Airnews Round Up August 2010
S-70i DEBUT FLIGHT
West Palm Beach, Fla. – The first S-70i Black Hawk helicopter has successfully completed its maiden flight, officially launching an international variant and the newest Sikorsky Aircraft product to follow in the legacy of the Black Hawk helicopter. Aircraft 0001, the first in the new product line, was built at PZL Mielec, a Sikorsky Aircraft company in Poland. PZL Mielec has been established as the hub of the S-70i programme for international customers. The successful first flight of the S-70i aircraft took place last month at the Sikorsky development flight centre. This new international variant utilises a global supply chain and is the first Black Hawk helicopter ever to be assembled in Europe.
PAST AND FUTURE
After serving faithfully for more than 40 years in Germany’s Luftwaffe, the C-160 Transall is soon to be replaced by the much more capable Airbus Military A400M. The Transall (right foreground) and A400M (left background) met for the first time at the ILA Berlin air show recently when the A400M made its first public appearance. The Luftwaffe has 83 Transalls in service which will be replaced by 60 A400Ms. Each Transall can carry 16 000 kg compared with the 37 000 kg payload of the A400M.
B787 FLIGHT TESTS
Everett, Wash. – The Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight test fleet recently passed the 1 000-hour flight test mark meaning that the programme is now about 40 percent through the test conditions required to certify the first version of the all-new jetliner. Meanwhile, the first Boeing 787 Dreamliner with General Electric (GE) engines, the aircraft referred to as ZA005, completed its first flight at about the same time, following a three-hour-and-48-minute flight. ZA005 will be used to test the General Electric engine package and demonstrate that the changes made with the new engine do not change the aircraft‘ s handling characteristics. The sixth, and final, 787 to join the flight test programme was expected to fly at about the time this edition was being published.
MODERNISATION PROGRAMME
Tucson, AZ – Universal Avionics’ EFI-890R flat panel display systems have been selected by Field Aviation of Canada to fulfil the flight deck component of its Dash 8 (Q-Series) modernisation programme. The programme will feature a five-panel EFI- 890R display suite including primary flight, navigation and engine displays, dual Vision-1 synthetic vision, radio control units and WAAS/SBAS-flight management systems. The new flight deck will be available to operators of non-EFIS and EFIS Dash 8/Q-Series 100, 200 and 300 aircraft. By reducing the number of line replaceable units onboard the aircraft, the Dash 8 modernisation programme benefits operators by significantly reducing maintenance and repair costs while improving reliability.
“43” ON THE MOVE
Johannesburg – Following a recent audit of Lanseria Airport-based 43 Advanced Training by the Botswana CAA, the facility is now approved by the Botswana CAA for Beechcraft 1900, King Air 200, 300 and 90 series initial type rating training, refresher training and proficiency checks, plus Instrument Rating renewal tests, maintenance of IF competency; 20 hours of instruction towards the initial IF rating, Turbine Instructor’s Rating preparation, and 25 hours of instructors patter towards a Flight Instructor’s Rating.
In addition, following the arrival of a Beechcraft 1900D full flight simulator at Flight Safety International Johannesburg, 43 Advanced Training has entered into a simulator lease agreement with FSI for the use of the simulator to support its Beechcraft 1900 pilot initial type rating, recurrent training and proficiency checking programmes.
NEWS FROM MALTA
Malta – A major aircraft maintenance concern, MCM (Maintenance Centre Malta) which began operations on the Mediterranean island, a couple of months ago, using a small corner of the Air Malta hangar in order to service business jets, recently opened its own hangar at the international airport. The company, an affiliate of Maintenance Centre Munich, held an official inauguration ceremony to mark the opening which was presided over by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi who said that 17-million euros were being spent on the Malta Aviation Park, which should attract further investment. A piece of terrain, adjacent to the new MCM hangar, has already been earmarked for further expansion, when the need arises.
Meanwhile, our correspondent on the island, Chris Cauchi, reports that Malta International Airport is the winner of the ACI Europe Best Airport Award 2010 in the up to five-million passengers per annum category. The award was presented to the airport’s CEO, Julian Jaeger, by Angela Gittens, director general of ACI World at a recent function in Milan, Italy. The award is in recognition of MIA’s “excellent and innovative entry, reflecting the airport’s serious progress across the range of competition criteria”.
ROTARY ENGINE ON HOLD
Miami – In development for a decade, Mistral Engines has announced that it was on track to win FAA certification by early 2011 for its 300-hp, G-300 rotary engine, but must now put those plans on hold. The company said it needed a cash infusion and until “adequate financing” was secured, the company’s board of directors had voted to suspend development, effective immediately. Mistral sees its rotary as an efficient, vibrationfree and fuel-flexible liquid-cooled solution that could bridge the current “performance, reliability and cost gap” between current piston and turbine engines. The company says its G-300 can run “on any type of auto gas or avgas” and targets a 3 000-hour TBO. Mistral says it is also “well along” in development of a Jet-A1-burning version.
FOURTH G650
Savannah, Ga. — A fourth aircraft is now part of the Gulfstream G650 flight-test programme. The newest ultra-large-cabin, ultra-long-range test aircraft flew for the first time recently and spent more than five hours in the air. Unlike its three predecessors, the fourth G650 (S/N 6004) is a production aircraft. S/N 6004 will be the first G650 outfitted and tested with a full interior, which will be installed in the near future. The aircraft, which will be used to evaluate the aircraft’s cabin systems, is expected to resume flight testing following the installation.
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