Private aviation provider Flexjet has announced it is upgrading its flight operations quality assurance (FOQA) program by equipping its fleet with GE Aviation data services.
The Ohio-based company aims to install quick access recorders (QARs), with built-in cellular data services from GE joint-venture partner Avionica, on all 150 of its aircraft (including the Embraer Phenom 300 and Legacy 450, Bombardier Challenger 300/350 and Global Express, and Gulfstream G450 and G650) by the fourth quarter of next year.
“Flexjet has been a customer of our C-FOQA product for many years,” said John Mansfield, chief digital officer for GE Aviation. “Since Flexjet has experienced considerable growth in its fleet, this agreement upgrades its safety solution to our eFOQA, the standard in large-operator FOQA programs worldwide.”
The eFOQA combines GE’s flight safety analysis services with the QARs, which will be customised to include Flexjet-specific flight events by using the 4.5 million data points gathered during the flight, which are sent wirelessly via cell data immediately after landing.
“The comprehensive data we can gather immediately allows us to ensure safer operation of our fleet with real-time flight data monitoring to address any potential flight safety concerns immediately,” said Todd Anguish, Flexjet chief safety officer.
GE Aviation’s flight analytics services and FOQA systems, powered by the company’s Event Measurement System (EMS), are currently being used on more than 9,000 aircraft.
The service integrates data sources such as flight information, weather, navigation, flight plans, and other operational data to provide valuable insights for customers.