Orenda V-8 receives FAA certification
On the heels of Transport Canada approval just seven weeks ago, Orenda Recip Inc. has received FAA certification of the OE-600 V-8 aircraft engine, making it the first new high-output piston engine to be certificated in more than 40 years.
The OE-600 is a liquid-cooled, twin-turbocharged V-8 of 600 horsepower that is being touted as a replacement engine for gas turbines and high-output piston engines. OE-600s currently list for $100,000 each. The engines are currently being tested on a Beech King Air C90B and Twin Commander 685. Orenda intends to build other variants of the engine that will produce 500 to 750 hp. So far, 180 of the engines and installation kits have been ordered or optioned.
Orenda has undertaken feasibility studies to determine the market for retrofitting Piper Pressurized Navajo, Cessna 421, and de Havilland Beaver and Otter airplanes. Lancair plans to use the engine in its Tigress kitplane. With certification out of the way, Orenda is pursuing development of a full-authority digital electronic control (FADEC) system that would control the engine with a single power lever. For more information, call 905/673-3250 or visit Orenda's Web site ( www.orenda.com).
Bombardier has announced the final FAA certification of the Learjet 45. Deliveries are already under way for the first of the 155 firm orders. The 45 is the first all-new Learjet design produced since the LearJet 23 was introduced in 1963. The $7.5 million Lear 45 was certified to FAR Part 25 standards, up to and including Amendment 77, which exceeds the certification standards attained by the Boeing 777, says the company.
FAA to revisit Bonanza tail flutter issue?
A recent in-flight flutter incident involving a Beech V-tail Bonanza is raising the attention of the FAA again. Flutter of one or both of the incident airplane's ruddervators heavily damaged the empennage of the airplane, although it landed safely.
If a new rulemaking is made, it probably would limit the speed of Model 35, A35, B35, and 35R Bonanzas, or those built in the first three years of the V-tail's 35-year production run. Raytheon Aircraft Company is reexamining its engineering data.
According to the FAA, 1,190 of these airplanes exist on the U.S. registry. The last airworthiness directive dealing with flutter was issued in 1987. Since then, 11 cases of flutter damage have been reported. In all instances the control surfaces were properly balanced; however, other maintenance performed on the airplanes could have been a factor. The incidents reportedly caused significant structural damage within three seconds.
AOPA, the FAA, and the American Bonanza Society are working closely together on the issue.
Wipaire Inc. displayed a 180-hp Cessna 172R amphibian aircraft at the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In in April. The horsepower was increased from 160 to 180 simply by installing a different propeller. Flight testing is complete. A supplemental type certificate was expected in June for the combination of Wipline 2350 floats, the engine now used on the Cessna 172R, and a new propeller that was recently designed for Wipaire by McCauley Propeller Systems. The cost is estimated at $200,000. Wipaire will apply for similar floatplane conversion STCs for the new Cessna 182 and 206 models. For information, call 612/451-1205.
New AD imminent for new Cessna 172
At press time, AOPA had been informed that the FAA was considering the issuance of a new airworthiness directive (AD) that will affect new Cessna 172Rs. The AD may be published as soon as July and will probably be covered under the airplane's warranty.
Control cable rigging problems appear to have resulted from improper assembly and quality control activities at the company's Independence, Kansas, assembly plant. Several reports of problems in the field, as well as an FAA audit of the facility, have prompted the imminent rulemaking. It is probable that a complete inspection of the flight control system rigging will be required.
Nantucket Memorial Airport has published new VFR noise abatement air routes intended to reduce the impact of aircraft noise over the island, especially during the busy summer season. To obtain a copy of the procedures, call 508/325-5300, extension 19.
Pilatus Aircraft Ltd., located in Stans, Switzerland, has delivered 100 PC–12 aircraft in the nearly four years since production began. The 100th aircraft was delivered in April to a Canadian customer. Most executive interiors are completed in Broomfield, Colorado. Recently, 20 of the aircraft were flown to Orlando Executive Air Center, Florida, for an owners' meeting. The aerial shot above shows those 20, the largest number of PC–12s ever to be photographed at one time.
Adventurous businessman Steve Fossett plans a fourth attempt to become the first to circumnavigate the world by balloon . He intends to launch in August from Mendoza, Argentina, in a balloon twice the size of the one he used in previous attempts. The trip will be made entirely in the Southern Hemisphere, and will be over oceans 80 percent of the time. His longest flight so far during an attempt to circle the world was 10,361 statute miles in 1997, when he flew from St. Louis to India.
The College Park (Maryland) Aviation Museum, located on the College Park Airport, plans to open its doors on September 12 in conjunction with the airport's annual Air Fair on September 12 and 13. The new museum will contain four galleries that will feature different events in the 89-year history of the airport. There will also be a library, gift shop, and airport observation area. College Park is claimed to be the world's oldest continuously operating airport. For more information, call 301/864-6029.
AlliedSignal buys Skyforce
Skyforce Avionics, of West Sussex, England, maker of the Colour Skymap and Tracker moving-map/GPS systems, has been purchased by AlliedSignal for an undisclosed sum.
"This announcement is a benefit to both parties," said Mel White, managing director of Skyforce. White's company is interested in AlliedSignal's IFR GPS receiver technology, while the Bendix/King division of AlliedSignal General Aviation Avionics is interested in Skyforce's color moving map display. White says that Skyforce will continue operating in England and is expanding as a result of the expected increase in business. The company now has 15 employees and last year had sales of more than $2 million.
An AlliedSignal spokesman said that his company recognizes that there is clearly a push toward graphical navigation. The company was attracted to the Skymap's graphics, base map, and color display technology. At press time there was no specific word on branding of the Skyforce units or how the distribution of those units would be worked out. Using the technology, AlliedSignal will probably begin work on an IFR-capable GPS and multifunction display.
The Hiller Museum, a new 53,000-square-foot aviation museum at San Carlos Airport in California, was scheduled to open on June 15. It was started by Stanley Hiller, an aviation pioneer in vertical flight. The museum includes 50 aircraft and 100 exhibits.
Wright Brothers Memorial rededicated
The Wright Brothers Memorial at Kill Devil Hill on North Carolina's Outer Banks, the site where man first flew under power and control, was rededicated on May 2. The monument atop Kill Devil Hill has undergone badly needed repairs to masonry and electrical equipment affected by the area's coastal climate. Its beacon, lit at its dedication in November 1932, has been dark since the start of World War II coastal blackouts.
The nearly two-hour ceremony, led by former television host David Hartman, was highlighted by an insightful speech by Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, the second man on the moon, whose erudite remarks linked the significance of the Wright brothers' work, the first moon landing, and the point where the current slower-moving space program can (and by implication, should) be headed in the next century. Former President George Bush was the headliner, welcomed on signboards at roadside businesses up and down the Outer Banks.
AOPA plans recognition of the upcoming celebrations at AOPA Expo '98 in Palm Springs, California, in October, to begin a countdown to 2003 and recognition of man's first century of powered flight.
Penn Yan Aero is now offering an overhaul/conversion for Cessna 172s in which most existing 150- or 160-horsepower Lycoming O-320s can be converted to a 180-hp O-360. Previously, the conversion to O-360 power required the purchase of a new engine. The $16,850 conversion kit outfits your O-320 with all of the necessary equipment (including 360-series cylinders, which have a slightly longer stroke) to redesignate it an O-360, while retaining the original O-320 serial number. Most Skyhawks built between 1968 and 1986 are eligible for the conversion except those that use the O-320-H2AD engine. For more information, contact Penn Yan at 800/727-7230 or visit the Web site ( www.airtourist.com/PennYan).
The U.S. Air Force has bought two Israel Aircraft Industries Astra SPX business jets to be used for VIP transport from Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland. They will be operated by the 201st Airlift Squadron and carry the military designation C–38.
ADIZ - what it is
Violations of the Air Defense Identification Zone, the area where you are likely to be visited by F–16 fighters if you haven't done your homework, increased in 1997, the FAA says.
The majority of the offenders are pilots on their first trip to the Bahamas, but a few are VFR on flights along the coastal United States. Any time you think that your route might touch an ADIZ, file a DVFR flight plan. Flight service will then assign a discrete transponder code.
Some VFR pilots, especially those returning from their first Bahamas trip, are unaware that the ADIZ system is not geared to "pop-up" targets - aircraft not on a flight plan. They report their expected time of crossing the inner ADIZ boundary closest to the coast, but it is the edge of the outer boundary that should be used when returning from the Bahamas.
Hank Tracy, the military liaison at Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center, offers what he calls "Hank's tips" for staying out of trouble: File a flight plan. Activate the flight plan. Make your position report prior to reaching the ADIZ. Get a transponder code. Ask the flight service station or look on sectional or world aeronautical charts for communications frequencies. (Miami Center has remote communications outlets on Grand Bahama Island and Nassau. Miami Flight Service can talk over the VOR at Bimini.)
Check ahead of time with the airport at which you plan on clearing Customs, in order to learn about the closing time and requirements. Finally, pilots in New Orleans must realize they can't go directly to Key West without filing a DVFR flight plan. The same holds true for pilots in Wilmington, North Carolina, who want to fly direct to South Florida. And have 12-inch N numbers on the aircraft; if you don't, the F–16s will come as close as necessary to identify your aircraft.
Aeroshell's Pushy Galore won its final drag race championship in April and will retire, but pilot Bruce Bohannon is beginning a quest towards another new record. Think a manned piston-engine airplane can fly higher than 57,000 feet? Bohannon intends to find out next year. The plan is to take a Van's RV–4 kitplane, install glider wings on it, modify a 230-hp engine to produce well over 700 hp, and break the 57,000-foot absolute altitude record for a piston airplane set in 1938.
The U.S. Postal Service has issued a postage stamp featuring Charles Lindbergh as part of its Roaring Twenties sheet commemorating the 1920s. The Roaring Twenties is the third in a series of 10 sheets known as the Celebration of the Century program. The stamp should be available until 2000.
Superior introduces new engine
It had to happen sooner or later. Superior Air Parts, the largest manufacturer of replacement parts for Lycoming and Continental engines, has introduced its own engine for experimental aircraft.
Based on the Lycoming 320- and 360-series engines, the noncertified XP 360 is a horizontally opposed, air-cooled design offering horsepower choices in the 180 to 200 range. The engine will be sold fully assembled or as a kit. According to Superior, the engine will have "many new modern product improvements," including the company's Millennium cylinders. Electronic ignition and turbocharging are also planned.
The price for the new engine has not been determined but, according to Superior, is expected to be significantly below that of a comparable Lycoming engine. Parts of the engine for which Superior has not yet received FAA parts manufacturer approval will have to come from Lycoming. A.E.R.O. Aviation, of Granite City, Illinois, will be the exclusive distributor of the XP 360. A.E.R.O. says that the engine is currently undergoing testing and will be on display at EAA AirVenture '98 in Oshkosh. Pricing is expected to be firmed up at that time. An A.E.R.O. representative says that there are no plans to pursue FAA certification of the engine at this time. For more information, contact A.E.R.O. Aviation at 618/797-6630.
New Zlin models coming
Zlin Aerospace is building a product line around its 200-hp Zlin 242L aerobatic trainer airplane. Two new models are flying and are expected to be certified by January 1999.
The Zlin 143L, at $169,500, retains the inverted fuel and oil systems of the 242L, but it has four seats and can double as a cross-country aircraft. The 235-hp aircraft will be limited to two people and half fuel when performing aerobatics. Certification is expected in January. (The 242L starts at $145,900.)
The Zlin 242 LA, expected to compete pricewise with the Diamond Katana, is similar to the 242L, but has no tip tanks, no inverted fuel and oil systems, and a 180-hp engine swinging a two-blade propeller, instead of the 200-hp engine and three-blade prop used on the 242L. It is intended for light, positive-G aerobatics such as those required in emergency maneuver training. For more information, call 800/959-6988 or 705/722-3522, or visit the Web ( www.zlincan.com).
Western Michigan University won the National Intercollegiate Flying Association's National Safety and Flight Evaluation Conference (Safecon) in Salina, Kansas, in May. Winning in the two-year-college category was Central Texas College. Mooney Aircraft Corporation was a sponsor of the competition.
Era Aviation, located in Anchorage, is celebrating its fiftieth anniversary. Shown are some of the aircraft used in oil-field support, sightseeing, and aerial firefighting. The aircraft sport a new Era logo created for the anniversary.
An achievement award for development of the Ayres Loadmaster has been given to the Ayres Corporation, located in Albany, Georgia, by the International Air Cargo Association. The association said that Ayres has opened the door to a new generation of aircraft "unrelated and unencumbered by passenger design consideration."
The National Warplane Museum, which offers rides in its Boeing B–17 Fuddy Duddy, has moved to Elmira-Corning Regional Airport near Horseheads, New York. It was formerly located in Geneseo, New York. The new $5.2 million, 30,000-square-foot facility will host a fundraiser on July 11 and a dedication ceremony on July 12, and open to the public on July 15. The FAA granted permission last year for the museum to offer rides in Fuddy Duddy. The museum will host its annual Wings of Eagle Air Show August 14 to 16. For more information, call 607/739-8200.
Signature Flight Support is building new facilities at its Orlando base. A 10,100-square-foot FBO, a 23,300-square-foot hangar, and a 90,000-gallon tank farm are planned. The buildings - to be completed by mid-August - will be located about 100 yards from the existing facilities. It is estimated that the new facilities will cost more than $5 million.
Squawk Sheet
Nearly 300 Lycoming and Continental engines are targeted in a proposed airworthiness directive (98-ANE-27) regarding possible crankshaft failure. Engines containing crankshafts that were serviced by Nelson Balancing Service of Bedford, Massachusetts, are being targeted after reports of crankshafts exhibiting heat-check cracking of the nitrided bearing surfaces that led to cracking and subsequent failure. Owners of aircraft that had engines overhauled (or the crankshaft removed for service) between February 1, 1995, and December 31, 1997, and had the crankshafts serviced by Nelson are affected by the proposed AD.
Supreme Court sides with Textron Lycoming
The U.S. Supreme Court recently sided with Textron Lycoming Reciprocating Engine Division in a labor dispute, agreeing with a lower court that federal courts have no jurisdiction in the case.
The United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America had asked a lower federal court to hear its complaint that Lycoming has violated an agreement under which the Pennsylvania-based aircraft engine company was to inform workers before putting work out under subcontracts.
The union claimed in court papers that Lycoming has since announced subcontracting plans that would put about half the union workers out of jobs. The Supreme Court ruled that since the union's court documents did not allege that specific terms of the labor agreement were violated, federal courts could not act independently on other matters, namely the company's alleged promise to inform the union about subcontracting.
Union officials said that the Supreme Court decision forces the issue back to the National Labor Relations Board, where a case has been pending since 1994. An NLRB regional branch had previously reached an agreement with the company for a $1 million settlement with employees affected by the subcontracting action. There are estimated to be 250 or 300 employees affected, the union spokesman said.
Lycoming officials said that they could not comment on matters in litigation. The NLRB is under no time constraints to act quickly.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida, and East Coast Flight Services have signed an agreement to provide opportunities for aeronautical science graduates to join East Coast as corporate pilots.
A note signed by Charles and Anne Lindbergh authorizing Dr. John Condon to act as go-between in the kidnapping of their son is among the rare historical documents to be sold on September 16 by a Las Vegas auction company. The Gallery of History will also auction a 1909 photograph signed by both Orville and Wilbur Wright, and the only known signed color photo of all seven Space Shuttle Challenger astronauts in uniform. There are also signed photos of Louis Bleriot, Richard E. Byrd, Amelia Earhart, Charles Lindbergh, Billy Mitchell, Eddie Rickenbacker, and Igor Sikorsky. For more information, visit the Web ( www.galleryofhistory.com), call 800/435-5379 or 702/364-1000, or write Gallery of History, 3601 West Sahara Avenue, Promenade Suite, Las Vegas, Nevada 89102-5822.
The NASA Aviation Safety Program has awarded contracts to eight industry teams to develop the Aviation Weather Information Network (AWIN) system. AWIN is described by NASA as a sort of "Weather Channel" for commercial airliners and smaller aircraft. It is to include current weather graphics. The NASA Aviation Safety Program is headquartered at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. NASA's research Beech Bonanza, based at Raytheon Aircraft in Wichita, will be used to test the broadcasts. The teams are led by such industry heavy-hitters as Honeywell, McDonnell Douglas/The Boeing Company, NavRadio, Arnav, and Rockwell Science Center.
The 1,000th Hawker mid-size business jet, a Hawker 800XP ordered by Gainey Corporation of Grand Rapids, Michigan, is on the assembly line at Raytheon Aircraft's plant. Delivery will occur later this year. Since its introduction, the Hawker 800 series has accumulated five million service hours and has been sold in 45 countries.
There's a new aviation museum to visit when you are flying through Nebraska. The Strategic Air Command Museum has relocated from Offutt Air Force Base, in Omaha, to Ashland, 25 miles west. It opened to the public on May 16. Exhibits include 30 aircraft, four missiles, a home bomb shelter, and 5,000 aerospace-related items. Included among the aircraft is a Boeing B–36 bomber; there are only four remaining in the world. The museum is located at 28210 West Park Highway in Ashland. Call 800/358-5029 or 402/944-3100 for information.
Rep. James A. Traficant, Jr. (D-Ohio) has urged the FAA to speed the installation of enhanced vision technologies at airports. He has introduced a bill requiring airports to install the technology to replace or enhance conventional lighting systems over the next 10 years. Enhanced vision includes use of laser guidance, ultraviolet guidance, and cold-cathode technologies. Tests by the FAA and the Air Force have demonstrated that pilots using ultraviolet electro-optical systems can "see" a runway at distances up to a half-mile when actual visibility is 700 feet. A depiction of the runway appears on a heads-up display.
Airshow TV, an in-flight entertainment company in Orlando, has reached an agreement with DirectTV to broadcast television shows via satellite directly to corporate jets. The lineup includes an inter-active edition of the Wall Street Journal, CNN, Bloomberg Television, ESPN, the Discovery Channel, and - of special interest to pilots - The Weather Channel. For details visit the Web site ( www.airshowinc.com or http://ip.dowjones.com).
Century Aerospace Corporation, which plans to enter the business jet market with a single-engine model, has redesigned the aircraft to allow the option of an aft lavatory. The change was in response to customer requests. The Century Jet is scheduled to fly in December 1999. For more information, telephone 505/246-8200 or visit the Web site ( www.centuryaero.com).
It is difficult to distinguish this FBO from an upscale hotel. Del Monte Aviation just completed this 8,300-square-foot, two-story Jet Center at Monterey, California. While the FBO offers a full range of facilities and services to the corporate traveler, it also provides flight training and aircraft rentals.
Cessna Finance Corporation now offers 25-year financing on the new 172R and 172S (180-hp) Skyhawks. With what is called Long Term Security financing, the monthly payment on a 172R will be $859, while 172S payments will be $963. The floating interest rate is 0.75 percent over prime. The monthly rates are based on a purchase price of $133,700 for the 172R and $149,900 for the 172S. The down payment is 25 percent; that's $33,425 and $37,475, respectively.
Aero Insurance, an insurance broker located in Dallas, has developed a computer program that obtains competitive quotes and completed policies from several companies simultaneously. Only two companies are currently enrolled in the program, but Aero Insurance is talking with others. The program was designed for owners of single- and light twin-engine aircraft. For information, call 972/980-0800.
AOPA members in the news
Charlie Ake, AOPA 012910, of Fairfax, Virginia, was named Public Benefit Pilot of the Decade by the Air Care Alliance for his 14 years of continuous volunteer flying. Ake is a 54-year member of AOPA.
Dr. Gerald Manley, AOPA 288964, of Umatilla, Florida, was awarded the National Public Benefit Pilot of the Year Award at the Air Care '98 Conference, sponsored by the Air Care Alliance. Manley, a 33-year AOPA member, flies as a volunteer for Angel Flight Southeast.
Gordon Hoff, AOPA 110307, the manager of the Minnesota state aviation education program, has received the FAA's Above and Beyond award for his contributions to aviation education. It is the first time the award has been presented to someone not employed by the FAA.
William Langewiesche, AOPA 1374005, son of Wolfgang Langewiesche - the author of the legendary book Stick and Rudder - has written Inside the Sky: A Meditation on Flight. The younger Langewiesche, a pilot and correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly, writes about his love of flying as related through actual experiences. The 240-page book was to be published on June 8 by Pantheon Books and should be available in bookstores for $24, or by calling 212/572-2687.
Frank Augustine, AOPA 657596, has completed a new edition of his videotape Flying Down to Baha with 80-percent new footage. The 85-minute tape costs $39.95, plus $4.50 shipping, and may be ordered from Current Productions in Prescott, Arizona; telephone 800/841-1252 or 520/776-7768.
Greg Marshall, AOPA 635435, of Honolulu, and John Dawson, AOPA 717365, of Richmond, Virginia, won the Great Southern Air Race in Marshall's modified Piper Lance. The crew averaged 190.28 mph over the 900-mile course through Florida and the Bahamas.
Chuck Wahl, AOPA 1328172, an air traffic controller from San Ramon, California, was featured in Argus, a Fremont, California, newspaper, for talking down a fellow pilot trapped above a thick overcast. Wahl, a commercial pilot and Cessna 210 owner who works for the Oakland Air Route Traffic Control Center, helped to safely guide the hypoxic pilot down from Flight Level 200 to the Lake Tahoe Airport.
Bill Signs, AOPA 939074, of Dallas (left), and Tom Smith re-created the historic 1928 Polar Expedition flight by Carl Ben Eielson and Sir Hubert Wilkins. Eielson and Wilkins flew in a single-engine 1927 Lockheed Vega skiplane from Barrow, Alaska, to Longyearbyen Airport on Spitsbergen Island, Norway. Signs and Smith traveled in Signs' Cessna 210L over the route used by the aviation pioneers.
Mike Thomas, AOPA 714025, of Pismo Beach, California, won the Sun 100 Air Race at the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In in Lakeland, Florida, in April. Thomas flew the 82-nm course in 18 minutes 39 seconds for an average speed of 263.81 knots in his Questair Venture. Nathan Davis, AOPA 907768, of Tipton, Indiana, won the Sun 60 Air Race in a Piper Aerostar with an average speed of 205 knots. The Sun 100 race is for experimental airplanes, while the Sun 60 is open to production aircraft.
James Onyon, AOPA 974670, of Tulsa, Oklahoma, was named Management Employee of the Year at American Airlines' Tulsa Maintenance and Engineering Base. Onyon is restoring a Vultee BT–13 Valiant.
Michael McMaster, AOPA 1237651, of Terra Bella, California, has released a new video highlighting the 1997 open house at Edwards Air Force Base in California. The 33-minute video is available for $25.40 (including shipping) from Media Magic at 209/535-3918.
