Aviation News

If you can just hang in there until 2030, the general aviation fleet will have grown by approximately 50,000 aircraft and 52,000 pilots, according to the FAA’s latest long-term forecast. But don’t expect much of that growth in the piston fleet. The agency’s crystal ball calls for just 0.1 percent growth in the piston fleet […]

The first happy customers will be receiving their Cessna Citation CJ4s later this year, following last week’s announcement that the FAA has granted type certification to the latest light jet from Cessna. The $9 million (2010 dollars) CJ4 shares a type rating (including single-pilot operation) with the rest of Cessna’s CJ series. With an NBAA […]

The FAA has submitted a notice of proposed rulemaking to expand the Class B airspace surrounding Charlotte/Douglas International Airport in Charlotte, North Carolina. Comments may be submitted to the FAA before May 3. The expanded Class B airspace is needed for airline traffic using the airport and to accommodate area navigation (RNAV) departure procedures. A […]

It’s every pilot’s nightmare. During an emergency landing on a Hilton Head, South Carolina, beach, an amateur-built Lancair IV-P struck and killed a pedestrian from behind as he walked the shoreline with headphones on, listening to music. Neither the pilot nor his passenger was injured, and the airplane ultimately came to rest in the surf. […]

An often irreverent and always passionate advocate for general aviation, John Baker passed away last week at his home in Angier, North Carolina. Baker served as president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association from 1977 to 1990, and was known as a tireless and devoted champion of the cause. His efforts are credited with […]

A Colorado couple, both pilots with 2,000 hours and instrument ratings, had taken their Malibu to Hutchinson, Kansas, for its annual inspection. They returned home to Steamboat Springs in a rented car, and two weeks later drove back to Hutchinson to retrieve the airplane. The work done had included the removal of free play from […]

According to the FAA’s latest release on NextGen, implementation of the next steps to air traffic modernization will rely at least in part on aircraft operators to shoulder the expense of new onboard equipment. Listed among the primary “Challenges to Implementing NextGen” was the following: “NextGen’s increasing dependency on aircraft-centric capabilities means that we must […]

Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, 59, has flown his last airline flight. The captain of US Airways Flight 1549, who landed his bird-strike stricken Airbus in the Hudson River a year ago January, has been hailed as a hero ever since. Though eligible to continue flying until age 65 (the FAA’s age-60 retirement mandate was extended to […]

Eurocopter announced last month it was developing new technology to reduce the noise generated by helicopter rotor blades. The company has named the new developments “Blue Edge” and “Blue Pulse” technology, and has tested them on an EC155. The reshaped Blue Edge blade tip reduced noise by up to 4 decibels with its cranked leading […]

JFK Tower controller Glenn Duffy, 48, and his family are dealing with the results of his lapse in judgment. Duffy allowed his twin 9-year-old children to issue a few ATC directions to departing airliners on the tower frequency on successive days to the apparent delight and appreciation of pilots who responded (click here to listen […]