Aviation News

The odds of Cessna reclaiming its spot as the maker of the fastest civilian airplane just grew stronger. While Gulfstream one-upped the Wichita-based company when its Mach 0.925 G650 business jet was brought to market last year, Cessna announced last week that it has proven the promised performance capabilities of the Citation X speedster to […]

Lockheed Martin’s famed Skunk Works has revealed plans for a new hypersonic spy plane that would be capable of flying at Mach 6, making it the fastest airplane ever and obviating the need for stealth technology because nothing on the planet would be capable of catching it. Designed as a replacement for the super-speedy SR-71 […]

At its NBAA Convention press conference last week, Cessna showed video of its Scorpion light attack jet undergoing ejection seat testing. It’s explosive footage. As I reported on my Twitter feed (@robertgoyer), Cessna plans to fly the Scorpion this year, a remarkably ambitious production schedule, and testing the seats is a critical step along that […]

The bizarre fatal crash of a Cessna 172 at Nashville International Airport (KBNA) on Tuesday that went undetected for up to six hours took another strange turn when the pilot turned out to be a convicted Canadian bank robber. The 172 apparently crashed sometime after 2:45 a.m. in dense fog with 45-year-old Michael Callan at […]

The FAA today announced that airlines may now permit the use of passengers’ personal electronic devices during all phases of flight, including takeoff and landing. The FAA said it based its decision on input from a group of experts that included representatives from the airlines, aviation manufacturers, passengers, pilots, flight attendants, and the mobile technology […]

Dee Welch is a Super Cub pilot, a skilled woodworker and a member of both the Seaplane Pilots Association (SPA) and the Flying Musicians Association (FMA). Somehow he connected all those dots and figured an old wing spar would make an exceptional soundboard for a guitar. And now the resulting instrument is being raffled off […]

Embraer intends to expand its Melbourne, Florida, factory to include an assembly line for the Legacy 450 and 500 midsize fly-by-wire business jets currently in development. While the details of the expansion still need to be approved by local and state officials, the Brazilian jet maker said it hopes to open the new facility as […]

Of all the jump planes used for sport parachuting, a Gulfstream GV is probably not the first to come to mind. But the Drake Group, an engineering firm based in Las Vegas, has completed a Supplemental Type Certificate to do just that. The approval covers single and tandem jumping, as well as cargo parachutes for […]

Another sleek-looking light sport amphibian has surfaced, this time from a New Zealand company called Vickers Aircraft. With a look suspiciously close to that of the California-bred Icon A5, the Vickers Wave would be powered by a Lycoming IO-360 engine, feature folding wings and BRS parachute and even be available with optional bow thrusters for […]

Advanced aircraft design was on display last night during the World Series game number 5 between the Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Cardinals when a fan from the upper deck threw a paper airplane down to the field that landed within feet of the pitcher’s mound. After the game was over the same fan […]