FAA and Regs

The FAA is being asked to reconsider its decision to close the remote air traffic control tower at Virginia’s Leesburg Executive Airport (JYO) on June 14, 2023. Parties expressing concerns over the upcoming closure include the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), National Business Aviation Association (NBAA), Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton, D-Va., Senators Mark Warner, D-Va., […]

The FAA and the lighter-than-air industry have reached a longer-lasting agreement on ADS-B equipage and controlled airspace operations. Going forward, balloon operators who want to operate in Class C airspace can sign a letter of agreement with the FAA that sets out ground rules. The deal was reached over a year of discussions between balloon […]

The first concrete result of a high-profile “safety summit” held by the FAA last week may be extending the recording time of cockpit voice recorders to 25 hours. CVRs now operate on a mandated two-hour loop, and many of the flight deck exchanges between crews involved in the half-dozen airliner incidents in the past few […]

The FAA has expanded its AD for certain Continental engines regarding potential manufacturing errors with the engines’ crankshaft counterweights. The original AD has been superseded and several new models added. “Since the FAA issued AD 2023-04-08, the FAA determined that IO-470-A, -C, -F, and -LO; and TSIO-360-F and -FB model engines are also affected by […]

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a hearing on Wednesday to look into the FAA’s progress on implementing reforms mandated by the Aircraft Certification, Safety, and Accountability Act of 2020 (ACSAA). Stemming from the fatal crashes of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 and Lion Air Flight 610, both Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, ACSAA […]

The FAA’s Integrated Airman Certification and/or Rating Application (IACRA) system experienced several database issues on Monday, Feb. 27, resulting in a system restore and the loss of some user data, according to a notice issued by the FAA Safety Team (FAASTeam) on Thursday. The notice stated that the problem may have affected actions completed in […]

President Joe Biden’s pick for FAA Administrator Phil Washington faced a turbulent Senate confirmation hearing that included a Q and A from fellow non-pilot and staunch opponent of his confirmation Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. In what seemed to be an attempt to expose Washington’s lack of relevant experience for the job, Cruz asked Washington about […]

The FAA is requiring the establishment of safety management systems (SMS) at 265 of the country’s biggest and busiest airports with a final rule that will be effective 60 days from its publication in the Federal Register. The airports will have up to five years to complete their SMS. “The safe operation of our nation’s […]

The FAA is asking laser manufacturers and distributors to add a label warning of the safety risks and federal laws related to laser use to their product packaging. The agency suggested that the label read: “Pointing a laser at an aircraft threatens pilots, and it is a federal crime. U.S. law enforcement agencies and the […]

Cirrus Aircraft has confirmed it has stopped flying all the SR22s and SR22Ts it operates that were built between June 21, 2021, and Feb. 7, 2023, because what is believed to be a manufacturing assembly defect in Continental engines. “Cirrus Aircraft has been informed by Continental Aerospace Technologies (Continental) of an issue that affects engines that […]