Rob Mark

The Inspector General’s office of the DOT recently audited the FAA’s efforts to reduce runway incursions following a 2015 agency effort to improve safety. The inspector general’s office traditionally functions as the common sense review arm for projects within the DOT. The IG learned that overall, the FAA has experienced a nearly 83 percent increase […]

The pilot shortage sweeping through the regional airline industry has also been partially responsible for a shortage of available flight instructors. Buried inside the data on that shortage is the realization that we’re also short of designated pilot examiners, mostly the local CFIs given the nod by the FAA to deliver checkrides on behalf of […]

When people tell you they’ve watched their lives pass before their eyes, it’s usually in reaction to some kind of near-death trauma. Seeing much of my own life come back to me last week though, was actually centered around something good, even if it was a bit overwhelming. Last Wednesday night I was presented with […]

A final FAA rule published in the Federal Register has removed one more major roadblock to certifying more pilots. The updated Part 61 will soon approve the use of a technically advanced airplane, like a Cirrus, as a substitute for the traditional complex aircraft used for commercial and flight instructor checkrides. Some of the changes […]

A Cessna Caravan 208B on a Part 135 daylight VFR trip between Quinhagak, Alaska (PAQH) and Togiak, Alaska (PATG), slammed into the side of a hill about 10 nm northwest of its destination after encountering IFR conditions along the route. The aircraft was operated by Hageland Aviation Services Inc, dba Ravn Connect, as flight 1133. […]

In late April, much of the industry began breathing a sigh of relief that House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster’s (R-Pa.) last minute attempt to reintroduce a plan to separate the nation’s air traffic control system from the FAA’s core infrastructure role was pulled by the Pennsylvania Congressman. Now, just 60 days later, […]

What started more than a decade ago as a small gathering of aviation entrepreneurs has in 2018 grown to a eagerly-awaited presence of men and women excited to share their “next big thing” with the tens of thousands of visitors to Oshkosh’s Wittman Regional Airport. The cutting-edge technology and products expected to drive general aviation’s […]

NASA’s remotely-piloted Ikhana aircraft on Tuesday successfully flew its first mission in the National Airspace System without a safety chase aircraft. The UAV departed from the agency’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California and moved the United States one step closer to normalizing unmanned aircraft operations in the airspace used by commercial and private […]

The final rule overhauling Part 23 Airworthiness Standards for GA aircraft officially took effect last summer. Recently the FAA issued 63 means of compliance (MOCs) for Part 23 intended to ease installation of innovative, safety-enhancing technologies into small airplanes while keeping costs down. The FAA participated with industry and other stakeholders in developing the standards […]

DOT Secretary Elaine Chao last week said the administration might be reconsidering one of the most controversial elements of the 2010 Airline Safety and FAA Extension Act, the provision that requires Part 121 first officers on scheduled air carriers to possess an ATP rating before setting foot in the cockpit during regular revenue service. The […]