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Aviation History
2004
2004-09 - 1112.PDF
BUSINESS AVIATION AIRPORT ACCESS BRENDAN SOBIE / TOKYO Japanese operators seek reforms Aviation association calls for federal government to open up Tokyo Haneda as regional hub for business jets Japan's small business-aviation com munity is pressing for 24h access to Tokyo Haneda airport and other reg ulatory reforms it believes necessary for the industry to expand. Charter operators planning flights to Tokyo can only apply to land at Narita airport outside Tokyo. Only if Narita rejects the landing application, or the landing is scheduled after Narita's 23:00 curfew, can operators apply to land at more convenient Haneda. The Japanese Business Aviation Association (JBAA) is pushing the federal government to open Haneda in line with the desires of the local Tokyo government, but against objections from the Narita- area government. JBAA board member and Aviation Business International (ABI) president Toshi Iwata says Haneda could become a regional hub for business jets, but other JBAA members doubt access issues will be overcome and say the cost of basing business jets in Tokyo will probably remain too high to attract potential operators. ABI is one of several agents in Japan that can arrange landings for foreign business jets. But interna tional business jet operators often choose to avoid stopping in Tokyo and instead park in other Asian countries, from where their clients fly commercially to Japan. There are no local charter companies in Japan, forcing Japanese VIPs to charter business jets in other Asian countries. High fees, limited airport access, cumbersome Japanese Civil Aviation Bureau 0CAB) regulations and the lack of FBO facilities scare away foreign operators and local companies from expanding into business jet charters. In recent years, the JCAB has reduced the notice requirement for chartered business jet landings from two weeks to three days, and further relief is expected. Private aircraft, including owner-operated business jets, can apply for land ings on the day of flight and have unfettered access to almost all air ports, including Haneda. There are, however, fewer than 100 private aircraft in Japan and most of these are small general-aviation aircraft rather than business jets. Japan Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association executive dir ector Arinori Yamagata says high fuel prices, import taxes and strict JCAB regulations scare away potential owners. EXPANSION Club Airways spreads wings Swiss private members airline Club Airways is expanding its route network following customer feedback. The move comes as operating partner Bookajet receives its UK air operator's certificate (AOC) and prepares to widen its portfolio of services. Geneva-based Club Airways will begin operating trials on 5 July from London Biggin Hill to Nice in the south of France, with an official launch planned the following week. The service will be run by Bookajet four times a week using eight-seat Hawker business jets. The privately owned company also plans from 6 July to offer flights between Nice and Pisa, Italy, a route that it says is not serviced by scheduled airlines. Since its launch last year, Bookajet has been operating under the AOC of Farnborough-based management company Aravco. The Southampton-based operator, which has orders for eight Dornier Envoy business jets and an option for six more, plans to offer third-party maintenance on Hawkers and may expand its engineering capabilities beyond its existing base. ORDER Net Jets set to expand with Hawker 400XPs Leading fractional-ownership oper ator Netjets has placed an order worth more than $300 million with Raytheon Aircraft for 20 Hawker 400XP light business jets and 20 mid-size Hawker 800XPs. The aircraft will be delivered between 2005 and 2007, and will be based in Europe and the USA. Netjets placed a firm order for 50 Hawker 400XPs last December, making the successor to Raytheon's Beechjet 400A its primary entry- level offering, replacing a cancelled order for Cessna Citation CJ3s. The $360 million deal included eight Hawker 800XPs and options for up to 50 more 400XPs. Netjets ordered two more 800XPs in February. The first Hawker 400XPs are about to enter service with Netjets, which already operates 47 Hawker 800XPs and 23 Hawker 1000s. The 800XPs ordered by the fractional operator are equipped with Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avion ics, while the 400XPs have Pro Line 4 avionics and increased payload compared with the Beechjet 400A. INNOVATION? www.smiths-aerospace.com Building the Airbus A380 calls for innovative thinking. Th< to "cockpit to gear" supply. The system utilizes electrnm operation, higher pressures and new fluid formulatic L e, Smiths deploy the technology of the ' SMITHS PERFORM smiths www.fliqhtinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 6-12 JULY 2004 21
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