Aviation News

Appeals for government transparency over drone reports have led to media statements from John Kirby, National Security Council spokesman, yesterday; a classified briefing for lawmakers on Capitol Hill today; and a public briefing at the Pentagon, also today, from U.S. Air Force Major General Patrick Ryder, who serves as Press Secretary for the U.S. Department […]

Yesterday (Dec. 16), a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) helicopter crashed on the U.S. side of the Mexican border near Tijuana, Mexico, while on a border security mission. According to a CBP statement, the pilot and sole occupant of the 2009 Eurocopter AS350B3+ Ecureuil was killed. The accident occurred around 10:30 a.m. PST. According […]

Earlier this month, the FAA issued an Information for Operators (InFO) release encouraging general aviation organizations to develop and implement a voluntary Safety Management System (SMS) meeting current U.S. standards that are consistent with those of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). This InFO addresses an update published in April 2024 toward that goal, but […]

Ukraine says it’s developed a laser weapon that can shoot down aircraft flying as high as 6,000 feet. Vadym Sukharevskyi, Commander of Unmanned Systems Forces, told Interfax the weapon, called Tryzub, is still under development but has been successfully tested. “It really works, it really exists,” he said. Sukharevskyi said Ukraine is the fifth country […]

Supply chain issues continue to plague commercial aircraft production, leading to a record backlog of more than 17,000 planes. And the International Air Transport Association says it isn’t going to get any better soon. IATA said this week the industry made 30% fewer airliners than projected in 2024 and projections for 2025 look as bad […]

An Australian pilot has been convicted of criminal charges in a fatal crash after his forced landing attempt went wrong. According to the BBC, Leslie Woodall was flying a Cessna 172N with three passengers over the Great Barrier Reef in 2017 when the engine quit. He told court he tried to turn the plane around […]

A total of 14 groups representing a broad range of pilots is asking the FAA to defer a new medical certification policy that could dramatically increase the number of denials issued. As we reported earlier, effective Jan. 1 the agency will deny medicals to pilots whose deferrals are not accompanied by all the required examinations […]

Philippine Mars, the last flying example of the world’s largest flying boat, aborted its second attempt to begin its journey from a remote British Columbia lake to a museum in Arizona on Sunday. Instead of landing in San Francisco Bay, the massive former Navy transport instead turned around over Port Townsend, Washington, and put down […]

General Aviation Modifications Inc. is inviting an operator of a wet-wing Mooney to visit Ada, Oklahoma, for a borescope inspection to assess the condition of the sealant in the tanks. “I would like to have the chance to borescope an older Mooney fuel tank that has not been converted over to a bladder,” Braly said […]

A drone sighting briefly closed Stewart Airport in New York on Friday and prompted Gov. Kathy Hochul to call for federal legislation to allow all levels of law enforcement to address the drones. Stewart officials closed the airport, a mostly GA facility and Air National Guard base, which is sometimes used as an alternate for […]