Aircraft

Two Weeks to Taxi was kicked off in late 2005. The program began in 2004 where only the airframe was completed in 18 days. But the program quickly evolved, and through an ingenious feat of organization and efficiency, customers can now come to the factory and get their airplanes ready to taxi during a quick […]

If you spend a day at the airport in Mojave, California, chances are good that you’ll see some special airplanes and helicopters rolling out from the National Test Pilot School, located adjacent to the control tower. To provide a wide range of aircraft for its students while keeping the cost of aircraft acquisition reasonable, NTPS […]

Icon Aircraft last week released the details of its remarkable week at AirVenture. The startup LSA manufacturer scored a total of 143 deposits for its composite folding-wing Icon A5 amphibious sport airplane, which pushes the order book to nearly 700, the company said, turning the calendar for first available delivery positions into 2015. The company […]

The FAA has awarded supplemental type certification for the Hawker 800XPR. The STC, available exclusively from Hawker Beechcraft Global Customer Support (GCS), is an upgrade package for the 800XP that includes Honeywell‘s TFE731-50R engines and Hawker winglets. Honeywell’s TFE731-50R engines are capable of producing 5,000 pounds of thrust, but have been flat rated to 4,660 […]

Cessna has delivered its 100th 162 Skycatcher to Sporty’s. The airplane is the 2012 Sporty’s Sweepstakes prize and will be delivered to a Sporty’s Pilot Shop customer at the company’s annual fly-in next May. “We are thrilled that Cessna reserved this milestone Skycatcher for Sporty’s Sweepstakes,” says Sporty’s president and CEO Michael Wolf. The two-place […]

Continuing a tradition of success in South America with its single-engine utility airplanes, Cessna recently inked a deal to sell nine 208 and 208B Caravans to the Brazilian Air Force (Força Aérea Brasileira). These airplanes bring the total number of Caravans Cessna has delivered to Brazil to 32, to complement the many other existing Caravans […]

The SubSonex Jet, one very, very light jet powered by a Czech-built PBS TJ-100 turbine engine, took off for its first flight in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, last week, bringing the prospect of a recreational jet for private pilots one step closer to reality. Renowned airshow pilot Bob Carlton, famous for his performances in a modified Salto […]

The U.S. Defense Research Projects Agency (DARPA) was dealt a setback to its ambitions to create an aircraft capable of traveling at speeds faster than 13,000 mph after contact with its hypersonic test aircraft was lost just minutes into a proving flight on Aug. 11. It’s unclear what caused the loss of contact with the […]

The Taurus G4, a four-seat electric aircraft developed by Pipistrel, took to the air for the first time in the United States during its official maiden flight on Friday in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Designed specifically to compete in NASA’s upcoming CAFE Green Flight Challenge, the aircraft had previously completed a few test hops in Europe before […]

Better than New Stinson 108-3 __One of the nicest examples of a custom restored Stinson you’ll find anywhere occupies a row hangar at Sussex Airport (KFWN) in northern New Jersey. Here, a 1947 Model 108-3 “Flying Station Wagon” (so called because of its Woody-style wood-paneled interior and reinforced floor) proudly displays its window sticker signifying […]