Mark Phelps

The Centennial Challenge is NASA’s name for a program aimed at advancing drone technology, and the agency is offering a $500,000 prize for anyone who has a good idea on how to accelerate integrating them into the National Airspace System (NAS). Adapting airspace to accommodate Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) is a priority, mandated by language […]

Business aircraft research firm Jetnet released its market outlook report for the first quarter, and the results are discouraging – unless you’re shopping for a used business jet, turboprop or turbine helicopter. The size of the used aircraft inventory has always been a measure of the health of the overall general aviation industry. The more […]

Last year’s restructuring is paying dividends for Beechcraft, at least in terms of deliveries. The manufacturer handed over 59 airplanes to new owners in the first quarter, compared with 37 for the same time frame last year. The deliveries included 16 King Air 350i/ER turboprop twins; 13 King Air 250s; five King Air 90 GTx […]

The 30-year-old pilot of a Robinson R22 said she was surprised when the engine quit at 3,000 feet above a crowded section of Honolulu. But her training took over and she executed a successful autorotation onto Fort Street, lined with apartments and located near a college campus. Pilot Julia Link told reporters, “First I thought […]

In a new program launched this season, Major League Baseball is donating tickets, meals and hotel rooms for wounded veterans to attend baseball games. Patient Air Lift Services (PALS), based on Long Island, New York, works with MLB.com on the “PALS for Patriots” program, arranging volunteer pilots to fly the veterans from Walter Reed Army […]

The Air Force’s unmanned X-51 WaveRider “scramjet” covered 264 miles in just over six minutes on Monday, reaching Mach 5.1 (more than 3,000 mph) on its final test flight. The experimental test aircraft was launched from a B-52 bomber out of Edwards Air Force Base in California, and the test flights took place over the […]

Piper has received FAA type certificate approval to install Garmin G1000 avionics in its single-engine Archer model. Widely used as an ab initio trainer, the Archer is powered by a 180 hp Lycoming O-360 A4M engine and cruises at 128 knots. Archers come in two models, the LX and TX, priced at $341,900 and $331,500 […]

Cessna’s Citation line of jets was named after the 1948 winner of the Kentucky Derby. Cessna has a presence at Louisville International Airport (KSDF) this weekend as more than 600 expected general aviation aircraft arrive for the Run for the Roses at Churchill Downs. After winning the Derby, Citation went on to capture the Preakness […]

A San Francisco company held a session at the CAFÉ Electric Aircraft Symposium promoting its covalent molecular bonding of nano particles. The company, Coval Molecular Coatings, uses a process that goes beyond coating materials, and actually bonds with the molecular structure of the surface it is protecting. The inexpensive coating, less than 30 cents per […]

The website “24/7 Wall St.” took airline accident data it recorded from the Aviation Herald and compiled a list of the top nine causes of airline accidents from January 1, 2010, on. It defines an “accident” as any occurrence that caused serious injury, death or significant damage to the aircraft. A “crash” is defined as […]