Aircraft

Best known for offering adventure rides in vintage military aircraft, Warbird Adventures, Kissimmee, Florida, now offers flight instruction in Robinson R44 rotorcraft at as little as $340 per hour, including the cost of the instructor. Introductory flights are available for as little as $125 (for 15 minutes). DVD recordings of the flight experience are available. […]

Amir Tirosh, a former Israeli Air Force pilot and founder of avionics company AirGator, died Friday in the crash of a Piper PA-28 near Dutchess County Airport in upstate New York. A passenger was critically injured and airlifted to a hospital where he remains in critical condition. Founded by Tirosh in 2000, AirGator developed its […]

Building on its successful fractional equity program, Dallas-based PlaneSmart has launched a new scheme to get pilots into a late-model Cirrus. The new program allows customers to sign onto a fractional lease, as opposed to purchasing an equity position in an aircraft. The result is lower up front cost, though the monthly management cost is […]

A Nov. 6 fatal accident near Agnos, Arkansas, further mars the record of the Zodiac CH601XL light sport aircraft. The type has been cited for possible problems with its controls that could lead to aerodynamic flutter and in-flight breakup. Six previous in-flight breakups have led the Experimental Aircraft Association to urge operators of the type […]

The University of North Dakota’s Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences will take delivery of six more Cessna 172 Skyhawks next month. That makes 44 new Cessnas UND will have received within 18 months. The UND Skyhawks will come equipped with the Garmin G1000 avionics suite. UND operates a fleet of 116 aircraft, including eight helicopters. […]

With its landing gear first installed last July, the prototype Icon A5 amphibian continues to undergo a combination of tests involving land and water operations. The company reports that the electrically driven retractable gear cycles in 10 seconds, and takeoff tests have shown its geometry to be correct. Liftoffs have come at below the expected […]

Hawker Beechcraft has announced the first non-stop transatlantic flight of a King Air 350ER (extended range). The ocean-hopping flight was actually the second leg of a delivery flight. The aircraft was the first of four modified 350ERs ordered by the U.K. Ministry of Defence for its Military Flying Training System program. The King Air flew […]

Some hydraulic lifters from Teledyne Continental Motors (TCM) have shown premature wear — some in as little as five hours. TCM issued a mandatory service bulletin on Nov. 3. The FAA subsequently issued an emergency Airworthiness Directive after assessing the bulletin. All the lifters in question were installed after June 19, 2009 and the AD […]

In 1944, his father, Wolfgang, wrote the definitive text on seat-of-pants flying, Stick & Rudder. Now, William Langewiesche has published a book examining details of the Miracle on the Hudson ditching. In his new book, Fly By Wire: The Geese, the Glide and the “Miracle” on the Hudson, the younger Langewiesche (who is an accomplished […]

Outgoing president of Piper Aircraft John Becker (leaving “to pursue other career goals”) will be replaced as of Dec. 1 in that role by current CEO Kevin Gould, who will carry both titles. Gould was vice president of operations when Singapore-based Imprimis Fund acquired the airframer last May. He replaced President and CEO James Bass […]