(Seattle – March 12, 2012) – Aviation Partners, Inc. (API) announced that the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) granted Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) approval for its High Mach Blended Winglets on Falcon 900 Series aircraft on March 8, 2012. The initial FAA STC was issued on September 2, 2011. Certification of the Winglets represents the culmination of a two-year development program and exhaustive flight testing, and comes on the heels of a similar certification for Falcon 2000 series aircraft in April 2009. API is now working on a similar Winglet certification for the Falcon 50 family.
“In the short time since FAA STC was received we already have more than a dozen Falcon 900 series aircraft in-service with Blended Winglets, and have several more currently undergoing installation,” Said Gary Dunn, API Vice President of Sales, “Issuance of the EASA STC is particularly significant as we are seeing a lot of pent up demand from European customers seeking to improve their Falcon 900 series aircraft”.
The Winglets for the Falcon 900 Series are “High Mach” Blended Winglets – this revolutionary new design is optimized for higher cruise speeds. The Winglets provide a drag reduction, and corresponding range increase, of 5 percent at Mach .80 and more than 7 percent at Long Range Cruise (LRC). In addition, retrofit Winglets for the Falcon 900 series (the same API-designed Winglets as those installed by Dassault on the factory 900LX and 2000LX models) will reduce operating costs and carbon emissions, and provide a dramatic visual enhancement.
“Anytime you can improve the productivity and performance of an existing asset, while making it more eco-friendly, is a wise investment,” Said Joe Clark, API founder and CEO, “We are doing our part in a changing world.”
Installation is available through API’s network of authorized installers including Duncan Aviation, Jet Aviation (Midcoast), StandardAero and West Star Aviation in the United States; as well as TAG Aviation in Switzerland and Hawker Pacific Asia in Singapore. For more information on current and future Winglet products fly to www.aviationpartners.com.
Aviation Partners, Inc.
Seattle, Washington based Aviation Partners, Inc. (API) is the world leader in advanced Winglet technology. API’s patented* Performance Enhancing Blended Winglets have been designed and certified for a number of commercial and business aircraft; applications include Boeing, Falcon, Hawker and Gulfstream airframes. Over 5,000 in-service aircraft have saved an estimated 3 billion gallons of fuel. In addition to the 5-7% improvement in fuel burn, Blended Winglets have reduced global CO2 emissions by over 32 million tons. Additional airframe programs are in-development for existing Blended Winglet technology, and future Winglet designs will lead to greater incremental improvements in performance, fuel savings and emissions reduction. (* patent #5348253)
