The Duncan Download Blog: Business Aviation Advice & Observations

Duncan Aviation recently installed Rockwell Collins’ Venue Cabin Management System (CMS) upgrade in two Falcon 900B aircraft and developed a video walk-through that shows those interested in potentially installing the system how it works.

“Our avionics team was impressed with the installation results and continues to see a surge in demand for Venue upgrades. Many existing systems are becoming obsolete as their technology has become dated,” says Senior Avionics/Installation Sales Rep Steve Elofson. "Upgrading to a current generation CMS like Venue provides not only the popular features expected today, but the new systems are well-supported and have a positive effect on the value of the aircraft. This video helps customers better visualize how the system would integrate in their aircraft."

In the video below, Duncan Aviation’s Install Team Leader Jason Thuman walks viewers through the entire cabin, highlighting the all-new High Definition (HD) CMS supplying intuitive user interface through touch-screen controls and wireless iPad cabin control. 

Straight Talk eBook Series

Duncan Aviation's free Straight Talk books are an aircraft operator's source for easy-to-understand information about important topics in business aviation today. These publications are written by Duncan Aviation's very own aviation experts, and the authors are just a phone call away.

To download Duncan Aviation's "Straight Talk about CMS" eBook, visit: www.duncanaviation.aero/straighttalk/

The DGS 65 Gyro contains a Gyro encoder flex card (flex card) mounted inside the gyro capsule at the top of the internal assembly. This flex card is the information collector for the unit and transmits information to the microprocessor.

There are two sets of LEDs and photo transmitters built into the flex card which must operate properly. By monitoring the sequence in which these transmitters turn on and off, the microprocessor determines the direction that the aircraft’s turn.

In recent years, we have determined that older flex cards are reaching their effective life limits and are now experiencing higher failure rates.

There are two primary ways this unit can fail. First if one or both output channels of the flex card fail, the heading change information will not get to the microprocessor and the unit will no detect heading changes. This will result in a heading freeze on the HSI display. This type of failure may also be intermittent.

Second there is a circuit in the unit which monitors the electric current that is being supplied to the LEDs. If the current is interrupted this monitoring circuit with cause the unit to send a flag signal to the HSI display and the red flag will drop in view.

As with the output channel failure, the heading output will freeze. There is no type of temporary repair, bypass or jumper approved by the OEM and doing so is in violation of FAA regulations.

We recommend following the OEM repair manual procedures for repairing or overhauling the DGS 65 Gyro and only using Rockwell Collins Gyro Encoder Flexcard P/N 6342252001.

Gyro Overhaul

Duncan Aviation is an authorized Rockwell Collins Service Center and is able to overhaul most Rockwell Collins gyroscopes. If you ship your gyro directly to Duncan aviation for overhaul, you could receive your gyro back in 3 to 5 days using Duncan's Aviation's AOG service. When shipping your gyro to Duncan Aviation for overhaul, please follow these critical shipping procedures for a business aircraft gyroscopes.

Duncan Aviation has four avionics tech reps at your service to answer your questions or assist in troubleshooting your avionics units, including the gyro.

Chairman Emeritus Robert Duncan and his wife, Karen, surround themselves with the things they’re passionate about: aviation and art. So, when Duncan Aviation acquired a new Citation M2, they wanted the jet’s paint scheme to reflect the brush strokes of an artist, an abstract artist. They also simultaneously took the term “green plane” to another level with this lime green wonder.
“This is a flying billboard for Duncan Aviation’s paint department,” says Robert Duncan at the jet’s unveiling last week.

The paint scheme’s designer, Teri Nekuda, has 24 years of experience combining colors and materials to match a variety of customers’ needs and desires, and she used the same approach she does with all her customers when Robert and Karen asked to explore paint schemes at Duncan Aviation’s Lincoln, Nebraska, facility’s design center.

“It's enjoyable to create a paint scheme that people don't readily expect to see on an aircraft. The wow factor gets people to react, contemplate and dream of what possibilities lay on the horizon,” says Nekuda.

After more than 50 renderings, Nekuda and the Duncans had the paint scheme narrowed down to two options: a lime green or bright blue base with paint splatters dotting the fuselage. When asked to describe the final product in one word, Teri responds with “fun.”

“It’s fun on so many levels. I look at it and I start to recognize shapes and images. There’s a pair of Mickey Mouse ears over here and Woodstock there. It spurs this childlike sense of excitement and creativity. That’s a cool feeling to have at any age,” she says. 

Of course, there were several other ideas on the table before the final was approved. Robert initially wanted to explore the idea of a decal on the aircraft, allowing it to be easily changed after just a few years.

“It a great idea and I think we’ll end up using decals eventually, but this one looked a bit thick after the clear coat was applied. Also, the decal isn’t simply printed on a clear background, so any space outside the paint splotches would have to be lime green and match the paint perfectly, or have a black outline. In the end, this was too complicated of a paint scheme to try and implement decals for the first time.”

The Duncans also toyed with the idea of having graffiti on the M2, but the design team was concerned that even though the graffiti might be well-received and have a positive message in the United States, not all countries will view the symbol the same way. So when Paint Shop Manager Doug Bohac mentioned he had recently seen a motorcycle covered in paint splotches, the idea stuck.

“Robert makes me explore other ideas I might not normally gravitate toward because he gives me some direction, but not enough that he stifles my creativity with suggestions,” says Nekuda.

Even after all these changes and updates and scrapped ideas, Nekuda says it’s so rewarding to see how excited a customer gets when the project just—clicks.

“That’s when I know I’ve succeeded at something—when they can’t wipe that smile off their faces,” she says. “That’s a good feeling. That makes every minute worth it.”

Nekuda has also helped determine the paint scheme on several other Duncan Aviation aircraft.

“Robert and Karen Duncan want something unique. A lot of people like a simple aircraft, but I don’t see Robert as ever having a white airplane. We do things a little differently here,” she says.

Though the paint shop sees a lot of white jets, they didn’t bat an eye when they first received renderings of this complicated scheme. They treated the project just like it was any other customer, providing Duncan Aviation-level quality, delivered the aircraft early and celebrated another job well done.

Click here to view another time-lapse video featuring a creative and detailed paint scheme from Duncan Aviation's taleted design and paint professionals. 

Can you think of a better way to begin the new year than to open the doors to a brand new aircraft maintenance hangar? Neither can we.  And on Monday, that’s exactly what we did. The clean and freshly coated floors of Duncan Aviation’s newest 40,000 square-foot maintenance hangar were christened as four business jets, including one Falcon 7X were ushered in during near-record low temperatures and blowing winds, two weeks ahead of schedule!

And we’re not done!

Although this new hangar is large enough to hold the largest model business jets in operation, this is only phase one. Another 40,000-square-foot maintenance hangar and a 95,000-square-foot office and shop space, will be completed and ready for use in June of this year. Altogether, this maintenance structure is the largest expansion project Duncan Aviation’s Lincoln campus has ever seen.

The expansion comes in response to customer requests and changing customer needs. The business aviation industry continues to shift toward larger business aircraft, a trend fueled by technological advances and increased globalization.

There has been considerable buzz and anticipation for Duncan Aviation’s expansion in Lincoln, Nebraska. At last check (only moments ago), all available space is occupied and 18 more large-body aircraft are scheduled for multi-week maintenance events during the first quarter. With nearly 20 more waiting to be placed on the schedule for hangar floor space through the middle of the year.

If you are wanting to get your business jet on the schedule and in this new hangar for the coming year, don't hesitate. Space is limited and it is filling up fast. Contact a Duncan Aviation sales rep today.

We are excited about this expansion and want to share it with you. Let me personally invite you to come visit Duncan Aviation and see firsthand our commitment to our customers, our team members and business aviation.

To view the construction progress, a timelapse video, and a construction photo gallery, visit. http://www.duncanaviation.aero/airframe/promotions/maintenance_hangar_construction.php

In early 2013, a customer presented Duncan Aviation with a most unique challenge; to paint an artist-commissioned design on his Global 5000. But, this wasn’t your typical aircraft paint scheme with a Matterhorn white canvas and two or three stripes down the side. No, this detailed design used nearly every inch of the fuselage unleashing what seemed like an endless number of lines swirling gracefully in unison. Matthew Scheppers, Duncan Aviation Completions Sales Rep, said the customer had only two expectations: 1) the paint scheme must look just like the artist rendering, and 2) the aircraft should look like a feather blowing in the wind when you looked at it.

After receiving the artist’s rendering, Rachael Weverka, Duncan Aviation Completions Designer, made only minor modifications to the design to make it work on the Global fuselage and picked the colors to best enhance the design and meet the customer’s approval.

Matthew knew this was the most complicated stripe scheme that paint shop has been tasked with to date, but also knew that the whole paint team would rally together, work hard and deliver a flawless finished product on time, at the Duncan Aviation level of quality. This project came during an already busy paint schedule, but everyone rolled with the punches to keep the flow of work moving, not only on this complex project, but other projects as well.

“It was an amazing experience to watch this paint scheme get laid out by hand, and experience the great team work by everyone in the paint shop to make this happen.  There were high expectations, and everyone felt it, and rose to the occasion," says Matthew.

Click on the time-lapse video below to view the entire process in just three minutes. For more information about Duncan Aviation’s paint services, contact an aircraft paint service sales representative at www.DuncanAviation.aero/paint.

Duncan Aviation is on schedule to complete the largest expansion project of its Lincoln, Nebraska, location. When complete, two new 40,000-square-foot maintenance hangars will be able to accommodate the larger body business aircraft that many customers are currently operating. And additional 95,000-square-foot office and shop space will be completed at the same time. The overall dimensions of the building are 630 feet by 200 feet. The hangar will stand 46-feet tall at the eave and approximately 52 feet at the peak.

A time lapse video showing the 175,000-square-foot facility currently under construction from start to its present status is now available for viewing. The sequence of images used to compose the video was pulled from a camera mounted on a nearby hangar.

View the time-lapse progress of the maintenance hangar and shop space construction in the video below.

Accessory Service Expansion

Scheduled to open later this summer, Duncan Aviation will open its newly refurbished Accessories Shop in Lincoln, Nebraska, that will more than double the footprint of its service area. The Accessory department will gain approximately 6,300 square feet of service area, double its work benches and add new tooling and in-house capabilities, including an overhead crane and a new paint booth with curing room.

The overhead crane will cover approximately 1,200 square feet of shop space, allowing for better work flow. Fixed stands will be installed adjacent to the cranes, giving the technicians safer access to the larger landing gear during maintenance. A new 300-square-foot dedicated paint booth and a 400-square-foot new cure room are included in the expansion increasing the work capacity and improve the time it takes for accessory units to go through the paint process.

To read more about the Accessory department expansion and added tooling, read the Spring 2013 Duncan Debrief.

These expansions come in response to customer requests and changing customer needs. As the industry continues to shift toward larger business aircraft, a trend fueled by technological advances and increased globalization, Duncan Aviation’s new hangars and expanded shop areas will be able to accommodate the volume of maintenance, modifications and completions work our customers require.

 

A lot has changed in the world of air traffic control during the past 70 years. To help diagram some of the more recent changes, Duncan Aviation released a four-part video series on Understanding Future Air Navigation Systems (FANS), the avionics system that provides direct data link communication between the pilot and air traffic controller.

Justin Vena, Avionics Installations Rep for Duncan Aviation, hosted the series which details FANS history, evolution, operations, certification and upcoming mandates. He gives advice regarding FANS operations and answer the most common questions he hears from operators.

Justin’s passion for understanding the world’s NextGen initiatives has led to his extensive research on the subject. The FANS video series explains Controller Pilot Data Link (CPDLC), Automatic Dependent Surveillance Contract (ADS-C) and how they operate. He gives details about what happens with initial set-up and operation, including air traffic controller hand-offs, and explains the components included in a typical FANS system.

The video series provides information in regards to FANS mandates in Europe and the North Atlantic tracks. This resource is provided by Duncan Aviation in addition to the company’s ebook, Straight Talk About FANS 1/A, which was released in 2011 and can be found at http://www.duncanaviation.aero/straighttalk/fans/index.php.

Duncan Aviation FANS 1/A Webinar

Take a deeper look into the subject of FANS 1/A by attending an online interactive webinar hosted by Justin Vena on December 18th, 2012, 2-3 pm EST. He'll go into depth about how FANS work, generic system configurations, certification requirements and mandates, plus much more.

Duncan Aviation's FANS 1/A webinar is a free internet seminar for operators researching FANS compliance for their aircraft, and all aviation enthusiasts with an interest in FAA NextGen initiatives. There are only 100 "seats" available. Register today.

You may also sign up for the webinar by joining Duncan Aviation in booth #5580 at the 2012 NBAA Convention in Orlando, Florida, October 29-31.

Contributed by Nate Klenke, Completions Sales Rep.

On June 29^th, a Gulfstream GV received a fresh coat of paint as Duncan Aviation celebrated the opening of our new, $11.5 million, 45,000 sq. ft. aircraft paint facility in Lincoln, Neb. (LNK). A small fleet of cameras mounted in the paint bays captured the GV’s transformation, highlighting the size of the aircraft paint facility and the number of technicians involved during the paint process.

We see the fleet of business aviation aircraft getting larger, which is why we built the state of the art paint hangar at our Lincoln, Nebraska, facility. It allows us to work on the largest business jets in operation. The process we use to protect the aircraft during stripping and the detail work that gets done after the paint is applied helps us achieve the high level of quality on all of the airframes we work on, including Gulfstream.

Most people don’t think of Duncan Aviation as having Gulfstream capabilities. In fact, Gulfstreams have been a part of our service capabilities since they became a major part of business aviation over 25 years ago. This GV was the first ultra-long-range business jet painted in our Lincoln, Nebraska, facility, and the timing just happened to work out with the open house for the new paint facility. The owner of the GV is a long-time customer of Duncan Aviation, and has relied on us to provide maintenance and refurbishment on their aircraft for years. They know the quality of our work and dedication to customer services. When they purchased their GV, they knew nothing would change.

In this video, you can see the attention to detail and how many people it takes to navigate a large business jet though the paint process. Beyond the hours of planning and designing of the paint design, there is a lot that happens to ensure a high-quality completion. The attention to detail given from the initial protection of the aircraft prior to stripping off the old paint, to physically detailing every inch of the aircraft, in conjunction with a state of the art facility with the proper lighting, airflow and a climate-controlled paint booth make it clear why Duncan Aviation is the industry choice for business jet paint refurbishment.

Duncan Aviation offers a three-year warranty on paint services, and has complete paint facilities in Lincoln, Nebraska, and Battle Creek, Michigan, both of which offer full design services with 3D rendering capabilities.

For more information on the capabilities of our new paint hangar or our paint process, please contact me.

Nate Klenke serves as a Completions Sales Rep. for Duncan Aviation’s Lincoln, Neb. (LNK) full-service facility, specializing in Gulfstreams, Citations, Hawkers, Astras and Westwinds. He began his career in aviation in 1995.

J. Robert Duncan, Duncan Aviation Chairman Emeritus and son of founder Donald Duncan, was honored in January with the Lifetime Aviation Entrepreneur Award at the 9th Annual Living Legends of Aviation Awards banquet in Beverly Hills. 

Defined as aviation entrepreneurs, innovators, record breakers, industry leaders, astronauts, and pilots who have become celebrities (and celebrities who have become pilots), the Living Legends of Aviation meet annually to recognize and honor individuals who have made significant contributions in aviation. Members and past recipients include names like Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman, Bob Hoover, Tom Cruise, Buzz Aldrin and Clay Lacy.

“I very much appreciate this honor,” Robert says. “It brings a spotlight on all of the almost 2,000 team members at Duncan Aviation. I have always believed in people and delegated easily, resulting in a team of extremely capable individuals. They take care of our customers, our vendors and each other. It is their success that this award recognizes and I thank them all. Together, we have built an innovative aviation company where team members can make a difference. My aviation career has been a great ride and the best is yet to come for Duncan Aviation!”