Aviation News

Possession of an instrument rating opens the door to airports when the weather is below basic VFR, provided the aircraft is properly equipped and that someone has a copy of the appropriate instrument approach plate — either electronic or paper — for guidance. Anywhere and in any weather… almost. There are roughly 40 U.S. airports […]

Much has been written recently trying to answer the question of why too few young people seem interested in a flying career. At a recent meeting of the Chicago Area Business Aviation Association at PWK, the topic popped up again, except this time around it all focused on Biz Av. Aviation department managers I spoke […]

I realized at some point during my instrument training that airplanes are a lot more like horses than they are like cars, and pilots can learn a lot by approaching their machines with this in mind. As a child I rode horses — a lot. We had four of them on our property. As a […]

As my flying routine typically involves cramped middle seats on bargain commercial flights, the thought of actual high-speed Internet at cruising altitude is about as realistic as finding the treasure of Oak Island. So, when SmartSky invited me on a recent flight to test its 4G LTE network over Florida, I was skeptical at best […]

The recent end of the FAA’s fiscal year at the close of September brought good news to the amateur-built aircraft world when agency data showed a marked decline in the number of accidents in that category of aircraft. “For the 12-month period from October 1, 2016, to September 30, 2017, fatal accident totals in amateur-built […]

It has been a year-and-a-half since Mooney Aircraft’s first Ovation Ultra took flight from the company’s headquarters in Kerrville, Texas, and it hasn’t all been good news for the manufacturer since then. But Mooney is closing out 2017 on a strong note, as it recently celebrated the delivery of the first Ovation Ultra, before bringing […]

After a weekend of heart-pumping air racing at the U-Tapao Naval Air Base in Pattaya, Thailand, the American pilots dominated the Air Race 1 World Cup. Cassutt racer Tim Cone from Fresno, California stood at the top of the podium as the winner, flying Race #99 named “What Airplane Honey” after his wife found out […]

Officials at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island in Washington issued an apology after a pilot drew male genitalia in the sky above Okanogan County on Thursday. Residents captured photos and video and sent them to local news outlets to complain about the inappropriate prank. “The Navy holds its aircrew to the highest standards and we […]

Clearly updating the technology to run the nation’s ATC system hasn’t been nearly as easy or as cheap as anyone expected. A new report from the Senate Republican Policy Committee says, in fact, that perhaps the original timeline to bring NextGen to fruition was unrealistic to begin with. Beyond that theory however, NextGen is Delayed, […]

Aircraft operating under part 91K, 121, 125, or 135, that use an electronic flight bag as a replacement for carrying required paperwork such as instrument approach plates or aircraft manuals, will want to spend some time with the guidelines in FAA’s recently updated AC 120-76D. The new version clarifies the definition of an EFB as […]