Newsdesk – General Aviation

 Schofields Comes of Age:

Schofields Air Show this year, to be held on the weekend of March 28/29, looks set to be the best yet. A sizeable contribution will be made by the RAAF to highlight the 60th anniversary celebrations and will include aerobatics by the crack Roulettes in addition to helicopter, transport and Mirage demonstrations. The new time of late March will also provide a respite from the dusty heat and plague flies of previous November Schofields which hardly inspired a return visit by the average family. A Paddy’s market for used aircraft will be a novel addiction while Australia’s largest gathering of GA aircraft will be professionally displayed in addition to a wide range of vintage aircraft.

Casa C-212 Sales Strengthen:

CASA of Spain, manufacturers of the C-212 Aviocar and C-101 Aviojet report that sales of the twin-turboprop C-212 now top the 250 mark, 200 of which have already been delivered to more than 20 countries. Local distributors of the C-212 are Schutt Aviation who see a strong potential market for this aircraft, particularly in the rugged north where mining companies are placing more and more emphasis on time and mobility to combat the soaring costs of mineral exploration.

Jetsales a Challenger:

It is indeed good to see Ron Walker, formerly of BizJets, back in action with his new company, Jetsales Australia Pty Ltd, and his new franchise, the promising Canadair Challenger corporate jet.

Ron has probably more experience with what the Australian corporate Jet requirement is than any other local aerospace identity. Back in the late sixties he was the first to introduce a Falcon jet charter operation which regretably was several years ahead of its time. In more recent years he turned his hand to operating a commuter service across Bass Strait in direct competition with the domestics. Needless to say it was only a matter of time before T AA and Ansett squeezed Bizjet’s Metro operation into bankruptcy through concerted fare cutting. Once Bizjets had ceased operating the route the fares returned to their normal levels. Jetsales is confident there is an opportunity to sell several Challengers in Australia, so much so that Canadair will be demonstrating an aircraft in Australia this June. There are three versions of the Challenger. The standard short-fuselage model is powered by Avco Lycoming ALF 502 high-bypass turbofans (same units as on the BAe 146), these produce 7500 lb thrust while a more powerful version powered by 8650 lb thrust GE CF34s allows greater max payload, range and short trip capabilities. Last but definitely not least, and possibly in time the most popular commercially will be the “E” or extended fuselage model also powered by CF34s.

 Pilot Numbers Jump:

Despite its problems, the aviation industry continues to grow. A new publication just issued by DOT shows there were 51,604 pilot licences current at December 31. The total includes 775 helicopter licences. Five years ago, the comparable figure was 33,473 (including 425 helicopter licences). That’s a jump of over 54 per cent.

Robinson Sales Boom:

By early February, Robinson Helicopters was claiming sales of more than 850 of its economical R22 two-seat light helicopters. The R22 is marketed in Australia by Heliflite of Sydney and is powered by a single Lycoming four de-rated from 150 hp to 124 hp for reliability and economy. With TBOs of 2000 hrs, a fuel bum of around seven gallons an hour and a cruise speed of over 100 knots, the $69,000 R22 should certainly claim many local sales. AADR had hoped to have an in-depth Airtest of the R22 in this issue but unfortunately, festive season delays in gaining certification caused us to miss our March issue production deadlines. We will, however, have this test ready for our next edition.

Super Puma Grabs the Biggest Ever Helo Order

Aerospatiale has certainly done well with its long-lived Puma family of twin-engined utility helicopters. The latest variant is the double-stretched AS. 332L designated Super Tiger by UK-based Bristow Helicopters who have signed contracts worth over $200m on 35 of the 24-seat helos. Bristow also operates a large number of Alouette Ills and Squirrels which with the latest order makes them Aerospatiale’s largest single customer.

AFTs Soars Ahead:

Barney Fernandes, of the Australian Flying Training School-based at Bankstown, has just accepted 14 Malaysian Airline System cadets for a 60-week intensive CPL course involving 230 hrs of flying. AFTS specialising In training overseas cadet pilots to full commercial standards and have just recently graduated 16 cadets for Zambia Airways. “Australia has so much to offer, not only in a favourable training climate but also in expertise and tradition,” commented Barney upon announcing that their policy of specialising in the training of third-world pilots was achieving considerable success.

Soloy Provides Turbine Option:

Soloy Conversions, who have in the past won fame for the Allison 250 conversions to Hiller and Bell 47 helicopters have announced a range of similar retrofits for fixed-wing aircraft. The secret of simplicity lies in what Soloy term their Quick Engine Change (QEC) unit which allows the Allison 250, in C20B or C30 model, to be mated via an engine coupling to an independent gearbox capable of accepting upwards of 700 hp. This then simplifies the re-engining task and by using common components to several aircraft types also cuts down certification time and reduces conversion cost. Aircraft on offer for conversion are Cessna’s 185, 206, 207 and 210 models while the Pawnee Brave and AgWagon have already received FAA certification with Allison/ Soloy power.

Three-Engine Falcon Jet Completes Two-Engine Ferry Tests:

The world’s only three-engine corporate jet, the Dassault-Breguet Falcon 50, has completed trials demonstrating it can undertake ferry flights using only two engines.

US certification of the capability to ferry the Falcon 50 with one engine inoperative has already been achieved.

This underscored the added safety margin of three engines, especially in the Australian environment where the Falcon 50’s short-strip capability would mean much of its time could be spent away from major servicing centres.

A Falcon captain could take off from a strip in North-West Australia and fly directly to the major servicing centre in Perth, avoiding costly aircraft downtime waiting for parts or service.

This is all the more important when you realise how the landing and take-off performance of the 50 will expand the number of remote airstrips that can be served by this class of aircraft. The Falcon 50 corporate jet can operate from strips down to 1000 m (3000 ft), yet it is one of the few aircraft in its class that is truly intercontinental in range.

More than 80 Falcon 50s have been sold in the United States alone and one flew recently non-stop from Honolulu to St Louis, Missouri.

The trials also tested the aircraft’s ability to perform O-degree flap take-offs, an important factor in high-temperature, high-density altitude environments.

Hawker Pacific markets the range of Falcon 10, 20 and 50 models throughout Australia and acts as agents for Falcon Jet Corporation – the wholly owned American subsidiary of Dassault.

New Factory to Be Built for Saab Fairchild 340 Airliner:

Saab-Scania has signed a contract with the Swedish BPA Construction company for the building of a new factory to be used for the production of the new Saab-Fairchild 340 airliner. The contract is worth approximately $US30m and covers the construction of a 25,000 sq m (270,000 sq ft) facility on Saab-Scania’s airport at Linkoping. In addition to the factory, a three-storey, 6000 sq m (65,000 sq ft) office building is included in the contract.

The building of the new facility takes place following the agreement signed in January 1980 between Saab-Scania and Fairchild Industries Inc. of the United States for joint development, production and marketing of the Saab-Fairchild 340 34-passenger airliner. The first prototype is scheduled to fly late in 1982 and contracts have already been signed for production deliveries in early 1984. Stillwell Aviation has been appointed the local distributor for the 340.

The Corsair Cometh:

Wichita’s Corsair project Is already doing the rounds and looks to be a certain front-runner for the Australian scene.

It has a range – of up to 1646 nautical miles depending on cruise height; payload capacity – of 1762 lb, which naturally enough diminishes with mission range profile; speed – 264 knots at 17,700 ft is typical, with a weight of 7000 lb.

Most of all, its twin Pratt and Whitney PT6As have a TBO (time between overhaul) of 3500 hours. That’s about six years of normal flying, depending on what one calls normal.

Corsair has a lot going for it; sea level climb of more than 2000 feet/min, climb to 26,000 ft in 19 minutes, a service ceiling of nearly 35,000 ft and 300 mph cruise speed.

Aimed at the business sector, the Corsair is expected to shove aside many of the older and noisier piston-powered twins, and even give a nasty nudge to less efficient turboprop types on the market.

The first Corsair, which seats eight in standard configuration, is expected in Australia about mid-March, and should prove to be a winner – in fact, Australasian Cessna distributor Rex Aviation says the first Corsair has already been “just about sold”.

The Corsair’s knee-action main gear wedded to wide-chord reversible props make the aircraft a natural for off-bitumen work. Single-engine rate of climb at sea level is listed at 434 fpm. About 2000 ft are needed for take-off, and with all 45 degrees of Corsair’s flaps down, landing roll could be as little as 952 ft.

Technically, the Corsair stands in Cessna’s Inventory as Model 425 but is built around the 421 airframe.

In the cabin, passengers can sit among teakwood work tables, and refreshment centres, listen to stereo or phone the office on the ground, far below, depending on the options fitted.

The cabin is pressurised to a 5.0 psi differential, giving a 10,000 ft cabin atmosphere while flying at 26,500 ft.

The slow-turning props (1900 rpm at 100 per cent) and their placement 2 ft from the fuselage, combine with the PT6As to give Corsair passengers and crew one of the quietest rides of their lives.

AADR looks forward to evaluating the Cessna Corsair when it lands in Australia.

Skygear Developing Pro Pilots Watch:

Skygear International of Sydney, NSW, 1s developing a professional pilot’s watch in co-operation with Montres Breitling Watches, of Geneva, Switzerland.

The watch face design, pioneered and developed by Skygear International managing director Michael Hollis, is the result of research into plot requirements in the Australasian theatre of operations.

Skygear has made constant enquiries of visiting domestic and commuter airlines’ pilots and crews, of what they considered they wanted in a good, accurately-rated wrist watch for specific flight deck applications.

Skygear International is the exclusive Australian agent for the full range of Breitling watches. Skygear international Sydney pilot shop also stocks electronic and manual flight computers, navigation equipment, flight crew clothing and pilot requirements.