March 22, 2021 - No. 22 In This Issue : Nigeria’s Air Peace Remains Committed To The Boeing 737 MAX : Sage-Popovich Inc.to Acquire Togs Aircraft, LLC FAA Part 145 Repair Station : Triumph Expands Boeing GSE Support : Is this the right time to establish an airline? : Robinson Helicopter Hits Milestone, Sees Daylight : NTSB to consider stricter regulatory requirements for some revenue passenger-carrying general aviation operations : FlightSafety Adds First 8X Sim for North America : Flight training company to triple size of its fleet of aircrafts : Private plane sales are taking off as pandemic clamps down on travel industry : TSA Testing PrimeFlight Aviation Services PrimeFlightUV Solutions at DCA Airport : SpaceX, NASA Sign Agreement to Avoid Space Collisions Nigeria’s Air Peace Remains Committed To The Boeing 737 MAX One month after the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) lifted the ban on the Boeing 737 MAX, Nigeria’s Air Peace has confirmed it will still look to use 737 MAX aircraft as it upgrades its fleet. The airline placed an order for 10 737 MAX back in 2018 as part of a fleet regeneration plan. Last month, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) confirmed that the troubled Boeing 737 MAX would be allowed back into Nigerian Airspace. The NCAA said it would work with Boeing and Nigerian airlines to ensure the type was fully-certified and complied with the FAA’s airworthiness directive. Commitment to Boeing Chairman and CEO of airline Air Peace, Allen Onyema, has now confirmed that with the MAX recertified, the airline will remain committed to bringing 737 MAX 8s into its fleet. The airline plans to replace its aging fleet with the new 737 MAX and new Embraer E195- E2. The airline confirmed its commitment as it took delivery of its second E195-E2. According to local media outlet AllAfrica.com, Onyema said, “We are not phasing out our Boeing aircraft, part of our business plan is that as we are getting the brand-new planes, we would be phasing out the old ones, but remember that we are bringing in brand new Boeing 737 MAX. We are still a member of the Boeing family; we may have to phase out any aging Boeing aircraft in our fleet,” Air Peace and Boeing have not yet announced a timeline for the delivery of the ten MAX on order, but the airline is keen to start receiving new aircraft. Currently, 20 planes from its fleet are in maintenance overseas. Onyema confirmed that travel restrictions and local lockdowns mean work on the aircraft has been delayed and is taking longer than planned. Expansion plans However, once the work is completed, the airline will be looking to replace the older aircraft and look forward to recovery. Currently, the airline is working to a schedule that would see all aircraft fully-checked and serviced and back in the air by July. The new Embraer and Boeing aircraft will be used to facilitate the airline’s growing network of both domestic and long-haul routes. Air Peace has a strong network both domestically and across much of western Africa. Now, it is looking to expand from its Lagos hub to connect to Europe and potentially North America. The airline showed it was ready to start operating more long-haul, international routes during the pandemic when it operated repatriation flights to several destinations, including London, Jamacia, and China. With the new Boeing 737 MAX on the way and more Embraer aircraft, Air Peace looks set to take its expansion to the next level. https://simpleflying.com/air-peace-boeing-737-max/ Sage-Popovich Inc.to Acquire Togs Aircraft, LLC FAA Part 145 Repair Station Sage-Popovich, Inc. (SPI) has agreed to acquire Togs Aircraft, LLC (TOGS), an FAA Part 145 Repair Station. TOGS has been in business for more than 20 years and has maintained a wide array of both fixed-wing and rotary aircraft since its inception. TOGS’s capabilities range from light to heavy turboprops, helicopters, corporate jets and regional airline equipment. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2021. Nick Popovich, chairman of SPI, discussed his 35-year history with Blake Groat, president of TOGS. “I met Blake when repossessing aircraft from a charter operator in Michigan,” Popovich said. “The aircraft and records were so well maintained that I approached, and retained, Blake to become the director of maintenance for an aviation group in Illinois that I was managing as a consultant. When my contract there ended, Blake left and created TOGS. Since then, TOGS has been our maintenance repair and overhaul provider of choice.” According to Popovich, “The professionalism and level of service Blake provides has always been outstanding.” Throughout the years, SPI has continued to utilize TOGS for pre-purchase inspections, maintenance of corporate aircraft and helicopters, and repossession support for clients worldwide. According to Groat, “We are enthusiastic in becoming part of the SPI family, and look forward to continuing to build upon this great relationship.” SPI is eager to add FAA Repair Station capabilities to its family of companies, which for 42 years have offered aviation expertise globally. With this acquisition, SPI further expands its capabilities to provide: Pre-Purchase Inspections Scheduled and Unscheduled Maintenance AOG & Mobile Services Aircraft Importing & Exporting Logbook Reviews https://www.aviationpros.com/aircraft/maintenance-providers/press-release/21215376/sage-popovich-inc-sagepopovich-incto-acquire-togs-aircraft-llc-faa-part-145-repair-station Triumph Expands Boeing GSE Support Triumph Group announced that its Triumph Systems & Support business in Wellington, Kansas was awarded a contract with Boeing to maintain ground support equipment (GSE) for the KC-46 program. The work will be performed at Boeing's repair facility in Wichita, Kansas. Under the contract, Triumph will provide services for critical ground support equipment used for aircraft maintenance and operations through October 2023. "Since 2004, our San Antonio team has serviced all Boeing GSE at the Port San Antonio location contributing to the teams that keep the commercial and military aircraft service ready," said Jim Berberet, President of Triumph Product Support. "We are pleased to expand our offering to support the KC-46 program to help keep the tanker mission ready. I'm confident our Wellington, Kansas based team will continue the tradition of providing exceptional ground support performance." https://www.aviationpros.com/gse/press-release/21215317/triumph-group-inc-triumph-expands-boeing-gse-support Is this the right time to establish an airline? When everybody takes a step back, it does provide an opportunity to take a step forward. As the recovery approaches the horizon, is this the right time to establish a new startup airline and use the opportunity to make strides in the industry, which has been notorious for being very unfriendly to newcomers? After all, the conditions look very right: there are an abundance of crews, aircraft, slots – and when the supply outstrips demand, the price goes down. Perhaps more than ever, more than one condition is right to begin one’s journey in the aviation industry. If prior to the current pandemic passenger demand was through the roof, a clear shortage of aircraft and personnel to operate the aircraft, including the lack of slots, held back any potential new entrants. Nevertheless, challenges remain. Despite the fact that the industry is seemingly about to turn a corner, getting the timing right could be essential. New hope While 2020 could be summed up as hibernation, 2021 began with a lot of hope that with the vaccination effort on the way, travel could begin its slow climb back up. In the United States, several airline executives indicated a lot of positive signs that travelers were very keen to hop onto an aircraft. In terms of bookings, Delta Air Lines was “getting really close to 2019 numbers,” the chief executive officer of the carrier, Ed Bastian stated during J.P. Morgan Industrials Conference on March 15, 2021. American Airlines CEO Doug Parker, who spoke at the same conference, noted that the “last three weeks have been the best since the beginning of the pandemic.” According to him, the feeling was that this was the “beginning of a very large uptick,” as there was a huge pent-up demand for domestic travel. Chief executives at JetBlue (JBLU) and United Airlines, who also presented during the Industrials Conference, were more than hopeful that recovery was imminent. UAL’s CEO Scott Kirby expects to stop burning cash by late-March. “We know that we can't yet put COVID in the rearview mirror, and there's still a lot of hard work to first return to actual profitability, then return to 2019 margins,” Kirby said. Globally, the story is a very similar one. Scheduled capacity is set to be 12% lower by the end of Q2 2021 when compared to the same period in 2019, according to data by OAG. The number is clearly overstepping the disastrous quarter in 2020 when border closures across the globe largely grounded the aviation industry. While it still remains unclear how much of that capacity will actually result in yields, it feels like positivity is in the air. However, the growth of capacity is unequal throughout different regions. “Much of the North American growth is based around the distribution of the vaccines, increased usage [of vaccines] and a real pent-up demand for people who want to travel domestically,” commented the chief analyst at OAG, John Grant, in a webinar on March 18, 2021. Yet, for example, in the United Kingdom, despite a high percentage of the population vaccinated, “we see no growth in demand whatsoever. Primarily, because the UK source markets are way behind and this is going to be a big issue as we move throughout the summer.” It is not going to be capacity or demand, it is going to be at what rate other countries have taken the vaccine.” Staying on their feet Despite all the doom and gloom, airline liquidations were few and far apart. At first glance, opportunities might be limited due to that fact, as once travel is green-lit to go, those that are still standing will be racing to capture as much revenue as is possible. At the same time, with a full recovery still a few years away, the industry is holding a time-ticking debt bomb. While Chapter 11 or similar bankruptcy protections were not uncommon, as a fair share of airlines chose to go to court to protect their assets and operations against creditors, few chose to end their business. High-profile cases included International Airlines Group (IAG) (IAG)’s LEVEL Europe, NokScoot, a joint-venture between Thailand-based Nok Air and the low-cost subsidiary of Singapore Airlines Scoot, and a former Lufthansa (LHAB) (LHA) subsidiary German Airways (previously known as Luftfahrgesellschaft Walter (LGW)). Perhaps various governments across the world understood the scale of destruction that the pandemic has caused to the travel industry. While not to an equal amount, lawmakers provided support to carriers in various forms, including government-backed loans. On one hand, it helped airlines to weather the storm that was 2020 and ensured their survival, on the other – it blew up a balloon of debt. Already in May 2020, shortly after the pandemic had halted international travel, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) warned that by year-end, airline debt could increase as much as $120 billion compared to the start of 2020. In August 2020, the association indicated that airlines raised as much as $204 billion of new debt. Furthermore, as carriers’ credit ratings were downgraded, “airlines will exit the worst of the crisis not only with higher levels of debt but also with a higher cost of debt,” stated IATA. Starting with a “blank sheet” and little-to-no debt can certainly be an advantage going forward. Not only new airlines will have no debt repayments breathing down their necks, but seemingly the public is very keen to invest in airlines. For example, Sun Country Airlines issued its shares in an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on March 17, 2021, selling just over 9 million shares at $24 apiece. The market responded very positively to the newcomer, as the share price jumped as high as $38.36, not falling below the $34.40 mark since its retail investors were able to trade the airline’s shares. Another US-based low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines has also indicated its plans to test the waters by attempting its own IPO, that is yet to hit the market. On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, investors were equally interested in new projects. A new startup airline, based in Norway under the name of Flyr, has a market valuation of $89.5 million (NOK769 million). When it first entered the Euronext Growth Oslo stock exchange, it sought to raise as much as $69.8 million (NOK600 million). There are a plethora of other startup airlines across the continent, from EGO Airways that aim to conquer the domestic Italian market to Heston Airlines, a Lithuanian Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance (ACMI) operator. Plenty of options Since many airlines have reduced the scale of their operations, there are plenty of aircraft and flight crews available in the market. Due to the simple relationship between supply and demand, as fewer airlines want aircraft, the lower their price is. After all, lessors still have financial commitments to their assets. While aircraft that had no debt attached to them were released back into the market – yet nobody was willing to take some of them. As a result, second-hand aircraft prices plummeted. According to Ascend by Cirium data, commercial aviation started out 2020 with 25,450 in-service aircraft. A year later, the number dropped by 5,500, with a predicted surplus of 6,000 aircraft at the beginning of 2022. $16 million – that was the estimated price of one 10-year-old Airbus A320 aircraft, as of December 2020, according to Ishka data. The aircraft lost around $5 million of its value. Meanwhile, a single 10-year-old Boeing 737-800 NextGeneration (NG), the direct competitor to the A320, saw its value drop from around $24 million to around $18 million. Meanwhile, operation leases for 10-year-old A320s and 737-800s dropped to around $150,000 and around $160,000, respectively. Still, establishing an airline during a period of uncertainty comes with uncertainty. While there are many factors in favor of doing so, especially cheap aircraft and the ability to start afresh without debts, the timing still could be off. The industry is no less complex to operate in than it was before – perhaps contrary, the crisis has only made it more difficult for a new airline to put down the roots in. Still, perhaps more than ever, the circumstances are favorable to establish a new carrier. After all, this would not be the first crisis that a new entrant would use to gain a lot of ground and sow the seeds for the future. https://www.aerotime.aero/27506-establishing-airline-covid19 Robinson Helicopter Hits Milestone, Sees Daylight Torrance, California-based Robinson Helicopter started off 2021 with the delivery of its 13,000th rotorcraft in company history. But as it came amid the ongoing distractions caused by the Covid pandemic, the manufacturer didn’t even notice the milestone until weeks later. According to company president Kurt Robinson, that tally includes more than 1,000 of the airframer’s turbine-powered flagship R66s, nearly 5,000 of its two-seater R22s, and more than 7,000 of its four-place R44s, the latter two piston-engined. “Certainly the total number is impressive and more importantly, you have an obligation of duty that we want to be here and keep those operating,” he told AIN. “We still have aircraft flying that were produced in the ’80s, '90s, and 2000s, so it's something that we are proud of and we just keep working to keep upgrading the fleet and keep everyone moving along.” That obligation was sorely tested last year during the height of the Covid pandemic when California faced a lockdown to curb the spread of the disease. “We looked pretty good until about January, then all of a sudden we had people getting affected,” said Robinson. “L.A. County imposed that shutdown and we had to send everybody home literally for nine weeks because everybody was dealing with Covid.” The company spent days trying to determine if it was considered an essential service or not, and once it was decided that it was, the airframer began bringing back key workers. “At first we just had the minimum stuff, the repair station, but then as we went on it became better defined that yes we are an essential service, so we could, following all the protocols, bring people back, but we did it very slowly,” Robinson noted. “It took a lot of effort from a lot of people here, but we were really able to maintain service, particularly if someone is sending you [a component], being able to have the right people work on it, we were able to do that.” The company put up plastic barriers, established socially-distanced work areas, painted the now-ubiquitous footprints on the floor in high traffic areas, and instituted a mask mandate. Temperature checks were instituted at the beginning of each shift with a scanner mounted near the time clock. “The tricky part was if they came in here [infected] to figure it out and get them out of here so they wouldn’t infect anyone else,” Robinson stated. “We created little pods of workers so that at least we had it isolated down to two or three people that were really kind of in contact with each other.” With such protocols in place, the company began recalling its workers at approximately 25 per week, with its full staff of approximately 900 back in place by late in the third quarter of 2020. “The tougher things are not the production,” Robinson explained. “It’s when [workers] go on breaks. We had to really separate them so they couldn’t eat together and you have to keep reminding people 'look, Covid doesn’t take a break during lunchtime.'" The staff was encouraged to take breaks outside and find alternate places to eat, either in their cars or at their desks. “You do what you’ve got to do to get through the crisis,” noted Robinson. With all of the chaos and disruptions caused by the pandemic, the company braced itself for a decline in production. “It was down, but it surprised us because it wasn’t really down that much," explained Robinson, adding it delivered 177 helicopters in 2020, just 19 less than it did a year earlier. That number included 18 R22s, 105 R44s, and 54 R66s. “The interesting thing with the R66 is that’s exactly the same number we did in 2019, so we didn’t really miss a beat on the R66,” Robinson said. Likewise, in the spirit of moving forward, the company continued with its projects under development. At Heli-Expo last January—one of the last aviation trade shows to take place before the pandemic became entrenched in the U.S.—Robinson unveiled a new impact-resistant polycarbonate windscreen, for which it subsequently received certification. Yet due to those clear plastic barriers that have appeared everywhere from personal protection equipment face masks to supermarket checkout lines, the company that manufactured the new windshield could not source the needed plastic. “The demand for plastic went nuts in the summer and the fall,” said Robinson “We got pushed off for several months, and so we had to go back to some of our customers and say 'we’re going to have to use the standard acrylic windshield, we just can’t get the polycarbonate that we need.'” Those shipments have since resumed. Another previously announced improvement that received approval in the third quarter was the cockpit video camera installation. In addition to providing a keepsake of their flight for passengers, the position of the camera (which can be turned on or off at the discretion of the passengers or crew) allows for a panoramic view outside as well as the inside of the helicopter, enabling mechanics to better analyze any glitches or when and why a warning light illuminated. “We actually already have caught some things in flight test here that pilot or the mechanic did, so we’re seeing it's an excellent training tool,” he said, adding that he has been pleasantly surprised at the high demand it has received so far. The system is now standard on all R66s ordered after this year’s pricing went into effect in January, and is available as an option on the R22 and R44. On the R44, the OEM recently received approval for the installation of the TrueBlue Power TB17 lithium-ion battery, which is 45 percent lighter than the standard lead-acid or nickel-cadmium options at the same power. “It saves 13 and a half pounds, so for a 44, that’s huge,” noted Robinson. “It’s nice with the avionics and stuff that people are putting in the aircraft.” Also newly-authorized on the R44 are heated front leather seats that are available as an option. The R44 and the R66 received new paint schemes starting this year. NEW TECHNOLOGY FOR PISTONS Perhaps the biggest change to the company’s piston-powered rotorcraft over the past year is the inclusion of an engine monitoring unit (EMU), a project that has been in the works for the past seven years. “We’ve always had it on the R66, but with the 44 and the 22, we had to switch over all the instruments, the steam gauges, so that they could provide digital information,” Robinson explained, adding that while those aircraft may look the same as older vintage models, they are now fundamentally quite different. “It’s one thing to say 'wouldn’t it be great to have it,' but then when you look at it, you realize all your instruments and everything has to be changed.” The new system monitors the engine speed, rotor speed, oil temperature, cylinder head temperature, manifold pressure, and outside air temperature among other parameters, and records all that data. “If the mechanic is doing a [check] on the aircraft, he can see if there was an exceedance and even more importantly, now he can see the extent of it,” said Robinson. “He knows not only that there was an overspeed, he can see how bad it was. So, I think it’s going to help long term on the maintenance.” While all of those improvements have a cost, the company is cognizant of its audience. “We understand that [with] our market, if I raise the price, there are certain people who can’t afford it. So, we’ve always been very good at trying to add new items and make the aircraft more reliable, but at the end of the day, to try and reduce cost, so that’s one of the mantras that we follow pretty specifically here.” For 2021, Robinson is optimistic at the end of the first quarter. “At this point this year, we have more orders for new aircraft than we did at this point last year,” he said, adding that he believes the company’s deliveries for the year will exceed 2020’s and even 2019’s totals, barring any unforeseen factors such as a massive resurgence of Covid. “What we’re seeing is around the world the helicopter industry seems to be rebounding quite nicely. We’re not seeing it in just one area, we’re seeing it all over the world.” https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/general-aviation/2021-03-22/robinson-helicopter-hits-milestone-sees-daylight NTSB to consider stricter regulatory requirements for some revenue passenger-carrying general aviation operations The National Transportation Safety Board announced its intent to hold a public board meeting March 23, 2021, 9:30 a.m. Eastern time, to consider a draft report on recommendations for the implementation of stricter regulatory requirements for some types of revenue passenger-carrying general aviation operations. The NTSB has a long history of concerns about the safety of various revenue passenger-carrying operations, including sightseeing flights conducted in hot air balloons, helicopters, and other aircraft and parachute jump flights. These operations are not subject to the same maintenance, airworthiness, and operational requirements as other commercial flight operations. The five-member board will consider the need for broader oversight and additional safety requirements for certain types of revenue passenger-carrying general aviation operations. In keeping with established federal and local social distancing guidelines to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, while also ensuring the NTSB’s compliance with the Government in the Sunshine Act, the board meeting for this event will be webcast to the public, with the board members and investigative staff meeting virtually. There will be no physical gathering to facilitate the board meeting. WHO: NTSB investigative staff and board members. WHAT: A webcast of a virtual board meeting. WHEN: Tuesday, March 23, 2021, 9:30 a.m. Eastern time. HOW: The board meeting will be webcast only, there will not be a public gathering of NTSB investigative staff or board members. A link to the webcast will be available shortly before the start of the meeting at http://ntsb.windrosemedia.com/. https://verticalmag.com/press-releases/ntsb-to-consider-stricter-regulatory-requirements-for-some-revenue-passenger-carrying-general-aviation-operations/ FlightSafety Adds First 8X Sim for North America FlightSafety International has received FAA certification for its second level-D simulator for the Dassault Falcon 8X, which has been installed at the company’s Teterboro, New Jersey learning center. That’s according to a tweet from the company late last week, which added that training on the simulator will begin later this month. The simulator also is FlightSafety’s first 8X simulator in North America. Its only other for the large-cabin trijet is at Paris LeBourget, where it offers Falcon 8X EASy III EASA- and FAA-approved pilot courses, as well as 8X LiveLearning EASA recurrent pilot training. Other 8X pilot courses provided at LeBourget are FalconEye HUD, EASy III Category II, Data Link CPDLC, 7X EASy II to 8X EASy differences, and Falcon 8X EFVS Initial (FalconEye EVS operations down to 100 feet). FlightSafety also offers Falcon 8X maintenance training at its LeBourget and Dallas/Fort Worth centers. Dassault delivered the first Falcon 8X in October 2016, following type certification from EASA and the FAA in June that year. More than 70 of the type are currently in service. https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2021-03-22/flightsafety-adds-first-8x-sim-north-america Flight training company to triple size of its fleet of aircrafts FORT MYERS — Paragon Flight Training recently signed a 10-year contract with the Lee County Port Authority, a move that will triple its aircraft fleet operations at Page Field. The contact will also enable Paragon Flight Training to expand its training and aviation technology services, according to a statement. On the equipment, the flight academy intends to grow its fleet from 15 aircraft to 45 to 55 within five years. It also plans to purchase and renovate a 14,000-square-foot hangar that will be used as a maintenance hub for the growing fleet, the release adds. The facility will bring education, employment and economic development opportunities to Southwest Florida, say Paragon officials. “This expansion positions us to keep up with increased industry demand, giving students the world-class training they need to do the job better than anyone else,” Paragon Flight Training CEO Chris Schoensee says in the statement. “Our state-of-the-art facility has always been top-notch, and now, we’re breaking down walls — both literally and metaphorically — make way for the future of aviation.” Based at Page Field in Fort Myers, Paragon Flight offers pilot training and education to people from around the world who want to fly for recreation or as a profession, including commercial, military and government pilots. https://www.businessobserverfl.com/article/flight-training-company-to-triple-size-of-its-fleet-of-aircrafts Private plane sales are taking off as pandemic clamps down on travel industry Many regular air travellers are likely still cringing at the thought of cramming into cramped cabins with dozens or hundreds of unvaccinated strangers, but a lucky few have found a simple way around the problem: get a private jet. Last year, as the world’s economies gyrated unpredictably, the market for private business aircraft made a smooth three-point landing. The positive effect of the pandemic was most keenly felt in the resale market. Although sales and leases of preowned jets came to a virtual halt in March 2020, the second half of the year was extraordinarily active for brokers. “July, which is usually one of the slowest months of the year for pre-owned aircraft, was actually a banner month,” said Paul Cardarelli, vice-president of sales at Jetnet LLC, a business aviation market intelligence firm. “And by the fourth quarter, there was tremendous activity.” Worldwide sales and leases of preowned business jets were up 5.2 per cent in 2020 from 2019, representing a year-over-year increase of 136 planes, according to Jetnet’s data. The strong sales pace has been a tonic for the private-jet resale market, which has struggled since the 2008 recession. As of the end of February, preowned for-sale inventory stood at 7.51 per cent of the world’s total in-service fleet — the lowest figure in at least a decade. Even so, Cardarelli said, resale prices held steady. “Aircraft values were already down in 2020, and the pandemic only put further pressure down,” he said. “It was a good time to be a buyer of aircraft.” The increase in sales did not extend to the market for brand new private jets. That’s partly because companies that manufacture this type of aircraft generally build to order, making it impossible for them to meet sudden demand. Deliveries of new private jets were down 20 per cent to 644 in 2020 compared to 2019. Industry watchers say the reason for the increase in resales and leases is no great mystery: businesses and high-net-worth individuals saw, and seized, a way to avoid the dangers and gargantuan inconvenience of commercial air travel during a pandemic. “As airlines have reduced service, people are very much conducting this whole time-cost-benefit analysis,” says Anthony Norejko, chief executive of the Canadian Business Aviation Association. “They’re looking for a commercial alternative, and maybe there isn’t one now. And so they’re left with only a private solution.” Private jet use has lately been pilloried as a planet killer, because of its high ratio of fuel burned to passengers carried. Headlines skewering eco-defending celebrities such as Meghan Markle and Bernie Sanders for taking private flights have become a tabloid staple. But for private-jet owners, the benefits can be irresistible: they don’t have to traipse through airport terminals since, in many cases, it’s possible for them to drive directly to their planes; no advance booking is required; and planes can often be readied on a few hours’ notice. Although owning aircraft can be logistically complex, most private jet users don’t handle the details themselves. Owners can hire management companies to oversee things such as staffing, maintenance and in-flight catering. Plus, in the United States, generous depreciation rules strengthened during the Donald Trump years allow many businesses to write off the entire price of a jet purchase in the first year. Let’s not forget the star factor either: private-jet owners fly in what amounts to a sky limousine, while other travellers schlep their luggage aboard 20-year-old commercial liners with tired upholstery and dubious in-flight entertainment options. The current top of Montreal-based Bombardier Inc.’s private-jet range, the Global 7500, has a top speed just shy of the speed of sound. It seats 19 people, has high-speed internet access and can make intercontinental trips. The cabin seats are plush and they recline all the way back. Private-jet buyers also benefit from technological advances in aviation sooner than airline passengers. It may not be long before some jet owners are routinely breaking the sound barrier. Aerion Corp., a U.S.-based manufacturer, is in the process of developing a business jet called the AS2, which the company said will travel at a top speed of Mach 1.4, or about 1,000 miles per hour. All this speed, luxury and convenience does not come cheap. Bombardier’s Global 7500 retails in the US$75-million range. A smaller, mid-sized jet with less travel range might go for US$10-US$25 million. Light jets, which only carry a few passengers and lack the capacity to travel long distances, sell for closer to US$4-US$6 million. Those figures don’t include the cost of necessities such as fuel, maintenance and flight crew salaries. Keep in mind, too, that new private jet owners should not expect to recoup much of their investment upon resale. “Before the recession, if you bought a new business jet from the factory, you could expect, in three to five years, that it would be off somewhere around 25 per cent,” Jetnet’s Cardarelli said. “Now it’s more like 40 to 50 per cent.” Indeed, the resale market is where the bargains are, and the people who service that market say the latter half of 2020 brought an unusually high number of first-time buyers to the table. “The term we use is, ‘concept buyer,’” said Stan Kuliavas, vice-president of sales and business development at Levaero Aviation, a Thunder Bay, Ont.–based aircraft brokerage. “A concept buyer is a person who has not previously owned an aircraft. During COVID, we have introduced more than a handful of concept buyers into aircraft ownership.” Chad Anderson, president of Jetcraft Corp., a brokerage based in the United Kingdom, has noticed a similar trend. “Ultra-high-net-worth buyers have absolutely led the way, and there are a lot of first-time buyers entering the market — double what we used to see,” he said. Even buyers who can’t afford an entire aircraft have been exploring their options over the past few months, since chartering and leasing are possible, as is fractional ownership. For $578,125, Calgary-based AirSprint Private Aviation will sell a customer 1/32 (equivalent to 25 annual flight hours) of an Embraer Legacy 450, an eight-passenger plane with enough range to fly almost anywhere on the continent. On top of the purchase price, there’s an annual overhead fee of $123,544 and an additional charge of $4,191 for each hour spent on the plane. James Elian, Airsprint’s chief executive, said the company’s roster of owners increased by 25 per cent in 2020 from 2019. “The people who have joined us, it’s largely the case that it has been for personal use,” he said. “There is a new market that has been created.” But as vaccines work their way into society’s bloodstream and commercial air travel begins to become feasible again, the industry will be watching to see whether interest in private-jet travel begins to wane. Maybe corporations and wealthy travellers will once again become conscious of their carbon footprints and retreat to the comparatively socialist environs of the business-class cabin. But Anthony Norejko, chief executive of the Canadian Business Aviation Association, doesn’t think so. “We believe this will sustain itself,” he said. “If you own the asset, of if you’re chartering the asset, you have some freedom and flexibility to go about your day.” https://financialpost.com/personal-finance/high-net-worth/private-plane-sales-are-taking-off-as-pandemic-clamps-down-on-travel-industry TSA Testing PrimeFlight Aviation Services PrimeFlightUV Solutions at DCA Airport Houston, Texas, March 19, 2021 – PrimeFlight Aviation Services is leveraging UV-C technology with its line of patent-pending surface disinfection designs tailored to the aviation industry. UV-C lamps have been shown to be effective against microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, and pathogens, and are trusted in medical and water treatment facilities. PrimeFlight has tailored the concept to the unique needs of the aviation industry with PrimeFlightUV. “With more than 5,000 employees serving airport and airline customers across the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico, and the impact of the COVID pandemic on our business and that of our airline customers, we have a deep understanding of the concern over controlling any spread of pathogens,” PrimeFlight EVP Ed Zwirn explained. “We saw the need to increase confidence in commercial travel through a focus on disinfection thereby helping the industry to rebound as quickly and as safely as possible. While there are no known applications that are 100% effective, we feel strongly that our PrimeFlightUV solutions can assist our industry in keeping employees, airline customers, and passengers safe as air travel begins to return to pre-COVID levels.” PrimeFlight’s line of UV-C disinfection solutions can be used to protect essential workers and passengers by disinfecting baggage, aircraft cabins, wheelchairs, luggage carts, galley carts, security bins, and more. Manufactured through ProFlo Industries, a PrimeFlight company, there are several PrimeFlightUV solutions currently being field tested. The company’s portable wheelchair disinfection unit is currently in use at several airports across the U.S., while the TSA is currently testing PrimeFlight’s security bin disinfection units at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). Additional prototypes are in development for aircraft cabin, galley cart, baggage, cargo and equipment disinfection. More information on PrimeFlightUV can be found at primeflight.com/primeflightuv. https://www.aviationpros.com/gse/catering-cleaning-equipment/press-release/21215292/primeflight-aviation-services-tsa-testing-primeflight-aviation-services-primeflightuv-solutions-at-dca-airport SpaceX, NASA Sign Agreement to Avoid Space Collisions SpaceX is one of several companies that want to launch megaconstallations of communication satellites into Earth orbit, and that has NASA and other space agencies a little spooked. With that many new objects up there, the chances of a collision skyrocket. SpaceX now has more than 1,000 Starlink nodes around Earth, and NASA has announced an agreement that will ensure those satellites (and future ones) don’t get in the way of any of its missions. The accord, which has just been released by NASA (PDF), is what’s known as a “nonreimbursable agreement.” That means no money changes hands, but both parties are getting something they want. The document explains that SpaceX is in a unique position right now, and that gives NASA authority under the Space Act to negotiate an agreement that ensures it can fulfill its mission. SpaceX is the largest satellite operator in the world, and its access to cheap Falcon 9 launches essentially guarantees its network will grow quicker than the ones planned by Amazon and others. In addition, all of its satellites are maneuverable. So, SpaceX will commit to reorienting its constellation to avoid any possible “conjunctions” with NASA assets. It will also tell NASA about upcoming “cut-outs” when Starlink satellites are unable to maneuver to avoid a collision. This is mostly the time between the deployment of satellites and when they reach their assigned orbit. SpaceX will also make some changes to its launches to ensure Starlink satellites never get too close to the International Space Station. On the other side, NASA says it will provide detailed data about where all its spacecraft will be, allowing SpaceX to steer clear. It will also contribute expertise to making Starlink satellites less reflective, something that has irked astronomers and astrophotographers ever since SpaceX started launching the constellation. Although, SpaceX is expected to share data with NASA on the effectiveness of its ongoing satellite dimming work. This is more than a theoretical risk — in 2019, the ESA called for more stringent rules about how megaconstallations share the skies after it had to redirect its Aeolus satellite to avoid colliding with a Starlink node. There was no effective way to tell SpaceX what was happening, and the danger will only become more serious as the industry scales up to thousands of satellites. https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/321037-nasa-and-spacex-sign-agreement-to-avoid-space-collisions Curt Lewis