Search Results for: Citation X

Since adopting new standards of categorizing aircraft for their wake turbulence, Memphis International Airport has increased its operational capacity by an estimated 15 percent. Under a new FAA system called Recat (for “re-categorization”), the new standards refine how aircraft wake turbulence levels are categorized. This makes for significant differences in determining following distances on landing […]

As more and more technology is welcomed into our formerly round-dial cockpits, many pilots have expressed growing frustration over the lingering need to do some things the old-fashioned way. In the new, high-tech cockpit, flat-panel screens, all-electronic flight instruments and portable, tablet-size computers with built-in GPS dominate our must-have lists. Along the way, these much-welcomed advances have helped simplify the pre-flight planning task. But much of the information we need for every flight remains stuck in the abbreviated, ALL CAPS format used when DC-3s and J3 Cubs were the cat’s meow. The notice to airmen (Notam) function is perhaps the best/worst example of how international regulatory agencies have failed leveraging new technologies to improve dissemination of flight-critical information. But now, thanks to an unlikely set of circumstances, an overhaul of the Notam system is underway. Here’s what’s going on, why and what you can expect.

Airplanes could be seen taxiing down the streets of Scottsdale, Arizona, in the early morning hours as they made the two-mile journey from the Scottsdale airport to the WestWorld special events facility where the annual Barrett-Jackson collector car auction is held from January 13-20. Lancair is one of the manufacturers in attendance with the high-performance […]

Tamarack Aerospace, which last fall introduced its “active winglet” technology, has received an order for three shipsets of the winglets from Premier Jet Aviation in Florida. Premier plans to incorporate the winglets in its “CJ Plus” retrofit of Cessna Citation CJ (Model 525) series jets. The Tamarack winglets are expected to be certified for the […]

Beechcraft is entering a new era and returning to its roots.

The 1969 Learjet 25 that crashed in the early morning of December 9, killing singer Jenni Rivera and six others, was owned by Las Vegas-based Starwood Management LLC. But the company said the fatal flight was not a charter. Rather, it was described as a final demonstration flight in anticipation of Rivera purchasing the jet […]

Except for the assault vehicles on display, the cruise and shoulder launched missiles, the Vogue-style models sporting paramilitary jumpsuits and dark glasses, and the thousands of security personnel, Airshow China 2012 is pretty much like EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, but only if you don’t look too closely. Called the China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition […]

We all want to fly safely, but it doesn’t work out that way sometimes. The accident record is filled with instances in which a pilot or two failed to fully implement that desire. Although pilots always are finding new ways to bend airplanes, that’s not the norm. Instead, too many accidents are repeats of pilots’ past poor performances: Sadly, we keep doing the same things, but expect different results.

Frasca International is taking a big step forward by entering the level-D simulator market. The Urbana, Illinois, company has produced FAA-approved level-B and -C simulators for the past decade, primarily for Beech King Airs, Embraer Phenoms and the Cessna Citation Mustang. Now the sim maker is moving up market with its first level-D project based […]

When Special Olympics athletes descend on the Princeton/Mercer County area of New Jersey for the 2014 games, some 800 of them will be arriving in Cessna Citation jets. The Seventh Citation Olympics Airlift was announced at last month’s NBAA Convention in Orlando, and the volunteer effort is expected to bring athletes from all 50 states […]