Search Results for: general aviation inc

Tom Turners February 2019 article, The Big Picture, highlighted for me that we should find ways to continuously improve the way we operate within the National Airspace System (NAS) and one way I can help-to give back, if you will-is to try explaining to pilots more about what goes on in the towers, Tracons and Centers throughout the U.S. Its not mysterious or difficult to understand, but it may be different from what you have been told, or told to expect.

Last year was a good one for general aviation manufacturers. According to the airframers trade association, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), global airplane shipments increased 4.7 percent in 2018, to 2443. Billings-what you and I pay for a new aircraft-increased 1.5 percent, from $20.2 billion to $20.6 billion. Meanwhile, worldwide rotorcraft shipments also rose-by 5.4 percent-from 926 to 976 units. The only disappointment in the year-end was that rotorcraft billings decreased slightly, by 0.7 percent, possibly reflecting growing demand for less-expensive training helicopters.

Today, the B-29 Doc Hangar and Education Center opened its door to the public at the Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita, Kansas (ICT), showcasing the historic Superfortress, one of only two that are maintained in flying condition. The Center will be open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Saturdays from […]

The voice behind me was a familiar one: “You pilots love your toys, don’t you?” I turned around in the coffee shop to see my neighbor’s smiling face staring at the flight-simulation app I was playing on my iPhone. I smiled and nodded as the wave of his hand said, “Go back to your game.” […]

Mojave, California-based advanced flight training company Flight Research Inc. has announced a dedicated upset recovery training course for Cessna Citation operators. The event is planned in partnership with the Citation Jet Owners and Pilots Association during the organization’s CJP Safety Event on April 8 through 12. CJP members can choose two, three or four days […]

Each year the safety data for airline travel aboard commercial aircraft weighing more than 12,500 pounds just keeps getting better in the United States according to the International Air Transport Association. There hasn’t been a major U.S. airline accident in years. Worth noting is that last weekend’s AtlasAir Boeing 767 crash near Houston that claimed […]

The old stereotype of crop dusters-excuse me, aerial applicators-is that they are scofflaw daredevils, perhaps with behavior issues. That caricature is a relic of the past, when an enterprising farmer would buy a $300 war-surplus Stearman, put a hopper in the front cockpit and fly the plane hard until it broke. It follows that some might think ag pilots are an unlikely source of safety wisdom, and have fallen far behind aviations cutting-edge technology, but the truth is quite different.

The recent partial shutdown of the U.S. federal government had a far-reaching impact on aviation, thanks to its parent Department of Transportation (DOT) being one of the agencies lacking an enacted appropriations bill for the current fiscal year. Since related agencies are tacked onto DOT spending bills, the NTSB also closed for the duration, delaying ongoing investigations and postponing new ones. (Our monthly listing of preliminary accident reports might look a bit strange until the NTSB has caught up with the backlog.)

The aviation industry in recent years has highlighted loss of control in-flight (LOC-I) as the leading cause of general aviation fatal accidents. Many aviation organizations, including government agencies, have devoted considerable time and resources to target this problem and develop effective mitigations to reduce the number of LOC-I accidents. Much of that effort focuses on a pilot losing control, and how to train and equip to prevent it, because its the final event in the accident chain.

U.S.-registered aircraft crossing the North Atlantic is hardly new, but smaller jet and turboprop airplanes are making many more crossings than even a decade ago. Because some of these pilots fly primarily in domestic airspace, they might not have experienced some of the intricacies needed to safely operate from countries where English is not the […]