At the Tuesday morning NBAA/GAMA kick-off breakfast, expect Clay Jones, chairman of the General Aviation Manufacturers' Association, to talk about the organization's search for a new president. Ronald L. Swanda, GAMA's svp operations, has been serving as interim president since Edward Bolen left the organization to head NBAA. Indeed, much of the news from GAMA will center around collaborating more with NBAA on tax and regulatory issues.
Both organizations are pleased that the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives recently passed the Jumpstart Our Business Strength Act that extends the availability of 50% bonus depreciation to business aircraft delivered in 2005. President Bush is expected to sign the bill into law very soon. GAMA officials noted that the availability of bonus depreciation had resulted in 30% more sales earlier this year, but the boom went bust when folks couldn't take delivery by December 31, 2004 under the provisions of the previous tax incentive law. Bonus depreciation has stimulated the sales of every type of new aircraft from Cirrus to Gulfstreams, according to Swanda.
GAMA officials also have looked at the rate of RVSM compliance. Too few operators of older business jets have yet to comply with the regulation, Swanda said. Time is running out for the January 20, 2005 mandate that will effect aircraft operations from FL290 to FL410 in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Central and South America.
RVSM also may affect flight test operations for Bombardier, Cessna and Raytheon, all of whom use the airspace west of Wichita for flight test and development. Currently, as many as 18 aircraft, operated by the three manufacturers, use the flight test area at the same time. Swanda said FAA has promised to try to accommodate all requests for airspace access, but if the European model is an indication, one non-RVSM compliant aircraft can be accommodated in each ARTCC sector. Swanda hopes FAA's Kansas City ARTCC will set new standards for flexibility by accommodating multiple flight test aircraft in that sector after the January 20 D-RVSM deadline.
The availability of all-glass cockpits in small aircraft is creating a revolution in rule making at FAA, Swanda pointed out. GAMA is working with FAA to develop an FAA Industry Training Standard (FITS) to prepare pilots for the transition to glass cockpits. FAA and GAMA also are concerned about pilots who fly different glass cockpits. For example, if a pilot who is proficient with a Garmin G1000 cockpit want to transition to an aircraft fitted with Avidyne Entegra gear, it might prove difficult. GAMA officials want to ward off any attempt by FAA to make mandatory avionics pilot type ratings. To that end, the organization is developing its GAMA-12 standard that will help avionics makers use common colors, symbols and control conventions. Aircraft or systems with the GAMA-12 seal would not require differences training, if GAMA gets it way.
GAMA also is encouraged at the progress some oil companies, particularly EXXON, are making on developing alternative spark-ignition aviation fuels. FAA has money in the 2005 budget to test such fuels, however GAMA expects any alternative to avgas to be more expensive than 100LL.
The increasing cost of software certification is another issue on GAMA's slate. It's currently the largest cost of certifying avionics and certain other aircraft systems and the price is growing exponentially with equipment technology advances.
