Sun ‘N Fun

“We blew it out of the water, went through the roof,” Sun ‘n Fun President John “Lites” Leenhouts told AVweb on Sunday morning as the show started to wind down for its final day. “The weather gods owed us one, from 2011, and they were very good to us.” Severe clear weather reigned all week […]

At Sun ‘n Fun 2014, Kitfox had its new S7 LSA with a turbocharged Rotax 914 on display. John McBean gave AVweb a tour of the airplane. view on YouTube

Textron’s acquisition of Beechcraft has resulted in the creation of Textron Aviation, the combination of Cessna and Beech. AVweb’s Rick Durden spoke with Textron Aviation’s Joe Hepburn about the transition. Duration: 4:40 File Size: 4.3 MB download here

Quicksilver announced last year at EAA AirVenture they had a two-seat S-LSA model in the works, and this week they brought the finished product to Sun ‘n Fun. “There’s been a lot of very interested people looking at it,” Eugene “Bever” Borne told AVweb on Saturday on the Paradise City flight line. “We’ve definitely created […]

The SkyCraft SD-1 Minisport, a small single-seat S-LSA, first showed up at EAA AirVenture last summer, but this is the first time the airplane has visited Sun ‘n Fun, designer Joe Doherty told AVweb this week. The airplane, which sells for about $55,000, is based on a Czech experimental design, with a 50-hp Hirth F-23 […]

Stemme, the German motorglider manufacturer that got a boost with new ownership and investment a couple of years ago, is continuing its work to develop a robust network of dealers and service centers around the world, spokesman Lorenzo Costella told AVweb at Sun ‘n Fun. Stemme USA is now based at Columbia Metropolitan Airport in […]

Daher-Socata brought its new TBM 900 single-engine turboprop, which debuted just a few weeks ago, to Sun ‘n Fun this week. The 900 is an upgrade of the 850, which it replaces, with winglets and a five-blade composite propeller, plus numerous tweaks to enhance the aerodynamic design, pilot interface and passenger comfort. “We’re happy with […]

As Sun n Fun drew to a close over the weekend, Id say that most of the people I spoke to deemed it about average. As Ive said before, its pointless to draw any conclusions about the aviation economy based on how vendors saw the booth traffic or what the daily gate was. Weve long […]

Touchscreen for LSA and experimental avionics is the new trend at Sun ‘n Fun 2014. Dynon Avionics brought its latest touchscreen system, the Skyview Touch. Dynon’s Michael Schofield showed the system to Kitplanes magazine at the show. view on YouTube

At Sun ‘n Fun 2014, Seattle Avionics introduced a new app that offers just charts, plates and sectionals – no ADS-B support and no weather-getting. Here’s AVweb’s quick take on the new app. view on YouTube