According to Air Safety Week (paid subscription required), the FAA has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to amend interior standards for private airplanes.

The new standards would apply to large business jets, but not commercial transports operated by air carriers, and include changes on flammability, interior handholds, signage, and fire prevention equipment.

Since large business jets have highly customized interiors, certification costs can be quite extensive.

The article states:

“…the FAA has tentatively determined that a small reduction in risk is acceptable for the private-use airplanes because of their limited passenger capacities, the minimal flight hours, and the passengers’ familiarity with the airplane.’”

AskMen.com features an article by Thomas Bay extolling the virtues of Boeing’s 747-8 VIP, calling it the “ultimate embodiment of each owner’s personal taste and needs.”

The article goes on to list the things you didn’t know about the 747-8 VIP…

1) It has all the comforts of home:

In fact, you can design the 4,700-plus square feet of interior space to look like your home, or go in a completely different direction.

“‘…the VIP can be outfitted to exceed the luxury of many fine homes with amenities that include spiral staircases, vaulted ceilings, wall-mounted video displays, and wood flooring. In the words of Steven Hill, president of Boeing Business Jets, it ‘epitomizes incomparable luxury and operational flexibility.’”

2) It enters the world “green”:

When an assembled 747-8 rolls off the line, the exterior has not been painted and the interior is bare.

3) It has a max speed of mach 0.86:

…and a range extending up to 9,260 nautical miles.

The ability to land at a wide variety of airports and compatibility with most common ground support equipment further enhances the usefulness of the 747-8.”

4) Ownership equals anonymity:

“You would have better luck trying to get the late Colonel Sanders to give up his secret recipe of 11 herbs and spices…”

5) Prices start at $270 million:

The price does not include exterior paint, interior appointments, pilots, crew members, aircraft management and maintenance…all of which can push the price over $300 million.

The article concludes:

“The $300-million indulgence could otherwise be spent on the purchase of many countries, but a country is hardly mobile, now is it?”

In a move that may have implications for private jet owners, Boeing is planning to take a Virgin Atlantic 747-400 out of service to fill one of its tanks with biofuel and perform a series of test flights, according to the Seattle P-I’s James Wallace.

Wallace’s article states that within 5 - 10 years, Boeing and Airbus planes could be flying with a fuel blend based on plants rather than petroleum.

Plant-based jet fuel would essentially be carbon neutral, burning cleaner and not adding any net greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.

However, there are still hurdles to overcome. For example, biofuel tends to freeze at a higher temperature so the chemistry must be changed to bring the freeze point down.

According to the article:

“‘People have come together and created some road maps for handling these various issues,’ [Billy Glover, managing director of environmental strategy for Boeing Commercial Airplanes,] said. ‘We saw an opportunity to accelerate things.’ One was the timing of a demonstration flight. It was initially thought such flight could not take place for about five years. Instead, it will happen in 2008, using a Virgin Atlantic 747-400 that has been taken out of service for heavy maintenance.”

The biofuel used will likely be a blend with a more conventional fuel:

“‘It’s the key to why we are so enamored with this (biofuel),’ Glover said. ‘It can be used on all planes that are in service today. It does not require modified engines, or new airplane designs. As soon as the fuel is available and commercialized, the uptick can be right away…What we are aiming for is a fuel blend that will be so close to a conventional fuel that to the operator (of the airplane), it will make no difference,’ Glover said.”

Two Silicon Valley entrepreneurs are using their Gulfstream GV business jets for an unusual purpose early on Sept. 1. The two jets will give scientists a chance to study an extremely rare Aurigid meteor shower, according to AVweb.

“A brief shower of tens of meteors will radiate from the constellation of Auriga, many as bright as the brighter stars in the sky, according to NASA. The shower will be visible from the western U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Astronomers believe the whole event will last no longer than one-and-a-half hours and will not be seen again in our lifetimes.”

The jets will takeoff from an airfield in California, and will have scientists on board from NASA, the SETI Institute, and Utah State University.

The scientists will count the meteors visible from the airplanes, and measure the exact duration and peak time of the shower. They also plan to record how the meteors break up, and examine their colors.

The jets will provide a total of 21 windows to view from 45,000 feet an from up to .

The fractional jet ownership industry is finally seeing business improve, says an article in the Wichita Eagle. For example, NetJets revenue has increased 596% since 1998, although profits have often been up and down - NetJets made about $10 million in 2004, lost $80 million in 2005, and pulled in pre-tax earnings of $143 million in 2006. In addition, European demand is surging:

“After gaining only 80 customers during its first five years of operation in Europe, NetJets added 589 new customers in 2005 and 2006.”

In addition, Flight Options, a division of Raytheon Company, has seen its jet card business grow 250% this year (compared to the same time last year).

The industry has been hurt by “deadhead” or “empty leg” flights (flights without passengers), and surging demand (when companies doesn’t have enough planes, they must turn to expensive charter operations).

Triangle Business Journal is reporting that NetJets is once again exploring options to expand into China. Former president and CEO Albert Pod (chief executive since 2000) will be leading the effort. Benjamin J. Murray has replaced Pod as president and CEO of Executive Jet Management (part of the NetJets family of operating companies).

According to an article (subscription required) in the Wall Street Journal by Christopher Conkey, the effort by commercial airlines to impose fees on corporate jets is running into problems in Congress. The article speculates that problems with air travel (canceled flights, lengthy delays, heightened security concerns, etc.) are making it difficult for commercial airlines, who genernally have the backing of the white House and the FAA.

The FAA has commented in Capitol Hill hearings that commercial airlines pay $3,600 in fees and taxes for a flights from New York to Los Angeles, but a corporate jet pays only $300.

The article goes on to say:

“The leading Senate bill to fund a new air-traffic-control system would narrow the funding gap, an approach supported by airlines. But the House Transportation and Infrastrucutre Committee’s bill so far offers little change in funding formulas, except for a slight increase in general aviation-fuel taxes.”

The article also offers a bit of irony:

“Rep. James Oberstar (D., Minn.), the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure panel, says he is happy for private planes to ‘pay a little bit more’, but adds that ‘I do not think that airlines should pay less.’ Mr. Oberstar recently had a flight from Duluth to Minneapolis canceled because of mechanical problems.”

Royal Jet, an international luxury flight service, has become the largest BBJ operator in the world, according to UAE Interact. With financial partnership from First Gulf Bank, Royal Jet added a fifth BBJ to their fleet of 12 fixed wind aircrafts and 1 VIP helicopter. At the contract signing ceremony Royal Jet’s President, Shane O’Hare, stated the purchase was a result of a massive demand for Royal Jet’s fleet:

“Each of our BBJs is typically flying around 1,300 hours each year. They are based all over the world, not limiting themselves purely to local markets. They can be found in Africa, China, India, North America and Europe and are a highly popular and cost effective choice for businesses not wishing to be tied down by restricted flight times offered by commercial airline companies.”

Worldwide Aeros Corp is planning an official announcement of a new airship project at the NBAA Convention in Atlanta, September 25 - 27, 2007. The Aeroscraft ML866 will have a 5,000 square foot interior cabin, and can be equipped with computers, videoconferencing, a communications package, and personal state rooms. Another option is a conference room that can accommodate up to a hundred people (while on the ground). A key feature is the airship’s ability to operate in any open space (independent of large or medium airports), although speed may be an issue (top speed is 120 knots).

From the press release:

“The versatility of the Aeroscraft allows it to be transformed from elegant to a workhorse or anywhere in between. It can be utilized as a private air yacht, corporate air vehicle or commercial commuter, providing its passengers with far more space than any existing business jet…Additionally, the helicopter like vertical takeoff and landing capability and ability to operate from unprepared fields enhances usefulness of the Aeroscraft by providing the access to remote areas anywhere in the world.”

Aviation International News has published their annual survey of customers regarding aircraft OEM performance. Details are here.

Gulfstream took first place again, with Boeing coming in second. BBJ owners gave top marks to Boeing for cost of parts, technical manuals and overall reliability.

Embraer rose from eighth to seventh place, overtaking Bombardier:

Operators rated authorized service centers, parts availability and warranty fulfillment much higher than last year. They also saw a drastic improvement with Embraer’s AOG response.

Who came in last? Bombardier took last place in the “newer business jets” category, but did see improvement in the areas of technical manuals and overall aircraft reliability for their Challenger line.