Aviation News

The FAA is seeking comments from the public on the environmental assessment associated with replacing 31 aging air traffic control towers across the U.S. Intended to “replace towers functioning beyond their intended design life,” the new facilities will include features such as all-electric building systems, materials and products free from chemicals known to pose health […]

Virgin Galactic conducted its first suborbital commercial spaceflight from New Mexico’s Spaceport America on Thursday. The flight took off at 8:30 a.m. local time and touched down at 9:42 a.m. carrying three crew members and three paying passengers from the Italian air force and the National Research Council of Italy along with 13 research payloads. […]

The FAA has issued a special airworthiness certificate to the company after the first production prototype Joby eVTOL came off its Marina, California, production line. The company announced both milestones at an event this week at the factory. The FAA nod sets the stage for certification of the multicopter for a potential certification and entry […]

What is sure to be a star attraction at next month’s AirVenture is now undergoing flight tests at the Planes of Fame Museum in Chino, California. VC-121A Bataan, a military version of the Lockheed Constellation, has undergone a full restoration and flew for the first time in June 20. It’s now regularly waking up the […]

There were no injuries when a Delta Boeing 717 crew put the aircraft down in Charlotte with the nosegear retracted. Flight 1092 was on final after a flight from Atlanta when the crew got a nosegear light. They flew a couple of inspection flights over the tower and learned the front gear doors were open […]

Warbird pilot/owner and Minnesota businessman Paul Ehlen was killed in the crash of a Curtiss P-40 in western Montana. News reports indicate the aircraft suffered a mechanical failure on takeoff from Ravalli County Airport, crash-landed and was seriously damaged. According to the Ravalli County Sheriff’s Department, Ehlen died “due to the impact of the crash.” […]

A recent U.S. Department of Transportation audit conducted by the DOT’s Office of the Inspector General assessed the issue of maintaining adequate numbers of FAA air traffic controllers in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The DOT’s dual objectives were to “(1) assess FAA’s efforts to ensure that critical air traffic control facilities have an […]

French-based VoltAero announced today (June 27) it has selected Avidyne to develop and supply avionics for its Cassio 330 electro-hybrid clean-sheet aircraft design. Jean Botti, VoltAero CEO and chief technical officer, said, “In developing an all-new airplane family to set the standards for electric aircraft, our exclusive agreement with Avidyne ensures that Cassio’s avionics are […]

The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) has been very involved in advocating for pilots dealing with medical and mental health issues. The trade association wants to ensure those pilots can continue to fly “as long as it’s safe to do so.” While NBAA is primarily focused on career aviators, its efforts on this front affect […]

In a partnership with Acme Aerofab, Kitfox Aircraft has made available an updated landing gear and suspension system. The new “Black Ops” configuration is said to be available “now or soon” for most Kitfox models. Kitfox said, “The new Black Ops suspension allows the strongly triangulated Kitfox main landing gear to articulate smoothly and controllably […]