Aviation News

The general aviation world was anxiously watching this year’s kickoff event. The annual Sun ‘n Fun fly-in opened last week and the results are mostly good for airplane aficionados. With the economy fighting its way back to its feet, and general aviation in the crosshairs of public opinion, we were holding our collective breath. Though […]

It must have seemed like a good idea at the time. But a half-hour aerial photo shoot involving one of the presidential Boeing 747s turned out to be anything but. Aircraft are given the ATC call sign ‘Air Force One’ when the President is on board, but the specially equipped 747, itself, is commonly referred […]

Zenith Aircraft stands by its Zodiac CH-601XL light sport aircraft design, despite calls from the NTSB to ground it. The recommendation marks the first time the safety agency has addressed an issue with an aircraft classed in the light sport category. The basic Zodiac design in question has been in production as a kit since […]

Following a controversial debate, the FAA released data on bird strikes this month. The call to release the data was driven in large part by the January US Airways incident, in which pilots Chesley Sullenberger and Jeffrey Skiles ditched their Airbus 320 in New York’s Hudson River. The successful water landing came after striking multiple […]

“We don’t need no badges. I don’t have to show you any stinkin’ badges!” is the exact line from the 1948 movie The Treasure of the Sierra Madre starring Humphrey Bogart. Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer was a bit more polite in his response to the TSA plan to require background checks and security badges for […]

As announced on Tuesday, NASA has awarded a $1.4 million curriculum development grant to the Central Florida Aerospace Academy, a branch of the public school system in Lakeland, Florida. The career academy operates in conjunction with the business entity that operates the annual Sun ‘n Fun fly-in at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport and is located […]

A recent offering from American Legend Aircraft combines the classic simplicity of the Cub design with the most modern of portable multifunction displays. The Legend “Smart” Cub is available with a panel-mounted Garmin GPSMap 696 providing large-screen navigation as well as weather, terrain avoidance and a host of other features that would boggle the minds […]

Last Friday, assets of JetDirect Aviation were formally turned over to a new company, JDAAC (JetDirect Aviation Acquisition Company, Inc.), doing business as Wayfarer Aviation. The asset purchase included contracts and software from JetDirect, and none of the debt. JetDirect had been in foreclosure for several weeks. Most of the former JetDirect employees were hired […]

Light sport aircraft from established OEMs have had their share of issues lately. Cessna’s SkyCatcher has experienced a pair of loss-of-control accidents, destroying two prototypes, but Cessna remains committed to the program. Cirrus, in contrast, is backing off from its light sport SRS, a “Cirrusized” version of a composite Polish design. The Duluth, Minnesota-based manufacturer […]

It’s been said that simply flying a modern “technologically advanced” aircraft is much easier than steam gauge-equipped aircraft-once you master programming the avionics. Garmin addressed this during the current Sun ‘n Fun show in Lakeland, Florida, with the announcement of a new computer-based series of training CDs. The first Garmin GPS product to get the […]