Aviation Tax and Aircraft Sales Tax

Attendance at EBACE 2012 "On Par" with 2011

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 13:51:28 PDT

Attendance at EBACE 2012 "On Par" with 2011 According to a news release from EBAA and NBAA, “as the third and final day of [EBACE 2012] concluded, 12,638 Attendees had participated, representing 99 countries – both numbers on par with last year’s show. Additionally, 491 Exhibitors were on hand, occupying a record-breaking 2,280 booth spaces [...]

Attendance at EBACE 2012 "On Par" with 2011

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 13:51:28 PDT

Socata, Pilatus Struggle with Twin Models

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:27 PDT

Socata, Pilatus Struggle with Twin Models Turboprop-single business aircraft manufacturers Pilatus and Daher-Socata seem to be having trouble defining time frames for producing larger, twin-engine airplanes–respectively the PC-24 and NTX–both companies told AIN this week at EBACE. The PC-24 was to be unveiled this year, according to Pilatus’ latest annual report, but this has apparently [...]

TBM 850 Elite Offers More Baggage Space

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:27 PDT

TBM 850 Elite Offers More Baggage Space Daher-Socata exhibited its TBM 850 Elite, the latest version of its single-turboprop business/utility aircraft, at EBACE this week in Geneva. Its main feature is the “quick-change” capability from the conventional six-seat arrangement to a configuration with four forward-facing seats, with the rest of the volume being made available [...]

Hawker Pacific Signs for Six More King Airs at EBACE

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:27 PDT

Hawker Pacific Signs for Six More King Airs at EBACE Hawker Beechcraft inked an order for six Beechcraft King Air 350i turboprops from Hawker Pacific yesterday at EBACE. The deal with Hawker Pacific, a business aircraft sales and support firm in the Asia Pacific region, will support Hawker Beechcraft’s growing commercial and special missions operations [...]

EBAA, NBAA Awards Recognize Eurocontrol and IBAC Chiefs

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:27 PDT

EBAA, NBAA Awards Recognize Eurocontrol and IBAC Chiefs Eurocontrol director general David McMillan and International Business Aviation Council (IBAC) director general Don Spruston received 2012 European Business Aviation Awards from EBAA and NBAA on Monday at EBACE. Both were honored for their “outstanding service to the business aviation industry.” EBAA said that under McMillan, “Eurocontrol [...]

Flightworx Aviation Introduces Web-based Flight Support

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:27 PDT

Flightworx Aviation Introduces Web-based Flight Support Flight support solution provider Flightworx Aviation is launching a new web-based flight support platform, www.iView.aero, at EBACE 212 in Geneva, Switzerland. The iView.aero program allows pilots to interact with the company’s flight operations function to obtain information on flight bookings and progress in real time. Pilots can also retrieve [...]

Asia’s ABACE Is Latest Triumph For EBACE Organizer NBAA

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:27 PDT

Asia’s ABACE Is Latest Triumph For EBACE Organizer NBAA Show organizers from the U.S. National Business Aviation Association, which jointly promotes the EBACE show, came to Geneva flushed with success (but doubtless fatigued too) after the successful relaunch of the Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (ABACE). The March 27-29 event in Shanghai was, by [...]

Business Aviation Forecasters Try To Look Beyond Europe’s Current Economic Woes

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:26 PDT

Business Aviation Forecasters Try To Look Beyond Europe’s Current Economic Woes Lagging growth in Europe business aviation remains a concern, but encouragement is to be found in greater numbers of flights last year, according to Bombardier Aerospace in its current market forecast for 2011-30. Although utilization levels during 2011 were not back to pre-recession levels, [...]

Embraer’s Phenom 100 Fleets Reaches 100k Hours

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:26 PDT

Embraer’s Phenom 100 Fleets Reaches 100k Hours Three years after entering service, Embraer Executive Jets’ Phenom 100 has surpassed 100,000 total flight hours. “This is a significant milestone achieved in such a short time,” said Luciano Castro, vice president of programs, Embraer Executive Jets. With 240 in service worldwide, Castro attributes the aircraft’s success to [...]

Greenwich, ExecuJet Ally in China

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:26 PDT

Greenwich, ExecuJet Ally in China Wichita-based Greenwich AeroGroup (Stand 1131) and ExecuJet Aviation Group of Zurich (Stand 136) announced at EBACE an expansion of their relationship to include ExecuJet Haite Aviation Services in mainland China. The agreement enables ExecuJet to represent Greenwich AeroGroup parts distribution and repair and overhaul services at all of its locations [...]

First ESTC Project Underway in Europe

AIN online — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:51:26 PDT

First ESTC Project Underway in Europe Universal Avionics (Stand 639) has contributed a UniLink UL-800/801 communications management system for installation in a Swiss-based Bombardier Challenger CL-601 that frequently travels along North Atlantic tracks helping to test the Future Air Navigation System (Fans), which is beginning to be utilized by Eurocontrol. The UniLink box is in [...]

Eurojet Opens Business Aviation Centre at Birmingham, UK

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 23:50:58 PDT

Eurojet Opens Business Aviation Centre at Birmingham, UK Eurojet Aviation has opened a 41,000-sq-ft building at Birmingham Airport in the UK, ready to play its part servicing the upcoming onslaught of travelers arriving for the 2012 London Olympics. The building is equipped with a maintenance hangar specifically designed to meet the requirements of the Cessna [...]

Brokers Say Market Is Still “Flat”

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 23:50:58 PDT

Brokers Say Market Is Still “Flat” With Europe facing fresh financial turmoil with a possible fresh squeeze on capital and VAT tax rules still causing importation headaches, is it any wonder that it’s hard to adopt an optimistic outlook on the market for preowned aircraft? Here at the EBACE 2012 show, the consensus among brokers [...]

CFM Taps Quantum Solution

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 23:50:58 PDT

CFM Taps Quantum Solution Component Control, an MRO and logistics software developer, announced at EBACE that Corporate Flight Management (CFM) of Smyrna, Tennessee, has selected its Quantum Control software solution for its maintenance and repair operations. CFM operates 35 aircraft and offers aircraft charter, management and MRO services for both the private and commercial aviation [...]

Saab Offers Anti-Manpads System for BizJets

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 23:50:57 PDT

Saab Offers Anti-Manpads System for BizJets The threat to civil aviation posed by man-portable air defense systems (Manpads)–such as shoulder launched missiles–in conflict areas around the world is resulting in a requirement for intelligent systems to help counter the attacks. Saab’s Civil Aircraft Missile Protection (Camps) system has increasingly been used to combat such threats, [...]

Catch The Airshow On Your iPad

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 23:50:57 PDT

Catch The Airshow On Your iPad Rockwell Collins now offers its Airshow 3-D moving map for viewing on an iPad, allowing business jet passengers to follow their flight in the palm of their hands. The company claims it is the first interactive moving map available for iPad use in an aircraft. May 15, [...]

Ascend Flight Support Relieves Cost-Constrained Operators

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 23:50:57 PDT

Ascend Flight Support Relieves Cost-Constrained Operators Rockwell Collins’s Ascend Flight Information Solutions division is continuing to refine what it believes is the most integrated flight support suite in the business aviation market. The U.S. company, which incorporates the former Air Routing flight support and CTA Fos scheduling and dispatch service, is adding new applications and [...]

SECA/Vector GEMS Engine Management Service Unveiled

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

SECA/Vector GEMS Engine Management Service Unveiled Seca has launched its Global Engine Management Service (Gems), which is designed to support business aviation operators with services ranging from simple powerplant support to MRO, on-site consultation and maintenance, rental engines, and even purchase and sales support. Contracts for Gems can be pay-by-the-hour, by-the-event or time-and-materials–the operators decide [...]

Day 2 Highlights for EBACE 2012 in Geneva

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

Day 2 Highlights for EBACE 2012 in Geneva The top news from the second full day of the 12th annual European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition in Geneva, Switzerland, includes a report from a panel discussion about the European Union’s stance on its emissions trading scheme (hint: it’s not good!), an update on illegal charter in [...]

Turboprop Single-Makers Struggle With Twin Plans

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

Turboprop Single-Makers Struggle With Twin Plans Switzwerland’s Pilatus and Frances’ Daher-Socata, both manufacturers of business turboprop singles, seem to be having trouble defining time frames for producing larger, twin-engine airplanes, respectively dubbed the PC-24 and the NTX. Both designs are still being worked out on but few details have emerged to date. The PC-24 was [...]

Flight Display Systems Offers High-Def Cabin System

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

Flight Display Systems Offers High-Def Cabin System Flight Display Systems (Stand 1932) is introducing its upgraded Select CMS Platinum cabin management system at EBACE. The U.S. company claims that, compared to the original Select CMS, the Platinum version offers higher quality, better reliability and lower costs, and it is easier to install. The system provides [...]

MEBAA Launches Regional Forums

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

MEBAA Launches Regional Forums The Middle East Business Aviation Association (MEBAA) is looking to go local from next year. Ali Al Naqbi, founding chairman of the organization, confirmed here at the EBACE show that the association has chosen Beirut, Lebanon, as the site for the organization’s first forum, in 2013. “The market is growing at [...]

GAMA’s 1Q12 Numbers Show Turboprop Rebound

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

GAMA’s 1Q12 Numbers Show Turboprop Rebound While the number of business jet deliveries and overall industry billings continued to slide in the first quarter of 2012, there was a minor retrenchment for the turboprop segment, according to numbers released by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA). For the first quarter of the year, OEMs handed [...]

Snecma Silvercrest Thrusts into Certification Efforts

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

Snecma Silvercrest Thrusts into Certification Efforts Now that its 11,000-pound-thrust Silvercrest turbofan has a launch application–the Cessna Citation Longitude–Snecma can get serious about engine certification efforts. Flight testing of the engine is due to start in the first half of 2013 using a Gulfstream GII as a testbed, with engine certification pegged for 2015, the [...]

Nextant Plans To Deliver 30-plus 400XTs by Year-end

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

Nextant Plans To Deliver 30-plus 400XTs by Year-end Nextant Aerospace expects to deliver more than 30 remanufactured 400XTs by year-end, company CEO Ken Ricci said yesterday at EBACE. To date, the company has delivered 10 Nextant 400XTs, and it expects to financially break even on the program when it ships the 14th aircraft in about [...]

Invision Air Ramps Up Phenom Fleet

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

Invision Air Ramps Up Phenom Fleet Mumbai-based charter start-up Invision Air, which has started to take delivery of 12 Phenom 100s and 300s it ordered from Brazil’s Embraer, has launched its Jet Card membership program, one of the first such offerings in India. While the program offers flexibility and a price advantage to regular fliers, [...]

GE’s Passport Engine Design Gets Stamp of Approval

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:48:54 PDT

GE’s Passport Engine Design Gets Stamp of Approval GE Aviation has frozen the design of its 16,500-pound-thrust GE Passport 20 engine, which will power the Bombardier Global 7000 and 8000 business jets, the company announced at EBACE yesterday. Consequently, the GE engine has entered the detailed design phase. “Component fabrication will begin soon,” it said, [...]

G550 Joins GainJet Fleet

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 09:48:38 PDT

G550 Joins GainJet Fleet Athens-based VIP charter operator GainJet Aviation (Stand 1265) announced here at EBACE the recent addition of a Gulfstream G550 to its growing fleet of long-range jets. The fleet includes a VIP Boeing 757 BBJ executive airliner, Bombardier Global Express XRS and a Gulfstream G450, based throughout Europe, the Middle East and [...]

Air Culinaire Warms Up Olympic Kitchen

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 09:48:38 PDT

Air Culinaire Warms Up Olympic Kitchen With record business-aviation traffic expected to descend on London for this summer’s 2012 Olympic Games, Air Culinaire (Stand 2366) is expanding its kitchen there to ensure it can keep pace with the anticipated demand for in-flight catering. “With all the steps that go into preplanning a flight to the [...]

Three European Operators Order Hawker 4000s

AIN online — Tue, 15 May 2012 02:47:17 PDT

Three European Operators Order Hawker 4000s Three European operators signed up for the Hawker 4000 super-midsize jet–ordering one each yesterday at the EBACE show. The first one will go to Bucharest, Romania-based InterAviation, a charter operator that serves mainly the Middle East, Europe, Russia and other CIS countries. The second is being purchased by Orion-Malta, [...]

Long Wait Over for Snecma Silvercrest