FAA and Regs

An airport janitor was arrested Saturday after a pilot reported his gun had been stolen while he was in the washroom at Philadelphia Airport. The unidentified pilot had cleared security and made the restroom stop on the way to his flight when the theft occurred. The airport was searched and witnesses interviewed, and it was […]

The U.S Senate’s version of FAA reauthorization legislation, introduced this week, includes measures supported by general aviation such as medical reform and streamlining for aircraft certification. Spinning off air traffic control services from the FAA, however, is no longer part of the picture after the House shelved its version of the bill. U.S. Sen. John […]

The FAA can’t mandate lower safety criteria for cargo operators than for passenger airlines based solely on cost, representatives for UPS pilots argued in court this week. Lawyers for the Independent Pilots Association told the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., that the FAA’s rule governing flight crew duty and rest requirements, finalized in […]

The FAA today proposed a new rule (see link below for full text) that aims to fundamentally change the way small general aviation airplanes are certified, potentially reducing the time required to bring new technology to the market and also cutting costs. The new rule replaces the current prescriptive design requirements in Part 23 with […]

Standards organization ASTM has approved two new standards for general aviation aircraft on the thorny issues of icing behaviorand icing protection. ASTM says its new standards thread the needle between practicality and performance, establishing handling characteristics and icing protection for airplanes ranging in size from two-place singles to 19-seat business jets. Instead of one standard […]

The Air Force will not make the FAA’s 2020 deadline for ADS-B equipage and will likely ask for exceptions to the rule for some of its aircraft. According to Defense News, Lt. Gen. Mike Holmes, the deputy chief of staff for strategic plans and requirements, told the House Armed Services seapower and projection forces subcommittee […]

Tarkio, Missouri, isn’t the sort of place someone like Rep. Bill Shuster would normally visit but sometimes a politician just has to do what a politician has to do. I suspect the urbane and well-connected Pennsylvania congressman, chairman of the prestigious Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, dug in his closet for a pair of old shoes […]

General aviation advocates cheered the demise of a controversial ATC privatization proposal as the latest version of the FAA reauthorization bill was shelved late Thursday. The decision by House of Representatives leaders to set aside the hotly debated spinoff plan allows GA to focus on other priorities that were rolled into the bill, including medical […]

The other day, I was floating along in the Cub listening to the radio chatter when it occurred to me that I hadn’t heard a native English speaker for several minutes. I listened for several more and determined that, sure enough, there were no native English speakers on the frequency. Judging by the accents, there […]

House Republicans have shelved the controversial reauthorization bill that would have, among other things, created a privatized air traffic control system. The Hill was reporting late Thursday that instead of pursuing the full reauthorization bill, the House will instead concentrate on passing a short-term extension of the current authorization, which expires on March 31. House […]