Aircraft

Aviation enthusiast Bernardo Malfitano has put together an interesting and compelling montage of dozens of photographs showing Chinese aircraft juxtaposed with the Western and Soviet designs on which they are based. The collection spans 50 years of Chinese aviation development, with most of the early photos representing Chinese airplanes and helicopters built under license with […]

Rockwell Collins has decided to bid adieu to its well traveled and much beloved North American Sabreliner 50 avionics test bed, an airplane the company has owned since 1976. The airplane has been used over the decades for testing a variety of groundbreaking avionics developments, including early satellite communications, radio altimeters, the first Mode-S transponder, […]

A U.S. bankruptcy judge has approved Hawker Beechcraft’s Chapter 11 reorganization plan, clearing the way for the company to restart operations under the name Beechcraft within the next few weeks. “Today’s ruling marks the final significant step in the restructuring process,” said Robert S. Miller, Hawker Beechcraft CEO. “Throughout this process, we have been guided […]

Just Aircraft out of Walhalla, South Carolina, is delivering a new short takeoff and landing version of its Highlander — the Highlander SuperStol. This new version has a modified wing design and new, beefier landing gear that allows the airplane to fly into short backcountry airstrips. Tundra tires up to 29 inches can be fitted […]

A new aircraft concept called the Aeroscraft completed what Mario Pantuso, Aeros business development, described as the “first float” this month. Pantuso said the initial flight-testing program has been conducted in a hangar and has proven the aircraft’s vertical takeoff and landing and hovering capabilities. The first flight outside the hangar is expected in the […]

The construction process behind the smooth-flying speedster.

If you look back at used airplane values over the past many decades, you’ll see an interesting though hardly surprising trend: Airplanes that can do a lot go for a premium. It’s a good thing to know if you’re looking to purchase a new airplane, and it’s a good thing to know if you have […]

A new look has been bestowed upon the Memphis Belle (The Movie), the B-17 Flying Fortress used as the platform for the 1990 movie Memphis Belle, a fictionalized depiction of the airplane’s final mission. The B-17 is still in service and is operated by the Liberty Foundation, which uses the airplane to educate the public […]

The NTSB on Thursday said the Boeing 787 Dreamliner battery that caught fire earlier this month in Boston shows evidence of thermal runaway, a serious condition in which an increase in temperature causes progressively hotter temperatures. Still unclear is the question of which occurred first, the thermal runaway or a short circuit in the battery […]

After Fifi, the world’s only flying B-29, made a precautionary landing at AIRSHO in Midland last October, the big bomber hasn’t made another flight since. The problem, as most of our readers are aware, is that engine maintenance is expensive for all of us. When you factor in the cost of repairing one of the […]