Archive

Tag Archives: flight operations

Business Aviation News

Peachtree Aviation have been looking at private jet flight in Atlanta versus commercial and have concluded that often it can be more economical to rent a private jet if you have a group of people to transport.

James Barber, CEO of Peachtree Aviation said, “Flying commercially is often a major time sink and this can cost you dearly when you have high productivity costs.”

In the business world, hiring a private jet is more likely to reduce the costs per person when you compare the price with the individual purchase of multiple commercial seats for a team of employees.  Add that to the time saved overall per employee and the real savings can be significant.

Mr Barber goes on to say, “When you factor in the time you have to waste going through a commercial airport’s security lines, the wait for the plane, the extended boarding period and then the time it takes you to get your luggage after the flight, you can end up saving several hours of productivity time per person.”

Peachtree Aviation offers private jet charter in Atlanta.

 

data linkThe Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) will move the aviation industry forward with the implementation of advanced data link communications by 2020.

At Aviation Week, hosted in Washington, leaders from airlines, industry providers and government agencies held discussions and shared critical facts and data in order to reinforce the implementation of the future of air travel with the proposed data link mandates.

At the show, the NextGen Showcase was aimed to help airlines find the right providers, simplifying the selection process and highlighting where the smartest investments in technology would lie.

The showcase was all about imparting the industry with the changing rules within NextGen, making sure that advances in technology in the cockpit can be embraced and used to their full potential as NextGen approaches.

NextGen will help to improve safety with data link communications, in addition to creating more fuel efficient routes, less congestion and increased operability solutions for airlines.

Industry leading data link providers bring many solutions to the table, with retrofit avionics, data link packages and cost effective innovations, such as ARINC’s HFDL solution.

Data link technology is widely used in today’s busy skies, helping to create a safe and secure airspace across the globe.  NextGen will reinforce the use of data link communications with the issue of mandatory rules and specific routes for carriers of data link.

By 2020 data link communications mandates will be imposed under regulatory conditions.  Air carriers are advised to look at the possibilities now, for retrofitting.  All new aircraft off the production line are being fitted with data link technology in preparation.

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.

 

notams

In a bid to harmonize the US system of NOTAMs with the ICAO standards, a new and revised format of the delivery of NOTAMs is expected on 1st October.

Improvements will include the definition of numbers to removed the ‘guesswork’ when it comes to units of measurement in the case of FT, LB & NM.  Altitudes will be defined with upper and lower limits and changes to the usability of runways and declared distances will be clear.

The changes come as a part of the 2012 Pilot’s Bill of Rights, which has highlighted and authorized the improvements to the NOTAMs system in the US.  Pilots will be able to access necessary information about their route of flight, prioritizing will filters in alignment with their flight profile.

Field Condition (FICON) NOTAMs will be listed amongst the biggest changes.  Pilots and flight crews will be able to file a Pilot Reported FICON with a list of runway contaminants reportable in the situation of an unmonitored field.

The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) have an active role in the evaluation of the current NOTAMs system and the recommendation of improvements as a member of the RTCA Tactical Operations Committee.  Another goal is to introduce an improved, user-friendly format for the system delivery of NOTAMs, enabling access with tablets and smart phone technology.

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.

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.

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.

Advanced Communications Systems Integration Air Canada’s new Global Operations Centre in Brampton, Ontario has received a major communications systems integration completed recently by ARINC.  The state-of-the-art centre will serve as a central control for the every day operations of Air Canada, increasing both operational capabilities and efficiency.

ARINC Managed Services will also provide comprehensive, on-going support for the centre.

The communications systems integration project involved Air Canada’s air-to-ground and ground-to-air communications, system engineering and support services in addition to existing radio maintenance and asset management responsibilities.

“AMS’s system integration and engineering support has been invaluable,” said Catherine Brassard, Senior Director of Operations, Excellence and Continuous Improvement at Air Canada. “We believe the OC will significantly improve Air Canada’s operations and we consider ARINC to be a trusted partner in helping us accomplish this goal.”

ARINC are experts in communications systems integration.  Their work within the industry is legendary.  As there is a shift in the aviation industry to more flexible, web-based communications systems integration, ARINC clearly stand out with their eHub solution.

ARINC eHub offers increased flexibility and cost effective operations with a solution that requires no software downloads or expensive equipment, seamlessly integrating with existing packages, including CUTE systems technology and equipment, accessible from any internet connection and any device.

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.”

hfdl ARINC have been right up there in the aviation news these past few weeks and continue to push forward in the industry.  It has been announced today that South African Airlines has renewed its relationship with ARINC in signing a new 5 year contract for GLOBALink ACARS Services and will use ARINC’s High-Frequency Data Link (HFDL) for seamless global coverage.

The new data link agreement is just part of a long-standing business relationship between South African Airlines and ARINC.  The new contract will make ARINC the exclusive providers of all their communications needs.

ARINC’s HFDL Service, combined with HF voice then aircraft have high levels of reliability for air-ground communications during long-range flights.

ARINC’s GLOBALink ACARS data link provides airlines with reliability, using their industry-leading superior services and technical support systems.

South African Airlines will use ARINC for all VHF, HF and satellite ACARS traffic.  ARINC’s HFDL service will provide cost-effective, truly global coverage across vast oceanic expanses and Polar Regions, interfacing seamlessly with the VHF and SATCOM communications networks.

The data link services from ARINC gives airlines greater reliability, comprehensive operational messaging that eradicates the errors associated with radio voice communications.

“We are very excited to continue working with South African Airways,” said Alexis Hickox, Senior Director, Aviation Solutions, at ARINC EMEA. “We believe this renewal demonstrates the value ARINC provides our customers and positions us well for future growth in Africa.”