Aviation News

AOPA’s Mark Baker held a town hall meeting at the Sun ‘n Fun campus yesterday, announcing the industry organization’s plan to bring more people into flying and keep pilots flying. One of the biggest initiatives on the slate is increasing the number of active flying clubs. Baker referred to flying clubs as “the future of […]

Many aircraft owners will soon be able to install non-TSO’d avionics in their Part 23 certified airplanes in a development that should be a boon to pilots looking to upgrade their panels on the cheap. It’s being hailed as a “breakthrough” by EAA and the FAA (and it really is) but the blockbuster news also […]

Hilton Software has done what many aviation app producers thought impossible. The company has figured out a way to add geo-reference capabilities to Departure Procedures (DPs) and Standard Terminal Arrival Routes (STARs), something that has presented a challenge for software developers because the charts are not drawn to scale. However, Hilton Software’s patent-pending WingX Non-Linear […]

Avidyne announced new capabilities for its IFD-series navigators today at the Sun ‘n Fun International Fly-In and Expo in Lakeland, Florida. With the latest software upgrade, Release 10.2, the IFD440 and IFD540 will have synthetic vision views, safety functionality that is retrofittable to existing units for free. The R 10.2 release is expected in the […]

Hartzell Engine Technologies (HET) announced its acquisition of Sky-Tec — a manufacturer of aircraft starters and solenoids — today at Sun ‘n Fun. Adding solenoids to its portfolio, HET will extend its reach to the Lycoming engine market, while enhancing its product offerings with Sky-Tec’s starters. “Sky-Tec has a strong position on Lycoming engines, and […]

Cessna Aircraft is making angle-of-attack standard equipment in the 172 Skyhawk, making it the first Part 23-certified production piston airplane to come from the factory with the technology. Cessna selected the Safe Flight SCc angle-of-attack system for the Skyhawk, and is making the product an option in the 182 Skylane and 206 Turbo Stationair. Based […]

For the 42nd year, the gates at the Lakeland Linder Airport opened today for the Sun ‘n Fun International Fly-in and Expo. The usual compote of airplanes, avionics, and flight-gear are on display through Sunday, mixed up with an array of educational forums and workshops, and impressive afternoon and evening airshows. This year’s airshow adds […]

Piper Aircraft continues to find success in the flight training market, the most recent evidence coming today at Sun ‘n Fun in Lakeland, Florida, with the announcement that UND Aerospace has placed an order for 112 piston singles and twins. The deal, which includes a mix of Piper Archers and Seminoles, calls for deliveries to […]

(function(d, s, id) { if (d.getElementById(id)) return; var js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = ‘//cdn4.wibbitz.com/static.js’; d.getElementsByTagName(‘body’)[0].appendChild(js); }(document, ‘script’, ‘wibbitz-static-embed’)); If you book a flight on All Nippon Airways (ANA), the force may be with you. A Boeing 777 painted in the likeness of Star Wars droid BB-8 made its debut flight on Monday, […]

Boeing plans to cut up to 8,000 jobs this year to reduce costs and stay competitive with Airbus amid softening demand for the 747 and 777. The world’s biggest plane maker said it will slash as many as 4,000 jobs by midyear, with cuts coming first from attrition as employees retire or leave for other […]