Aviation News

Two Cessna 402’s, each with more than 20,000 TIS exhibited spar cracking and have led the FAA to issue an emergency AD, increasing the frequency of spar inspection and adding the aircraft model 414A. Aircraft with spar straps on each wing (per a previous AD) are not affected… Another reason to always check your tanks […]

Are UFOs finally getting the respect they deserve or is it all part of the ratings game? We’ll let you be the judge as TV news icon Peter Jennings examines the topic in a two-hour special on ABC Feb. 24. Jennings denies it’s a ratings thing, saying that the 80 million Americans who say they’ve […]

The FAA will hold a public meeting on the grounded T-34 fleet, tomorrow and Wednesday in Kansas City, Mo…. Garmin had record growth in 2004, the company announced last week, introducing 50 new products and certifying its G1000 glass cockpit in six GA aircraft… A new(-ish) helmet for fighter pilots automatically coordinates their line of […]

The Collier Trophy for 2004 goes to SpaceshipOne. The prestigious trophy is awarded by the National Aeronautic Association… Peter Bunce has been selected as the new president for the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. Bunce was formerly with the Pentagon and the U.S. Air Force. He replaces Ed Bolen, who is now president of NBAA… A […]

The General Aviation Manufacturers Association has a new president. He’s Pete Bunce, a former Air Force pilot and commander who was most recently the director of the Air Force Congressional Budget and Appropriations Liaison. He takes over April 1… Two Northwest Airlines pilots, who landed at the wrong airport, will not be sanctioned by the […]

The FAA has issued an Airworthiness Directive on Gippsland GA8 aircraft. There have been three reports of the aileron control being stiff and one in which aileron control locked while the plane was being taxied. Rubbing between the control-wheel shaft and the bushing in the control column can cause wear or damage… The FAA has […]

Airspace above Washington essentially shuts down for GA during Wednesday night’s State of the Union address… The launch date has been bumped back again for Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer’s attempt to fly around the world nonstop with one pilot. Steve Fossett will take off from Salina, Kan., on Feb. 8, if the conditions are favorable… BRS […]

AOPA members have donated $44,000 so far for tsunami relief… The FAA has published special traffic procedures for the Super Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla., Feb. 2-8… Feb. 6 has been set as the launch date for Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer‘s attempt to fly around the world nonstop, with one pilot. Steve Fossett will take off from […]

Yet another reason to wait for the bar cart. An EPA study says drinking the water on an airliner is getting riskier. The study found bacterial contamination in the water on one in six airliners, up from one in eight six months ago… AOPA members took only three days to match a $25,000 pledge by […]

Investigators are trying to determine if the pilot of Cirrus SR22 tried to deploy his parachute before the plane hit a house in Coconut Creek, Fla., last Saturday. Jerry Ballard, of Gainesville, Ga., was killed in the crash. The plane’s chute was found spread out among the wreckage but it wasn’t clear whether Ballard pulled […]