Aviation News

President Obama addressed the nation on Labor Day with an infrastructure renewal program that included significant plans for aviation. The plan, which will span the next six years, would involve extensive overhauls of highways, bridges and other infrastructure, but also include restoring “150 miles of runways” and advancing “a next-generation air traffic control system to […]

This week’s National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nevada will have more than the spectacle of high-torque piston power on display. Though not involved in the actual races, Hawker Beechcraft’s Premier 1A business jet will perform a series of four fly-bys in front of the air race crowds. At the controls will be former NASA […]

The FAA recognizes that pilots of conventional aircraft can have dangerous difficulty transitioning to Light Sport Aircraft (LSA). Light aircraft react differently from heavier, more powerful GA aircraft, and have different vulnerabilities based on their low wing loading and other factors. But the agency is in a logjam on how to approve training in such […]

There is no such thing as “normal” for new business jet sales. It’s usually a cycle of extreme highs and deep lows, with occasional periods when the market can’t seem to decide which of those two to choose. According to Bombardier Aerospace, the painful debacle from the past two years’ economic slowdown is showing signs […]

Current security rules permit up to 48 general aviation flights per day to Washington’s Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA). But not even close to that many operations actually take place, even though restrictions have been relaxed since the airport was all but closed to GA after the September 11 attacks. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) […]

Storm clouds are gathering over the issue of using factory-built Special Light Sport Aircraft (S-LSA) for instrument flying. Since LSA standards are set by ASTM, not the FAA, the issue is complex, and the ASTM IFR subcommittee grapples with reaching consensus findings. Dan Johnson is president and chairman of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association (LAMA) […]

The image of John and Martha King in handcuffs is still the prime topic of hangar conversations around the country. With the Santa Barbara Police defending their actions (and apologizing to the Kings), the blame for the snafu now falls most heavily on the El Paso Intelligence Center, which contacted the Santa Barbara PD with […]

Comments will be accepted through Oct. 12 on a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the rear passenger doors of Diamond Aircraft DA40 and DA40F piston singles. The NPRM calls for instituting an Airworthiness Directive to alter the procedure for opening the doors in an emergency, and also require replacing the retaining bracket for the […]

Perhaps in response to the rogue Navy UAV helicopter incident on August 2, a new rule was published on Aug. 25 in the Federal Register that would require reporting accidents involving unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The rule has conditions similar to those for manned aircraft — an accident would consist of any occurrence in which […]

The remote “pilot” of an unmanned Navy MQ-8B Fire Scout helicopter lost his datalink to the aircraft on August 2, setting the aircraft free to roam. It wandered toward Washington, D.C., from its Patuxent River base before contact was re-established and it was commanded to land at Webster Field, an element of the Naval Air […]