features_old

Persistent rumors that Cirrus Design and L-3 Avionics Systems were collaborating on a new flat-panel display, called SmartDeck, that includes forward-looking infrared (FLIR) are actually old news to those who live in Grand Rapids, Mich. Last June 6, Cirrus taxied an SR22 down one of Cascade Township’s main streets to an L-3 plant where the […]

Honeywell’s Bendix/King division on Sunday unveiled two new glass-panel avionics — the KSN 770 MFD/GPS WAAS/navcom unit and KFD 840 primary flight display — in an attempt to leapfrog competitors. The KSN 770 borrows its easy-to-use graphical interface, which is called INAV GA, from Honeywell’s higher-end integrated avionics systems for business aircraft. Not lacking any […]

Diamond Aircraft on Friday celebrated the rollout of its first copy of the D-Jet that conforms to the expected production configuration in structural layout and aerodynamic design. The jet, S/N002, will fly for the first time next month. Meanwhile, Diamond Aircraft is at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh this week showing a mock-up of the jet […]

EAA AirVenture has been the world’s aviation showcase for years, but in recent years the big companies especially have ramped up the showmanship. Last year, for instance, Cessna surprised everyone with a flyby of its proof-of-concept next generation piston aircraft while the media and public were poring over the company’s proposed entry in the light […]

The folks at Garmin always come to the show with something new to announce, and this year is no exception, with price cuts and rebates on popular products, in addition new wireless services for mobile phones. Buyers of the new G600 retrofit avionics suite will get a $2,500 rebate off the G600 if they also […]

During the unveiling of the Cessna 162 SkyCatcher light sport aircraft Sunday at EAA AirVenture, EAA President Tom Poberezny sounded the alarm bell about low student starts and a declining pilot population. According to Poberezny, “Seven out of every 10 people who take flight lessons drop out before they get their private pilot certificate. There […]

On Sunday morning at EAA AirVenture, Cessna Aircraft revealed more details about its light sport aircraft (LSA), which is now known as the Model 162 SkyCatcher. “For the past year, we have been soliciting feedback from the market on our proof-of-concept aircraft, and the result is an airplane that we believe is the most advanced […]

[Editor’s Note: Rick wrote this Survival Guide several years ago and, by popular demand, we’re reprinting it now with updates for 2007. Be sure to start with Part One.]In the first part of this series we focused on what you needed to know before you set out for Oshkosh. This second part focuses on what […]

[Editor’s Note: Rick wrote this Survival Guide several years ago and, by popular demand, we’re reprinting it now with updates for 2007.]The shards of the smashed piggy bank crunch as you reposition yourself while drawing lines on the sectionals spread out on the living-room floor. You are going to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2007. You’re working […]

“Ni ho mah?” as they say in Spain … well, they do at Top Fly flight training school in Jerez, where the traditional Mandarin greeting meaning “How are you?” hails the arrival of more than 140 Chinese students training for their ATPLS.Managers Jordi Mateu and Isaac Blanquez told me how this extraordinary story came about. […]