December rate special $25 for one year (12 issues). Issues contain=20 photographs and charts. Available via subscription only. Enjoy! FLORIDA SKIES, Aviation News for the Florida Aviation Industry November 2002 Volume 7 Number 11 Michael T. Jones, Editor & Publisher, Florida Skies Aviation News (ISSN=20 1523-7508) is published monthly for $28 (one year) for U.S. addresses only=20 (elsewhere, prices on request) by Florida Skies, Inc, P.O. Box 820805, South= =20 Florida, FL 33082-0805; Telephone: (954) 430-0404; Fax: (954) 430-0402; VISA= =20 and MasterCard accepted. E-mail: FloridaSky@aol.com. Copyright @ 2002 Florid= a=20 Skies, Inc. All rights reserved. =20 AIRLINE NEWS & NOTES AIR TRAN AIRWAYS (AirTran Holdings, Inc), Orlando, Fla., reported September=20 2002 traffic results of 381.8 million revenue passenger miles (RPMs), a 60.1= =20 percent increase from September 2001. Available seat miles (ASMs) increased= =20 51.9 percent to 657.8 million. AirTran carried 657,870 passengers, a 50.9=20 percent increase with a load factor of 58.0 percent, up from September 2001=20 at 55.1 percent...AirTran has agreed to lease 23 more Boeing 717 aircraft.=20 The aircraft are 23 of 24 Boeing 717's originally purchased by TWA and=20 disposed of through its buyout by American Airlines. The aircraft, will be=20 reconfigured to AirTran specifications. Some of the aircraft have never flow= n=20 commercial service. AMERICAN AIRLINES begins daily MD80 aircraft service between Miami -=20 Charlotte on December 15.=20 AMERICAN TRANS AIR - ATA has added five new destinations to its flight=20 schedule from St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport (PIE). ATA wil= l=20 offer nonstop service to San Francisco, Los Angeles and Las Vegas, and same=20 plane service to Honolulu and Maui. Service begins on February, 2003, except= =20 for Las Vegas, which starts March 6, 2003. ATA currently offers two daily=20 flights from PIE to both Chicago Midway and Indianapolis. The new service is= =20 estimated to boost PIE passenger traffic by about 275,000 and increase its $= 7=20 million annual revenue by 10 percent. BAHAMASSAIR resumed service on November 1, between Miami and Freeport,=20 Bahamas. Flights are operated with Dash 8 aircraft. CAPE AIR/NANTUCKET AIRLINES (Naples, Fla.) will begin twice daily service=20 between Naples and Fort Lauderdale starting December 16. Cape Air will fly=20 Cessna 402 aircraft on the route. Cape Air also offers service between Naple= s=20 and Key West. Look for Cape Air to code share with Continental Airlines in=20 the near future. FLORIDA COASTAL AIRLINES (Fort Pierce, Fla.) is scheduled to begin service=20 between Fort Lauderdale and Marathon on November 21. It will operate Cessna=20 402 aircraft on the route.=20 GULFSTREAM INT'L AIRLINES (Continental Connection), Dania Beach, Fla.,=20 reported September 2002 traffic results of 5,831 million revenue passenger=20 miles (RPMs). Available seat miles (ASMs) were reported at 11.8 million.=20 Gulfstream carried 35,077 passengers with a load factor of 49.3 percent=20 during September 2002. Gulfstream is seeking D.O.T. approval to terminate=20 service at Melbourne, citing low demand on the flights from Tampa. Service=20 will end February 4, 2003 if approved. JETSGO will begin Saturday only nonstop service between Montreal and Fort=20 Lauderdale on December 21. It will begin Saturday only service between=20 Toronto and Fort Lauderdale on the same date, increasing to 3 flights weekly= =20 on January 30, 2003. Jetsgo is doubling its fleet to six Boeing Super 80=20 aircraft from three by the end of this year. LAN CHILE AIRLINES has opened a new reservation center in Miami offering=20 expanded services for passengers and travel agents. The new center features=20 the latest in computer technology allowing its more than 50 customer service= =20 agents to better serve the average 1,700 calls per day from throughout North= =20 America. NATIONAL AIRLINES filed bankruptcy and ceased flying all operations on=20 November 6. It had operated service between Miami and Las Vegas. It was=20 scheduled to begin service to West Palm Beach on November 21. SKY-BUS is a new London based airline proposing a July 2003 start-up on a=20 route from London (Luton) to Portsmouth (Pease) New Hampshire and to Orlando= .=20 Sky-Bus plans to initially use 2 Boeing 767-300ER aircraft allowing one=20 flight in each direction to be operated simultaneously. For more information= =20 go to www.sky-bus.com SOUTHEAST AIRLINES (Largo, Fla.) will begin five days a week nonstop service= =20 on November 14 between Orlando Sanford and Newburgh's Stewart International=20 Airport, located 55 miles north of New York City. It will use 110-seat DC-9=20 aircraft on the route. Southeast also operates flights from Orlando Sanford=20 to Allentown, Pa., and to Gulfport/Biloxi in Mississippi...Southeast will=20 begin five day a week nonstop service starting December 19 between Lehigh=20 Valley International Airport and Fort Lauderdale. SOUTHWEST AIRLINES will move into a new facility at the Tampa International=20 Airport by 2005. Southwest will move into a new $119.7 million terminal,=20 replacing the Airside C Terminal using at least 10 gates.. The new terminal=20 is being designed primarily for Southwest operations and should allow the=20 airline to easily increase daily flights at Tampa to 80 arrival and 80=20 departures. It currently operates 56 each from Airside A...Effective Decembe= r=20 3, Southwest will increase Baltimore-Fort Lauderdale service from 3 to 4=20 flights a day, Baltimore to Orlando from 5 to 7 daily flights, and Baltimore= =20 to Tampa from 4 to 7 daily flights. Baltimore to Orlando service will=20 increase from 7 to 9 daily flights on January 12, 2003. SPIRIT AIRLINES (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) reported September 2002 traffic=20 results of 295.1 million revenue passenger miles (RPMs), a 6.7 percent=20 increase from September 2001. Available seat miles (ASMs) increased 13.1=20 percent to 474.0 million. Spirit carried 271,125 passengers, a 2.8 percent=20 increase with a load factor of 62.3 percent, an increase from 60.5 percent i= n=20 September last year...Spirit has been denied for a second time its request=20 for federal loan guarantees. It had been seeking a $54 million guarantee on=20= a=20 $60 million loan. Its first request was on August 14 and denied. TANGO (Air Canada) will begin daily nonstop service between Montreal and For= t=20 Lauderdale starting December 14. A second daily flight will be added on=20 December 19. Daily nonstop Montreal - Orlando service will begin on Decembe= r=20 14. Four times a week service between Ottawa and Fort Lauderdale begins on=20 December 15, along with Quebec City - Fort Lauderdale service offered three=20 times weekly. All service is for the winter season. UNITED AIRLINES will replace Boeing 777 aircraft with Boeing 767 on its Miam= i=20 to Buenos Aires route. USA 3000, effective December 12, will begin service between Chicago O'Hare=20 and Fort Myers. INDUSTRY BRIEF AIR ORANGE (Orange County, Fla.) is proposing to combine the county's=20 aviation fleet, both operated by the sheriff and fire departments, to one=20 hangar complex. Plans call for building a new 7,500-square-foot hangar for=20 the Orange County Fire and Rescue department and another 4,000 square-feet o= f=20 hangar space for the sheriff's aircraft, with a 10,000-foot-foot dormitory=20 connecting the two hangars. The new complex would be built at the Orlando=20 Executive Airport where present facilities for one rescue helicopter are=20 scheduled to be demolished. The sheriff's department operates four=20 helicopters and two aircraft including a Cessna 172 and Beechcraft A200 King= =20 Air. The proposed new facility carries a price tag of $21,000 a month=20 compared the $7,237 it pays for separate facilities now at the same airport. BANYAN AIR SERVICE (Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, Fla.) has announced=20 the formation of an aircraft sales division to compliment their vast array o= f=20 existing services. They will specialize in aircraft sales, management,=20 acquisitions and locater service used by corporate jets, turboprops and cabi= n=20 class twins. For more information contact Mike O'Keeffe at:=20 mokeeffe@banyanair.com EMBRAER (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) is expanding its Fort Lauderdale facilities=20 with a new 16,000-foot corporate aircraft sales center for the new Legacy=20 business jet. It will feature full scale Legacy cabin mockups, a design=20 center and sales and support offices. The Brazilian aircraft manufacturer's=20 Fort Lauderdale facility serves as Embraer's U.S. headquarters. NAVAL AIR STATION JACKSONVILLE. The U.S. Naval Reserve Fleet Logistics=20 Support Squadron 58 operating from the Naval Air Station Jacksonville has=20 taken delivery of the navy's sixth Boeing C-40A Clipper. It joins two other=20 of same type aircraft in the base's fleet. The aircraft is part of a six=20 aircraft order to replace aging C-9B aircraft. The aircraft support Naval=20 operations transporting cargo and personnel. NEW PIPER AIRCRAFT (Vero Beach, Fla.) has only sold 56 aircraft for the thir= d=20 quarter down from 87 in the previous three-month period. New Piper has=20 reduced its projections for the number of aircraft to be produced this year=20 to 300, down from an original projection of 331. As of the end of October,=20 New Piper has sold 213 aircraft, worth $94 million. Last year it sold 444=20 aircraft. It employs approximately 1,000...New Piper has announced a=20 significant increase in the useful load-carrying capacity of its turboprop=20 Piper Meridian aircraft. The Meridian's gross weight capacity has been=20 increased from 4,850 pounds to 5,092 pounds.=20 PRATT & WHITNEY (Palm Beach, Fla.). Due to reduced demand for its RL10 rocke= t=20 engines and termination of a NASA contract, Pratt & Whiney has announced its= =20 intentions to lay off about 100 of its 1,100 workers at the Palm Beach=20 facility. PRIVATESKY AVIATION SERVICES (Southwest Florida Int'l Airport) is planning=20 its grand opening for December 7. The new maintenance service center feature= s=20 a 100-percent climate controlled hangar constructed of steel-reinforced=20 concrete tilt walls and structural steel. It is designed and built to=20 withstand a category five hurricane. WORLD FUEL SERVICE CORP. (Miami Springs, Fla.) has resisted the move north t= o=20 Broward County unlike so many other Dade County companies and found $150,000= =20 worth of incentives to stay put. It will, however, relocate to new facilitie= s=20 in the Doral area early next year. It plans to hire up to 50 new employees.= =20 World Fuel Services provides aviation and marine fueling services worldwide. AIRPORT NOTES JACKSONVILLE AIRPORT AUTHORITY is receiving a $14.1 million grant from the=20 FAA for improvements at its four airports. The grant will be used on 12=20 projects at the four airports, with more than half going towards Jacksonvill= e=20 International's in-line baggage screening system. The Jacksonville Airport=20 Authority operates Jacksonville International and three general aviation=20 airports, Cecil Field, Craig Airport and Herlong Airport. =20 KISSIMMEE GATEWAY AIRPORT (ISM) has closed out its books on fiscal year 2002= .=20 ISM has reported almost a 40 percent increase in fuel sales with 1.68 millio= n=20 gallons in fiscal year 2002 when compared to 1.21 million in 2001. The=20 airport has experienced an increase in business and corporate type aircraft=20 operations. Total airport operations have decreased 16 percent from 169,000=20 operations in 2001 to 143,400 operations in 2002. Operations reported for=20 2001 were an airport record. ISM changed its name from the Kissimmee=20 Municipal Airport earlier this year. MARATHON AIRPORT (MTH). Other than Florida Coastal planning service to the=20 Marathon Airport this month, the terminal facility is empty. During a recent= =20 visit to the terminal, it was found to be in much need of attention. Foliage= =20 in the parking lot was taller than the vehicles parked in it.. Future=20 planned uses include: High School Homecoming Dance, Rotary Club Winter=20 Carnival Festival, Red Cross Calypso Casino Night and a Fashion and Business= =20 Show.=20 MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT's (MIA) director Angela Gittens received the=20 Wright Brothers memorial Award for the Greater Miami Aviation Association. ORLANDO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (MCO). With the opening of the airport's new=20 fourth runway next year, the Orlando Rotary Club is working towards having a= =20 two-day Airshow at MCO. Tentatively scheduled for November 22 and=20 23, it hopes the Greater Orlando Rotary Airshow could become a yearly event= .=20 TAMPA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (TPA) has celebrated the opening of its new $120= =20 million Airside E facility. The 275,00 square-foot facility will be home to=20 Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Air Canada. It is also the home of seve= n=20 original murals by St. Petersburg artist George Snow Hill. Commissioned back= =20 in 1939 for the original Peter O. Knight Airport, the murals have been=20 restored and the collection will be together on display for the first time i= n=20 37 years. TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE (PAM) Panama City, Fla. has celebrated the opening of= =20 a new F/A-22 (Raptor) maintenance training facility. Tyndall will be the=20 first U.S. Air Force Base set up for both F/A-22 pilot and maintenance=20 training. Tyndall's 372nd Training Squadron, Detachment 4, will be=20 responsible for the maintenance training effort, and the 43rd Fighter=20 Squadron will conduct pilot training. FLORIDA AVIATION ACCIDENT/INCIDENT REPORT There were 12 Florida reports filed for the month of October resulting in 3=20 destroyed and 2 substantially damaged aircraft. There were 2 fatalities and=20= 2=20 serious injuries reported. October Brief 10/09/02, N200NG, Beechcraft 20 King Air, Cleveland, Ohio, Jacksonville=20 Sheriff's Department public use aircraft right main gear collapsed on=20 landing, hit approach lights. Damage: substantial. 10/17/02, N903WA, Cessna C712, Opa Locka, Fla. Aircraft crashed while making= =20 a touch and go landing on runway 27L. Lost control on take-off and crashed.=20 Damage: substantial. 10/25/02, N267EP, Cessna C172, Sebring, Fla. Aircraft departed to the north,= =20 climbed to about 40 feet and then settled back down. Damage: destroyed. 10/27/02, N610F, Cessna C172, N9840V, Cessna C172, Coral Springs, Fla. N610F= =20 and N9840V had a mid-air collision, circumstances are unknown. N9840V was=20 destroyed with 2 fatal injuries. N6101F sustained substantial damage and was= =20 able to make an emergency landing. One minor injury. 10/31/02, N3122K, Beechcraft BE33, Fernandina Beach, Fla. Aircraft crashed=20 off the approach end of runway 22. Damage: unknown, 2 serious injuries=20 reported. Note: Accident/Incident data often contain city location and not the=20 appropriate airport where the incident may have occurred. Unless otherwise=20 indicated, no injuries were noted. FLORIDA AVIATION CALENDAR January 18-19, 2003, 5th Annual Air Fair, Pompano Beach Airpark. Sponsored b= y=20 the Air Force Association Gold Coast Chapter 351. Information: 561-649-3557 January 29-February 2, 2003, TGIF 2003, Peter O. Knight Airport (TPF), Tampa= ,=20 Fla. Celebrate the 100th anniversary of powered flight and airshow. Contact=20 Ccosentin447@earthlink.net for more information. February 22-23, 2003, Page Field Aviation Days, Fort Myers, Fla. Warbirds,=20 experimental and sport aircraft & more. For more information: http://mywebpages.comcast.net/n211py/Avday/index.htm March 7-9, 2003, Valiant Ai Command All Warbird Airshow, Titusville, Fla.=20 www.vacwarbirds.org Florida Skies would like to thank Jerry Rooks for his assistance with the=20 Florida Aviation Calendar. FLORIDA SKIES MARKETPLACE Aviation Hangar space now available at Vero Beach Municipal Airport. New=20 T-Hangars and 3,000 square foot Executive Hangars available for lease. =20 Secure location, easy access, utilities provided, air-conditioned lounge and= =20 restrooms. Contact Airport Director's Office at (772) 978-4930 or e-mail atairport@covb.org. Hangar for rent. Available: 30 day notice. Floor area: 34,345 sf.=20 Mezzanines: 8,666 sf (one on north side and one on south side of hangar).=20 Hangar doors clear opening 122 feet wide x 29 feet high. Ramp Space: 118,33= 6=20 sf. Exterior newly refurbished. Located in Florida's Heartland on Sebring=20 Regional Airport (SEF). A great location for a new maintenance facility, ki= t=20 plane quick build location or paint and interior shop. =20 Please contact Mike Willingham at 863-655-6444 or by e-mail at=20 mike@sebring-airport.com Available from FLORIDASKIES. B-29 Enola Gay autographed by Gen. Paul W.=20 Tibbets. This detailed mahogany made museum quality model is 1.72 scale, 23=20= =BE=20 "wingspan, 17" length, Complete with stand. Special price $200. each US only= . Letter of Authenticity with photograph included with each model. Check or=20 money order to Florida Skies. MasterCard and VISA accepted. Add $8. shipping= =20 and handling. Florida residents add 6% sales tax.=20