Piston

Universal Flight Concepts, based in Waco, Texas, has delivered its current Part 141-approved training programs using 10 Tecnam aircraft. On January 28, Universal announced that it has agreed to purchase an additional 18 Tecnam aircraft over the course of 2020, bringing its fleet to 28 total airplanes. The flight training organization has served Baylor University’s […]

More than 72 years have passed since the Cessna 172 first appeared on engineering drawing boards in Kansas, and the airplane still figures into the training plan for many pilots who learn to fly around the world. While the powerplant options continue to evolve, with the JT-A burning Jet-A, and an electric-powered version in the […]

My circuitous path to the left seat of a seven-seat, million-dollar-plus, jet-A-burning Diamond DA62 twin didn’t come to fruition overnight. In fact, it took several years for me to arrive at this point. It all started with a chance encounter back in the summer of 2011, before the DA62 even existed as a certified product. […]

Cape Air celebrated its 30th anniversary in a special way last week, with the arrival of its first Tecnam P2012. The regional airline signed on to be the launch customer in the United States for the multiengine airplane in a collaborative process that goes back several years. Cape Air Senior Vice President, Fleet Planning & […]

When you see the two fly together in a promotional video made for the Daher press conference at NBAA-BACE 2019, Daher’s acquisition of Quest Aircraft really begins to make sense. The TBM and the Kodiak make a striking, yet complementary, picture in the sky. On Monday, October 21, Daher Aerospace CEO Didier Kayat announced that […]

Founded in 2017 at South Texas Regional Airport in Hondo, Texas, startup Texas Aircraft Manufacturing (TAM) made a splash at last summer’s EAA AirVenture Oshkosh when they introduced their new-generation Colt Light Sport Aircraft (S-LSA). Now, just months later, the company has announced that the Colt has received full FAA ASTM (American Society for Testing […]

Spend even a few minutes comparing the operation of an avgas-powered engine to a diesel—also known as a compression-ignition engine or a jet-A power plant—and a number of diesel benefits jump right out. Diesel engines don’t have spark plugs, and demand no magnetos. Jet-A-burning piston engines are water-cooled too, meaning they’re less susceptible to overheating […]

Flying magazine recently had the chance to fly and review the Lancair Evolution Piston, which features the same composite airframe as its turbine-powered counterpart along with a 350 hp Lycoming iE2 engine. Check out some shots of the experimental four-seater piston below.

The Piper Super Cub was a popular inspiration for aircraft both certified and kit-built. Check out these modern look-alikes and how they compare to the classic. [Historical pricing included in this update from 2015 and preserved for the record.]

When the subject of legendary light airplanes comes up, one of the names certain to be mentioned early in the conversation is the Beechcraft Bonanza. The latest model, the G36, bears a passing resemblance to the revolutionary original, which Beech Aircraft began selling way back in 1947. But today’s Bonanza is a very sophisticated platform, […]