Mark Phelps

If you hold an order for one of the first three or four HondaJets, it’s time to start getting excited. The first several production aircraft are now on the assembly line in Greensboro, North Carolina, in anticipation of certification before the end of next year. It’s been a long and winding road for the unique […]

Are you concerned about the sky gradually becoming filled with windowless aircraft controlled by someone miles (maybe even states) away? You’re not alone. But it may be that the real “threat” turns out to be less about midair collisions and more about increasingly complicated and restricted airspace rules to accommodate remotely piloted aircraft operations. They […]

Boeing has linked with China’s Commercial Aircraft Corp. (Comac) to explore using waste cooking oil to create jet fuel. The project is headquartered in Beijing at the new Boeing-Comac Aviation Energy Conservation and Emissions Reductions Technology Center. The center is part of the Beijing Aeronautical Science and Technology Research Institute (BASTRI). The research is overseen […]

The FAA is edging its way toward tighter control of light sport aircraft (LSA) manufacturers. Under FAA 8130.2G Change 1, which took effect in July, FAA air safety inspectors (ASIs) and designated airworthiness inspectors (DARs) are required to notify FAA headquarters when a new LSA (make or model) is presented for their approval. Also, the […]

A Maryland company named R3 Engineering reported yesterday it has completed successful testing of an ADS-B-based fully autonomous collision avoidance sequence. The “sense and avoid” system installed in an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) received and processed ADS-B signals from another aircraft, and the UAS’s on board computer determined that their courses constituted a threat of […]

A pair of students at the University of Virginia posted a YouTube video of a “printed” plastic turbofan engine. The video led to a summer job designing a new unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for the Army. They used what’s called three-dimensional “printing,” a technology that produces actual objects, such as aircraft or engine parts, using […]

British aviation enthusiast David Cundall expects to begin excavation later this month to recover 60 or more Supermarine Spitfire Mk XIVs in Myanmar. Cundall discovered the cache of Spitfires earlier this year after searching for them for 16 years, but only signed a deal with the Myanmar government on Tuesday. The aircraft were packed in […]

A wayward yachtsman is thanking his lucky stars this week after being spotted by crew and passengers of an Air Canada Boeing 777. The small sailboat left from near Sydney two weeks ago, headed for ironically named Eden on the south coast of New South Wales to the north. The boat experienced trouble and an […]

The varied training scenarios were developed by SAFE in cooperation with Redbird Flight Simulations, and are available for download at the SAFE website. The scenarios are the same ones used at the SAFE booth at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh and last week at AOPA Summit in Palm Springs, California. SAFE Executive Director Doug Stewart said, “Given […]

With sales of new aircraft gone sour, the light aircraft refurb industry finds itself in a bit of a sweet spot. At AOPA Summit, for example, Todd Peterson of Peterson’s Performance Plus reported he cannot keep up with demand for his Cessna 182 Skylane upgrade. The “King Katmai” conversion includes upgraded engines (260-hp or 300-hp), […]