Aviation News

Last week, Eurocopter took the wraps off its developmental X3 helicopter, with a claimed top speed of 220 knots. The “speed barrier” for conventionally designed rotorcraft has always been defined by the speed differential between the advancing rotor blade(s) set off by that of the retreating blade(s). The faster the aircraft flies, the greater the […]

Daher-Socata has announced it will enter a joint development program with Allied Aviation Technologies, the company that ultimately acquired the assets of Grob’s SPn light jet program. In development since 2002, the all-composite jet had shown promise, but Grob’s timing turned out to be unfortunate and its financial backing melted away in 2009. Allied owns […]

Jim Coyne, president of the National Air Transportation Association agrees with the FAA’s stance that residential through-the-fence (RTTF) arrangements are bad for publicly funded airports. He said, “Due to the intrinsic nature of residential properties, as compared with commercial properties, RTTF agreements limit the flexibility of airport sponsors to expand according to the needs of […]

Fractional ownership plan OurPLANE declared Chapter 7 bankruptcy in September, leaving many of its aircraft “owners” with a lot less return on investment than they thought they’d bargained for. Founded in 2003, OurPLANE sold shares in Cirrus SR22s, but the intention was always to add Eclipse 500 very light jets (VLJs) to the business plan […]

Any order from aviation training institute King Schools between now and March 14 will automatically enter you in the 35th Anniversary King Schools Sweepstakes. The winner’s package is a pilot’s dream trip to just outside Talkeetna, Alaska, including a seaplane-rating training package and bush pilot flying vacation. While the pilot of the family is earning […]

After test deployments in Alaska, the Gulf of Mexico, Louisville and Philadelphia, the FAA announced last week it has approved full deployment of Automatic Dependent Surveillance — Broadcast (ADS-B) technology. The agency reported ADS-B will be fully operational by 2013. Tests of the combination satellite and ground-based hardware proved it would operate in the most […]

For the 15th time, Congress has voted for a 90-day extension on FAA funding. The last long-term funding plan expired in 2007. Bills to establish a new long-term program to fund the agency have been proposed, but always fall short of the needed support for a variety of reasons having little or nothing to do […]

Last week, the FAA announced it was merging two safety programs for efficiency and to “help guide safety decisions” in the future. Pilots and Air Traffic Controllers have long been able to confess their gaffes in a “non-punitive environment” through the FAA’s Safety Action Programs — ASAP (Aviation Safety Action Program) for pilots and ATSAP […]

In a move aimed at helping bring aviation jobs back, the Senate has approved continuing the bonus tax incentive through the end of this year for new aircraft purchases. The rule allows companies or individuals buying new aircraft to record the purchase’s depreciation in the first year, rather than stretching the tax benefits over five […]

J. Mac McClellan, former editor-in-chief of Flying, has joined the Experimental Aircraft Association’s publications staff. Beginning next month, he will share his expertise with EAA members through his ‘Left Seat’ column and other features in EAA’s flagship publication, Sport Aviation, as well as online through EAA’s e-publications. With more than 10,000 hours of flying experience, […]