FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., 16 May 2012.Fixed-based operator (FBO) specialist Banyan Air Service in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., is enabling pilots of Gulfstream G650 and G280 general aviation business jets to transmit aircraft health and monitoring information to maintenance personnel wirelessly from the Banyan ramp at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (FXE).
Banyan has finished equipping its 80-acre campus at Fort Lauderdale Executive to enable the Gulfstream G650 and G280 business aviation aircraft, set to enter service this year, to send and receive data wirelessly with ground maintenance personnel. The Gulfstream G650 and G280 are equipped with WiFi connectivity.
The Gulfstream G650 has an aircraft health and trend monitoring system (AHTMS) called PlaneConnectHTM, and the Gulfstream G280 has a system that updates the Rockwell Collins system wirelessly through the Ascend portal.
The Gulfstream G650 high-speed business jet flies faster and farther than any traditional business aircraft, Gulfstream officials say. It seats eight passengers and a crew of four, cruises at 563 knots, flies as high as 51,000 feet, and has a maximum range of 7,000 nautical miles. It has the Gulfstream PlaneView II avionics, two Rolls-Royce BR725 A1-12 engines, is 100 feet long, and has a 94-foot wingspan.
The Gulfstream G280, meanwhile, seats four passengers and a crew of two, cruises at 530 knots, flies as high as 45,000 feet, and has a maximum range of 3,600 nautical miles. It has the Gulfstream PlaneView280 avionics, two Honeywell HTF7250G engines, is 67 feet long, and has a 63-foot wingspan.
Wi-Fi functionality at Banyan Air Service will enable visiting G650 and G280 aircraft to use their external antennas to transfer data to and from the aircraft. Banyan officials say they have seen an increase in the number of Gulfstream business jets visiting its FBO at Fort Lauderdale Executive for fuel and avionics services.
Banyan is working with Honeywell to obtain supplemental type certification (STC) on Gulfstream aircraft models GII, GIII, and GIV for Honeywell Aspire 200 LG avionics.
“Banyan’s FBO and avionics departments provide the infrastructure, installation, support, and service for the Gulfstream fleet of aircraft,” says Brian Wilson, Banyan’s director of avionics. Banyan provides 24-hour FBO services, maintenance, avionics, aircraft sales, parts, a aviation store, and Jet Runway Café.
For more information contact Banyan Air Services online at www.banyanair.com, Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. at www.gulfstream.com, Rockwell Collins at www.rockwellcollins.com or Honeywell Avionics at www.honeywell.com.
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