Operators looking for better range from their executive/VIP single- or double-aisle jumbo jets–as well as enhanced safety–might find what they’re looking for at the BaySys Technologies’ NBAA booth.

The Onancock, Va.-based company’s range enhancement system (RES) on a typical BBJ provides room for an additional 3,200 gallons of fuel in four cells, which translates to 200 nm of additional range. In terms of safety,  the system incorporates features designed to rectify structural issues addressed by the FAA regarding earlier Boeing aircraft auxiliary fuel systems, according to BaySys. Based on a full inert-fuel design, RES also meets requirements for crash loads and SFAR88 compliance.

According to BaySys president Steve Walton, the idea of creating the auxiliary fuel system was prompted by the findings of investigations into the crash of TWA 800. The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the explosion that resulted in the crash was caused by a wiring spark that ignited air/fuel vapor in a void section of the centerline fuel tank.

BaySys received its initial order for a Boeing 767 RES in June and has a verbal approval on an MD-87. The system also is being evaluated by the owners of two L-1011s. The initial systems were created for the Boeing Business Jet, the Boeing 757 and the Boeing 767.

Walton declined to discuss specific costs for the BaySys package, noting that it depends on such factors as the condition of the aircraft on arrival and the complexity of removing the existing fuel system. The key to the BaySys concept is in the method of moving fuel through the system, he explained, pointing out that existing systems result in a penalty of about a gallon of fuel per 0.9 pounds of equipment. “It’s our intent,” he said, “to market the system as a standalone component.”

While the company is based in Onancock, the facilities are in a new hangar at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s nearby Wallops Flight Facility. “For anyone worried about the security of their airplane, this place is about as secure as it gets.”

The new facility also allows BaySys to expand into aircraft interior refurbishment. For almost a decade, BaySys has provided an independent aircraft cabin completion management service. It has provided oversight on the completion/refurbishment process on two BBJs recently delivered and is working on another BBJ still in the finishing process at Associated Air Center in Dallas.

The current hangar totals 30,000 sq ft, of which about 6,500 sq ft are devoted to shop space. Walton said BaySys is also working on plans for a 180,000-sq-ft hangar capable of accommodating an A380.