FAA and Regs

Nutjob. That’s what we all called him. He was one of my trainers at my first tower. Extreme skydiving and off-the-grid adventure travel earned him the title. His not-safe-for-work “There I was…” stories were legendary throughout our ATC community. Despite his off-campus reputation, he didn’t screw around in the control tower. He confidently ran his […]

The FAA said on Tuesday it will launch its ADS-B $500 rebate program next Monday, Sept. 19. The program will fund 20,0000 rebates, available on a first-come, first-served basis. “We promised that we would help aircraft owners equip with ADS-B, and I am pleased to say that today we are honoring that commitment and we […]

Investigators who probed the ditching of USAir 1549 into the Hudson River in 2009 say the recently released movie about the event portrays them in an inaccurate and unfair light. The movie, Sully, directed by Clint Eastwood, was released over the weekend in U.S. theaters. For dramatic purposes, Sully portrays the NTSB investigators as prosecutors […]

A new nonprofit group based in southern New England aims to address the deterioration of basic stick-and-rudder skills among pilots, and is starting out with a focus on CFIs, says Bob Berlyn, the group’s executive director. Berlyn, a former airline pilot and CFI, is an FAA safety inspector in Norwood, Massachusetts. “Everywhere I go, I […]

With new FAA rules now in place, as of Monday, for operators to secure a commercial drone certificate, it’s been projected that their numbers will quickly outnumber manned-aircraft pilots. The FAA has estimated the number of certified commercial drone operators could exceed 600,000 within a year, equal to the total number of pilots from student […]

Tri City Departure: Cessna 12345, squawk 4305 Cessna 12345: Tri City, um, we just noticed we are missing the knob for the last dial on the transponder. Tri City Departure: What number is it on? Cessna 12345: Zero Tri City Departure: Standby, let me see if I can get you a code that ends in […]

All 6,400 hot-air balloons in the U.S. must be inspected to ensure they are not equipped with potentially leaky fuel hoses made of “egeflex” material, the FAA said in an emergency airworthiness directive issued today. The AD is effective Aug. 29, and balloonists have 14 days after that to complete the inspection, which should take […]

Only a few days after losing yet another round in the legal slugfest that continues over Santa Monica Airport, opponents of the airport are turning up the political pressure on the city council, according to the Santa Monica Lookout. Municipal elections are coming this fall and the well-organized anti-airport forces are making it clear to […]

The FAA has established 12 Centers of Excellence to pursue research into safety, alternative fuels, airport operations and other aviation topics, and now the agency has announced its next COE will focus on training the next generation of aviation professionals. Teams from the University of Oklahoma and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University will lead the new Air […]

The FAA has issued its final rule on the controversial airworthiness directive that will require the replacement of cylinders on 6,200 high-displacement Continental engines. It takes effect on Sept. 15. The AD, which scraps thousands of aftermarket cylinders made by ECi, was initially proposed in 2013 for 520, 550 and some 470 model Continentals that […]