PROP APPROVAL
Hartzell Propeller has received European approval for its three-bladed ASC-II propeller, making it the first US propeller manufacturer to receive an EASA type certificate. The new certification applies to all Hartzell J3F Compact Series three-bladed propellers.
BOTSWANA TRAINER
Botswanan operator Sefofane Air Charters has openend a flight training school in Maun to feed the country's burgeoning charter market and reduce Sefofane's dependency on expatriate pilots. Sefofane chief executive Neil Lumsden, says the school plans to train 20 pilots a year. Initially, the fleet will consist of a Cessna 172 light single retrofitted with the Thielert Aircraft Engines Centurion 1.7 diesel fuelled engine. A Centurion 4.0-powered 206 will be added to the fleet by the end of the year.
GOGGLES VALIDATED
Eurocopter has clinched European, US and Canadian approval for its night vision goggle-equipped EC145 twin-engine helicopter. Eurocopter says it is the "first original equipment manufacturer to offer this capability to civil operators which will benefit from increased mission capabilities and safety during night operations".
SOCATA STRATEGY
EADS Socata has delivered the 400th TBM-series single-engine turboprops and is forecasting deliveries of 50 of its latest model - the TBM 850 - this year and 60 in 2008. "The 2009 picture is less clear, but we see strong interest," says the Tarbes, south-west France-based airframer.
BUSINESS AS USUAL
Columbia Aircraft, manufacturer of the 350 and 400 high-performance piston singles, has restored its production level to three new aircraft a week and has reinstated most of the 180 workers who were laid off in late March following a setback caused by a six-month certification delay on the Garmin G1000 instrument panel installation and a freak hailstorm that damaged more than 60 aircraft.
Source: Flight International
