Flying Staff

Four years ago, I added wingtip extensions to my homebuilt. Originally, I had built the wing 20 inches shorter than its intended span of 35 feet, intending to add the tips after flight tests. I hoped to be able to adjust the dihedral with those little bits at the ends of the wings. It worked; […]

Airframe by Cessna. Engines from Pratt & Whitney. Avionics by Collins. In a world where we all wonder what became of the blue chip companies, these three names are still rock-solid leaders in business aviation. So it is only natural that they would team up to make the Citation XLS, the bestselling business jet for […]

“May 2nd, 1972. Checkout in PA-28-180 Gene Van Meter 1919837 CFII 2-74.” So reads an entry on page 10 of my first logbook, one of those small, little ones, about the size of a business envelope. I had about 100 hours under my belt back then, accumulated over the five years since I started flying. […]

Uvalde, Texas, seems like a strange place for a world-class business jet re-engining company to call home. Located 70 miles west of San Antonio in a part of Texas better known for deer hunting and off-road racing than for high technology, Sierra Industries is way off the beaten path, unless you fly a bizjet, that […]

Viking Air, the British Columbia company that successfully reintroduced the Twin Otter last year, has made a pitch to the Canadian government to consider something old in its quest for a new search and rescue platform: the Buffalo, a heavy-duty midsized utility transport hauler. Last produced in the ’70s by de Havilland, the Buffalo is […]

The new Air Tractor AT-504 ag aircraft is a side-by-side trainer that has full capability for aerial application. The ranks of experienced ag pilots are being thinned by age so it is essential that new, younger pilots be trained in the demanding flying of aerial application. But the high-performance agplanes from Air Tractor and others […]

Continental has reduced the price of its factory-new or factory-rebuilt engines by 10 percent. Unlike a major overhaul done on your existing engine when unexpected problems can be found after work begins, you know exactly the price of the new or rebuilt Continental, and it’s now 10 percent less. Rebuilt is the FAA term for […]