Aviation News

A U.S. Senator has read the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Preliminary Report on the midair collision at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (KDCA) and wants some answers. Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., is chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and Innovation and has called a hearing of the subcommittee set for March 27. […]

Fifteen aviation industry advocacy groups, ranging from the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) to Airlines for America (A4A), delivered a letter today to U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer asking the government to work with them on mitigating disruptions to the aviation supply chain. The coalition seeks support […]

Southwest Airlines signaled the end of an era today with the announcement that it will begin charging passengers to check bags. The signature policy of fee-less checked bags has been in place for decades, setting the low-fare airline apart from rivals. Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said, “We have tremendous opportunity to meet current and future […]

The annual Verticon industry show (formerly HeliExpo) revealed another new product announcement today as Airbus Helicopters introduced its H140 light-twin turbine rotorcraft model. The announcement follows yesterday’s announcement at the Dallas show of the new Robinson R88 10-place turbine single, that company’s second turbine offering and its largest helicopter, ever. The H140, now in flight-test […]

At a Washington, D.C., press briefing this afternoon, National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer Homendy announced an urgent recommendation to the FAA to prohibit helicopter operations on the designated helicopter Route 4 near Washington’s Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) when Runway 15/33 is in operation. The announcement included release of the NTSB Preliminary Report on […]

Electric aviation motor developer magniX has unveiled a helicopter motor that mimics the operation of a turbine engine. The HeliStorm motor, introduced at Verticon in Dallas, spins at 6,000 to 7,000 rpm and makes 330 kW of power, equivalent to about 450 horsepower, and weighs about 180 pounds. The motor is powered by magniX’s Samson […]

Sikorsky has flown a prototype of an interesting flying wing drone that incorporates twin rotors for vertical takeoffs and landings. The concept was unveiled at Verticon in Dallas on Monday. The “rotor blown wing” is a tilt-rotor of sorts, but because the whole aircraft is the wing it doesn’t need complicated technology to make the […]

Tecnam made a big inroad into the U.S. flight training market with the sale of 38 aircraft to US Aviation Academy. The school also has an option to buy another 52 planes from the Italian planemaker. The order constitutes a significant expansion of US Aviation Academy’s fleet, which now sits at about 175 spread among […]

President Donald Trump says certificate revocation should be considered for the pilot of a Flexjet Challenger 350 involved in an apparent runway incursion at Midway Airport 10 days ago. During a media scrum aboard Air Force One late Sunday, Trump also praised the crew of a Southwest flight who aborted their landing to hop over […]

All five people on a turbine conversion Bonanza survived when the plane crashed on takeoff into the parking lot of a retirement community in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on Sunday. The aircraft cabin was consumed in a post-crash fire. The pilot of the plane, registered to a Mannheim, Pennsylvania LLC, told controllers at Lancaster Airport that he […]