briefs

A new paint job might seem like the least likely of suspects to cause structural problems in aircraft but at least 32 Boeing 737s, four 747s and seven 757s are being examined for fatigue cracks that might result from procedures specific to the painting process. The Townsville (Australia) Bulletin reported this week that “scribe lines” […]

These guys prove you don’t need a license to fly … but maybe it helps if you’re certifiable (kidding, please don’t write). “Wing suiters” are taking the latest thrill ride to extremes, jumping miles from the normal parachute drop zone and swooping cross-country to the target at about 90 mph laterally and just 40 mph […]

Move over Mojave, there’s competition for the spaceport business. As AVweb told you a couple of weeks ago, Mojave Airport in California is the odds-on favorite to become the country’s first certified private spaceport. But the folks around Burns Flat, Okla., are hoping investors will see the wisdom of turning an abandoned Air Force base […]

There was a red-faced pilot but no real harm done last Thursday when a Continental Airlines pilot enabled the transponder on the Boeing 737 he was flying from Cleveland to Boston to transmit a hijack code. The accidental distress call came about 100 miles into the flight and the pilot tried to assure authorities on […]

A lawsuit appears to have spawned from the crash of a Bell 47 helicopter in Florida last Oct. 21. William Harter, an alligator hunter nicknamed “Billy The Gator Man” videotaped his own demise as the 40-year-old chopper, flown by his (unlicensed) buddy Donn Goodson, crashed into him before running into Goodson’s hangar, killing the pilot […]

HAVE YOU SIGNED UP yet for AVwebs NO-COST twice monthly Business AVflash? Reporting on breaking news, Business AVflash also focuses on the companies, the products and the industry leaders that make headlines in the Business of Aviation. Business AVflash is a must read. Watch for a Business AVflash regular feature, TSA WATCH: GA IN THE […]

https://avweb.com/avmail/ Reader mail this week about GA usage fees, drug smugglers, circling approaches in the PTS and much more.

_______COLUMNS CEO of the Cockpit #33: Dog Is My Co-PilotEven a hard-nosed old captain like AVweb’s CEO of the Cockpit has a soft spot for some people and even some animals. Especially ones that are willing to go flying on those dark and stormy nights. This is a dog story, but it’s a pilot’s dog […]

With jobs in many sectors of aviation evaporating over the last few years, it’s encouraging to hear that graduates from one school last week all left their ceremony with job offers in hand. All 12 graduates from Arizona’s Pima Community College in aviation structural repair are already hired, and the college says the program has […]

Last month, Boeing introduced real-time, WiFi-based, high-speed Internet connections for commercial travelers, and now a project is in the works to offer the service to bizjets by next year. A strategic agreement with Connexion by Boeing enables Rockwell Collins to offer connectivity services on business aircraft worldwide. The new service, called Collins eXchange, is projected […]