Pia Bergqvist

The Airbus Perlan 2 has reached new heights, breaking the world record for a glider flight as it soared to 52,172 feet. An Aero Boero AB-180 tow plane pulled chief pilot Jim Payne and co-pilot Morgan Sandercock off the ground at Comandante Armando Tola International Airport, which sits at an elevation of 669 feet in […]

Thump. Thump. Thump. The steady sound of the wheels ­hitting the expansion joints in the tarmac at the Reno-Stead Airport outside Reno, Nevada, only intensifies the butterflies flitting in my stomach as I taxi out to Runway 26 for my first solo run in a Lancair Legacy. This is no standard first solo, of course. The […]

As Gulfstream nears FAA certification for its new series of luxury business jets, the G500 and G600, the company announced it has flown the final G600 test aircraft. The G500 and G600 are both highly advanced bizjets incorporating fly-by-wire, touchscreen avionics and active control sidestick technology. This is the fifth G600 test bed Gulfstream has […]

It is not often that a fully aerobatic airplane is certified. But just this week the team at Bentonville, Arkansas-based Game Composites saw their GB1 GameBird receive its certification. The FAA signed the Part 23 paperwork yesterday — about four months after the European Aviation Safety Agency gave its approval. The GameBird was hatched in […]

As the certification of the PC-24 Super Versatile Jet inches closer, Pilatus announced it is discontinuing the product that helped grow the company decades ago — the PC-6 Porter. The Porter has become known as a terrific short- and unimproved field performer and it’s seen one of the longest continuous production runs of any airplane […]

You have likely heard of Yves Rossy, aka Jetman, who designed a hard wing with jet engines that he straps on like a backpack and controls with body contortions. The Hague, Netherlands-based wingsuit pilot Jarno Cordia has pulled off his own concept, attaching what he calls “iron man style jet boots” to his ankles in […]

There was a lot of hype leading up to the day of the solar eclipse yesterday, when the sun was momentarily entirely blocked by the moon, turning day to night in a narrow but complete path across the United States. Having heard from my parents about their experiences with a full eclipse decades ago, I […]

So far, 2017 looks like a good year for piston airplane sales. The General Aviation Manufacturers Association released its shipment report for the first two quarters of the year, indicating an overall increase in piston shipments of 5.6 percent over the same period last year. It was particularly good news for piston airplane producers in […]

You may recall the innovative design of the Marenco Swisshelicopter SKYe SH09 – the light helicopter with the double doors at the tail section and large sliding door entry for the glass cockpit – and wonder what is happening with the Swiss project. The answer is, a whole lot. The company announced last week it […]

The voice of Red Bull Air Race director Jimmy DiMatteo over the loudspeakers entices the crowds to crane their necks skyward, their eyes tracking a small racing airplane pointing its nose toward the inflatable starting Air Gate. A white line of smoke appears behind the airplane, indicating its twisting track around the highly technical course. […]