Briefs

Bombardier’s New Tech Pubs

Bombardier Regional Aircraft has developed new capabilities for its CRJ regional jet and Q-series turboprop technical manuals delivered in Adobe PDF format. The company scheduled the release for the first quarter of 2008. The new product, Bombardier Regional Aircraft Digital Data Navigator, can merge aircraft operator documentation with Bombardier manuals and provides operators with the ability to merge customer-originated changes with technical manuals.

navAero Achieves EASA STC

navAero has received Supplemental Type Certification (STC) for the tBagC22 EFB System from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) as an approved change in the type design on the B737-300/400/500/600/700/800/900 Series aircraft. Executed on behalf of navAero by Saab Aerotech Aircraft Services in cooperation with SAS Scandinavian Airlines, this marks the first EASA approved STC for the tBagC22 System as an EFB and marks yet another certification achieved by navAero. The STC EASA.A.S.03259 for the B737-NG and Classic Series aircraft was issued on February 22, 2008 by EASA. The installation was executed as a part of the NUP II+ Project VDLM4 and CPDLC Operational trials at Stockholm-Arlanda.

Adria Completed Mx on 94

During 2007, Adria Airways carried a total of 1,136,431 passengers, an increase of 8 percent more than the planned objective for this past year, and a figure that represents a 12 percent increase in passengers carried in comparison with 2006. During the same timeframe, the number of scheduled flights operated by Adria grew by 10 percent and the number of charter flights increased by 21 percent. Load factor also improved more than the previous year’s figures, the average cabin occupancy was 67.06 percent. During 2007 the Adria Airways aircraft maintenance division successfully carried out service inspections on 94 aircraft owned by other airlines (66 CRJ type aircraft and 28 aircraft from the Airbus family), generating earnings 28 percent higher than the calendar year 2006, exceeding planned turnover for the year by 17 percent.

ERAU in Afghanistan

The Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Afghanistan and Kuwait campuses have played an intricate role in providing military students the opportunity to continue their pursuit of higher education while deployed. Embry-Riddle is demonstrating its commitment to these deployed soldiers by taking university services to Bagram, Camp Buehring, and other off-site bases, providing students crucial educational support and guidance. The on-ground assistant director of academic support (ADAS) in Afghanistan, Samantha Santee, works with soldiers from Afghanistan in facilitating enrollments with Embry-Riddle and advising students on their current degree plans.

Heather Stewart, from Kaiserslautern, Germany, is director of academic support and works with students in Kuwait and Iraq. A new on-site assistant director for Kuwait was hired to give students the face-to-face support they deserve. The courses offered at BAF and FOB Fenty include aviation maintenance technology Part 65, management, safety, security and intelligence courses. The Aviation Maintenance Technology (AMT) Certificate program is quite popular at BAF with more than 25 consistent enrollments for each of six courses. Soldiers and military contractors enrolled in the program completed the series in five months, earning 21 semester hours toward either a certificate or degree track program. The AMT Certificate program was launched last month in Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, with 19 students attending the first course.

ISA Announces Five Courses

Sponsored by the Aerospace Industries, Test Measurement, Process Measurement and Control Divisions of ISA, the 54th International Instrumentation Symposium will feature five training courses, innovative paper presentations, and a forum for discussion of instrumentation techniques. The symposium will be held May 5-8 at the Hilton Pensacola Beach Gulf Front in Pensacola Beach, Florida. The five training courses will be held May 5 and include three ISA training courses — Fiber Optic Sensors, Overview of Wireless Technology, and Industrial Flow Measurement Overview. Introduction to Measurement Uncertainty and Selection and Application of Process Measurement Sensors, two non-ISA courses, will also be held during the event.

CAST’s New Web site

The Commercial Aviation Safety Team (CAST) is expanding its outreach efforts by launching a new Web site to spread information about efforts to make commercial air travel safer. The new site, www.CAST-safety.org, is geared toward the international aviation community, media, government agencies and the general public. The Web site details CAST safety enhancements, procedures and the global strategy that has resulted in increased safety and reducing commercial aviation accidents, according to the FAA. The mission of CAST is to increase air travel safety using an integrated, data-driven approach based on analyzing accident causes, identifying ways to make positive changes and implementing improvements.

ARINC Receives STC ODA Status

The FAA has certified ARINC to issue aircraft STCs and perform STC-related aircraft services and modification work under the FAA’s new Organization Designation Authorization (ODA) program. ARINC’s aircraft integration and modification group, with operations at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Colorado Springs, Colorado and Scottsdale, Arizona, received FAA notification late last year and has become one of the first designated ODA holders in the country.

Korean Air Selects Enigma

Korean Air has selected Enigma InService MRO and Oracle Complex Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul to facilitate the maintenance of its entire fleet of aircraft. The integration between Oracle E-Business Suite and Enigma supports the detailed needs of maintenance and engineering departments for airlines and maintenance shops. For Korean Air, the solution will encompass all data related to airframe, engine and component maintenance, such as technical publications, service bulletins, parts catalogs, schematics and best practices. More than 3,000 field service technicians, maintenance engineers and technical documentation writers will apply the solution to the fleet, which includes the A300, A330, B737, B747 and B777 aircraft models (for related story see page 36).

Business as Usual at ATS

Only a few months after the sale of Goodrich-owned Aviation Technical Services (ATS) to a subsidiary of Macquarie Group, ATS says it is business as usual and is looking for opportunities to grow. The 950,000-square-foot facility, located in Everett, Washington, is gearing up for more work and plans to expand their offerings to customers. ATS plans to hire about 240 people to its staff currently at around 1,200.

Airbus Selects Saft Lithium-ion

Saft announced that Airbus has chosen its lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery systems as the starting and emergency power supply on the A350 aircraft. After a cooperation on alkaline technologies since the origin of Airbus aircraft in the 70s, Saft’s new technology led to this selection. This will be the first program in Airbus’s history to use this new battery system.

VEM Receives A310

The first Airbus A310 from TAP Portugal arrived last month to VEM’s hangars in Rio de Janeiro for heavy maintenance. TAP Portugal will now work with its Latin American subsidiary to perform maintenance procedures on the aircraft and components of its Airbus fleet, which is aligned with the strategy for synergy between the companies and contributes to leveraging VEM’s businesses. The aircraft (CS-TEI) will go through a C8-check and two-, five-, 10 year and general painting, besides several NDT (non-destructive testing) services, and the replacement of the main landing gears. The services will be performed, without interruption, for approximately 40 days, and VEM’s team will work on weekend shifts in order to guarantee the TAT (turn-around-time) agreed upon by the companies.

Royal Jet Opts for TRAX

TRAX USA Corp. announced that Royal Jet entered into an agreement to implement TRAX Maintenance. Royal Jet, an airline offering chartered flights from its headquarters in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, is the 68th airline to use TRAX. Royal Jet has agreed to employ the entire EVO application, the latest version of TRAX Maintenance. EVO is designed to cover many aspects of airline maintenance, including technical records, materials management and production.

MNG Gets Contracts

Turkey’s only private aviation maintenance center, MNG Technic, signed an agreement with Air Slovakia for one Boeing 737 and one Boeing 757 type aircraft. The agreement also covers British operator Flightline for one MD-83 type aircraft C-check.

Maintenance for the aircraft operated by Air Slovakia is scheduled to start on March 25 and April 14, respectively. Flightline operated aircraft is scheduled to start on March 31 in MNG Technic Maintenance Station located in Istanbul Ataturk Airport.