Features

The idea behind the light sport aircraft rule was to stimulate new designs at affordable prices. “Affordable” is arguable, but the new designs are out there in such volume that few models have been able to rise above the noise as standouts. The latest effort comes from a new company called Texas Aircraft with a […]

I recently heard this exchange between ATC and a Southwest flight. SWA: “Any shortcuts today would be appreciated.” ATC: “Unless you want a personal escort by the U.S. Air Force, I will be unable.” Stephen P. Bobko‑Hillenaar Alpine, WY

AVweb’s General Aviation Accident Bulletin is taken from the pages of our sister publication, Aviation Safety magazine. All the reports listed here are preliminary and include only initial factual findings about crashes. You can learn more about the final probable cause on the NTSB’s website at www.ntsb.gov. Final reports appear about a year after the […]

Common Sense vs. E-Everything My impression is that nearly all discussions of electric propulsion omit the fundamental problems of physics that limit the whole enterprise: the energy density of batteries. Of the three obstacles standing in the way of electric propulsion (energy storage, efficient electric motors, motor controllers) two have been solved. Small, lightweight, three-phase […]

Thunderstorms are the nemesis of general aviation. We can’t penetrate them nor fly over them. Fortunately, we have several sophisticated tools at our disposal to help in the preflight planning to make that all important go/no go decision before we head into the murk. Their sophistication is remarkable, and we need to choose those that […]

Editor’s Note: Lycoming has changed its on-site program after author Paul Dye took the course in 2016. “We combined the historical classroom and hands on portions; it is now a hybrid of the two in one fast paced, weeklong class. Students will have the opportunity to talk about the parts in the classroom and handle […]

By Todd DeVito This story originally appeared in our sister title, KITPLANES. We have all heard the comment that we must be crazy to fly an aircraft we built in our garage. Does it make me even crazier to fly an aircraft someone I never met built in their garage? Continue on to discover how […]

The airline industry long ago figured out that one of the most dangerous things in aviation is two pilots trying to fly the same airplane at the same time. One inevitable result of such an arrangement is that there are times when no one is flying, and one of the ways we know this is […]

This past June we were returning from Canada to Colorado in mid‑afternoon IFR in our PA 32. The typical afternoon thunderstorms were in full swing. As we progressed homeward just east of a several hundred-mile-long line of cumulonimbus buildups we heard Salt Lake Center clearing departing flights up to FL 260. Nothing higher. All requests […]

Kobe Bryant, Eight Others Killed In Helicopter Crash Unfortunately, and tragically, the accident investigation in this crash will likely yield a rather mundane result – pilot disorientation and CFIT. Aeronautically there may not be much to learn. Even the motivation of choosing to launch into marginal conditions after weighing the risk versus pilot experience and […]