Rob Mark

The Aviation Safety Network, an arm of the Flight Safety Foundation, reported 2019 was still one of the industry’s safest, despite the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max in March that claimed 157 lives. Last year wasn’t accident-free, however. ASN says 20 airline accidents around the world claimed 283 lives. Even when accounting […]

Unmanned aerial vehicles—drones, as we all like to call them—have dramatically affected the world over the last decade with their ability to handle tasks considered either too dangerous or too mundane for humans. Public safety drones, for instance, are capable of heading into the teeth of a brush fire to gather critical intelligence, a place […]

It stands to reason that if a passenger pays for a charter flight, they’re entitled to expect a significantly better level of safety than if they accept a free ride from a neighbor in their single-engine trainer. That’s because the FAA has said, “Pilots who transport paying passengers must have the required qualifications and training, […]

While it is still too early to draw any final conclusions about what brought down the Pilatus PC-12 this past Thanksgiving weekend, the NTSB’s preliminary report published December 18 does highlight some disturbing facts about the single-engine turboprop’s short flight after it departed Chamberlin Municipal Airport, South Dakota (9V9). The accident killed the pilot and […]

How times have changed. Delta Air Lines said on December 18, 2019, it plans to rejoin Airlines for America (A4A), the trade association it parted ways with in October 2015. A4A advocates on behalf of its passenger and cargo airline members to shape policies and measures that promote safety, security and a healthy U.S. airline […]

To many in the aviation industry, pilot Pete Combs was the longtime baritone voice of the NBAA’s Flight Plan podcast since early 2014, but he was so much more. Combs, an Arlington, Virginia, native was also a longtime WSB Radio reporter in Atlanta, Georgia, and a freelance journalist for CBS News Radio. Combs, 60, succumbed […]

The Monday, December 16, 2019, announcement at Boeing’s Chicago headquarters of the company’s plan to halt 737 Max production in January 2020 was not much of a surprise to anyone. Despite the troubled airplane’s grounding in March 2019, America’s top manufacturing exporter continued building 42 airframes each month, creating a backlog of more than 400 […]

Viewing the Manhattan skyline from any vantage point is impressive, but when seen from aloft the Big Apple skyline becomes a breathtaking experience. In March 2018, a New York tour operator launched an Airbus AS350 helicopter with a pilot and five passengers for what was expected to be a 30-minute dusk flight near the East […]

The forum room at AirVenture’s Pilot Proficiency Center off Boeing Plaza is nearly full as the afternoon sun begins to drive people inside for a few minutes of cool air before the airshow. Even at 83 degrees, it’s still a great day for AirVenture 2019, following the torrential rains earlier in the week that threatened […]

The smartest of smartphones these days can handle plenty of meaty chores like text, audio, photo and even video editing. When it comes to gaming though, most fall pretty short. Nowhere is this more apparent than when we airplane geeks try to recreate our flying with any of the flight simulator apps. Even Laminar Research’s […]