Cessna: Skycatcher Surpasses 100 Deliveries

HARTFORD, Conn., Sept. 22, 2011 — Cessna Aircraft Company, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, said today at the AOPA Aviation Summit in Hartford that it has surpassed 100 deliveries of the Model 162 Skycatcher light sport aircraft.

The milestone 100th aircraft was delivered to Sporty’s Pilot Shop this summer and will be given away in Sporty’s annual drawing early next year. Cessna began deliveries of the Skycatcher in December 2009 and has received orders for more than 1,000 of the aircraft.

A new addition to the Skycatcher is the McCauley designed and delivered first production ASTM certified 1L100 fixed-pitch composite propeller. This all-composite two-blade, fixed-pitch propeller was made specifically for the Skycatcher’s Continental Motors O-200D engine. The composite propeller became standard equipment on the Skycatcher beginning with serial number 108, and it will be offered to existing Model 162 owners for retrofit.

“Fitting the Skycatcher with the new composite prop is truly a benefit to the airplane and the pilot,” said Tracy Leopold, Cessna Skycatcher business leader. “The single piece design gives it great strength and is a little over 14 pounds lighter than the aluminum propeller used on the Skycatcher.”

Designed as a low-cost flight trainer, Skycatchers have been delivered to many Cessna Pilot Centers around the U.S. and international deliveries began this year. In March, King Schools released its Flying the Skycatcher DVD training program, the official pilot transition course used in Cessna Pilot Centers worldwide.

 Announced in 2007, the Skycatcher is Cessna’s entry in the popular light sport aircraft category. It features the Garmin G300 avionics suite and a Teledyne Continental O200D engine. The two-seat, single-engine aircraft has a maximum cruise speed of 118 knots with a maximum range at 6,000 feet of 440 nautical miles. Fabrication and assembly is centered at Shenyang Aircraft Corporation in Shenyang, China. Aircraft are shipped to Cessna’s U.S. reassembly site.

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CASSIDIAN ensures flight safety of all German Forces aircraft

23 September 2011

Modernization program successfully concluded
Latest-technology transponder STR 2000 fulfills new requirements of air traffic control authorities
Cassidian, the defence and security division of EADS, has successfully concluded the modernization of the identification equipment of all German Forces' aircraft. With the final deliveries in a multi-year modernization program, Cassidian has handed over the last tranche of its STR 2000 transponders to the German Procurement Authority BWB. In total, more than 650 transponders were delivered since 2002. The new equipment ensures the safe operation of aircraft in civilian airspace according to new requirements of the European air traffic control authority EuroControl.

Transponders are a crucial element to ensure flight safety. As part of air traffic control, interrogators on the ground emit signals to request flight data from individual aircraft, e.g. on their origin, course or speed. These requests are then automatically answered by transponders located on board the approaching aircraft, so that the position of each individual aircraft can always be reliably tracked.

Military aircraft also respond to these non-military requests. In the so-called Identification-Friend-or-Foe (IFF) process, they even transmit additional data in an encrypted mode, allowing all aircraft to be unmistakably identified, e.g. during military operations. Thereby, inadvertent friendly attacks can be prevented. For this reason, military aircraft require transponders with both civil and military functions.
Cassidian has wide experience in the field of military and civil air traffic control and identification. The company has supplied numerous military identification systems for air, naval and ground vehicles to a number of armed forces, e.g. in Germany, France, Finland and Australia. For civil air traffic control, Cassidian’s identification systems are used in countries such as Austria and the Philippines.

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Egyptian Air Force becomes new Airbus Military C295 operator

The Egyptian Air Force (EAF) today has taken delivery of its first Airbus Military C295. The aircraft in military transport configuration, was delivered ahead of contract schedule. This aircraft is part of a three aircraft order placed by the EAF in October 2010. The other two aircraft are to be delivered during the last quarter of 2011. The C295 was selected for its versatility and adaptability, especially in desert areas, its ease of maintenance and low life cycle cost, as well as its operational capabilities. “This milestone represents the birth of a strong Programme between Airbus Military and the Egyptian Air Force”, said General Yousry Abd El Hamid, Chief of Armament Department of the Egyptian Ministry of Defence.

Airbus Military Head Programmes Light & Medium & Derivatives Rafael Tentor, said: “We are very proud to welcome the Egyptian Air Force to the Airbus Military community of operators and we look forward to support the entry into service of the C295. We are confident that the aircraft will have a long future with the Egyptian Air Force, operating efficiently in the challenging missions required from it”. The C295 is configured with standard equipment as well as the Cargo Handling and, Aerial Delivery system (CHADS). It can also be equipped for paratrooping and medical evacuation, and humanitarian relief missions. It can carry payloads of up to 9 tonnes, in standard cargo pallets, or 71 soldiers in transport missions, or be equipped with 50 paratroopers.

To date, Airbus Military has sold 83 C295 aircraft to 12 different operators.

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