FlightSafety

New Zealand's Air Nelson has purchased a Bombardier [BBD] Q300 aircraft simulator from FlightSafety International. Manufactured at FlightSafety's facility in Tulsa, Okla., the Q300 simulator will be installed in Auckland. It is expected to be certified in September.

The FlightSafety Academy has added an Embraer [ERJ] 145 Level D simulator to its Vero Beach, Fla., campus. With the simulator, students in the Advanced Airline Training program can earn a first officer position with fewer flight hours.

Piedmont Aviation

TAT Technologies [TATTF] signed a purchase agreement to buy Piedmont Aviation Component Services for $5.5 million and assume $9.5 million of its debt. The deal is expected to close within 45 days. Piedmont, based in Kernersville, N.C., had about $27 million in sales last year. TAT is funding the deal with equity and bank loans. TAT will now have two major overhaul units, Piedmont, and Limco Airepair in Oklahoma. TAT is based in Gedera, Israel.

Standard Aero

Transport Canada recently approved Standard Aero to repair and overhaul the General Electric [GE] CF34-8 engine. The certification is also recognized by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The CF34-8 powers the Bombardier CRJ 700 and CRJ 900 and the Embraer 170. Standard Aero was previously certified by both nations to handle the CF34-1 and CF34-3 series.

Canadian authorities have also certified Standard Aero to perform Pratt & Whitney PW100 hot section inspections at its new Winnipeg facility. Standard Aero recently moved the hot inspection station from Marysville, Tenn., to Winnipeg.

The U.S. Air Force has retained Standard Aero to provide maintenance, repair and overhaul services at the Air Logistics Center at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City. Standard Aero is part of a team that won a $500 million, five-year contract to design and build a new maintenance facility. The F100 turbine engine will be the first engine type handled in the new center.

Metalcraft Technologies

Metalcraft Technologies is moving ahead to build the first FF-1080-300 aircraft. Utilicraft Aerospace has hired Metalcraft to build the test flight version of the FF-1080-300, a small cargo plane. Metalcraft has begun fabricating the plane in sections based on a computer drawing from Utilicraft.

Pratt & Whitney

Pratt & Whitney Canada will invest an additional $250 million in additional research and development over the next three years. The funds will be used for design validation and integration as well as improving engine performance, reducing weight, reducing environmental impact and reducing the cost of ownership. Part of the additional investment funds will be $75 million from the Quebec Ministry of Economic Development, Innovation and Export. Pratt & Whitney's most recent investment announcement is on top the $350 million it normally spends each year on research and development.

Canada's Ministry of Natural Resources recently awarded Pratt & Whitney Canada with the first ever Industrial Energy Innovators Award for its work to improve energy efficiencies that have already yielded more than $1 million in savings. Pratt & Whitney was selected from more than 70 submissions.

Pemco

Pemco Aviation Group [PAGI], a provider of aircraft maintenance and modification services, reported a first quarter net profit of $1.16 million, or 26 cents per share, on sales of $44 million. A year ago, the company earned $1.04 million, or 23 cents per share, on sales of $43.25. The company's commercial service division, which handles the maintenance, repair and overhaul contracts, had a 60 percent hike in first quarter sales.

TIMCO

TIMCO Aviation Services, a provider of maintenance, repair and overhaul services for regional and mainline airlines, reported an increase in its first quarter profits. The Greensboro, N.C. company earned $1.2 million, or 2 cents per share, on revenue of $90.7 million in the first quarter. A year ago, the company earned $100,000 on revenue of $83.5 million. The higher yield was attributed to improved efficiencies.