Aviation News

Attorneys pursuing a lawsuit against Southwest Airlines posted a legal filing accusing the airline of an unusual certification maneuver they say was designed to deceive the FAA. A Seattle Times story published Monday (May 16) reported that, in 2016, before the 737 Max was certified, Southwest management suggested that Boeing install a single example of the […]

Every pilot admires the way birds fly (most birds, anyway). But researchers at the University of Central Florida (UCF) Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering have launched a study on how birds execute their best “perching” maneuver—landing on tree branches, wires or other tight spots. The group found that some birds pitch their wings upward […]

SPONSORED CONTENT—Rob’s comments arrived in the AVweb marketing department last week as aviation’s premier news and information service prepared to roll out phase one of its new classified advertising system. According to Publisher Tom Bliss, AVweb’s classified ad service is in “pre-launch” and will start accepting listings from aviation service providers this week. “If you […]

Citing “people familiar with U.S. officials’ preliminary assessment of what led to the accident,” today’s issue (May 17) of the Wall Street Journal reported that data suggests the fatal crash of a China Eastern Boeing 737-800 on March 21 was due to an intentional act by someone at the controls. “The plane did what it […]

A coalition of aviation companies and organizations is calling for regulatory changes aimed at supporting wide-scale commercialization of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). In a letter (PDF) to National Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy, the coalition asked for five “fixes” to the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) annual rule. The suggested changes include allowing SAF feedstock to be […]

JetBlue has filed a proxy statement and launched a website urging Spirit Airlines shareholders to vote against a proposed merger between Spirit and fellow ultra-low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines. Spirit rejected a competing purchase offer from JetBlue earlier this month, citing a low probability of obtaining antitrust clearance. According to JetBlue, its latest offer, made on […]

Surack Enterprises founder Chuck Surack has purchased Michigan-based aircraft manufacturer Enstrom Helicopter Corporation. According to the company, which is headquartered in Indiana, it plans to “rebuild the Enstrom brand into one of the leading American-made helicopter manufacturer[s] as it once was.” Enstrom filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last January and announced in March that it […]

Using the most diplomatic language possible, the three billionaires who paid $55 million each for a trip to the International Space Station told a news conference they were overworked on their epic adventure. “With the value of hindsight, we were way too aggressive on our schedule, in particular the first couple days,” said Larry Connor, […]

The untrained passenger who landed a Cessna Caravan at Palm Beach Airport last week has broken his silence and will appear on the Today Show Monday to tell the story from his perspective. Darren Harrison’s phone has been blowing up with media requests for interviews (AVweb included) since he planted the Caravan on the runway […]

The pilot of the Cherokee 140 that crashed on a night flight in the Canadian wilderness in April, killing two alleged gangsters and two pilots, had been accused of operating an illegal charter service. As we reported, the aircraft crashed near Sioux Lookout in Northern Ontario and the passengers, Gene Lahrkamp and Dustin Bailey, were […]