Mark Phelps

The mysterious early morning crash of a Cessna 172 on October 29 just became a little less mysterious. Canadian pilot Michael Callan’s blood alcohol level (BAC) has been reported by the Tennessee state medical examiner as 0.081 percent — more than twice the FAA limit of 0.040 percent and just in excess of Tennessee’s threshold […]

A team of researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is examining nanotechnology that could lead to inexpensive head-up displays (HUDs) for general aviation aircraft. The project is supported by the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Army Research Office. A proof of concept prototype of the system was recently shown publicly. Using nanotechnology, the […]

Aluminum lasts a long time. It’s why airplanes are not subject to the same planned obsolescence that allows the automotive industry to continually generate repeat customers. Though the last combat mission over Vietnam was flown almost four decades ago, the remnants of the air war are still visible in the Southeast Asian country. Blogger David […]

The Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA) announced yesterday it has reached a partnership agreement with the NextGen GA Fund to help aircraft owners find “quick, affordable financial incentives” for upgrading their avionics. With the 2020 equipage deadline, there has been concern within the general aviation community over the cost to upgrade current aircraft to meet the […]

Long Island, New York-based Hopscotch Air celebrates its fifth anniversary this week. Hopscotch Air flies seven Cirrus SR22s as air taxis, an idea that was supposed to explode with the advent of glass cockpits, NextGen and very light jets. Hopscotch partners with Linear Air, a similarly configured air taxi operation flying Eclipse VLJs. Together, the […]

Last summer, General Aviation Manufacturers Association president and CEO Pete Bunce worked elbow-to-elbow for two weeks with a group of high school students. They were assembling a Glasair Sportsman kit plane at the company’s Arlington, Washington, headquarters — under the “Two Weeks to Taxi” program. Now, as part of the 2014 program in cooperation with […]

The FAA’s latest issue of its Safety Briefing magazine places its editorial focus on advanced technology and how pilots interact with it. There has been a lot of concern about pilots’ overreliance on avionics and their lack of proficiency in basic flying skills. The FAA publication addresses some of the more pressing issues that face […]

An airshow routine usually lasts just a few minutes, but the time and effort that goes into that display can take months to prepare — and it’s not all about the flying. In a new video series named Live Airshow TV, performers reveal the inside stories of their day-to-day lives. The first episode features Michael […]

On New Year’s Day 1914, pilot Tony Jannus took off from St. Petersburg, Florida, on a scheduled passenger flight to Tampa. On the centennial of that flight, the departure city held a ceremony marking what was the first airline flight in the U.S., and it was planned that a historically accurate replica of Jannus’s Benoist […]

The NTSB closed out the old year with a quintet of Safety Alerts (SAs) covering issues it believes to be the top threats in general aviation operations based on recent accident history. The advisories are short documents outlining the areas of concern and citing accidents in which the advice could have prevented injury or death. […]