Mark Phelps

The Northwest Airlines overflight last month has generated significant interest in what devices pilots carry into the cockpit and how they use them. The Senate has proposed legislation banning all personal electronic devices, but pilots have objected. They maintain that they use their laptops, smart phones and other devices to enhance the information they have […]

Randy Babbitt is concerned for his job, should unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) expand their horizons within U.S. civilian airspace. Referring to the August collision over the Hudson River, he told a gathering of the Aerospace Industries Association last week in Phoenix, “Can you even imagine if one of those aircraft had been an unmanned system? […]

With a high pressure system forecast to continue dominating the weather, today looks like good VFR day in the New York City area. Pilots planning to navigate the Hudson River Class B exclusion zone need to be aware of new rules that are in effect. Following the fatal collision this summer between a VFR Piper […]

A Nov. 6 fatal accident near Agnos, Arkansas, further mars the record of the Zodiac CH601XL light sport aircraft. The type has been cited for possible problems with its controls that could lead to aerodynamic flutter and in-flight breakup. Six previous in-flight breakups have led the Experimental Aircraft Association to urge operators of the type […]

The University of North Dakota’s Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences will take delivery of six more Cessna 172 Skyhawks next month. That makes 44 new Cessnas UND will have received within 18 months. The UND Skyhawks will come equipped with the Garmin G1000 avionics suite. UND operates a fleet of 116 aircraft, including eight helicopters. […]

The grand finale for the Wichita Aero Club’s monthly luncheon meetings will consist of a high-level summit meeting of the city’s top aviation leaders. Moderating the Dec. 15 discussion will be Flying magazine Editor-in-chief J. Mac McClellan. He will direct a panel including the following senior executives: Bill Boisture, Hawker Beechcraft; David Coleal, Bombardier Learjet; […]

With its landing gear first installed last July, the prototype Icon A5 amphibian continues to undergo a combination of tests involving land and water operations. The company reports that the electrically driven retractable gear cycles in 10 seconds, and takeoff tests have shown its geometry to be correct. Liftoffs have come at below the expected […]

Hawker Beechcraft has announced the first non-stop transatlantic flight of a King Air 350ER (extended range). The ocean-hopping flight was actually the second leg of a delivery flight. The aircraft was the first of four modified 350ERs ordered by the U.K. Ministry of Defence for its Military Flying Training System program. The King Air flew […]

Some hydraulic lifters from Teledyne Continental Motors (TCM) have shown premature wear — some in as little as five hours. TCM issued a mandatory service bulletin on Nov. 3. The FAA subsequently issued an emergency Airworthiness Directive after assessing the bulletin. All the lifters in question were installed after June 19, 2009 and the AD […]

In 1944, his father, Wolfgang, wrote the definitive text on seat-of-pants flying, Stick & Rudder. Now, William Langewiesche has published a book examining details of the Miracle on the Hudson ditching. In his new book, Fly By Wire: The Geese, the Glide and the “Miracle” on the Hudson, the younger Langewiesche (who is an accomplished […]