Despite a rash of accidents in June involving U.S.-registered turbine business airplanes, there were fewer fatalities in the first six months of this year than in the same period last year, according to safety analyst Robert E. Breiling Associates of Boca Raton, Fla. However, the number of fatal accidents involving U.S.-owned business jets increased while those involving business turboprops remained unchanged.
Business Aviation
News and issues relating to business, corporate and private aviation, primarily regarding turbine-engine powered airplanes and helicopters. Subjects include aircraft, engines, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security and training.
November 7, 2006 - 4:58am
Less than a year from its planned service entry next September, the all-composite Grob SPn light jet is preparing to make a serious push on the North American marketplace with new sales and product support initiatives being announced this week.
November 7, 2006 - 4:58am
Enormous banners that hung from the façade of the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando last month proclaimed the NBAA Convention offered “A year’s worth of business in just three days.” It certainly felt that way.
The record-setting event held from October 17 to 19 was a showcase for airplane introductions, product rollouts and announcements of stratospheric order tallies.
November 7, 2006 - 4:39am
Honeywell’s turbine engine folks are poised for show and tell about something new from something old–the time-tested TFE731 turbofan family–and something a lot newer: advanced technology aimed at developing a state-of-the-art engine in the 10,000-pound-thrust class.
November 7, 2006 - 4:30am
Spectrum Aeronautical (Booth No. 2142) continues to develop its Model 33 VLJ following the fatal crash of its sole prototype on July 25. In recent weeks the company has buttressed its engineering staff with new hires and is proceeding with the design and building of a conformal test article that will fly “in about a year,” according to Austin Blue, Spectrum’s president.
November 6, 2006 - 11:57am
On August 8 Honda Motor Co. launched a new company, Honda Aircraft, which will certify the very light HondaJet in three to four years. The company is headed by long-time Honda engineer Michimasa Fujino, who spent the past 20 years quietly studying the aviation marketplace and technology before designing a new airplane that promises to offer strong competition in the sub-10,000-pound business jet class.
November 6, 2006 - 11:39am
When Embraer decided to enter the business jet market after the successful launch of a family of regional airliners in the 1990s, the company’s chief executive had a clear vision for the future. Mauricio Botelho–the man who led Embraer’s resurgence after the Brazilian government privatized the company in 1994–was determined that Embraer also be a significant force in the market for business jets, and not merely a niche player.
November 6, 2006 - 11:35am
It was always going to be a close race, but in the end Cessna became the first manufacturer to obtain full FAA certification of a very light jet (VLJ), the new breed of compact business airplane that holds the promise of changing the industry forever.
November 6, 2006 - 11:24am
The HondaJet officially went on sale at last month’s NBAA Convention in Orlando, racking up orders for “more than” 100 airplanes by the end of the three-day event.
November 6, 2006 - 11:12am
Rolls-Royce is reporting growth of its CorporateCare power-by-the-hour engine maintenance program, saying that it has signed more than 120 contracts this year, already surpassing a record of 103 contracts for all of last year. The engine maker now has more than 520 aircraft enrolled in CorporateCare or other flight-hour agreements, the contracts for which are valued at more than $1 billion.
