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German-based Spherus Aviation to Develop Business Aviation in Nigeria

October 4, 2013
Business Aviation News
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Germany-based Spherus Aviation, a leading business aviation firm from Hannover, has scheduled a follow-up trip to Nigeria with a view to developing business aviation in the country.

In a bid to drum up enthusiasm, the company has been encouraging Nigerian clients and extolling the virtues of the charter and management of private aircraft, showcasing business jets.

In partnership with Cita-Triax Aviation, a Nigerian-based company, Spherus is committed to improving and expanding Nigeria’s business aviation industry.

“On this trip, we are participating in the Oil &and Gas expo in Abuja and will be offering advice and support to clients at the Cessna/Bell stand with Robert Prentise of Africa air Inc. We will present our latest Special Management Model Turnkey solution to potential Nigerian business aviation clients who may be government officials, business leaders and high net worth individuals that value their time in meeting up with their appointments using a private long range shuttle with maximum comfort and guarantee of safety, ” said Mr Sebastian Kester, MD of Spherus Aviation.

Spherus Aviation is the first Nigerian-owned business aviation operator to work successfully in Europe and will bring European aviation standards into Nigeria.  It is hoped that the development of business in Nigeria will encourage the continuation of direct foreign investment into the country.

Business Jets Fractional Ownership Trend Growing

October 3, 2013
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Fractional Ownership in Business Aviation

Fractional ownership initiatives allow buyers to acquire a fraction of a business jet, paying a monthly fee for management, then flight fees per hour of use.  Some companies offer pay-in-advance schemes where the customer can purchase bulk flying time.

For the past five years, there has been a lull in this industry; the economic downturn is partly to blame, with expenses cutbacks and falling rates of business.  This had led to many fractional ownership companies going out of business, with some being bought out, such as the proposed acquisition of Bombardier’s Flexjet by Directional Aviation Capital who already own Flight Options and Sentient Jet, fractional ownership enterprises.

It is hoped, now that there are fewer players in the industry, that prices can become more competitive, with greater flexibility for new growth in this sector.

Executive Airshare is keeping its focus upon the light jet market, which is less capital-intensive, offering businesses a more affordable way of flight compared to that of larger jets.

Already there seems to have been a resurgence of business with some companies noticing a rise of up to 50% on last year’s figures.  Many believe that this is a clear indication that people are returning to ‘normal’ business activity.

It may also be an indication that businesses are prepared to go a little further in search of new contracts and to seek out new business opportunities.

Recently it was suggested that it can be more cost-effective for companies to share the hire of a business jet than to purchase individual seats on commercial flights.

Whatever is happening, it is clearly good for business in the sector.

Papua New Guinea Air Services Receives Aeronautical Message Handling System

September 23, 2013
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message handling systemPort Moresby, as the main site for Papua New Guinea Air Services, is to serve other airports in Papua New Guinea and in Brisbane, Australia as a message hub with its new, fully operational and ICAO compliant message handling system.

The message handling system, deployed by COMSOFT will bring Papua New Guinea Air Services, (PNGAS), provider of air navigation services, the ability to reinforce the aeronautical message handling system connections with other countries, such as New Zealand, Australia, Fiji & Indonesia who also operate the COMSOFT message handling system.

This is great news for PNGAS, who have been eager to introduce the message handling system technology in Papua New Guinea as, due to the nature of the terrain, air travel is key to the country’s economy.

With the message handling system, operators will be able to access critical flight information; NOTAMs, weather data and flight plans.

Aviation message handling system operations are crucial to safe and efficient flight management and offer solutions to airlines of all sizes.  Aviation messaging providers, such as COMSOFT & ARINC can bring these key solutions closer for compliance with ICAO regulations.

ARINC, industry-leading aviation message handling system providers have been bringing the answers to aircraft communications for 80 years.

 

Burmese Airports Physical Security Upgrades

September 19, 2013
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The demands placed upon the aviation industry in Burma are increasing year on year as passenger numbers continue to rise with the volume of cargo.  This has led to a direct need for upgraded airports physical security in the region of Myanmar’s busiest airports – Yangon, Mandalay, Nyanung U, Heho, Thandwe and Dawei.

Airport physical security is one issue for improvement, and to satisfy the ICAO safety standards, some of the named airports are scheduled for the installation of a new air traffic control system.

airports physical security

Projects and contracts have been awarded to Sumitomo Corporation, Toshiba, Morita and the NEC Group to provide equipment for the improvement of the safety standards.

There will be Doppler VHF radio range beacons, distance measuring equipment, aeronautical lighting systems, communications control units and flight procedure design systems.  Physical security equipment, such as intruder and explosive detection systems will also be installed.

The project will enhance safety and security within the region and will allow for an expansion of capacity enabling the airports to handle more passengers with minimal delays.

The funding for this project has been the result of an agreement between the government of Myanmar and the Japanese government and a grant was issued by Japan International Cooperation Agency.

Enhanced airport capacity is a requirement that is spreading around the world.  As more and more passengers take to the air each year, the need for greater border control and physical security is inevitable.  Providers such as ARINC take airport physical security into the next generation with their suite of solutions.

Airport Information Infrastructure System at Al Maktoum, Dubai

September 18, 2013
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In a move towards the NextGen Airport Operations System initiative, Al Maktoum International Airport at Dubai World Central has awarded the contract for a comprehensive airport information infrastructure system to Dubai Technology Partners LLC and UFIS Airport Solutions.

The critical solution will help in the interim during the work involved in the implementation of the NextGen initiative and will reinforce the airport information infrastructure for Dubai Airports.

The first passenger terminal, due to open in October of this year, will have the capacity for over 5 million passengers annually, with that figure expected to rise to 160 million passengers per year upon its completion within the next 10 years.

The contract includes implementation of Flight Information Processing System, Resource Management System, Airport Operational Database and Flight Information Display System.

Integrated airport information infrastructure encompasses flight information and passenger data through to perimeter security solutions and vehicle identification.  Industry leading providers of advanced information management, such as ARINC, offer a complete suite of solutions for airport information infrastructure with its innovative ARINC AIM.

ARINC AIM gives facilities across the world cost-efficient solution for access management, physical security and airport information infrastructure management.

EU Parliament Vote to Put Safety First in Aviation

September 17, 2013
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Pilots and Air Traffic Controllers all over the European Union today welcome the Parliamentarian decision to vote positively on the new Occurrence Reporting Regulation.

The agreement about improvements to current procedures for the reporting of incidents regarding aviation safety is supported by the European Parliament Transport Committee and sets the scene for a new framework to strengthen air safety across Europe.

The Transport Committee wanted to ensure that pilots and air traffic controllers are protected when reporting mistakes and that the information they provide is not misused or misrepresented.

“Europe’s airline pilots and air traffic controllers warmly welcome the adoption of this report”, said Nico Voorbach, President of the ECA. “The pro-safety stance developed by the EP rapporteur Mrs de Veyrac – and vigorously supported by her colleagues within the Transport Committee is remarkable. A true safety culture is one that recognizes that it can always improve. MEP’s have understood this and introduced valuable improvements to an already good proposal by the EU Commission.”

Flight Time Rules Questioned by UK Transport Committee

September 16, 2013
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The EU proposal for flight and duty time regulations has been questioned by the UK Parliamentary Transport Committee this week.

The proposed EASA changes, due to take effect as early as November this year, are an improvement upon the current version, the committee said, but they seem, for the most part to contradict current scientific research.

Concerns were also raised about the controversial low reporting of pilot fatigue.  This will relate directly to the proposal for 11-hour  period of ‘on duty’ for night flights and led the committee to demand that ‘the government seek to ensure scientists have a more central role in further work by EASA as it finalizes its flight-time limitations proposals.’

The Transport Committee have reiterated their concerns that no ‘consensus was reached with pilots and cabin crew.’  The proposals by EASA would give operators the lead to issue duty rotations that will mean up to a third of flights will exceed the current maximum duty period. The UK CAA believes that a more practical limit would be 10-20%.  EASA argue that scheduled flights that would exceed will only be seasonal.

It has been suggested by the UK that the EU come back to the regulations after a two year ‘trial’ period, to assess the effectiveness of the new rules.

ARINC C-130B Project in Indonesia for Mission-Critical Communications Upgrades & Retrofit.

September 10, 2013
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Mission critical CommunicationsARINC Inc is progressing ‘aggressively’ with the completion of its contract with the Indonesian Government to modernize five of its C-130B aircraft for the Indonesian Airforce, it was announced today.

The project, which began in early 2011 is on schedule and on budget and will help to modernize the transport fleet and upgrade mission critical communications for humanitarian purposes.  There is structural work being carried out in addition to the retrofit of upgraded technology to enhance capabilities.

The work is being carried out by ARINC onsite, which enables the Indonesian Airforce to receive all the benefits of ARINC’s significant skills and knowledge, without having to bear the cost of the transportation of the aircraft to the Aerospace division of ARINC in Oklahoma.

All the parts required have been exported to the modifications facility in Indonesia and work is well underway.  The key milestones have been reached!

ARINC offer innovative solutions to mission critical communications with superior satellite services over the Inmarsat network.  They have been delivering mission critical communications for over 80 years and are well-placed in the industry, having an unparalleled reputation for excellence.

“ARINC Aerospace is uniquely qualified to perform this type of work,” noted Michael Young, Vice President of ARINC Aerospace. “We have far-reaching experience on multiple platforms and a broad range of capabilities. We are pleased that the project is going so well and that we are growing closer to the goal of enhancing the capabilities of the Indonesian Air Force.”

JetBlue Sign Aviation Technical for In-Flight Wifi

September 6, 2013
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in flight wifiAviation Technical, Washington-based providers have been awarded the contract by New York-based low cost airline, JetBlue to install in-flight Wifi technology on their fleet of 130 Airbus A320 aircraft.  To installations are expected to near completion by the end of 2014.

Designed by LiveTV, who will give training and technical support to Aviation Technical Services, the technology will provide Ka-band connectivity.

JetBlue’s brand for the in-flight wifi is called ‘Fly-Fi’ and will use satellite networks for connectivity, rather than the more common Ku-band provision, which uses ground-based stations.  This will give faster and more reliable connection.

The Ka-band operates within a higher bandwidth and offering eight times more than the Ku-band, which is also more highly congested.

Other in-flight wifi providers, such as ARINC, use Iridium and Inmarsat satellite networks to provide a seamless global connectivity for their customers within the Ka-band with SwiftBroadband and their CabinConnect solutions.

Celebrities to Attend the Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association Summit

September 5, 2013
Business Aviation News
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Griffey at AOPA SummitCelebrities with a passion for aviation will appear at this year’s AOPA summit in Fort Worth to mingle with the members.  Appearances from Ken Griffey Jr, Major League Baseball player, football legend, Ed ‘Too-Tall’ Jones and Aaron Tippin, Country & Western singer are expected.

Ken Griffey is a pilot and will speak at the keynote address on Friday 11th October.  Aaron Tippin is also a pilot of a T-6 Texan and will play a free concert for the first 450 summit attendees at the Flying Saucer Restaurant.  He is a long-time supporter of AOPA and said, “I am just like any other aviator. I’m always looking for organizations that are going to look out for the interest of pilots, aircraft owners, and mechanics.”

Ed Jones is a local who has a passion for aviation and will attend an interactive Q&A session, where members will have the opportunity to ask him about his distinguished SuperBowl career of 15 years, his fellow players and his retirement.

“We look for celebrities who have a passion for aviation, who have served aviation in some way, or who have a unique connection to the local community where Summit is held,” said AOPA director of outreach and events, Chris Eads.