The first civil version of the latest Lockheed Hercules transport, the LM-100J, closely modeled on the military C-130J, rolled off the assembly linein Marietta, Georgia Thursday morning. Lockheed Martin told reporters they expect customers will use aircraft for oversized cargo transport, aerial spraying and firefighting, austere field operations, and search and rescue applications. Although demilitarized, […]
The majority of Americans across gender, political affiliation and age groups oppose privatization of the U.S. air traffic control system, according to a recent poll. Although voters surveyed were evenly split on the merits of privatizing government services generally, when asked about operation of the air traffic control system, those surveyed were opposed to privatization […]
Testifying before the House and Senate Armed Services committees this week, leaders of the Air Force and Navy described the billion-dollar economic impact the national pilot shortage is having on their services. Gen. Steven Wilson, Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force, told congressional leaders, “We can recruit pilots without a problem. The problem […]
Choosing which airplane to build is something deserving of serious consideration. There are so many cool designs and differing capabilities, it can leave you scratching your head. Taking a systematic approach to selection can eliminate the pain and error from the process. Let’s explore what’s involved and how to get off to a good start. […]
The FAA has pushed back by a week the effective date of new rules allowing increased use of enhanced flight vision systems (EFVS) during takeoff and landing. In a Federal Register notice issuedWednesday, the agency said it is delaying the effective date “to allow for the review of this final rule in accordance with the […]
Uber has gotten a lot of media attention for its experiments with autonomous cars, and now it’s ready to explore the potential of moving people around urban areas using electric-powered VTOL aircraft, creating a new project last year called Uber Elevate. NASA engineer Mark Moore, who has been with the agency for nearly 30 years, […]
The FAA on Tuesday published an emergency Final Rule that requires the operators of certain Piper twins to check the wiring for defects. “This AD [Airworthiness Directive] was prompted by a fatal accident where evidence of thermal damage in this area was found,” the FAA said. The AD requires the initial inspection within 30 days […]
When two hikers recovered debris from the 1985 crash site of Eastern Airlines Flight 980 in Bolivia last year, including some recording tapes, the find raised hopes that a cause for the 727 crash might finally be identified — but the NTSB said on Tuesday its investigators have determined the materials “do not contain any […]
Pilots should be wary when operating close to the boundaries of Class B airspace, the FAA said recently in a Safety Alert for Operators. Flight crew who are on a visual approach may sometimes stray outside the boundaries of the designated airspace, the FAA said. In addition, the published approaches may sometimes take an airplane […]
While the Air Force and some in Congress muse about a fleet of low-cost light attack aircraft (and seem to prefer mostly foreign-derived designs) there are two American-designed counterterrorism and close air support aircraft in service overseas. Just before he left office, President Barack Obama approved the sale of 12 weaponized Air Tractor AT-802U single-engine […]
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