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Aviation History
1996
1996 - 3058.PDF
CORPORATE AVIATION aircraft using US airspace. Canada has just pri vatised its air- navigation system and plans to introduce user fees to replace die airline ticket- tax now used to fund operations. At die same time, the US airspace system is on the verge of a profound change, with the planned move to "free-flight" air-traffic-man- agement, which will require participating air craft to be equipped for satellite navigation and datalink communications. Business-aircraft operators face the expense of equipping their aircraft with satellite-navigation flight-man agement systems to avoid being disadvantaged. Operators which fly across the North Adantic are already grappling with the cost of upgrading their aircraft to comply with new altimeter-accuracy and redundancy require ments for reduced vertical-separation minima planned to be phased in on transatlantic routes beginning in 1997. Now Europe's Joint Aviation Authorities QAA) proposes extending the rules governing extended-range twinjet operations (ETOPS) to include business jets. The FAA position is that current ETOPS cri teria do not apply to business aircraft. GAMA and the NBAA are working jointly to persuade the JAA that there is no safety requirement to extend ETOPS rules because there have been no overwater accidents involving business jets and therefore no cost-benefit justification. The US industry wants the JAA to limit ETOPS rules to aircraft weighing more than 45,400kg and with more than 20 seats. To these concerns must be added airport- access issues in Europe, the Far East and even the USA. They paint a picture of an industry which must temper its optimism with caution. ANTI-RECESSIONARY MEASURES Optimism is likely to be to the fore at the NBAA convention. The industry's propensity for reacting to recession by launching new aircraft has lead to some lively shows in recentyears, and Orlando promises at least some new products. Leading the pack will be Raytheon Aircraft's new "super-mid-size" Hawker Horizon. This $14.5 million successor to the Hawker 1000, powered by Pratt & Whitney Canada PW3 08A turbofans and with Honeywell Primus Epic avionics, is aimed at a gap which Raytheon believes exists between its $11.5 million mid sized Hawker 800XP and larger aircraft such as the Dassault Falcon 2000 and Canadair Challenger 604, costing $18.5-20.5 million. Raytheon, which introduced the Premier I light business-jet at the 1995 NBAA show, has assumed the position held by Cessna as the lead ing launcher of new business aircraft. The com pany has dropped strong hints that a stretched Premier II will be launched at the 1997 show., Cessna, for its part, is unlikely to launch its anticipated replacement for the mid-sized Citation VII at this year's show. The company has a full agenda marketing the mid-sized, Mach 0.92, Citation X and certificating the Citation Bravo and widebody Citation Excel Beech King Air (above): one of the best-selling business aircraft; Premier I: introduced at NBAA 1995 light business-jets. The recent order from Executive Jet Aviation for 25 Citation VIIs (as well as 2 5 Citation Xs), for its Netjets fraction al-ownership scheme, has also given the existing aircraft a valuable production boost. The launch mantle will pass instead to the joint venture of Bell Helicopter Textron and Boeing Helicopters, developers of the V-22 Osprey military tilt-rotor. They plan to an nounce in Orlando their intention to proceed with development of the first civil tilt-rotor, the nine-seat D600. Similar in size to Bell's XV-15 tilt-rotor technology demonstrator, the D600 will be powered by two P&WC PT6 tur- boshafts and is expected to be available in 2 001. Much attention is likely to focus on three air craft: the BMW Rolls-Royce BR710-powered Bombardier Global Express, the AlliedSignal TFE 730-60-powered Dassault Falcon 900EX and the Gulfstream V, also powered by the BR710. Bombardier plans to fly die first ultra- long-range Global Express into Orlando for its NBAA debut in formation with the company's new Learjet 45 light business-jet. OTHER DEBUTANTES Also on display in the static park at Orlando's executive airport will be the fifth ultra-long- range GV—the first with a completed interior. US certification of the GV is expected later this year. Dassault, meanwhile, will display its extend ed-range Falcon 900EX, the first of which was delivered earlier this month. The French manu facturer is marketing the 8,3 OOkm-range 900EX, the longest-range business jet in service, as a lower-cost alternative to the 12,000km (6,500nm)-range Global Express and GV Boeing Business Jets will use the NBAA show to brief potential customers on a fourth entrant into the long-range market, the corporate-con figured 737-700. The joint venture, formed earlier this year with General Electric, has orders for three corporate 737-700s, two of them for GE. The small end of die business-aircraft market is also showing new signs of activity. Visionaire has rekindled the dream of a single-turbofan business-jet with the 25 October roll-out of a proof-of-concept prototype of its Vantage. Century Aerospace is pursuing a similar ap proach with its Century Jet, now in design. Whether these projects have what it takes to make it to production — where so many other novel business-aircraft concepts have perished — will be of interest to NBAA attendees. The "holy grail" of light-jet projects is to tap the loyal turboprop customer base and persuade them to trade up to turbofan power. Although the light-jet market is already brimming with alternatives, from the entry-level Cessna Citationjet to the "light-medium" Learjet 45, the Raytheon Beech King Air remains one of the best-selling business aircraft. The company is confident of the twin-turboprop's unique market appeal, but a future NBAA show could see the newly aggressive Raytheon take that all- important step of announcing a successor to the aircraft that has become its trademark. • 46 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 20 - 26 November 1996
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