A Challenger 604 delivered to a customer in 1995 has been updated with a Future Aircraft Navigation System (FANS) by Jet Aviation’s facility in St Louis, USA. The package includes the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Contract (ADS-C) and Controller Pilot Data Link Communication (CPDLC).
“Bombardier produced 363 Challenger 604s to replace the 601 model, and now the oldest one still in the air has the most modern navigation system available to assist the owner with navigation worldwide,” said Blake Hogge, senior manager of avionics sales at Jet Aviation in St Louis. “We worked with Rockwell Collins to develop the STC for their FANS solution, and we completed the industry’s first FANS installations in Challenger 604s more than a year ago. We’ve completed more than 10 FANS installations in 604s so far.”
The installation was completed in less than three weeks, two days ahead of schedule. “It took some real dedication by our team, but we were convinced we could deliver exactly the product and the service the customer needed in the time he could give us,” said Hogge.
“St Louis had the most knowledge and experience based on feedback we got from everyone else,” said Scott Wells, quality assurance manager for Presidential Aviation, the customer. “St Louis had the answers right away when we talked to them. We could immediately see the experience and the expertise. The whole process was really smooth. The FANS system is working great. We haven’t had any issues.”
March 13, 2017
