Aircraft

Most people who entered the doors of the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California, to attend the 2014 edition of the Helicopter Association International’s annual convention, Heli-Expo, on Feb. 25 headed straight for the Bell Helicopter booth. A massive floor-to-ceiling arced screen had been set up, cornering off a significant portion of the display. One […]

While Bell Helicopter proved at Heli-Expo that the 505 Jet Ranger X is already a contender in the SLS market, there are some formidable platforms in this class of helicopters that have already been established. What follows are four comparable five-seat light turbine helicopters that Bell will have to work very hard at beating out […]

Icon Aircraft has provided an update on the Icon A5 amphibious LSA program. It has been nine months since the Tehachapi, California-based company received the go ahead from the FAA for a requested weight increase, which allowed Icon to give the A5 a gross weight of 1,510 pounds. With the weight increase secured, the engineering […]

The idea that the flight-control computers in a modern fly-by-wire airplane are in charge all of the time still sparks debate among pilots more than 25 years after the technology became the de facto standard in Airbus airliners. The very notion that the computers can ignore the pilot’s inputs if they so choose but the […]

The beginnings of any new flight segment is filled as much with dreams as with achievements, but one European company, Solar Flight, has been doing electrics for going on 25 years now. The company’s latest project, the Sunseeker Duo, made its first flight a few months ago and Solar Flight is now talking results. The […]

The FAA is giving helicopter operators another year to comply with new safety rules announced by the agency in February. The announcement of the delay came only a few days before the rules were set to go into effect, which was scheduled to happen today. Instead the date for compliance is now set for April […]

Spike Aerospace has revealed a futuristic interior for its S-512 supersonic business jet, currently in the development phase. The high-tech cabin has been designed with no windows. Instead, the cabin walls are embedded with massive computer screens, allowing the occupants to choose the view. Should Spike make its cool SSBJ design a reality, its passengers […]

Vulcanair of Italy has revealed plans for a four-place light single dubbed the V1.0 that the uninitiated will probably mistake for a wildly modified Cessna Skyhawk. The high-wing design will feature a 180 horsepower Lycoming IO-360 engine and Garmin glass avionics — both hallmarks of the Cessna single. But unlike the Skyhawk, Vulcanair plans to […]

Mooney Aircraft is celebrating its comeback to the industry with an unusual promotion. The Kerrville, Texas-based company has announced an online auction called “First to Fly” to sell the first Mooney Acclaim Type S produced on the recently modernized production line. The auction kicked off on April 4, during the Sun ‘n Fun show in […]

After facing several delays, Bombardier Aerospace’s Learjet 85 took off on Wednesday from Wichita Mid-Continent International Airport to successfully complete its first flight. The Learjet 85 performed “very well,” according to Vice President and General Manager Ralph Acs. The all-composite jet flew for 2 hours and 15 minutes and reached an altitude of 30,000 feet […]