FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1969
1969 - 2900.PDF
520 AIR TRANSPORT.. FLIGHT International, 2 October 1969 LIGHT COMMERCIAL & BUSINESS Sud-Aviation is well advanced with construction of the prototype SN-600 Corvette business jet, to be powered by two P & W ]TI5Ds. Dassault is building the almost identical Mini Falcon. No production decision has been taken for the Corvette Skyvans for the North Slope The big Alaskan North Slope oil strike, where a total of £333 million was collected in land- lease auctions on September 10, looks like being a bonanza for Shorts' Skyvan too. Three Skyvans have just been ordered (two by the Alaska Aircraft Leasing Co and one by Pan-Alaska Airlines, both of Fairbanks) for contract operations in support of the oil exploration operations being conducted by most of the major US oil companies and British Petroleum. All three Skyvans are expected to be in service by the end of this month. Singapore Fixed Base The Government of Singapore and Hawker de Havilland Australia have agreed to establish, as a joint venture, an aviation service company at Seletar Airfield, Singapore. The new company, Singapore General Aviation Service Company Private Ltd, plans to provide a complete service for general aviation in South-East Asia, from flying instruction to airframe/engine/avionics overhaul and spares supply. Over 40 Hawker de Havilland technicians will be engaged on the project. Irish Lighthouse Relief The Commissioners of Irish Lights have signed a contract with Irish Helicopters Ltd to provide a helicopter service for the transport of relief crews to and from 12 remotely located lighthouses on the west coast of Ireland. An Alouette leased from British Executive Air Services of Oxford will be engaged on the service, which is for a trial period of six month starting on October 15. Britain's Trinity House has begun a similar trial, operated by Bristow Heli copters A Canadair CL-215 operating over a forest fire in the interior of British Columbia, where water bombers have seen "live" action. In France, four of the ten CL-2l5s ordered by the government have been delivered and have been flying against forest fires along the Mediterranean coast. Another aircraft has been in action in north-west Spain Taxi from Manchester Northern Executive Aviation, the Manchester-based charter company, has expanded its fleet and increased its pilot strength to six. NEA now operates three Aztecs and a Twin Comanche on flights throughout Britain. Eire and the Continent. The Aztecs are available 24hr a day. seven days a week. It is claimed that if all the available seats are used by the customer then the rate per head charged is similar to that of scheduled air services. NEA flew nearly 1,500hr last year and carried over 11,000 passengers. Miss Cay Absalom is the first British woman to gain a commercial heli copter pilot's licence More Learjet Variants Two new versions of the Gates Learjet were announced on the opening day of the NBAA convention in Washington. The short-body Model 24 is now offered with the higher-powered General Electric CJ610-6 in place of the -4 (which will continue to be offered in the current Model 24B). The -6 was first introduced by Learjet in the longer-bodied Model 25. This latter version is now offered with a revised interior, the main feature of which is that may be readily converted into a comfortable sleeping compartment which is expected to enhance the appeal of the aircraft for transcontinental business trips. The existing Model 25 with ordinary seating will continue in production. The two new versions will be available in the middle of next year. Last lune Gates announced a major development of the Model 25 powered by the entirely new Garrett AiResearch TFE 731-2 twin-spool turbofan (Flight, June 19, page 1004). The prototype is expected to fly next year and production deliveries could begin in 1972. Non-stop transcontinental range is the aim for the Garrett Learjet. The new 24C is the Gates Learjet response to the challenge of the Cessna Citation (see opposite), and to the slightly different attractions of turboprop twins. The 24C is offered for $627,900 ex-works basic without electronics but including an auto-stabiliser; suitably equipped for IFR operation, the air craft costs around $698,000. Lear claims turboprop-standard air field performance (including 3,370ft balanced field length) and a 1,570-mile range with four passengers, baggage and reserves. The promotion angle for the new 25C is "the first trans continental business jet for under $1 million." The convertible interior is said to offer complete overnight accommodation for two passengers while the aircraft makes a non-stop flight from, say, California to the US East Coast. The performance is identical to that of the existing Model 25.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
