September 8, 2010
Storm clouds are gathering over the issue of using factory-built Special Light Sport Aircraft (S-LSA) for instrument flying. Since LSA standards are set by ASTM, not the FAA, the issue is complex, and the ASTM IFR subcommittee grapples with reaching consensus findings. Dan Johnson is president and chairman of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association (LAMA) and secretary of the ASTM F.37 Executive Committee. He writes on his website that three S-LSA manufacturers have promoted IFR capability for their machines — Tecnam, Evektor and AMD.
September 2, 2010
Comments will be accepted through Oct. 12 on a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the rear passenger doors of Diamond Aircraft DA40 and DA40F piston singles. The NPRM calls for instituting an Airworthiness Directive to alter the procedure for opening the doors in an emergency, and also require replacing the retaining bracket for the doors on some aircraft. There have been 31 incidents in which the doors broke off in flight and another 18 doors that required replacement due to damaged hinges.
September 2, 2010
Perhaps in response to the rogue Navy UAV helicopter incident on August 2, a new rule was published on Aug. 25 in the Federal Register that would require reporting accidents involving unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The rule has conditions similar to those for manned aircraft — an accident would consist of any occurrence in which a person was killed or seriously injured, or in which an aircraft sustained substantial damage. The rule would apply to UAVs with maximum takeoff weights of 300 pounds or more.
September 2, 2010
The remote "pilot" of an unmanned Navy MQ-8B Fire Scout helicopter lost his datalink to the aircraft on August 2, setting the aircraft free to roam. It wandered toward Washington, D.C., from its Patuxent River base before contact was re-established and it was commanded to land at Webster Field, an element of the Naval Air Station. The UAV's software is programmed to command the copter to land if control is lost, but that did not happen. It flew about 23 miles at 2,000 feet, busting the outer ring of the D.C. Flight Restricted Zone before command was restored.
September 2, 2010
Referring to last week's report on Swift Fuel's news of achieving 102 octane (click here), reader J. Davis took the editor to task, and e-mailed: "GAMI has been claiming for some time that their fuel also does this with some advantages over Swift Fuel." General Aviation Modifications Inc., famous for their fuel injectors, has indeed been working hard on its own version of a 100LL replacement.
September 2, 2010
Aviation groups are approaching the issue of leaded avgas from two fronts — how to remove the lead; and how much actual environmental danger does the small amount of lead in aviation fuels truly represent. The consensus on the aviation side is that unleaded avgas is an ultimate necessity.
September 2, 2010
When the U.S. Navy decommissions the 800-acre airport portion of its Naval Air Station in Brunswick, Maine, in November, the runways, control tower and instrument landing system (ILS) are poised to revert to civilian operation. The Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority (MRRA) has submitted its plans to the FAA and could open the day after the Navy turns over the keys. The rest of the base, 2,800 acres, is set to go civilian next spring, and MRRA has ambitious plans for the site.
September 1, 2010
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Aviation is still buzzing over the N-number mix-up that led to a profound law enforcement blunder. It's pretty clear that none of the Santa Barbara (Calif.) police who responded to a stolen aircraft alert last Saturday are pilots. Who among us would not have recognized John and Martha King as they deplaned from a 2009 Cessna 172? To say nothing of mistaking the 21st century Skyhawk for a 1968 Cessna 150. While the episode is grist for one more humorous backdrop to a King Schools instructional video, it wasn't funny at the time.
August 27, 2010
One of the victims of the economic slowdown was the Aces game studio, a Microsoft subsidiary that the software giant closed down. Aces was responsible for developing and maintaining Microsoft's iconic Flight Simulator game — used by non-flying enthusiasts for entertainment, and pilots for helping to retain some of their flying skills. Now, Microsoft has announced the development of a new game, named simply "Flight" that is said to target enthusiasts with a focus on realism and accuracy.
August 27, 2010
Sporty's has relaunched its LearnToFlyHere.com website, with rich video content and a new learn-to-fly blog. Designed as an Internet resource for anyone interested in learning to fly, the redesigned site includes 20 minutes of video content, divided into four segments: Why you should learn to fly; How to go about it; A typical first lesson; and How to choose a flight school.
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EAA's meticulously restored B-17G "Aluminum Overcast".
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