In the flightglobal article Capacity shortage could cramp VIP widebody style, the increasing number of Boeing 747-8s and 787s, Airbus A330s, A340s, even an A380 being sold to the VIP market may tax the capacity of current completions centres.

Boeing Business Jet president Steve Hill says that steep growth in the number of people with very high levels of personal wealth is driving up demand for VIP aircraft. “At the moment there is enough completions capacity, but I worry about 2010 and beyond.

Our sponsor, Greenpoint Technologies has just issued a press release announcing an impending BBJ completion for an undisclosed client:

IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GREENPOINT TECHNOLOGIES SIGNS LOI FOR A BBJ COMPLETION
May 21, 2007 Kirkland, WA
Greenpoint Technologies, Inc. (GTI) signs a Letter of Intent for a BBJ aircraft completion
for multi-mission use. The aircraft is scheduled to re-deliver in late 2008 for an
undisclosed customer.

GTI is an experienced Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) Completion Center which provides
VIP aircraft interiors for Boeing airplanes. GTI incorporates in-house capabilities of
interior design, engineering, program management, and certification for aircraft interior
installations and modifications. Established in 1988, GTI has a history of VIP
completions for multiple heads-of-state, leading corporations, and private individuals.
Driven by its nimble customer-focused culture, GTI’s strategic goals incorporate quality,
commitment, and craftsmanship into every completion.

Contact: Christine Hadley
Tel: (425) 828-2777 ext. 7154
Fax: (425) 827-6105
Email: chadley@greenpnt.com
Greenpoint Technologies, Inc.
4600 Carillon Point
Kirkland, WA 98033
Tel.: (425) 828-2777
Fax: (425) 828-6105
www.greenpnt.com

According to a press release issued today by Boeing, the salient facts are:

• Seven jets ordered so far this year, six are 737’s one is a 787.
• This new order is valued at $478.5 million (at list prices.)
• Total program sales is now 135 jets.
• Customers are not named.

Private individuals comprise the majority of the Boeing Business Jets customer base at 44 percent, followed closely by government heads of state at 36 percent. The remaining customer segments are divided evenly between corporate and charter operators.

The 10th annual Boeing Business Jets Owners and Operators Conference drew more than 250 participants, exceeding past attendance levels. Conference attendees included Boeing Business Jets and widebody VIP jet owners and operators, as well as suppliers. The 3 day conference includes information on in-service activities, training, technical issues and new product offerings, such as the 787 and 747-8 VIP jets.

Add seven more notches to Boeing Business Jets’ belt for the year - seven winning bids worth $478.5 million were announced at the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition 2007 (EBACE) this past Monday as reported by The Aero-News Network.

The May 2007 issue of Boeing Frontiers Magazine features an article detailing how the Seattle-based Derivative Airplane Programs (DAP) division, along with Greenpoint Technologies converted an off-the-shelf 737 Boeing Business Jet into a military aircraft destined for the U.S. Air Force 932nd and 375th Airlift Wing.

The C-40C is an aircraft with unique requirements. This specific model has carried U.S. government dignitaries such as the First Lady, the Secretary of State and the Speaker of the House. Some of the modifications required were:

• Extend the BBJ’s range to more than 4,400 nautical miles (5,100 statute miles.)
• Revamp the cargo bay where suitcases would normally go to house racks of sophisticated satellite communications equipment and other hardware.
• Integrate military avionics into the flight deck and add informal meeting areas, crew seating and an office support station.

Some innovate approaches were required, and they resulted in subsequent efficiencies:

One example: the C-40C’s custom galleys, or kitchen units, which wouldn’t fit through the cabin doors. The team figured out a way to cut them in two and then reassemble them inside. On the second airplane, however, they went one better and performed all the prep work in advance, adding custom brackets and modifying floor panels before taking the two halves on board. This shaved hours off installation time.

The requirements were challenging for all three parties involved: DAP engineering, subcontractor Greenpoint Technologies Inc. (which did the interior layout)and the mod crew…In working on the second C-40C, the team again applied lessons learned. On this process, they saved a fourth of the hours expended on the first aircraft. In fact, as this article goes to press, the crew is nine days ahead of schedule on modification of the second aircraft.

For the wiring, they developed a failsafe process for tracking those sections that had (and hadn’t) been tested for electrical continuity, and another for red-lining the schematics in areas that required deviation from the original wiring plan. They also figured out a system for assuring operator signoff on sections that had been completed. All told, these critical quality-assurance procedures took three weeks on the first airplane—but a mere five days on the second.

The bottom line, a sucessful project and a happy customer:
…the DAP team sensed they’d gotten the customer-focus thing right. “You are an outstanding group of people … who understands what the customer needs,” said Col. Maryanne Miller, wing commander of the 932nd. “You have given us everything we asked for.”

Those of you with large business jets may run into issues finding (and retaining) pilots for your jets. A recent article in the Seattle P-I by James Wallace talks about an effort by Alteon (Boeing’s commercial jetliner training arm) to provide a solution to the problem.

According to the article, commercial jetliner pilots in Africa, the Philippines, China, India, and the Middle East are increasingly in demand, and subject to “poaching”.

Alteon is testing a program that can cut training time in half (which for large jets, is difficult, expensive and time-consuming) by increasing the use of simulators and decreasing actual flight time. Using traditional methods, it can take 3 years to train someone who has never flown any kind of plane, and in the U.S., for example, the FAA requires 250 flight hours.

Some details on Alteon’s program:

“About a month ago, six cadets from China started training that will land them in the right seat of a commercial jetliner in about half the time it takes today to be trained as a first officer.”

“Alteon’s cadets will spend at least 83 hours in a single-engine Diamond 40 plane. They will also spend 117 hours in simulators, first in a Diamond 40 simulator and then in the Boeing 737-800 simulator.”

“The Alteon cadets each will be required to complete 33 missions in the Boeing simulator as captain, 33 missions as first officer and 33 missions as the observer. Each training mission will last about two hours.”

Before they can receive their certificates, the cadets will still need to make a dozen takeoffs and landings in the same type of jetliner they’ll be flying.

The program has been embraced by a number of airlines and regulatory bodies, but not by the FAA.

You’ve purchased a sparkling new business jet, but you have an old one lying around gathering dust. What do you do with it? Here’s a humorous idea from a guy in Colorado Springs:

…Use it remodel your house…

Carol McGraw wrote about Rick Broome’s creative remodeling techniques in an recent issue of the Chicago Tribune.

Rick added the front section of a Boeing 727 to his house, and then built a sunroom around it, yet you can’t see the addition when standing outside:

“But open a door on the north side of the house, and you suddenly find yourself walking down the plane’s aisle, enveloped in a cocoon of the original decor: gray rug on the walls; a pink, orange and blue mural; more gray industrial rug on the floor. You can also board the plane via a catwalk from the kitchen, or from gleaming rollaway air stairs near [Rick’s wife] Billie’s Early American couch in the sunroom.”

The 15,800-pound, 50-foot-long, 12.5-foot-wide, 27.5-foot-tall plane section presented some challenges during the remodeling process:

“When the 727 arrived by truck at the Broomes’ home in 2005, a massive crane had to lift the fuselage 100 feet in the air and set it down on three specially made girders behind the house. In 14 months, the house grew from 4,000 square feet to 6,500 square feet with the addition of the sunroom built around the plane.”

Rick’s wife, Billie, also faced a challenge:

“…trying to decorate a room around it. When she was hunting for a rug for the new sunroom, she had a hard time getting the color just right. “No one knew what ‘United Airlines Blue’ was,” she says. She had to lug dozens of samples home until she found the right one — that nondescript airline grayish blue.”

The article also contained tips for handling a plane at home:

“Rick Broome hooked up the plane’s first-class lavatory. He also:

* Brought in heat and air conditioning from the home furnace. (When he turns it on, it gives off that familiar whooshing sound you hear on a plane.)

* Put in a couple of comfy old chairs where the seats used to be.

* Used one of the 16-foot wing tips with a flashing red light as a chandelier in the sunroom.

* Plans to install a roll-down screen in front of the cockpit windows and fancy equipment to simulate flying.

* Will paint the floor beneath the plane so that at night, when he sits in the cockpit and looks down, it will look like a lighted city from 30,000 feet in the air. There will be stars painted on the ceiling.”

This from World Aircraft Sales Magazine (May 2007, Page 50:)

Conklin & de Decker has announced its fifth Annual Commercial Operators & Management (COM) Tax Seminar will be held in Durham, North Carolina on June 7-8, 2007 at the Marriott at Research Triangle Park.

Charter operators have to contend with a convoluted maze of Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs), as well as federal, state and local tax issues. Adding to the confusion is the additional tax complexity of Part 135 charter flying versus Part 91 owner flying. Who needs to pay tax on what charges and to who are the taxes owed? How often are they paid? And who collects? These are all questions for which simple answers are hard to find, so Conklin & de Decker has put together this two-day informative seminar that covers the latest charter and management tax issues.

In addition to the previously mentioned tax concerns, the release of amended OpSpec A008 has created a myriad of issues not only for certificate holders but also for owners, as a result the COM seminar addresses this operational control regulation.

“The Commercial Operators & Management Tax seminar covers the entire range of today’s tax and regulatory issues confronting business aircraft management companies and charter operators,” commented Nel Sanders-Stubbs, vice president/owner, Conklin & de Decker Associates. “We provide answers to complex questions regarding Federal Excise Taxes (FET), state taxes, international fees, worker’s compensation and independent contractors as well as FAR and IRS regulations so attendees walk away with real clarity on these issues! In addition, we address the ever challenging FAA, IRS & DOT’s positions on charter brokers.”

The gang at Greenpoint Technologies would like to chat with other bloggers who are attending EBACE 2007. Mike Weisner, who blogs for bigbusinessjet.com will be at their booth (Stand #100.) Greenpoint will have their fancy-schmancy Cafe Acorto machine set up and will be distributing free lattes to all bloggers who drop by. Please comment here if you plan to attend the show, and they’ll make sure the beans are ground.