ST. LOUIS, March 4, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Sabreliner Corporation, a leading provider of civilian and government aviation support services, recently completed its first Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) on a Lear 35 air ambulance owned and operated by Aero Jet International, a Ft. Lauderdale-based air ambulance company with over 18 years experience in the industry.
“We are extremely excited about the potential of our new program to afford substantial cost savings opportunities for our Lear series customers by cost-effectively extending the operating life of their aircraft,” said Patrick J. Finneran Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer. “Sabreliner’s approach to providing SLEP services is considerably less expensive than that of the typical OEM. In addition, the central location of our Perryville, Missouri service facility provides convenient access for our customers from coast to coast.”
The SLEP for Aero Jet International was performed in Sabreliner’s state-of-the-art Perryville facility and involved an extensive inspection of the Lear 35’s entire flight control system using the latest Non-Destructive Inspection (NDI) techniques. The service also included replacement of the aircraft’s key components. Sabreliner has teamed with L-3 Communications Flight International in Newport News, Virginia to perform SLEP services and utilizes L-3’s FAA-approved Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) number ST00738W1.
“The STC allows operators of Lear 24, 25, 35 and 36 series to extend the life of the aircraft’s flight controls by an additional 10,000 hours,” Finneran pointed out. “This enables the operator to avoid mandatory replacement of the control surfaces at 20,000 hours. The STC provides substantial cost savings versus total replacement of the control surfaces.”
