Aviation News

Eclipse has received FAA approval for flight into known icing (FIKI) for its Eclipse 500 very light jet. The long awaited approval came following 300 hours of test flying, including up to 60 hours in natural icing conditions in the United States and Canada. Beginning in 2007, the test program involved three test aircraft. The […]

Mooney Airplane Company has scaled back production from eight aircraft per month to five and has laid off 80 employees. Reduced demand for piston aircraft is blamed for the cutbacks, with sales down 28 percent in the last reporting period by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. Perhaps due to the falling value of the U.S. […]

With growing success track record, the Parade of Pistons counts Dallas as one of its success stories. More than 1,000 visitors clicked the turnstiles at the event May 15 to 17, and no fewer than six aircraft were sold outright. They included two Mooneys, two Diamonds, a Liberty and a Cessna. A share in a […]

Cirrus Design Corp. and Frasca International have teamed to update one of Cirrus’ two Frasca flight training devices (FTDs) to incorporate the new Perspective avionics from Garmin. Training is now available at Cirrus’s Duluth, Minnesota, factory. Announced at the EBACE show in Switzerland, the new avionics suite includes Garmin’s synthetic vision technology and a center […]

When an Eclipse pilot at Chicago Midway Airport firewalled the throttles for a go-around caused by wind shear, the engine controls stuck in the maximum-thrust position. The very light jet landed safely with two pilots and two passengers on board, but the incident led to an emergency airworthiness directive from the FAA. According to Eclipse, […]

Captain Johnny Miller, a self-taught pilot whose flying career began with barnstorming during aviation’s golden age, has died at 102. Miller flew his own Beech Bonanza throughout the country up until a few years ago. Over his career, he flew the airmail, set a transcontinental record in a Pitcairn autogiro, competed in air races, served […]

Can a light sport amphibian gain a beachhead in the new-airplane market? With Vern Raburn on its board of advisors and a veteran team of engineers from Burt Rutan’s Scaled Composites, California-based Icon Aircraft is approaching the market with gusto. Founded in 2005 by former F-16 pilot Kirk Hawkins, Icon’s inaugural product is a slick, […]

Addision Pemberton made the first flight in a Boeing 40 biplane in February after an eight-year restoration of the oldest flying Boeing in existence. Boeing designed the airplane in 1925 to serve early mail routes, and the fuselage was later stretched to add two and then four passenger seats in the cabin. Pemberton’s Boeing 40 […]

As an effort to increase the number of active flight instructors, Avemco will be offering insurance coverage for CFIs not affiliated with flight school or FBO training programs who wish to conduct flight training in their own aircraft. According to Jim Lauerman, Avemco president, the additional endorsement will allow aircraft owners who are also CFIs […]

Cessna’s recently announced, large-cabin Columbus bizjet will be built in Kansas. The company made the announcement shortly after state legislators approved a bill pledging $33 million of funding for the new factory. Cessna says that the Columbus project will provide more than 1,000 direct jobs as part of its $780 million investment, the biggest project […]