Aviation News

Cirrus Aircraft President Brent Wouters expects to return his company to profitability this year. Despite a 2009 that can best be described as challenging, Wouters also said the company is committed to continuing development of its SF50 single-engine jet. As funding ran short, work on the jet project was recently moved to the main Cirrus […]

There’s not much time left, but if you’re in the enviable position of shopping for a new airplane, the government’s bonus depreciation tax benefit ought to stimulate your personal economy to make the leap before year end. And some manufacturers are sweetening the pot even further. Diamond Aircraft will match customer down payments of up […]

According to Airframer.com, there are 329 aviation vendors who were cheering the first flight of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner last week. The ultimate success of the long-delayed program would mean greater prosperity for parts suppliers who also support general aviation — providing greater financial stability and greater assurance of long-term fiscal viability. Among the suppliers who […]

Horror stories of passengers held on airliners for up to nine hours without food or water — and with non-functioning toilets — appear to be a thing of the past. On Monday, the Department of Transportation announced a new rule prohibiting airlines from holding domestic flights for more than three hours with passengers on board. […]

Airline passenger traffic typically increases about 5 percent per year, making this year’s declines that much more profound. According to numbers released by the International Civil Aviation Organization, international airline travel declined 4 percent this year, while domestic airline travel was down by about 1.8 percent, worldwide. Bucking the trend was the Middle East region, […]

As promised, Cessna delivered the first Model 162 SkyCatcher to Rose Pelton on Dec. 18. She is the wife of Cessna President and CEO Jack Pelton, and plans to use the airplane to begin flying lessons. The ceremonial delivery occurred at Wichita’s Yingling Aircraft facility, where SkyCatchers are assembled after arriving from the factory in […]

Aviation Supplier Aircraft Spruce and Specialty has announced it now offers a live online service for customers to get answers to questions about products. A ‘Live Chat’ button on the company website gains access to the service, which covers the following areas: Product Support; Avionics; International Sales; Website Support; and Customer Service. Find the company’s […]

Long-term funding authorization for the FAA will have to wait. Last week, Congress passed a bill mandating yet another short-term temporary funding strategy. This one extends through the end of March next year — a total of three months from the expiration of the current funding that expires at the end of this month. Congress […]

Last week, Gulfstream announced the first flight of its large-cabin, mid-range G250 business jet. Classed as a super mid-size, the G250 was designed in collaboration with Israel Aerospace Industries and the first flight departed from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel. It follows the first flight of Gulfstream’s ultra-long-range, large-cabin G650 just days earlier […]

A bill inspired by the crash of Continental Flight 3407 last year would impose a minimum for an Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) rating to fly commercial airliners under FAR Part 121. The ATP requires at least 1,500 hours of experience. FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt told lawmakers he’d prefer to mandate situation-specific training, rather than the […]