The European Aviation Safety Agency approved the Aviation Partners Split Scimitar Winglet (SSW) aboard Boeing Business Jets. The approval, obtained on July 28, follows U.S. FAA supplemental type certification in April. Aviation Partners and Boeing Business had announced the FAA approval during EBACE in May, as well as plans to make the winglets standard on all new 737NG-based BBJs. The Split Scimitar design previously had been approved for the BBJ 2 and BBJ 3.

The split winglet retrofit involves the addition of a Scimitar-tipped large ventral strake to Aviation Partners’s Blended Winglet, replacement of winglet tip caps with new Scimitar tip caps and strengthening of the internal winglet structure. The result, according to the company, is reduced drag and a range increase. Noting that the design essentially gives a BBJ with seven auxiliary tanks the range of an eight-auxiliary-tank airplane, Gary Dunn, Aviation Partners's vice president and sales and marketing said, “We are already seeing huge interest in Split Scimitar Winglets from the BBJ community. The range benefit is tremendously compelling given the missions many BBJ owners undertake.”

Two BBJs currently are equipped with the winglets and several more are in the pipeline for this year, API said. PATS Aircraft Systems in Georgetown, Del., is installing the winglets on new BBJs, while retrofits can be accomplished at approved installation facilities.