November 2009

Panasonic Avionics has entered the business aviation sector by offering its new Global Communications Suite (GCS) on over a dozen types of VIP aircraft.

The company is now offering GCS, which provides a combination of in-flight broadband, mobile telephone and live television solutions, on business aircraft. Panasonic vice-president global communication services David Bruner says it has already secured contracts from three business aircraft customers covering 14 VIP aircraft types.
The first installation is planned for next month on a Boeing BBJ with most of the other aircraft 13 types to follow over the next 18-24 months.

All 14 types of business aircraft due to be outfitted with Panasonic GCS are VIP derivatives of commercial aircraft including the Airbus A320, Boeing 747 and Boeing 777. Bruner says business aviation is essentially piggybacking on certification work Panasonic already was planning to pursue for its airline customers. Lufthansa earlier this month was announced as the launch customer for GCS and Bruner says several additional airline customer announcements are planned.

Bruner says Panasonic also plans to eventually offer GCS on purpose-built business jets.
He says Panasonic will have to go down in bandwidth to accommodate smaller aircraft, but "best in class" services can still be provided. Panasonic is now talking to Bombardier, Gulfstream and Dassault Falcon about offering GCS on their higher-end business jets. Bruner says there are no technical challenges as the antennas can be easily modified to fit on large business jets but the manufacturers will need to decide whether to locate the antenna on the fuselage or tail. Bruner expects GCS will be available as a retrofit on some large business jets from next year and eventually the suite will also be offered on new aircraft.

Until now Panasonic has not made any moves into business aviation. Bruner says there is some demand for Panasonic to offer in-flight entertainment to business jet operators but for now there are no such plans.

Serge Dassault Honored with NBAA's Meritorious Service to Aviation Award

(Saint Cloud, France, October 27, 2009) - The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) recently honored Serge Dassault with the prestigious Meritorious Service to Aviation Award. The presentation was made at the 2009 NBAA Convention in Orlando, Florida.

The Award for Meritorious Service to Aviation is NBAA's most distinguished honor, and recognizes extraordinary lifelong professional contributions to aviation. Serge Dassault joins a small group of award recipients that are credited with building business aviation from the ground up.

"Serge Dassault is without question one of the most innovative leaders in business aviation, and NBAA is honored to present him with our Association's highest honor," said Ed Bolen, NBAA President and CEO. "We congratulate and thank Serge for his many years of dedication to business aviation."

Accepting the award on behalf of his father, Olivier Dassault said, "I would like to thank the NBAA Board of Directors for selecting my father to receive this prestigious award. We are deeply honored and would like to share the credit with Charles Edelstenne, John Rosanvallon and all the members of the Dassault Falcon team that work very hard every day to keep the Falcon fleet flying all over the world."

He noted that his father attended his first NBAA convention in 1962 when the Mystère 20, later named the Falcon 20, was still in its infancy. The following year, a full scale mockup of the airplane was exhibited at the convention held in Houston; Texas. Serge Dassault has attended virtually every NBAA convention since.

Serge Dassault, the son of Dassault Aviation founder Marcel Dassault worked his way up through the company and in 1986 became Chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation. Under his leadership numerous successful programs, such as the Falcon 2000, and Rafale took shape confirming Dassault as one of the world leaders in both the civilian and the defense aviation industry.

Dassault Falcon is responsible for selling and supporting Falcon business jets throughout the world. It is part of Dassault Aviation, a leading aerospace company with a presence in over 70 countries across five continents. Dassault Aviation produces the Rafale fighter jet as well as the complete line of Falcon business jets. The company has assembly and production plants in both France and the United States and service facilities on multiple continents. It employs a total workforce of over 12,000. Since the rollout of the first Falcon 20 in 1963, 2000 Falcon jets have been delivered to 67 countries worldwide. The family of Falcon jets currently in production includes the tri-jets - the Falcon 900DX, 900LX, and the 7X - as well as the twin-engine Falcon 2000DX and 2000LX.

FAA Shifts Focus For Next Generation Air Traffic Control To Near-Term Possibilities

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is looking at opportunities to begin phasing in new technology over the next decade that could help relieve the growing congestion in the nation's air transportation system.
The FAA's most recent implementation plan for the Next Generation Air Transportation System, which is supposed to be in place by 2025, focuses on capabilities that can be achieved in the mid-term, from 2012 to 2018, the Government Accountability Office told a House panel Wednesday. That shift is in part a response to industry concerns about the ability of the current system to handle growing volumes of air traffic.

"Today's system is straining to meet current demands," Gerald Dillingham, GAO's director of physical infrastructure issues, said. "To help address current congestion and delays, industry stakeholders have frequently suggested that FAA focus on maximizing what can be done with existing, proven capabilities and existing infrastructure."

The NextGen system would replace the current radar-based air traffic control system in which data, communications and instructions flow to and from a handful of ground control facilities, to a satellite-based system that would allow aircraft to locate each other and communicate with each other and FAA controllers more efficiently. This would allow more efficient use of congested air space and airport facilities.