Van’s Hikes Prices in Bankruptcy
Van’s Aircraft filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November and existing customers appear to support the first phase of the reorganization plan. The company’s first raised prices an average of 32 percent for kits and parts that had already been ordered by customers. Van’s said it would have lost money if it honored those deals and that would have amplified its serious cash-flow problems, perhaps sinking the company for good. About 60 percent of customers immediately agreed to the price increases and Van’s is predicting that 70 percent will stick with their orders. Those who backed out of their deals lost their deposits to become among the thousands of unsecured creditors who will share in whatever money is left when the company either comes out of bankruptcy or is liquidated.
Fully Autonomous Drones in Service
Unmonitored autonomous drones are now in service in Dallas after the FAA gave Google’s Wing drone delivery service an exemption. Wing drones can now operate beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) without a human observer meaning the company can expand its delivery footprint into new markets. Wing said its two-pronged collision avoidance system convinced the FAA to loosen its restrictions on airspace access. Wing uses ADS-B to assess the airspace before a flight to scout for potential conflicts. There’s also an onboard detect-and-avoid system to watch out for any airborne objects the initial sweep might have missed.
