At the end of last month, Cessna announced the launch of a new light business jet— the Citation M2—intended to “fill the gap” between its Citation Mustang and its Citation CJ family. The Citation M2 features Garmin G3000 avionics, engines similar to those found in the Citation CJ series and a new cabin design. The aircraft has an aluminium airframe with ...

On 26 September, the day after completion of its contractual delivery, Boeing delivered its first 787 Dreamliner today to the launch customer for the type, the Japanese airline ANA. The delivery ceremony took place adjacent to the factory where the aeroplane was assembled. In front of thousands of onlookers, more than 500 Boeing employees representing the 787 programme walked alongside ...

ZuluLog.com, which describes itself as “a leading provider of Web-based aviation record keeping services and software”, announced last month that it had released a new Android application for pilots. While the ZuluLog Android app is designed to work with customer accounts at ZuluLog.com, it can be used as a standalone pilot logbook. Users can enter, edit and view flights from anywhere, ...

The Canterbury earthquakes have had an unexpected upside for Palmerston North, with the establishment of a satellite training facility for a group of its international students at the Massey University campus. Airways had only just secured a multi-year contract to train Saudi Arabian air traffic controllers when the September 4 2010 earthquake struck the Canterbury region. The Saudi students remained ...

Engineers at the Swinburne University of Technology in Victoria, Australia, have developed an inspection system based on artificial intelligence (AI) to detect and characterise internal flaws in composite materials in aircraft. According to Swinburne University, the technology it has developed has the potential to increase aeronautical safety and speed up component safety checks. Today, increasing numbers of aircraft are being designed to ...

Flightcell International has announced the launch of what it describes as “the world’s most compact satellite voice, tracking and data system.” Flightcell’s DZM3 is the latest addition to the company’s well-established range of satellite and cellular communications products. The new Flightcell DZM3 offers an all-in one, panel mounted satellite phone and tracking system, which the company’s CEO, John Wyllie, describes as ...

At the end of March, the RNZAF’s Central Flying School at RNZAF Base Ohakea announced that after a comprehensive evaluation of aircraft tracking solutions, it had chosen TracPlus Global as its tracking service provider. The RNZAF has fitted its fleet of CT4 Airtrainers with TracPlus tracking units, which allow the aircraft to be tracked and monitored in real time using the ...

On the 20th of April, Air New Zealand launched a specialist Aviation Institute, which will provide a comprehensive range of training covering most airline industry roles within a single organisation. The event was attended by the Minister of Transport, the Hon Steven Joyce. Air New Zealand’s training organisation has a 70-year track record as a specialist post-employment aviation training provider, with ...

The Northland Emergency Services Trust (NEST) announced recently that it would be buying a third helicopter to supplement its Northland operations. The additional helicopter—another Sikorsky S-76—will alleviate some of the increasing pressure placed on emergency services and organisations like NEST caused by the steady population growth in Northland during recent years. Since the service was established in 1988, NEST’s helicopters have ...

Boeing and Air New Zealand welcomed Air New Zealand’s 777-300ER (extended range) at a late December ceremony at Paine Field in Everett, Washington. Air New Zealand ordered the first of five 777-300ERs in August 2007 to complement the eight Boeing 777-200ERs already in its long-haul fleet. The airline intends to operate the first three 300ERs between Auckland, Los Angeles and ...