BUSINESS AND GENERAL AVIATION

Vulcanair readies P68C for Brazil

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 16:00:00 GMT

Italian general aviation company Vulcanair is about to make its first foray into the Brazilian...

Spain orders a dozen Eurocopter EC135s

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 08:00:00 GMT

The Spanish government has ordered 12 Eurocopter EC135 P2i helicopters for its two police forces as part of the country's helicopter modernisation...

Australia puts firefighting tankers to the test

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 04:00:00 GMT

At the end of December, less than an hour's drive from this writer's home, more than 30 houses were lost and the area declared a natural disaster after...

Working Week: Caroline Larmaraud, delivering design at Dassault

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 04:00:00 GMT

Caroline Larmaraud studied interior architecture and design in Paris for five years. Her interest in business jets persuaded her in 1998 to pursue a career as an interior designer with Dassault

China poised to fly AC313 helicopter

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 02:00:00 GMT

China is preparing to fly its AC313 medium-lift helicopter for the first time in March, leading to certification in 2011, says an official at the manufacturer Avicopter

Big vision at small airfields

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:00:00 GMT

The USA's often-moribund local airports are being revitalised by aviation entrepreneurs

General aviation in brief

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:00:00 GMT

CAE and Hindustan Aeronautics are planning to open their Hatsoff helicopter training centre joint venture in May at HAL's Bangalore-based...

Webbies 2009 - winners and judges comments

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 07:44:00 GMT

Eurofighter Typhoon, Amsterdam Schiphol International airport and Things in the Sky blog have triumphed at Flightglobal's annual aviation web awards. The Webbies 2009, now in its second year, celebrate the best and brightest in aviation websites and their social media activities. The Eurofighter website won the Best Aerospace website for its interactivity and games element. Amsterdam's airport triumphed in the Best Airport category for knocking down language barriers, and the judges were impressed with the blog, Things in the Sky for its "compelling visual content". The Webbies 2009 had two new categories: Best Enthusiast/Community Website to honour the website that delivers

SINGAPORE 2010: Eurocopter SEA and Thai govt seal EC135 deal

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 02:39:04 GMT

Eurocopter's South-east Asia subsidiary has concluded its first sales contract with Thailand's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) for one...

SINGAPORE 2010: Hawker Pacific to provide support for Falcon 7X in Asia

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 02:00:39 GMT

Dassault has chosen Hawker Pacific to provide product support for Asia-based customers of the Dassault Falcon 7X aircraft. The aircraft is expected...

SINGAPORE 2010: Bombardier says 'watch this space' on Global Express successor

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 14:08:00 GMT

While not acknowledging the existence of a specific development programme, Bombardier says "watch this space" on a future challenger to Gulfstream's G650...

Business aviation in brief

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:07:00 GMT

GULFSTREAM APPROVAL The Gulfstream G150 has become the first member of the Gulfstream business aircraft family to gain European and US steep approach...

Nextant readies 400Next demonstrator for roll-out

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:01:00 GMT

Nextant Aerospace is preparing to roll out its 400Next aircraft demonstrator by the end of the first quarter....

Gulfstream G150 gets green light for steep approaches

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 11:19:00 GMT

The Gulfstream G150 has become the first member of the Gulfstream business aircraft family to gain European and US steep approach certification. The approval...

Customised Garmin G3000 for SF50 Vision personal jet

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 11:11:00 GMT

Cirrus says it is working with Garmin to develop a customised version of the new G3000 integrated avionics suite for its SF50 Vision five-passenger single-engined...

Viking Twin Otter Series 400 certification approaches

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 09:00:00 GMT

Viking Air is gearing up to deliver the first new and improved DHC-6 Twin Otter Series 400 to Swiss charter operator...

FAA opens up discussion on future light aircraft

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:16:00 GMT

The US Federal Aviation Administration is to consult publicly on its review of the current assumptions that underlie the certification processes for light...

Business aviation in brief

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 11:15:00 GMT

SIGNATURE BRANDING Signature Flight Support has launched a customer loyalty programme...

SINGAPORE 2010: Uncertainty over AVIC's Z-15

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 11:11:00 GMT

Eurocopter's EC-175 helicopter that it is developing and producing in China with AVIC had its first flight in December but progress on development of the Chinese version, Z-15, is unclear. "We started the EC-175 in China five years ago and we have reached all the milestones," Eurocopter CEO and president Lutz Bertling says at the Singapore Airshow. First flight of the EC-175 was on the 4 December "and we have not encountered any major problems", he adds. But development of the Z-15 is less clear. "The Chinese partners decided to go with a second engine," says Bertling, adding that the Chinese are in negotiations with Turbomeca. The EC-175 is powered by Pratt Whitney engines. Bertling declines to say why this is, adding: "We can't say what impact this will have on the programme", he adds. In 2007, Pratt and Whitney Canada came under the media spotlight when it was discovered that the firm's engines were being used on the Chinese

SINGAPORE 2010: Piper open to manufacturing in Asia

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 10:35:00 GMT

Piper Aircraft has no immediate plans to shift manufacturing production to Asia but is open to the idea. "At the moment we don't have plans to move production …but in the future we are certainly open to alternative sites for manufacturing” if the need arises, Piper president and CEO Kevin Gould says from the Singapore Airshow. He says this year Piper anticipates that its sales will increase by more than 50% year-on-year. It has just launched its entry model Piper Sport with a price of $119,000 for the base model. This particular aircraft is manufactured in the Czech Republic whereas the aircraft-makers other aircraft are made in the