Eclipse Aviation’s very light jet beat the current NAA speed record by 20 percent while burning 25 percent less fuel.
ALBUQUERQUE, NM . — Eclipse Aviation, manufacturer of the world’s first very light jet (VLJ), today announced that it has set a National Aeronautic Association (NAA) performance record that distinguishes the Eclipse 500 as the industry’s fastest jet aircraft weighing 10,000 pounds or less. This milestone was achieved in early October when the Eclipse 500 set a new U.S. national speed record in the NAA record category of Class C, Aeroplanes, Very Light Jets.
The Eclipse 500 beat the existing NAA record on October 7, 2007 on a flight from New York (Westchester) to Atlanta (Peachtree-Dekalb), with a new record time of one hour, 55 minutes, and eight seconds (1:55:08), averaging 393.32 miles per hour (341.79 knots). The previous record holder, a Cessna Citation Mustang set the record on September 22, 2007, flying the same route in two hours, 23 minutes, and 44 seconds (2:23:44), averaging 318.87 miles per hour (277.09 knots). The NAA requires the record to be broken by at least one percent to qualify. The Eclipse 500, flown by Don Taylor, Senior Fellow at Eclipse Aviation, exceeded the previous record time by 20 percent, while using approximately 25 percent less fuel. Using actual aircraft data as well as data obtained from the Citation Mustang’s flight planning guide, the Mustang used 1,330 lb (198.5 gal) cruising at FL400 while the Eclipse 500 used 987 lb (147 gal) cruising at FL320.
"Upon reviewing the previous record, I was extremely confident that the Eclipse 500 could defeat the speed, but more importantly, we could use significantly less fuel while going faster. So two weeks later we flew the same route with the Eclipse 500 using at least 50 gallons less fuel than the Mustang and beating the time by about 27 minutes" said Vern Raburn, president and CEO of Eclipse Aviation. "With oil prices climbing, we are proud to offer the Eclipse 500 as the most efficient VLJ to move travelers from Point A to Point B on a quick, affordable and convenient basis"
The NAA announced a new record class exclusively for VLJs in the summer of 2007. A VLJ is defined as a jet-powered airplane with a maximum gross takeoff weight of 10,000 pounds or less, holding a standard airworthiness certificate, and capable of carrying four or more passengers. Each year NAA tracks dozens of new world and national aviation record attempts from numerous companies, certifying new records as the official record keeper for United States aviation and ratifying them with the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI), the world air sports federation.
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Friday, October 26, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Eclipse Lays Off Workers
The 100 to 150 employees recently laid off by Eclipse, almost all serving in positions necessary to begin production, were mostly temporary employees and only a handful of "direct" employees were affected, according to Eclipse spokesman Andrew Broom. The staff reduction amounts to roughly 10 percent of Eclipse's near-1,500 person workforce that is currently churning out about one aircraft each day, a local NBC affiliate reported.
Speaking for Albuquerque, which offered Eclipse incentives to set up shop and bring jobs to the area and holds Eclipse as an example of the city's high-tech industry, Mayor Martin Chavez told NBC, "They are contractors and it's what they do for a living." He added, "The job base in Albuquerque is really rich right now, so they'll be fine." Eclipse had initially hoped to have production levels up to two jets per day by now. Certain developmental and certification issues have caused delays.
Speaking for Albuquerque, which offered Eclipse incentives to set up shop and bring jobs to the area and holds Eclipse as an example of the city's high-tech industry, Mayor Martin Chavez told NBC, "They are contractors and it's what they do for a living." He added, "The job base in Albuquerque is really rich right now, so they'll be fine." Eclipse had initially hoped to have production levels up to two jets per day by now. Certain developmental and certification issues have caused delays.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Very light jets' set to tranform industry
By JIM THARPE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 10/05/07
They're sleek. They're fast. They're relatively inexpensive. And they're about to change the face of general aviation — for better or worse, depending on who's talking.
VLJs — the aviation world's term for "very light jets" — will soon be debuting at small airports across Georgia and the rest of the nation. That's a vision that brings smiles to the faces of private pilots, but makes commercial aviation officials and some safety experts grimace.
"Every time I think about these, I visualize the old Jetsons cartoon with George Jetson in his glass-walled house with all of these little things zipping around," said David Castelveter, a spokesman for the Air Transport Association. "It certainly causes concern."
Castelveter's organization, which represents the commercial airlines, testified before the U.S. Senate that if swarms of the small jets take to the skies it could create even more delays for the airline passengers and jeopardize safety.
Baloney, say proponents of the small jets. They argue the personal jets, which have a range of about 1,300 miles, will generally fly below the air space used by passenger jets. And insurance restrictions, they contend, will force private pilots to undergo intensive training before zooming around the increasingly crowded skies.
The small aircraft — they generally have two to six seats and weigh less than 10,000 pounds — offer the performance of high-end business jets at a fraction of the cost. About 20 VLJ models are now in various stages of design, certification and production. Most will cost between $1 million to $3 million and big companies like Honda and Cessna have gotten in the race to mass produce the pint-sized jets.
Experts estimate there could be 4,000 to 10,000 of the new personal jets in service within a decade or so.
Jonathan Sweatman, an Atlanta-based sales manager for a company that markets the Diamond D-Jet, said the airlines are howling because they fear the VLJs are going to skim off their highest-paying passengers.
DayJet, an air taxi service using Eclipse 500, a VLJ already on the market, recently began operations in Florida and plans to soon expand into Georgia. The company's pitch: Avoid the crowds and delays at hubs like Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and fly hassle-free aboard your own jet into smaller airports.
"The threat to the airlines has got nothing to do with safety," Sweatman said. "It has everything to do with the fact that the people who used to sit in their first-class seats are now going to pay to sit in their own jet aircraft because they are sick and tired of the appalling service the airlines are now offering."
But some experts worry a lot about the millionaire-next-door running out to buy the latest aviation toy. Many of the new jets fly at twice the speed of piston-powered aircraft and many private pilots simply don't have the skills to control them, some experts contend.
"It's the speed. It's all about the speed," said Brian Alexander, a pilot and aviation lawyer with the Manhattan firm of Kreindler & Kreindler. "It's going from a Model T to a Porsche."
One VLJ now under development, the ATG Javelin, is a two-seater that looks like a fighter jet and will be marketed to private pilots as well as the military as a trainer. ATG sales representatives say it will let well-heeled businessmen fly the airborne equivalent of a Lamborghini on once-boring business trips. It can travel at more than 500 mph.
The company's Web site boasts: "Designed to turn heads. Built to perform."
That sort of promotion worries Alexander.
"They're unfortunately going to become lawn darts," Alexander said. "They have to raise the bar for training for people who want to fly these faster aircraft."
David Basha, a Gainesville car dealer and pilot who has ordered a VLJ from Diamond, said those worries are misplaced.
"I don't think the insurance industry will allow pilots to fly planes beyond their capability," said Bahsa, who hopes to take possession of his single-engine D-Jet late next year. "There will be a lot of pre-conditions."
Basha currently flies a high-performance, twin-engine Cessna Conquest 1, which has a maximum speed of about 300 mph. His D-Jet will top out at about 350 mph, he said.
He pays about $35,000 a year for insurance and figures that will go up for his jet.
"It will be a high-risk policy," he said. "You'll have very few companies that want to be in that business."
Basha said he will use his jet to visit his North Carolina beach property, to visit friends in Florida and for business. He figures his $1.3 million jet will cost about half as much to fly as his current plane.
"It's an eight-hour drive to North Carolina and an hour-and-10-minute flight," he said.
WSB Radio talk show host Neal Boortz, a pilot for 25 years, has also lined up to buy a D-Jet. Boortz said his insurance company probably will require 50 to 60 hours of training with a mentor pilot in the cockpit of his new plane. And that's just for starters. Another 50 hours of solo flight will be probably be required before he can carry passengers.
"The insurance company will kick my butt," Boortz said.
Boortz currently flies a piston-driven Mooney, which has a top speed of about 220 mph. He will pick up 130 mph or so with his new jet.
"To pilots, speed is everything, and you get the speed advantage with a jet," Boortz said.
Bob Everson, the Federal Aviation Administration's director of tactical operations for the Midwest, said he thinks most of the new jets will fly at 20,000 feet or so, far below the level of most commercial jets.
Everson said he does not anticipate any major air-traffic problems with the jets in the next few years.
"We're going to ensure safety first," Everson said. "We're never going to degrade safety."
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 10/05/07
They're sleek. They're fast. They're relatively inexpensive. And they're about to change the face of general aviation — for better or worse, depending on who's talking.
VLJs — the aviation world's term for "very light jets" — will soon be debuting at small airports across Georgia and the rest of the nation. That's a vision that brings smiles to the faces of private pilots, but makes commercial aviation officials and some safety experts grimace.
"Every time I think about these, I visualize the old Jetsons cartoon with George Jetson in his glass-walled house with all of these little things zipping around," said David Castelveter, a spokesman for the Air Transport Association. "It certainly causes concern."
Castelveter's organization, which represents the commercial airlines, testified before the U.S. Senate that if swarms of the small jets take to the skies it could create even more delays for the airline passengers and jeopardize safety.
Baloney, say proponents of the small jets. They argue the personal jets, which have a range of about 1,300 miles, will generally fly below the air space used by passenger jets. And insurance restrictions, they contend, will force private pilots to undergo intensive training before zooming around the increasingly crowded skies.
The small aircraft — they generally have two to six seats and weigh less than 10,000 pounds — offer the performance of high-end business jets at a fraction of the cost. About 20 VLJ models are now in various stages of design, certification and production. Most will cost between $1 million to $3 million and big companies like Honda and Cessna have gotten in the race to mass produce the pint-sized jets.
Experts estimate there could be 4,000 to 10,000 of the new personal jets in service within a decade or so.
Jonathan Sweatman, an Atlanta-based sales manager for a company that markets the Diamond D-Jet, said the airlines are howling because they fear the VLJs are going to skim off their highest-paying passengers.
DayJet, an air taxi service using Eclipse 500, a VLJ already on the market, recently began operations in Florida and plans to soon expand into Georgia. The company's pitch: Avoid the crowds and delays at hubs like Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and fly hassle-free aboard your own jet into smaller airports.
"The threat to the airlines has got nothing to do with safety," Sweatman said. "It has everything to do with the fact that the people who used to sit in their first-class seats are now going to pay to sit in their own jet aircraft because they are sick and tired of the appalling service the airlines are now offering."
But some experts worry a lot about the millionaire-next-door running out to buy the latest aviation toy. Many of the new jets fly at twice the speed of piston-powered aircraft and many private pilots simply don't have the skills to control them, some experts contend.
"It's the speed. It's all about the speed," said Brian Alexander, a pilot and aviation lawyer with the Manhattan firm of Kreindler & Kreindler. "It's going from a Model T to a Porsche."
One VLJ now under development, the ATG Javelin, is a two-seater that looks like a fighter jet and will be marketed to private pilots as well as the military as a trainer. ATG sales representatives say it will let well-heeled businessmen fly the airborne equivalent of a Lamborghini on once-boring business trips. It can travel at more than 500 mph.
The company's Web site boasts: "Designed to turn heads. Built to perform."
That sort of promotion worries Alexander.
"They're unfortunately going to become lawn darts," Alexander said. "They have to raise the bar for training for people who want to fly these faster aircraft."
David Basha, a Gainesville car dealer and pilot who has ordered a VLJ from Diamond, said those worries are misplaced.
"I don't think the insurance industry will allow pilots to fly planes beyond their capability," said Bahsa, who hopes to take possession of his single-engine D-Jet late next year. "There will be a lot of pre-conditions."
Basha currently flies a high-performance, twin-engine Cessna Conquest 1, which has a maximum speed of about 300 mph. His D-Jet will top out at about 350 mph, he said.
He pays about $35,000 a year for insurance and figures that will go up for his jet.
"It will be a high-risk policy," he said. "You'll have very few companies that want to be in that business."
Basha said he will use his jet to visit his North Carolina beach property, to visit friends in Florida and for business. He figures his $1.3 million jet will cost about half as much to fly as his current plane.
"It's an eight-hour drive to North Carolina and an hour-and-10-minute flight," he said.
WSB Radio talk show host Neal Boortz, a pilot for 25 years, has also lined up to buy a D-Jet. Boortz said his insurance company probably will require 50 to 60 hours of training with a mentor pilot in the cockpit of his new plane. And that's just for starters. Another 50 hours of solo flight will be probably be required before he can carry passengers.
"The insurance company will kick my butt," Boortz said.
Boortz currently flies a piston-driven Mooney, which has a top speed of about 220 mph. He will pick up 130 mph or so with his new jet.
"To pilots, speed is everything, and you get the speed advantage with a jet," Boortz said.
Bob Everson, the Federal Aviation Administration's director of tactical operations for the Midwest, said he thinks most of the new jets will fly at 20,000 feet or so, far below the level of most commercial jets.
Everson said he does not anticipate any major air-traffic problems with the jets in the next few years.
"We're going to ensure safety first," Everson said. "We're never going to degrade safety."
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
U.S. Airline Delays Worsen in August -
By DAN CATERINICCHIA,AP
Posted: 2007-10-03 13:00:43
WASHINGTON (AP) - The airline industry's dismal on-time performance in 2007 continued in August with nearly 30 percent of flights delayed.
The most recent government data, which also showed a surge in fliers' complaints, was released less than a week after President Bush promised to help fix the problem.
Forcing carriers to shrink their flight schedules or to pay more to fly during peak travel periods are some of the steps the government is considering.
The nation's 20 largest carriers reported an on-time arrival rate of 71.7 percent in August, down from 75.8 percent a year ago, the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics said Wednesday. The on-time rate was 69.8 percent in July and 68.1 percent in June.
Through August, more than 25 percent of flights have arrived late - the industry's worst on-time performance since comparable data began being collected in 1995.
The airline industry and the Federal Aviation Administration blame the delays on outdated air traffic control technology, bad weather and increasing passenger traffic. Analysts say commercial airlines' use of smaller planes is partly to blame for increased congestion in the skies and on runways, as is an increase in general aviation aircraft used by corporate travelers.
Whatever the cause of the worsening delays, travelers have noticed.
Customer complaints nearly doubled to 1,634 in August compared with 864 in the same month last year. Poor weather conditions were blamed for more than 38 percent of delays in August, a slight increase from a year ago.
"Endless hours sitting in an airplane on a runway with no communication between a pilot and the airport is just not right," Bush said last week after meeting with Transportation Secretary Mary Peters and the acting head of the FAA, Bobby Sturgell.
Peters asked airlines to form a plan to improve scheduling at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, one of the nation's busiest. Without an industry solution, the department is prepared to issue a scheduling reduction order, she said.
The government also could force a so-called congestion pricing model upon the industry, Peters said, but airline executives last week told Congress that raising flying costs during peak periods would simply result in higher fares.
The airlines and the FAA are pressing for a new, satellite-based air traffic control system that will cost about $15 billion and take nearly 20 years to complete. Airline traffic is projected to double by 2025.
The FAA in late August awarded ITT Corp . a contract worth up to $1.8 billion to build the first portion the system, known as NextGen. The agency on Tuesday said it wants all planes to be equipped to use the new navigation technology by 2020.
"NextGen is pie in the sky. What about Now-Gen?" Patrick Forrey, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, quipped Tuesday in a conference call with reporters.
The union says delays will worsen unless the government hires more members and pays them better. The FAA and the union have been locked in a contract dispute since the agency declared an impasse last year.
Bush on Saturday signed a stopgap spending bill to keep Cabinet departments running at current levels through mid-November. Congress has until then to reauthorize the FAA and possibly raise taxes and fees to pay for upgrades to the air traffic control system and other programs. Commercial airlines are battling corporate jets and small plane operators over what share of the cost they each should shoulder.
The commercial airline industry and the White House say a House-passed FAA funding bill does not fairly link fees to system use.
August's on-time performance was the second worst on record for that month, topped only by a 70 percent arrival rate in 2000. But not all airline performance was poor.
Aloha Airlines had the highest on-time arrival rate at 97 percent, followed by Hawaiian Holdings Inc .'s Hawaiian Airlines at 93.7 percent and Southwest Airlines at 77.7 percent, according to government data.
But almost half of Atlantic Southeast Airlines were delayed, and two of its flights arrived late every time they took off. The Delta Connection carrier, which is owned by SkyWest Inc ., had the lowest on-time arrival rate at 55 percent, followed by United Airlines at 66.2 percent and Alaska Airlines at 67.1 percent.
The rates of mishandled baggage fell to about 7.6 reports per 1,000 passengers from 8.1 reports a year ago, according to government data.
Posted: 2007-10-03 13:00:43
WASHINGTON (AP) - The airline industry's dismal on-time performance in 2007 continued in August with nearly 30 percent of flights delayed.
The most recent government data, which also showed a surge in fliers' complaints, was released less than a week after President Bush promised to help fix the problem.
Forcing carriers to shrink their flight schedules or to pay more to fly during peak travel periods are some of the steps the government is considering.
The nation's 20 largest carriers reported an on-time arrival rate of 71.7 percent in August, down from 75.8 percent a year ago, the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics said Wednesday. The on-time rate was 69.8 percent in July and 68.1 percent in June.
Through August, more than 25 percent of flights have arrived late - the industry's worst on-time performance since comparable data began being collected in 1995.
The airline industry and the Federal Aviation Administration blame the delays on outdated air traffic control technology, bad weather and increasing passenger traffic. Analysts say commercial airlines' use of smaller planes is partly to blame for increased congestion in the skies and on runways, as is an increase in general aviation aircraft used by corporate travelers.
Whatever the cause of the worsening delays, travelers have noticed.
Customer complaints nearly doubled to 1,634 in August compared with 864 in the same month last year. Poor weather conditions were blamed for more than 38 percent of delays in August, a slight increase from a year ago.
"Endless hours sitting in an airplane on a runway with no communication between a pilot and the airport is just not right," Bush said last week after meeting with Transportation Secretary Mary Peters and the acting head of the FAA, Bobby Sturgell.
Peters asked airlines to form a plan to improve scheduling at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, one of the nation's busiest. Without an industry solution, the department is prepared to issue a scheduling reduction order, she said.
The government also could force a so-called congestion pricing model upon the industry, Peters said, but airline executives last week told Congress that raising flying costs during peak periods would simply result in higher fares.
The airlines and the FAA are pressing for a new, satellite-based air traffic control system that will cost about $15 billion and take nearly 20 years to complete. Airline traffic is projected to double by 2025.
The FAA in late August awarded ITT Corp . a contract worth up to $1.8 billion to build the first portion the system, known as NextGen. The agency on Tuesday said it wants all planes to be equipped to use the new navigation technology by 2020.
"NextGen is pie in the sky. What about Now-Gen?" Patrick Forrey, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, quipped Tuesday in a conference call with reporters.
The union says delays will worsen unless the government hires more members and pays them better. The FAA and the union have been locked in a contract dispute since the agency declared an impasse last year.
Bush on Saturday signed a stopgap spending bill to keep Cabinet departments running at current levels through mid-November. Congress has until then to reauthorize the FAA and possibly raise taxes and fees to pay for upgrades to the air traffic control system and other programs. Commercial airlines are battling corporate jets and small plane operators over what share of the cost they each should shoulder.
The commercial airline industry and the White House say a House-passed FAA funding bill does not fairly link fees to system use.
August's on-time performance was the second worst on record for that month, topped only by a 70 percent arrival rate in 2000. But not all airline performance was poor.
Aloha Airlines had the highest on-time arrival rate at 97 percent, followed by Hawaiian Holdings Inc .'s Hawaiian Airlines at 93.7 percent and Southwest Airlines at 77.7 percent, according to government data.
But almost half of Atlantic Southeast Airlines were delayed, and two of its flights arrived late every time they took off. The Delta Connection carrier, which is owned by SkyWest Inc ., had the lowest on-time arrival rate at 55 percent, followed by United Airlines at 66.2 percent and Alaska Airlines at 67.1 percent.
The rates of mishandled baggage fell to about 7.6 reports per 1,000 passengers from 8.1 reports a year ago, according to government data.
Monday, October 1, 2007
VLJs' Impact on ATC Is Uncertain
Aviation Week & Space Technology 09/24/2007, page 63
David Hughes Washington
As deliveries begin, the impact of very light jetson the ATC system is just beginning
With as many as 7,600 very light jets forecast to be flying in U.S. skies by 2025, a key operational question will be whether an air traffic system transitioning to satellite-based navigation will be able to absorb all of them.
The Government Accountability Office recently summarized nine VLJ outlooks, ranging from the Teal Group’s low of 3,000 aircraft by 2016 to Rolls-Royce’s high of 7,600 by 2025. The air taxi business will play a role, alongside owner-flown aircraft, in any additional load on the U.S. air traffic system.
Florida-based DayJet is about to show what it can do with an on-demand air taxi service using the Eclipse 500. The company expects to have 40 Eclipse 500s in service by year-end and 140 by late 2008, according to Bruce J. Holmes, director of air systems research. For 33 years, he worked as a research scientist at NASA Langley Research Center, where he helped to design the NextGen ATC system with the FAA.
Holmes says DayJet will be opening up service primarily to “underutilized” airports, with initial operations using five DayPorts at Boca Raton, Lakeland, Gainesville, Tallahassee and Pensacola, Fla. Flights will operate selling seats “in network” to these airports and “out of network” to other facilities in Florida when a customer charters an entire airplane. DayPort locations will then be added at similar airports in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.
Meanwhile, DayJet is starting operations just at the end of the biggest summer-delay meltdown in the history of U.S. civil aviation. The problems naturally have been at large and congested airports—in the New York metropolitan area, for example. But big airports aren’t where DayJet plans to fly. Holmes says the NextGen ATC plan devised by the Joint Planning and Development Office in Washington will not fix congestion at 14 of the 35 biggest U.S. airports. They will still be in a serious delay crunch when the program is completed, he notes.
Instead, DayJet will operate in a “parallel universe” of underused airspace and airports where air service has been scarce, if available at all. But the company also plans to be an “early adopter” of some of the innovative air traffic techniques that will be possible with the NextGen satellite navigation approach to ATC.
For example, DayJet intends to use Required Navigation Performance (RNP) approaches to fly GPS-guided procedures down to precision minimums (200-ft. decision altitude) as soon as possible. It’s even working with airports and state governments to determine if ADS-B ground-based receivers could be installed earlier than the FAA envisions at some locations. The agency is not targeting Florida to receive ADS-B equipment by 2010, meaning the state may have to wait until the next phase, scheduled for completion in 2013.
Holmes explains that DayJet may base as many as 25 aircraft at some airports, and they will often be arriving at about the same time late in the day. Thus, “ADS-B in” capability for cockpit display of other DayJet traffic would help pilots plan their arrivals efficiently.
The GAO report says the impact of VLJs on FAA costs and Aviation Trust Fund revenues will depend on how many aircraft are delivered, the extent to which they replace existing aircraft, and whether they facilitate a large-scale air taxi industry.
The same factors will influence VLJs’ impact on ATC. Aviation consultant Jack Olcott, former president of the National Business Aviation Assn., says he agrees with the GAO in that the introduction of VLJs will be orderly and the “sky won’t be blackened” by them. He adds that it’s too early to quantify the effect of owner-flown VLJs, a refinement of the entry-level business jet. The industry has 35 years of experience with this type of aircraft, he adds.
“Today’s FAA, training community and insurance industry are prepared to deal with VLJs in the hands of owner pilots, albeit cautiously. Time and accident/incident experience will shape future policy, but I suspect there will be few surprises,” says Olcott.
In a 2005 analysis, Philippe A. Bonnefoy, a graduate student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, states that VLJs might operate much the way light bizjets do now. This means they won’t always take off from an out-of-the-way airport and head for another one in a similar location (AW&ST July 25, 2005, p. 51). For example, they may want to travel to the New York city area; but unlike large bizjets using Teterboro, N.J., airport, VLJs have short-runway capability that might allow them to use small airports such as Princeton, N.J.’s
David Hughes Washington
As deliveries begin, the impact of very light jetson the ATC system is just beginning
With as many as 7,600 very light jets forecast to be flying in U.S. skies by 2025, a key operational question will be whether an air traffic system transitioning to satellite-based navigation will be able to absorb all of them.
The Government Accountability Office recently summarized nine VLJ outlooks, ranging from the Teal Group’s low of 3,000 aircraft by 2016 to Rolls-Royce’s high of 7,600 by 2025. The air taxi business will play a role, alongside owner-flown aircraft, in any additional load on the U.S. air traffic system.
Florida-based DayJet is about to show what it can do with an on-demand air taxi service using the Eclipse 500. The company expects to have 40 Eclipse 500s in service by year-end and 140 by late 2008, according to Bruce J. Holmes, director of air systems research. For 33 years, he worked as a research scientist at NASA Langley Research Center, where he helped to design the NextGen ATC system with the FAA.
Holmes says DayJet will be opening up service primarily to “underutilized” airports, with initial operations using five DayPorts at Boca Raton, Lakeland, Gainesville, Tallahassee and Pensacola, Fla. Flights will operate selling seats “in network” to these airports and “out of network” to other facilities in Florida when a customer charters an entire airplane. DayPort locations will then be added at similar airports in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.
Meanwhile, DayJet is starting operations just at the end of the biggest summer-delay meltdown in the history of U.S. civil aviation. The problems naturally have been at large and congested airports—in the New York metropolitan area, for example. But big airports aren’t where DayJet plans to fly. Holmes says the NextGen ATC plan devised by the Joint Planning and Development Office in Washington will not fix congestion at 14 of the 35 biggest U.S. airports. They will still be in a serious delay crunch when the program is completed, he notes.
Instead, DayJet will operate in a “parallel universe” of underused airspace and airports where air service has been scarce, if available at all. But the company also plans to be an “early adopter” of some of the innovative air traffic techniques that will be possible with the NextGen satellite navigation approach to ATC.
For example, DayJet intends to use Required Navigation Performance (RNP) approaches to fly GPS-guided procedures down to precision minimums (200-ft. decision altitude) as soon as possible. It’s even working with airports and state governments to determine if ADS-B ground-based receivers could be installed earlier than the FAA envisions at some locations. The agency is not targeting Florida to receive ADS-B equipment by 2010, meaning the state may have to wait until the next phase, scheduled for completion in 2013.
Holmes explains that DayJet may base as many as 25 aircraft at some airports, and they will often be arriving at about the same time late in the day. Thus, “ADS-B in” capability for cockpit display of other DayJet traffic would help pilots plan their arrivals efficiently.
The GAO report says the impact of VLJs on FAA costs and Aviation Trust Fund revenues will depend on how many aircraft are delivered, the extent to which they replace existing aircraft, and whether they facilitate a large-scale air taxi industry.
The same factors will influence VLJs’ impact on ATC. Aviation consultant Jack Olcott, former president of the National Business Aviation Assn., says he agrees with the GAO in that the introduction of VLJs will be orderly and the “sky won’t be blackened” by them. He adds that it’s too early to quantify the effect of owner-flown VLJs, a refinement of the entry-level business jet. The industry has 35 years of experience with this type of aircraft, he adds.
“Today’s FAA, training community and insurance industry are prepared to deal with VLJs in the hands of owner pilots, albeit cautiously. Time and accident/incident experience will shape future policy, but I suspect there will be few surprises,” says Olcott.
In a 2005 analysis, Philippe A. Bonnefoy, a graduate student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, states that VLJs might operate much the way light bizjets do now. This means they won’t always take off from an out-of-the-way airport and head for another one in a similar location (AW&ST July 25, 2005, p. 51). For example, they may want to travel to the New York city area; but unlike large bizjets using Teterboro, N.J., airport, VLJs have short-runway capability that might allow them to use small airports such as Princeton, N.J.’s
AVweb's NBAA 2007 Podcast #1: DayJet's Iacobucci — Initial Eclipse Availability Is Promising
Podcast Index | How to Listen | Subscribe Via RSS
Ed Iacobucci, president and CEO of DayJet, told AVweb in this extended podcast that the initial maintenance availability and reliability of the company's first 12 Eclipse 500 twin jets has been better than he expected and that operating economics have thus far panned out to within 5% of expectations as DayJet flies its first revenue passengers. So far, so good — but Iacobucci says DayJet's marriage to Eclipse isn't necessarily monogamous; he's talking to other jet makers, too. Bottom line: It's too soon to tell what the long-term potential of either the VLJ market or the air taxi segment will be.
www.avweb.com/podcast/podcast/196219-1.html?kw=AVwebAudio
Ed Iacobucci, president and CEO of DayJet, told AVweb in this extended podcast that the initial maintenance availability and reliability of the company's first 12 Eclipse 500 twin jets has been better than he expected and that operating economics have thus far panned out to within 5% of expectations as DayJet flies its first revenue passengers. So far, so good — but Iacobucci says DayJet's marriage to Eclipse isn't necessarily monogamous; he's talking to other jet makers, too. Bottom line: It's too soon to tell what the long-term potential of either the VLJ market or the air taxi segment will be.
www.avweb.com/podcast/podcast/196219-1.html?kw=AVwebAudio
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