Bethany Whitfield

Weather was not a factor in the recent high-profile crash that killed two Oklahoma State University women’s basketball coaches last week, according to NTSB investigators. Former Oklahoma state Senator Olin Branstetter was flying the Cherokee 180 carrying the coaches when it crashed nose-first into a wooded area in central Arkansas on Thursday. All four people […]

Sometimes a standard tie-down just isn’t enough. At least that’s the lesson this guy or gal had to learn the hard way. Check out the video below, reportedly shot in Gelendzhik, Russia, and see what can happen when a standard tie-down is subjected to high winds. To make sure your airplane remains in one piece, […]

Can’t stop playing Microsoft Flight Simulator X? Meet OVO-4, a product from Spanish manufacturer Virtual Fly that takes home flight simulation to a whole new level. According to Virtual Fly, OVO-4 is a single-seat enclosed cockpit intended for home use that provides complete movement capabilities, vibration systems, smart lighting and speakers meant to mimic real […]

After flying an instrument approach under IFR conditions earlier this year using Rockwell Collins’ new HGS-3500 head-up display, I wasn’t surprised to learn the company has received a Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation Award. Rockwell Collins was named first runner up in the Transport category for introducing synthetic vision to its head-up guidance system — […]

Famed US Airways captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger is in the spotlight once again as he prepares to return to the controls and head to Charlotte, North Carolina, this time in a vintage DC-7B. The Miracle on the Hudson captain and copilot Jeff Skiles will each take turns at the helm of the restored airliner next […]

After a one-year hiatus of the Red Bull Air Race World Championships, officials say the much-anticipated event won’t be held in 2012 either. The organization behind the event called for the one-year break in 2010, citing, among other reasons, the need to “further improve the already high levels of safety” surrounding the Championship. That one-year […]

The British Royal Air Force has halted all non-essential flights of aircraft equipped with the same type of ejection seat as the one involved in the recent death of Flight Lt. Sean Cunningham. The 35-year-old Iraq War Veteran died after being ejected from a Hawk T1, which was reportedly parked at the Red Arrows’ base […]

The U.S. Senate moved to reinstate the Block Aircraft Registration Request (BARR) program last week with an appropriations bill that passed by a 69-30 vote, heating up a fight that began earlier this year after the FAA announced plans to restrict the program. The bill prohibits the appropriated funds from being used to limit participation […]

Piper Aircraft on Monday reported better delivery and revenue numbers during the third quarter of 2011 than the company did one year ago, based in part on stronger Piper M-class aircraft deliveries. The company’s revenue jumped more than 25 percent this year compared to 2010, rising from $28.1 million to $35.3 million. According to Piper […]

Thomas Senkel of the German company e-volo recently became the first to pilot an interesting craft – a so-called electric multicopter with 16 rotors. With a single seat placed in the center of those blades, the 80-kilogram (176-pound), all-electric vehicle may look a bit frightening to the risk-averse eye. According to e-volo, the multicopter is […]