

It’s also necessary to guard against controller errors, most particularly in non-radar environments and when there’s language difficulty. If instructions are given only semi-intelligibly, perhaps with non-standard phraseology, don’t be afraid to clarify the intent, and even challenge the instructions if it appears that ATC has misunderstood your position. Never blindly follow a heading into a hill, even if issued by higher authority.

When receiving a clearance, both pilots should agree that they have heard the same thing, by disStandard Operating Procedures For CFIT Deterrence

SUMMING UP

To modernize an old proverb, "A gram of prevention is worth a kilo of cure".

Taking time to run a CFIT checklist before the flight, and particularly before beginning the approach, can catch the oversight that would have set up a CFIT accident. Here are the salient points: 1. Consider the terrain along the departure and arrival routes, and discuss how you're going to stay clear of these hazards with the other crewmembers.

2. Communicate clearly with crewmembers and controllers. Make sure both pilots agree on what was heard in the clearance, and if there's any hint of miscommunication, get it clarified before proceeding.

3. Cover all the published information showing the proper altitudes at each segment; in most CFIT accidents, the information was readily available on the chart, but was ignored in the heat of battle, as distractions occurred.

4. Capitalize on using the on-board equipment, like TAWS, synthetic vision, and altitude alerting. Sadly, in several CFIT accidents, the terrain feature was turned off or warnings were ignored. Be sure to use what you have.

5. Callouts should be standard operating procedure in every cockpit, even a single-pilot one. A verbal reminder of key altitudes is a wake-up call for a crew occupied with other duties.

Even when compared with all of general aviation, where the causes of accidents are much more varied, CFIT still accounts for 17% of all fatalities. We need to be continually aware of the CFIT danger and take steps to avoid the set-up for such an event. cussing the details and cross checking them. If in doubt at all, verify the instructions. Years ago, a Flying Tigers Boeing 747 crashed into a hill just outside the final approach fix at Kuala Lumpur International airport. The controller issued a clearance that stated, “descend two-four-zero-zero”, which was the FAF crossing altitude on the approach plate. Unfortunately,

the crew understood the clearance as “descend to four-zero-zero”, and let down to 400 feet. Two GPWS warnings sounded, one 16 seconds prior to impact and another eight seconds later, but because the crew mistakenly believed they were cleared for the lower altitude, they ignored the warnings. Always be alert for suspicious wording of instructions.

Business jet captain J.D. Lewis, wellversed in giving and receiving CFIT training, offers the following points: Always check your CFIT prevention equipment during preflight; Always select terrain on your MFD during initial descent; Always set the radar altimeter to its highest limit so it will remind you that you’re entering the CFIT “window of risk” and back up the TAWS; Have SOPs for callouts at certain altitudes to keep the crew alert as to situational awareness.

Testing our CFIT logic, he asked “If a crew is going into an airport in mountainous terrain for the first time, who should fly the approach, the old gray-haired captain or the young first officer?” If you said the old captain, you’re wrong . For CFIT prevention, he contends, “It’s better to have the sharp youngster doing the flying and have the wise eyes of the experienced captain monitoring everything.”

Captain Lewis further recommends asking the instructor to concentrate on CFIT scenarios during simulator training; if the pilot has a CFIT crash in the simulator, he’s likely to never have one in real life.

✈

SIM

Concentrating on CFIT scenarios in the simulator is the best way to avoid a real CFIT crash.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 67

FROM THE COCKPIT

COMPLETE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

LOOKING BEYOND THE ACRONYM

By LeRoy Cook

Aviation seems to be particularly plagued by trendy buzzwords and abbreviations thereof, confounding the casual reader who is forced to dredge up an appropriate definition to go with a cliché or three-letter compression.

Most of our acronyms are constructed with the best of intentions, that of saving time and screen space, but without periodic reintroduction they can be misunderstood or, worse, ignored as obscure. Crew/Cockpit Resource Management is a worthwhile safety tool whose CRM tag has long been a part of our lexicon. Perhaps we need to re-introduce it as a valid basic concept; let’s simply define CRM as “using everything you have at your disposal”.

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n both normal and emergency operation, a successful outcome is enhanced if the individuals responsible for the conduct of the flight maintain open communication with all of their resources. CRM began as a reminder to autocratic captains that the rest of the team—first and second officers, cabin crew, maintenance and ATC—were more than peripheral worker bees. Instead of staying out of the way until needed, they should be considered a normal part of the aircraft’s operation, used as extensions and crosschecks by the pilot-in-command to enhance safety. Captains are human, all too much so at times. By including the other participants in the flow, there can be true management, not just governance.

I

Because cockpit resource management paid dividends in large airline aircraft, its use was soon promoted for two-crew and even single-crew equipment, prompting a switch to Crew Resource Management as a source term, but I submit that it might more properly be called Complete Resource Management. It’s not just about people management, it’s keeping in touch with every resource that can be tapped into for support of the flight—autopilot, FMS, ground and cockpit weather sources, and operational checklists and manuals.

The PIC’s responsibility for the safe conduct of the flight cannot be delegated, no matter how much CRM is applied. The purpose of resource management is to manage, after all. I have

trip, and the winds switched from tail to head, so he not only had to deal with minimums weather at the destination but declining fuel reserves and risky alternate airports. Flying singlepilot, he made good use of his resources, including both on-board and ground-based radar presentations, and determined that no alternative, even a course reversal, would gain significant advantage over continuing.

With air traffic control’s concurrence, he made the approach with 45 minutes of fuel left for contingencies, a bit less than he wanted but still enough to provide options. observed several instances wherein there was no captain in the cockpit, when a proper decision was delayed while a consensus was being sought, or even ignored. Such anarchy is not CRM, but rather the opposite of it.

Giving a vote to other crewmembers and inanimate pieces of equipment like the fuel totalizer does not free the captain from his or her primary duty of making the right decision concerning a course of action. One of my primary instructional tenets is that “pilots only have one purpose in the aircraft: to make decisions”.

Thus, complete resource management takes stock of the available assets and overlooks no possible value. A second or third crewmember is among the greatest assets one can have—but they must be used correctly. Brief them into the task at the beginning, instead of having them await your command, so they can crosscheck and progress-check the procedure being followed. Each team member should know the game’s playbook, as well as their role in the execution. In Northwest Airlines Flight 188’s well-publicized over flight of its destination while the pilots were distracted by non-flying duties, the cabin crew supervisor should have been given the initiative to make timely inquiries early in the faux pas, absent instructions to the contrary.

Use of an autopilot is second nature to most flight crews, but as with any resource it has to be constantly monitored for correct operation. You must understand its limitations, use the appropriate mode for the flight condition, and above all, remain aware of what it’s doing and where it’s taking you. Similarly, proper programming and use of the flight management sys-

tem is a great work-saver, but an FMS always needs verification and oversight, in case an entry went astray.

Resource management includes understanding what level of redundancy remains available when flying a less-than-perfect aircraft. Dispatching with an equipment fault requires rethinking the possibilities if another item goes down, or if the planned routing becomes unavailable. It’s all well and good to have an MEL (minimum equipment list) for guidance, but will there be a comfortable set of assets remaining for your management?

Time to Apply Some CRM I recently held council with one of the pilots I trained, about a trip he had flown from the center of the US to southern Florida. Given the forecast edupper winds, the flight was well within non-stop range. However, the weather turned convective late in the

He used a complete range of resources to manage a potentially critical situation. The autopilot kept the aircraft coupled to the route while he verified weather and fuel predictions, and ATC was made aware that vectors and holding would have to be minimal. It would have been tempting to simply continue cruising into the zone of weather using the original flight planned assumptions, but he was actively managing the flight, not just passively observing, and when the groundspeed INTERACTION started dropping he went to work using While the resources to check his options. captain is making Steps in Making Decisions decisions, other When presented with a flight situa- participants – tion that has changed significantly pilots and from the one you were prepared for, controllers – several steps must be taken. Odd as it should may seem, the first step is to become communicate aware that action is needed. It’s tempt- and work as a ing to ignore or gloss over warning team.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 69

FROM THE COCKPIT

MONITORING

In case of emergency, review the checklist to ensure you have taken all the proper actions.

signs. However, management starts with staying alert for signs of a problem.

The initial action to take when dealing with any challenge is to evaluate what its potential effect will be. If a system has failed, how will this limit the aircraft’s operation? If the weather is not matching the forecast, can the original destination still be reached?

This evaluation must be performed with deliberation, not instinct or quick reaction. As our friend Captain John Lewis says, “Take time to wind your watch”, meaning stop and think it over before you get moving.

Now it’s time to determine the desirable outcome toward which you will base further action. This can mean continuing the trip with the remaining options, or diverting to the least objectionable alternate landing site, or finding the nearest runway as quickly as possible. A medical emergency in the cabin calls for an urgent deviation, but it would do little good to land the aircraft at a remote airport far from a hospital or ambulance service.

Once the goal is set, take stock of the tools available to achieve it. If you have a partially functioning aircraft, which systems are unaffected and usable for achieving the goal? What airports are suitable and reachable, given the weather and endurance?

What resources hold information and

70 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

COMPLETE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

how can it be accessed? Use other crewmembers or ground personnel to get this information while you manage the process.

With evaluation behind, put the tools and information to work, handling the problem to reach the goal. Actions taken must continue to be monitored for the desired result. Ask ATC to keep you informed of additional delays or weather deterioration, review the checklist for assurance you’ve taken all the proper actions, and MAKE SURE someone is still flying the airplane, meaning that terrain clearance and arrival routing are being followed.

The US Federal Aviation Administration promotes the use of a DECIDE model to follow when making aviation decisions. It’s debatable whether each of the six steps is a valid phase in the process, or merely a graphics-design item, but the methodology is sound. The word DECIDE is broken down into these stages: Detect that a change has occurred, Estimate the need to react to the change, Choose a desirable outcome, Identify the actions that will successfully control the change, Do the necessary actions to execute the change and Evaluate the actions’ effect.

CRM is not to be regarded as just for emergencies or urgent changes, but should be included in a flight’s planning, normal conduct, and incorpora-

tion of revised trip requirements. By bringing all resources to bear in the set-up and administration of the flight, potential problem areas can be caught earlier, and if a rapid response to a change comes up later, there will be less familiarization required. For instance, informing the cabin crew that a frontal penetration will be taking place about two-thirds of the way through the trip allows any optional passenger service to be accelerated, in case turbulence would make service more difficult to accomplish later.

Periodically taking stock of your resources keeps you aware of the tools available for CRM. In this age, we have much more to work with than in aviation’s infancy, but this plethora can create an overload of options that in itself adds to the work of management.

The FMS needs tending before it can yield benefits, in-flight weather can come from various broadcast, uplink or voice sources and a thick operations manual can be so convoluted with legal language that one has to distill it for clarity. Still, I wouldn’t want to go back to the early days of my career.

It is well that we have so many resources to manage, and with some periodic review of those assets, we’ll have Complete Resource Management working for us.

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SAFETY SENSE

By Michael R. Grüninger, Markus Kohler and Capt. Giancarlo Buono

DISCIPLINE

The crew’s position may be awkward when a business aircraft passenger has direct influence on their position and career.

SUMMER IS UPON us in the northern hemisphere, and the days are hot and long. For many, this is also a time for vacation and recreation, so let’s take another sip, place the frosted Caipirinha (assuming not to be on duty) glass on the side table, sit back and ponder some of those questions that seem to lack answers.

One thing that has always amazed us is seeing passengers on scheduled or business flights who do not keep their seatbelts fastened while seated. We all want to arrive safely at our destination and expect our crew, operator and the entire complex system that provides the transportation service to do everything possible to maximize the probability of a safe arrival. Yet, when it comes to the most basic things we can do ourselves as passengers, we choose not to.

A brief search of aviation safety databases reveals numerous events where passengers were injured on an aircraft, mostly because of an unexpected

72 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

RULES AND REGULATIONS

WHEN THE PASSENGER FLIES THE AIRPLANE

upset of the aircraft due to turbulence.

Turbulence is the leading cause of inflight injuries. And it is the most preventable when one simply keeps their seatbelt fastened – as boring as that may sound.

Clear air turbulence is an insidious threat, because in spite of advanced weather detection systems, it is not easily predictable and usually not recognized in time to illuminate the “fasten seatbelt” sign. It may be a rare

event, but can occur during all phases of flight and at any altitude. From 1981 through 1997 there were 342 reports of turbulence affecting major air carriers. Three passengers died, two of whom were not wearing their seatbelt while the sign was on. Out of the 80 who suffered serious injuries, 73 were also not wearing their seatbelts.

The regulator does not mandate that passengers keep their seatbelt fastened while seated. EU-OPS 1.325 states that the commander shall ensure that before take-off and landing, during taxiing, and whenever a deemed necessary in the interest of safety, each passenger is seated with the seatbelt fastened. Just what constitutes “in the interest of safety” is left open, but the regulator requires that the operator define in the Operations Manual (Operating Procedures 8.3.11) during which phases of flight seatbelts must be used. It’s a trade off between convenience and safety.

More Serious Matters The issue of convenience raises another issue: To what extend are customers, either on commercial or, maybe even more so, corporate flights, free to choose and exercise their will on the conduct of a flight?

This question becomes even more complex when the passenger is a person of authority with a direct influence on the position and career of the crew.

A very recent case on point, which is still under investigation, is the Polish president’s Tupolev 154 crash in Smolensk on the 10 th of April 2010.

The crew was repeatedly warned about the weather conditions that caused another plane to divert, and which had deteriorated even more.

Still, the pilot in command proceeded with the approach. According to sources citing unreleased transcripts, the cockpit door was open and, during the approach, there were two passengers present near or on the flight deck.

Recent press reports also refer to the translation of the CVR on the accident plane. At 8:16, shortly before the airplane crashed, the captain supposedly said that “if I don’t land, he’ll kill me”. The newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza continues, reminding us that in 2008, when the accident captain was still a

co-pilot, the presidential aircraft was supposed to land in Azerbaijan.

During the flight the pilot was asked by the president’s staff to change the flight plan and land in Tbilisi instead, which was in an active war zone. The pilot refused in the interest of safety and was even visited in the cockpit by Kaczynski himself, who tried to convince him to change his mind. In the wake of this deviation, some members of the Polish parliament belonging to the president’s party took legal action against the pilot and denounced him in a parliamentary interpellation as “coward”. As safety professionals, we certainly want to refrain from giving too much weight to unconfirmed and unofficial sources to draw conclusions about air safety events, but there appear to be some consistent indications that the pressure on the captain not to divert and to attempt to land was huge.

This is a drastic example, but there may be parallels to the world of commercial and corporate aviation. Paying commercial passengers, and probably to a larger extent corporate passengers, believe they have a right to exercise operational influence and control over the conduct of a flight.

What if the corporate passenger imposes on the flight department very short-notice flight requests that allow only marginal time for proper flight preparation, or shows up at the airport with excess baggage that exceeds the aircrafts maximum takeoff weight? It’s a fine line between being legal and safe, and facing the wreath of a dissatisfied customer.

Today, the issue is even more prevailing. Since the collapse of the major State owned carriers in the US and Europe, commercial priorities have taken precedence over operational decisions. Flight crews are less empowered to make decisions and are usually held accountable for their decision. There are documented examples of how this pressure can contribute to a condition of continually decreasing safety margin. In the case of Ryanair’s EI-DAV incident on September 7 th , 2005 (see ANSV report), a combination of emotionalpsychological pressure and economic circumstances led to a complete deterioration of operational capability of the crew. A China Airlines A340 erroneously took off from Anchorage from

a taxiway and left imprints from the main undercarriage on a snow berm at the end of the taxiway. Rather than returning for an investigation for possible structural damage, the crew continued on the long flight to Taipei.

To open the scope even further, external influence on operational control has increased the level of crew fatigue, which is the main contributory factor in a number of accidents. If the owner of a corporate jet or a VIP customer is not keeping is seatbelt fastened, this is a minor problem compared to the pressure he could put on the crew to reach a particular destination or to fly back after no rest.

So Who Flies the Plane?

Obviously, the pilot in command is ultimately responsible for the safe conduct of the flight. However, the regulatory system recognizes that it is as much an organizational issue to set up the necessary framework of managerial support so that a commander can freely make any required decision in the best interest of safety without psychological pressure for example for fear of punitive actions. This is reflected in the EU-OPS 1.195 requirement, which states that an operator shall exercise operational control over any flight operated under the terms of his AOC. Therefore, it is also the responsibility of the Accountable Manager to set and enforce a framework where flight directors are able to support the flight crew in exercising their duty to make decisions in the best interest of the aircraft.

After all, the answer is clear. It is they who are flying the aircraft, not the passengers.

✈

Michael R. Grüninger is the Managing Director of Great Circle Services (GCS) Aviation Safety Advisors. GCS assists in the whole range of planning and management issues, offering customized solutions to strengthen the position of a business in the aviation market. Its services include training and auditing (IS-BAO and other standards), consultancy, manual development and process engineering.

He can be reached at michael.grueninger@gcs-safety.com or +41-79 442 44 89. His column, Safety Sense appears regularly in BART International.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 73

REPORT Even Business Aviation got a look in at the UK’s largest biannual airshow.

Liz Moscrop reports.

FANTASTIC FARNBOROUGH

inancially, this year’s Farnborough Airshow far outstripped its 2009 Parisian counterpart racking, up huge orders. At list prices airframers announced US$29 billion in sales, largely from leasing companies for commercial airliners.

This resurgence has a knock on effect for the entire industry, so it bodes well for Business Aviation, too.

The star of the show was of course Boeing’s new aircraft, the 787 Dreamliner, which made its international debut. To date the airframer has sold 12 of the new jets in its VIP configuration to undisclosed customers.

However, the biggest bizav story came from Bombardier, which announced that Austrian jet card charter company VistaJet had placed a $277 million firm order for four ultra long-range Global Express XRS and two large cabin Challenger 605 aircraft for delivery across 2011 and 2012. The range and capacity of the new aircraft are ideal for route profiles in VistaJet’s rapidly expanding markets in the Middle East, West Africa and Russia/CIS. The new order takes its fleet to in excess of thirty aircraft.

Chairman Thomas Flohr said: “Having demonstrated its resilience during the recent global economic downturn by increasing revenues, VistaJet is now enjoying increasing demand across all its service areas and

these larger, long-range new aircraft will play a key role in our ongoing success.”

Steve Ridolfi, president, Bombardier Business Aircraft added: “This significant order is great news for both our companies. We are confident the new aircraft will provide VistaJet with the ability to continue to offer the exceptional quality and customer service it is known for as it continues its expansion.”

French airframer Dassault Falcon Jet elected to display a Falcon 7X and a Falcon 2000 at Farnborough, rather than the Rafale. The OEM also said at the show that it is now signing partners for its new SMS super-midsize jet program. The SMS project will replace Dassault’s Falcon 50EX and was launched in 2007.

The company announced more positive news in that its newest Falcon family member – the Falcon 900LX – had received certification from both the European Aviation Safety Agency and the US Federal Aviation Administration.

The 4,750nm (8,790km) large cabin aircraft is a derivative of the Falcon 900EX, with added Aviation Partners’ winglets. The aircraft burns 35-40 percent less fuel than other aircraft in its class and has a time-to-climb at maximum take-off weight of 20 minutes to reach 39,000ft (11,900m). John Rosanvallon DFJ’s president said:

F

SUPERSTAR

The B787 Dreamliner was indisputably the star of the show (left).

Dassault Falcon elected to display a 7X and a 2000 (right).

FARNBOROUGH

74 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

“The Falcon 900LX delivers the next evolution of enhancements to the successful Falcon 900EX. The improvements to its range, performance and efficiency set the standard in its class and make it a highly desirable business tool.”

Flying the Flag for the US The US also had a good turnout from its bizjet manufacturers. Cessna exhibited several of its products.

“Farnborough is a great opportunity for Cessna to meet with a number of customers and potential customers who visit this great show,” said Trevor Esling, Cessna vice president, International Citation Sales. “Europe has always been Cessna’s top market outside the US and we expect that to remain true well into the future.”

Cessna exhibited a Citation XLS+ as well as a Citation CJ3 and Citation Mustang, a Grand Caravan turboprop and a turbo 206 Stationair singleengine piston. The Citation Mustang is the world’s first fully certified entrylevel business jet, and has recently gained type certification in India and Russia. It is now certified in more than 60 countries. Since the Mustang earned its original ticket back in 2006, Cessna has delivered more than 300 to customers around the world.

Hawker Beechcraft Corporation (HBC) meanwhile announced several key appointments that bolster its cus-

tomer support in developing markets.

Steve Porte has become vice-president, international support at its Asia Pacific headquarters in Hong Kong.

The airframer has also added $3 million in critical spare parts in Beijing, Hong Kong and Singapore to support

Advanced life support is provided with a MedPak, including oxygen, compressed air, vacuum, and a/c power.

Pilatus was also crowing about its one-thousandth sale of a PC-12 to Halifax Nova Scotia-based entrepreneur David Fountain. The airframer

mal cameras, it also comes with a new 30-mile range digital downlink system. Other features include a 30million candlepower searchlight, and ‘geo pointing,’ which enables the camera to be directed automatically to any given location. In addition

its growing fleet of business jets, turboprops and piston engine aircraft across the region. HBC also plans to strengthen its sales force in the Europe, Middle East and Africa by two thirds over the next 18 months.

The OEM brought a Hawker 4000, Beechcraft King Air 350i and the C90GTx to the show.

now produces 100 PC-12 aircraft per year. Pricing plays a major factor in the turboprop’s success. For $4.4-million, owners can fly a pilot and five passengers 1,500 nm. Since it is a single engine aircraft, direct operating costs are considerably less than the DOCs of a twin turboprop.

Meanwhile, rival Hawker Beechcraft Corporation announced that the MAXVIZ EVS-1500 Infrared Enhanced Vision System had been certified on its line of King Air 200 and 300 series aircraft. The initial release of this STC applies to King Air Aircraft equipped with the Rockwell-Collins Proline-21.

Some aftermarket retrofits are also possible with extra modifications.

Elliott Troutman, president of Max-Viz said, “Max-Viz is proud to join the Hawker Beechcraft family of approved vendors. Our system turns night into day to help pilots avoid runway incursions, inadvertent flight into IMC, nighttime VMC spatial disorientation and in general, enables pilots to see clearly and to fly even more safely.”

,there is an 850-Watt ‘Skyshout’ public address system, and the aircraft is easily convertible for medevac operations.

Not to be outdone, AgustaWestland unveiled the new AW169, a new 4.5 tonne twin helicopter aimed at denting Eurocopter’s Dauphin and EC145 sales. Although there is no price tag on the 10-passenger aircraft, according to AgustaWestland CEO Giuseppe Orsi, the company expects to sell some 1,000 of the model over the next 20 years. Slated to enter service in 2015, the AW169 will be powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW210 engines.

The new helicopters will need landing sites for Farnborough 2012.

Luckily, just before the show Premier opened its new London Heliport. Two years in the making, the heliport now has a new passenger terminal, two passenger lounges, additional helicopter parking, a rebuilt control tower and upgraded fire and rescue facilities.

PremiAir Group Managing Director David McRobert said “Business Aviation is forecast to see significant growth globally. The recession has clearly been a set-back for Business Aviation, but it is going to grow and we think that growth will be significant in the next year or so.”

A Vision for the Future Farnborough is not traditionally a Business Aviation show – although there were some business aircraft on the static. Cirrus Aircraft trotted out a mock up of its new personal jet - the Vision. Priced at $1.72 million, the seven-seater aircraft costs just over $1m - less than Cessna’s six seat Citation Mustang and Embraer’s seven passenger Phenom 100 light jet offerings, which come in at $3m and $3.745 million respectively.

Another newcomer was the medevac variant of Action Aviation and Emivest Aerospace’s SJ30 light business jet.

The specialized air ambulance interior will be a “quick-fit” option provided by Lifeport, a company that provides aircraft medical interior solutions. The Lifeport interior includes a seamless floor, which has both biocide and fungicide properties. The interior also includes an IV warmer, a slide out shelf for a vital signs monitor, a locking drug box and a suction canister.

May the Force be with You There were some good helicopter stories, too. West Midlands police took delivery of a Eurocopter EC135, which will be the most advanced helicopter in the British police service. Equipped with several new features, including high definition ther-

✈

SHOW

HBC brought a Hawker 4000, a Beechcraft King Air 350i and the C90GTx (left).

Bombardier was displaying its Challenger 605, a Global 5000 and a Learjet 60XR (right).

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 75

REPORT

AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH AIRSHOW

“SPLOSHKOSH” 2010

EXPLORE

Aviation Partners exhibited a Falcon 50 fitted with experimental “spiroid” winglets.

By LeRoy Cook THE GREATEST DESIRE of any airshow promoter is for a routine event, well-attended but devoid of surprises.

The huge AirVenture fly-in, convention and trade show, held in Oshkosh, Wisconsin (USA), is so large that it cannot be contained to the available pavement, thus it’s heavily dependent on parking and display sites of bare earth. Three days of heavy rain a mere half-week before opening turned much of the venue into a quagmire. By the second day of the show, entrepreneurs were marketing “Sploshkosh Survivor” T-shirts and badges.

Volunteers and work crews from the Experimental Aircraft Association labored mightily to make the best of the situation – pumping ponds, hauling fill material, extracting stranded vehicles and constantly altering plans to fit the dynamic circumstances.

Attendees often found their temporary housing spots unavailable or shifted elsewhere. Nevertheless, good humor generally prevailed and the usual festive atmosphere remained.

As an event encompassing all aspects of aviation, AirVenture cannot be ignored by even the most narrowlyfocused observers. Everyone comes to exhibit their wares and watch the show, including business jet makers like Embraer, Cessna, Hawker Beechcraft and Hondajet. Oshkosh is also a good spot to introduce innova76 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

tions for public approval, such as electric propulsion, avionics advances and aerodynamic creativity. One never knows what will turn up at AirVenture.

For instance, Aviation Partners, Inc., wonder-workers of the winglet world, showed a Falcon 50 with large “spiroid” sparrow-strainer devices on its wingtips, perhaps the most-photographed framing objects on the main ramp. The purpose of the rectangular winglets is to eliminate nearly all drag from a wingtip vortex by creating an effective wing of “infinite length”, as if it had no wingtips at all.

The seven-day AirVenture event provides ample opportunity for total immersion into aviation, attracting world-wide attention. Chinese civil aviation officials often watch the show to evaluate the formation of infrastructure to support a general aviation network. In the past year, some Chinese airspace below 10,000 feet has been opened for civil use, perhaps a beginning to personal freedom of flight.

Looking Forward, Looking Back One of the themes of AirVenture 2010 was the 75th Anniversary of the Douglas DC-3, attracting 40 or more of the type, some of which still sported “corporate barge” interiors from the days when the old Douglas Racer was widely used for business travel. The convenience and luxury of on-demand service by a company plane was proven by the converted DC-3 airliner long before Gulfstream and Dassault replaced them with jets.

One bizjet was lost during the postairshow traffic mix on July 27th. A Beech Premier 1, owned by Roush Fenway Racing L.L.C. and personally flown by Jack Roush, was executing a landing when yet-undetermined circumstances turned it into a wreck beside runway 18. Fortunately, the very robust carbon-fiber fuselage of the Premier 1 remained intact and both occupants self-extricated themselves. Mr. Roush suffered serious injuries and his passenger, Brenda Strickland, survived with minor injuries. The Premier, however, appeared to be a total loss.

On display at AirVenture, Farnborough Aircraft’s F1 turboprop single returned as the Kestrel, now finding a new production home at the

soon-to-be former Naval Air Station in Brunswick, Maine. Alan Klapmeier, co-founder of Cirrus Aircraft, has signed on with the new Kestrel Aircraft Company, which will seek certification for the 1,000-hp 8-seat composite airplane.

Another composite turboprop single returning to production will be Extra Aircraft’s 500 Spirit, to be assembled for the US market in Montrose, Colorado, as announced a week prior to AirVenture by Ken Keith, CEO of Extra Aircraft. Major components will be manufactured in Dinslaken, Germany and sent to Colorado for assembly, where the Rolls Royce M250-B17F engine will be installed.

On the AirVenture show’s second day, Daher-Socata kicked off a yearlong countdown for its 100th Anniversary observance, by starting a 365-day second-by-second clock at its display booth. Founded on October

10th, 1911 as Morane-Saulnier, Socata was acquired by Daher in 2009. In addition to the VFT (very fast turboprop) TBM 850, Daher-Socata builds major components for several aerospace companies.

Among the attractions at AirVenture 2010 was the world’s only civilian Harrier V/STOL jet, a retired Royal Navy Sea Harrier that’s now the property of retired Marine Lt. Col. Art Nalls. The second Sea Harrier built, it’s in good hands with Nalls and his fellow pilot, Maj. Gen. Joe Anderson, both of whom flew AV-8A Harriers.

Nalls demonstrated the Sea Harrier regularly for the Oshkosh crowd - his fuel provided by Conoco-Phillips.

As we said, one of the main attractions at Oshkosh this year were the various events honoring the 75th Anniversary of the first flight of the iconic Douglas DC-3. The old Gooney Birds were parked in various locations, some which would have been unsuitable for less turf-worthy aircraft.

A mass 21-ship formation on the show’s opening day will probably be the final large flight of the type.

More than Just DC-3s Not all of the airplanes sharing in the tribute were DC-3s. A rare DC-2 from the Seattle Museum of Flight, a smaller and earlier Douglas commercial transport, was parked in center

stage, and a restored DC-7B, returned to its Eastern Airlines livery as one of the last four-engine piston airliners to be built, was brought up from Miami, Florida by the Historic Flight Foundation. Parked beside it was the Berlin Airlift Foundation’s DC-4, or C-54 when used by the US Air Force to supply a blockaded Berlin in 1948. It contained displays of its role in resisting the Soviet attempt to dictate terms.

The EAA’s AirVenture extravaganza adds value to all of aviation by promoting and energizing interest in flying. One might think that Business Aviation has little in common with home-builts and warbirds, but without the continuing support of airports and other aviation infrastructure from the public at large, our use of aircraft is threatened. And the next crop of corporate pilots might very well take root and grow with enthusiasm picked up from an Oshkosh visit as a youth.

Many AirVenture attendees own more than one type of aircraft, including business jets.

Manufacturers of business airplanes and support items know all this, and shrewdly mount large displays every year at the Oshkosh show. May it long continue...without the swampland.

✈

CELEBRITY

Part of the Hawker Beechcraft AirVenture display area, featuring a King Air 350 (top). An American Airlines Boeing 737 was parked nose-to-nose with a restored American Flagship DC-3.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 77

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PROFILE

SMARTAIR

SMARTAIR SHREWDLY INVESTS IN DIAMONDS

By Jack Carroll

When SmartAir Founder and CEO, Stephane Ledermann, read that the average number of passengers carried on business jets within Europe was only 1.3, he had his proverbial “Eureka” moment – realizing then he had found a niche in the market. As the former CFO of one of the largest fractionaltype operations in Europe, he developed definite ideas about reducing costs through operational efficiencies, which included of course making the right choice of aircraft. s he explains, “As I looked into this deeper, I concluded that there was apparently a great deal of waste in business aircraft operations. Using a six or eight-place aircraft to only carry a couple of people was simply not a smart travel solution.”

Ledermann had been doing research, due diligence, ferreting out financing and all the myriad of things associated with a company start-up since late 2006. After finding what he calls a ‘smart travel solution’, he formally established SmartAir S.A. in December 2007 at the then general aviation directed Eur-Avia Show in Cannes, France. (The show has since edged its way into Business Aviation as well.) It was the composite-structure, single engine “D-Jet” that was designed as an economical, easy-tofly, light personal jet. The aircraft has performed well throughout its flight test program, but like others in the category, it had its shares of delays.

But according to Ledermann, that’s all in the past and the Diamond D-Jet “is now back on a fast track to FAA and EASA certification late next year.”

A

The reasons he selected the D-Jet boils down to cabin size, operational simplicity and fuel efficiency – coupled with a decent 1,350 nautical mile range that puts the D-Jet, its pilot and three passengers within reach of just about any European destination.

As to building his operation around an aircraft still to be certified, Ledermann says he is “totally confident” it can do the missions he envisions. “We have studied this aircraft very carefully and the people at Diamond Aircraft are keeping us well-informed on a regular basis and up-to-date on every step accomplished during the development process.” I’m sure we have chosen the right aircraft that’s ‘Sized to your needs’ – as we say in our slogan”.

Following Tradition SmartAir is structured along the lines of the traditional fractional ownership module, that is, buy a share (in the case of SmartAir, for as little as ten percent) that allows for 50 hours per year. Clients pay a monthly management fee that covers insurance, training, maintenance and the like, along with a fee for occupied flight hours.

Additional services like catering and

ground transportation are also billed to the customer.

Ledermann has tinkered with his program a bit though, adding a price incentive for owners who plan well ahead. For example, the lowest management fee for a given period would be offered to an owner who schedules the aircraft at least ten days in advance, while a customer specifying the minimum 12-hour notice would pay a premium. Ledermann likens his plan to those used by European discount carriers, such as easyJet or Ryanair. Book well in advance and the prices can be ridiculously low, but the closer you get to the departure date before booking, the prices increase dramatically – often to the levels of the so-called “legacy” carriers such as British Airways, or even higher.

Sizing Up the Competition SmartAir has been promoting a cutrate occupied hour charge for the DJet of just 895 Euros, or 1,600 Euros when you add on the management fee.

He compares this to a potential competitor offering the PC-12 single turboprop, with an occupied hourly rate, including management fee, of about

SMART

Reducing costs through operational efficiencies is the idea behind SmartAir’s operations.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 79

PROFILE

SMARTAIR

Talking Strategy

BULLISH

SmartAir has committed to eight D-Jets and an option for 20 additional aircraft.

3,500 Euros. As one would expect, Ledermann doesn’t see NetJets Europe as competition in price or aircraft size – that’s how he planned it. He’s going after small companies and entrepreneur types.

Asked about the charter and quasifractional outfits cropping up in Europe that feature Cessna’s popular entrylevel (The new term emerging for VLJs) Mustang, he claims his price schedule for the D-Jet will be about 40 percent lower. “No one will come close to us in terms of price,” he states emphatically. “If we did at some point need an aircraft to supplement our DJets, it would be the PC-12, which can take a larger number of employees or a family going on vacation. The PC-12 would carry a higher price tag of course,” - meaning the D-Jet owner

80 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010

would pay a differential cost for the larger aircraft.

SmartAir has committed to eight DJets and holds an option for 20 additional aircraft, with good delivery positions, no doubt. And while Stephane and his staff wait patiently for the first D-Jet deliveries, he’s developed a sales organization based in central Luxembourg, which has pre-sold a sufficient number of shares to cover “several aircaft” he says. He’s also been displaying a fullsize D-Jet mock-up at air shows and exhibitions over the past couple of years, including EBACE, Eur-Avia, the Travel Market in Monaco, The Paris Air Show and the International Boat & Yacht Show. He’s obviously going where the money is and reports “a high level of interest and a large number of strong sales leads.”

Asked about sales strategy, Ledermann explains that, “Our basic sales approach and overall strategy is to keep our prices as low as possible in the European marketplace.” For example, he quotes a full share price of $230,000 USD, while the monthly management fee is 3,000 Euros and the rate per occupied flight hour is 895 Euros.

Plans are also afoot at SmartAir to set up a network of authorized dealers – or re-sellers – in Europe. Ledermann’s goal is a total of about 50 dealers, with the network spread out according to the market. For instance, one in Luxembourg, three in Belgium, and so on. He notes that the dealer doesn’t necessarily have to come from aviation, “as long as he’s in touch with the right people and is a good businessman.” Incidentally, SmartAir is starting a second round of financing to “help speed development,” as Ledermann puts it.

✈

For more information on SmartAir Authorized Dealerships or investment opportunities, contact Stephane Ledermann, CEO, at +352 22 9999 5550; email sle@smartair.aero or visit www.smartair.aero. And get in on the ground floor!

INSIGHT

WITH RUAG’S CHRISTIAN PINTER

WELCOME TO THE BUSINESS AVIATION WORLD! Christian Pinter, the newly appointed General Manager of RUAG Business Aviation Geneva, has his hands full.

BART Senior Editor Marc Grangier recently caught up with Pinter in his office.

BART: At EBACE in May, many people in the industry were pleased to hear about your recent arrival to RUAG Business Aviation Geneva. But as you are relatively new in the Business Aviation scene, tell us about your professional curriculum before becoming General Manager of the Geneva site?

Pinter: I became General Manager of

RUAG Geneva on March 1 st 2010.

Before that, I had various occupations within the Aviation industry. I started my professional career in the French Air Force as a line engineer, before turning towards civil aviation. Here I had the opportunity to travel abroad, including to China in relation with Airbus where, as a consultant for Airbus Industry in China, I participated in the introduction of the first Airbus A320. I really enjoyed working abroad because it showed me other approaches that proved to be very useful later. I spent a number of years in foreign countries, including recently a year and a half in Bahrain for SR Technics. In October 2009, I was approached by RUAG for the General Manager position of one of the two large Business Aviation sites. And that’s how I arrived in Geneva!

BART: What are your priorities now?

Pinter: My first mission is to finalize

the integration of the Geneva site into the RUAG group. And to that effect, implement the new focused strategy of RUAG Business Aviation to fully align with the other sites. My intention is to offer premium services to customers. A customer remains a customer and we

have to listen to and discuss with them important facts in order to truly understand their unique needs. So I decided to reinforce our team by, for example, hiring new experts (sales and technicians). Some of them left the company some time ago, but are very happy to return to work for RUAG.

BART: What aircraft types are main-

tained in Geneva?

Pinter: According to RUAG Business

Aviation’s new focused strategy, the Geneva site is a Dassault Falcon excellence center. It is also the official OEM Partner and Major Service Center for PC-12s, Hawker Beechcraft King Airs and the 400 XP. Additionally, we support customers from other RUAG Business Aviation Service Centers by offering line maintenance services both for Embraer Legacies and Piaggio P180s.

BART: In terms of internal organization, how have you restructured your sales force?

Pinter: In order to be as near as pos-

sible to the customer, we have simplified our commercial organization with three services: MRO, FBO and PC-12 sales, all complementary to our global Business Aviation sales force, which is

in a build-up phase and will be focusing on regional sales and on business development for all sites. Presently, we have a total staff of 123.

BART: How is the company’s turnover split?

Pinter: Obviously, the Falcon maintenance is represents the majority of our activity. We are an Authorized Dassault Service Center, and therefore we have highly qualified specialists to look after our customers’ Falcons. As a one-stop-shop, we carry out all maintenance operations according to individual wishes – from periodic maintenance work to repairs and even up to system upgrades. Our service portfolio includes maintenance, interior equipment, paint, avionics, engineering and fleet management for all Falcons.

The rest of our income comes from turboprop maintenance. We offer our customers a full range of services, from periodic maintenance to repair work and smaller modifications. After a challenging 2009 for the aviation industry, business was rather slow, but we are now recovering and by the end of this year we should have reached our cruising altitude and taken back the position the company held a few years ago, under the TSA Transairco name.

ENCOUNTER

Senior Editor Marc Grangier sits down for an exclusive oneon-one with Christian Pinter, General Manager, RUAG Geneva.

BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010 - 81

INSIGHT

WITH RUAG’S CHRISTIAN PINTER

BART: You mention TSA Transairco.

This company used to do a lot of aircraft completions and refurbishments. What are your plans?

out painting for aircraft that have had a C-check or another type of maintenance. If it concerns “dry” painting jobs, we orientate them towards our Oberpfaffenhofen site, which has one of the most modern paint shops in Europe.

Pinter: The systematic development of high-value added services for selected platforms such as modifications, upgrades and refurbishments is part of our RUAG Business Aviation strategy.

At the same time, this is something that I personally want to develop because we have the in-house know-how and we work with various qualified partners, such as Burnet Interiors. RUAG Business Aviation is also building on its successful cooperation with List Components GmbH promoting further Refurbishment projects. At the Geneva site, we are presently finishing the refurbishment of a Falcon 900 after a Ccheck. In order to meet the individual requirements, quality is our keyword.

Functionality and aesthetics go hand-inhand, and always in compliance with the latest standards and regulations.

BART: Is your paint shop still active?

BART: What about avionics?

Pinter: As a Honeywell approved service center, we are a competent and reliable partner when it comes to testing, service, repair work, upgrades or modifications of flight units and instruments.

In addition to an extensive spare parts service, we are highly involved in avionics retrofits and, more precisely, glass cockpit upgrade programs. At the facility in Lugano, for example, RUAG Business Aviation offers a fully integrated flight deck retrofit with the Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 integrated display system for the Piaggio P180 Avanti.

BART: Do you carry out engine main-

tenance?

BART: At this year’s EBACE, RUAG Business Aviation announced the cooperation with ExecuJet. What’s the purpose of this new partnership?

Pinter: In May 2010, RUAG Business

Aviation signed a strategic alliance agreement with ExecuJet. As a result, present and future customers will benefit from a full range of aircraft management and aftermarket services - from pre-owned and new aircraft sales through aircraft management to comprehensive maintenance, modification and refurbishment services. The alliance gives ExecuJet access to European destinations like Geneva and Oberpfaffenhofen. In return, RUAG will get the opportunity to provide maintenance services to ExecuJet’s clients.

Pinter: This is a difficult market. The

Here I must tell you something.

Coming from commercial aviation, I have never been used to such a high level of quality on airliners. RUAG Business Aviation painters are real artists and the work they do is of excellent quality. But concerning aircraft painting, here in Geneva we only carry

site in Geneva is a major center for Honeywell engines and we do engine maintenance up to hot section inspection. We have highly qualified engineers, but it’s hard to get customers and, apparently, the retrofit “fashion” that took place a number of years ago concerning the Falcon 20 or the Falcon 50 has been badly hit by the recent crisis. But we shall continue our coopera-

As you can see, Christian Pinter has a lot of work in front of him!

Implementing the new RUAG Business Aviation strategy and optimizing the utilization of company assets to minimize investments are just some of his challenges and no one doubts that he’ll soon forget his previous big irons to fall in love with the many business jets he dreams to fill his hangar with.

My intention is to offer premium services to our clients. A customer remains a customer and we have to listen and discuss with them in order to understand their unique needs. So I have decided to reinforce our team.

We are now recovering and by the end of the year we should have reached our cruising altitude and taken back the position the company held a few years ago under the TSA Transairco name.

The retrofit has been hit by the recent crisis, but we shall continue our cooperation with Blackhawk Modifications for PT-6A upgrades and with Raisbeck Egineering for aerodynamics improvements.

Pinter: Yes it is, and it very busy too.

82 - BART: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER - 2010