Aviation News

Despite efforts on several fronts to stop or at least postpone the FAA’s furloughs of air traffic controllers, which are mandated by the federal budget sequester, the staffing cuts began on Sunday. By midafternoon on Monday, delays up to three hours had been reported at major airports in New York, Los Angeles, and Baltimore, but […]

The U.S.’s largest pilots union is warning its members that “irregular operations” (IROPS) could become the new normal as the FAA pushes ahead with its plan to furlough employees, including air traffic controllers, for a day every other week. The Airline Pilots Association International (ALPA), which filed suit against the FAA Friday, along with industry […]

The chairman of the Chinese company that bought Cirrus Aircraft says the next version of the company’s SF-50 Vision Jet will be rolled out before the end of this year and certification flight testing will begin in 2014, Meng Xiangkai told the South China Morning Post. Meng also said China Aviation Industry General Aircraft (CAIGA) […]

Friday, the FAA approved a redesigned battery system for the 787 Dreamliner created by Boeing to protect the aircraft from potential battery fires, meaning the airliners may soon return to service. The 50 jets in service have been grounded since January, when two 787s suffered fires. Boeing must now issue a service bulletin that details […]

Of eighty men, three of the four surviving members of Doolittle’s Raiders, all now living their ninth decade, met publicly — and, they say, for the final time — during the week of April 15, at Eglin Air Force Base, to commemorate the 71st anniversary of their April 18, 1942, one-way mission to bomb Japan. […]

Cessna has again cut back production of its light jets including the Mustang, CJ2, CJ3 and CJ4, potentially by up to 30 percent, citing a first-quarter loss and weak sales. In June of 2010, the company briefly stalled production of the Citation Mustang, largely as a result of issues in the supply chain. At the […]

It appears the FAA is backtracking on an earlier directive that forbade at least some of its FAA Safety Team (FAAST) representatives from talking about pending tower closures. On Wednesday the FAAST Safety Team issued a general note of advice about operating at non-towered airports (the FAAST Team doesn’t like the term “uncontrolled”) and touched […]

The USDA is extending for five years a 2010-2012 program that joins the FAA with partners from the commercial aviation segment to develop biofuels for the aviation industry. Participants include the USDA, the FAA, Boeing and a trade group called Airlines for America. The program will focus on evaluating feedstock and supply chains with the […]

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta says Boeing “has completed all required tests and analysis” of fixes for battery problems suffered by its 787 Dreamliner, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, but no decision had yet been made to clear the jet for flight. Huerta also noted that the FAA has not yet determined whether it will […]

New airplanes were scarce at last week’s Sun ‘n Fun show in Lakeland, Fla., but a new electric ultralight motorglider held center stage at the new LSA Mall, attracting a constant stream of curious visitors all week long. The ElectraFlyer ULS was first seen last summer at EAA AirVenture, just a few days after its […]