Aviation News

The Federal Communications Commission is considering allowing cellphone use on airline flights above 10,000 feet, a change that could provide a healthy cash windfall for carriers while risking upsetting passengers who have to endure chatty seatmates. The agency, which prohibits cellphone use for making phone calls or accessing data in flight, is circulating proposed rulemaking […]

After the FAA last week appeared to brush off sharp criticism over a new medical policy directed at overweight pilots, Congress reacted by crafting a bill that would require the agency to allow public comments on the proposal and apply normal rulemaking procedures before adopting the change. The FAA wants pilots diagnosed with high body […]

The aftermath of the tragic accident during the 2011 Reno Air Races, when 11 people died as a result of a P-51 Mustang crashing into the box-seat area in front of the grandstands, is still having negative effects for organizers of the half-century old event. The accident has skyrocketed insurance costs for the competition, and, […]

Rush hour drivers in Cumberland, Maine, had a surprise thrown into their typical commute when a Cessna 152 landed on Interstate 295 around 5 p.m. Thursday. The 42-year-old pilot was flying alone from Portland International Jetport to Waterville when the engine of the rented 152 quit at 2,000 feet. While investigators are still looking into […]

Back in 2010, MIT and GE announced the results of research that appeared to have tantalizing implications for greatly reducing the buildup of airframe ice. So called “super-hydrophobic” coatings were shown to cause water droplets to bead up rather than spread out, reducing ice buildup by as much as 70 percent. But after the first […]

Following up on Flying magazine’s denunciation of the FAA’s proposed new sleep apnea policy, the EAA and AOPA have both weighed in with strong opposition to the rule, which requires Aviation Medical Examiners to refer high-BMI pilots to sleep specialists for further evaluation. The new rule was recently announced by federal air surgeon Dr. Fred […]

Fans of Piper’s revered Super Cub can now find a passing copy in the light-sport market, thanks to the recent FAA approval of the Super Legend Cub LSA, built by Texas-based American Legend Aircraft Company. After suffering through six to seven weeks of delays due to the recent government shutdown, the company received the green […]

A medevac Learjet bound for Mexico crashed in the ocean about a mile offshore minutes after departing Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Tuesday night. Officials said two people on board have been confirmed killed and a Coast Guard search continues for two others. An airport spokesman told media outlets that the Learjet 35 was returning […]

E-volo, the developer of a series of new concept helicopter derivatives the company calls volocopters, has achieved an important milestone, successfully launching its first commercially viable two-seat version, the VC200. The maiden flight occurred on November 17 inside the Dm-arena in Karlsruhe, Germany. The VC200 was remotely controlled and its 18 electrically powered rotors had […]

A Boeing 747 Dreamlifter bound for McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas mistakenly landed at Jabara Airport near Wichita on Wednesday after a flight from New York’s JFK. If that error wasn’t bad enough, the massive cargo plane was stuck there and forced the airport to close until it could take off this afternoon. According […]