Aviation News

In the final report issued Thursday on the Air France 447 crash that killed 228 people in May 2009, investigators said the pilots were “completely surprised” by technical problems experienced at high altitude and engaged in increasingly de-structured actions until suffering “the total loss of cognitive control of the situation.” The report, issued by the […]

A C-130 that crashed while battling a fire in South Dakota’s Black Hills on Sunday belonged to the North Carolina Air National Guard’s 145th Airlift Wing based at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport. Four of the six crew members on board were killed and two others are in the hospital in serious condition, according to the U.S. […]

Members of the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) set out on Tuesday on a renewed search for Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed Electra, almost exactly 75 years after the historic aviator disappeared somewhere in the Pacific while attempting to circumnavigate the globe. The expedition team is headed to the island of Nikumaroro, where TIGHAR members […]

The FAA issued a new document last week pertaining to the issuance of special airworthiness certificates for light-sport category airplanes. The policy statement, which becomes effective on September 12, may have a significant impact on SLSA (special light-sport aircraft) manufacturers, in particular for those SLSAs that are manufactured outside the U.S. An assessment of the […]

After receiving a special FAA permit for rocket-powered flights at the end of May, SpaceShipTwo has emerged from its nearly nine-month hiatus and quickly begun an aggressive flight-testing regimen along with its carrier vehicle, WhiteKnightTwo. Little more than a month after gaining the permit, Virgin Galactic has since completed seven test flights and three full-blown […]

European aerospace giant Airbus will build its first U.S. factory in a move aimed at making the company more competitive against archrival Boeing. The new plant in Mobile, Alabama – due to open in 2015 – will employ 1,000 people when it reaches full production capacity. Airbus said it hopes the factory will lower costs […]

The Senate on Friday unanimously passed the Pilots’ Bill of Rights first introduced by Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) last summer, granting what the senator called “a big victory for general aviation pilots all across the country.” The new legislation includes a number of provisions aimed at bolstering safeguards for pilots, including one that requires the […]

Terrafugia has completed phase one of six planned phases in its flight-testing program for the single-engine, pusher prop Transition flying car. This first phase included testing of the airplane’s stability and power on and off handling. Engine-cooling and propeller settings for various flight conditions were also evaluated. “It’s a real airplane; we’re flying it whenever […]

An FAA committee that has taken on the daunting challenge of drawing up plans for the eventual switch from 100LL aviation fuel to unleaded avgas has submitted its final report. The conclusion? A “drop-in” replacement for 100LL currently doesn’t exist, and may in fact be technically infeasible, and anyway there’s little financial motive for major […]

The airplane wreckage recently found on an Alaskan glacier has been identified as likely that of a U.S. Air Force C124-A Globemaster that went down nearly six decades ago, killing all 41 passengers and 11 crew members aboard the aircraft. While military officials are not ruling out potential alternatives, they say the evidence found on […]