FAA and Regs

The FAA has signed off on significant changes to the Boeing 737 MAX’s flight control systems mandated by Canada and the European Union. The changes won’t delay the return to service but will cost Boeing money in the long term. According to the Seattle Times, the European Aviation Safety Administration (EASA) has demanded three changes […]

The FAA has issued an amendment expanding a special federal aviation regulation (SFAR) designed to provide regulatory relief for individuals unable to meet some training, experience, testing and checking requirements due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The original SFAR, which was published on April 30, extended the validity of medical certificates expiring from March 31, […]

A whistleblower says the FAA should pull Boeing’s production certificate for the Boeing 737 MAX because of the company’s “continued deception and gross errors in the design and production” of the aircraft. Curtis Ewbank, a 34-year-old flight deck systems specialist, wrote a letter to the Senate predicting more fatal crashes if systemic issues with the […]

During a Wednesday hearing held by the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, FAA Administrator Stephen Dickson acknowledged that the FAA and Boeing both made mistakes in regards to the certification of the Boeing 737 MAX. “The manufacturer made mistakes and the FAA made mistakes in its oversight of the manufacturer,” Dickson said […]

Rusty pilots, lighter-than-normal aircraft and new procedures have combined to create some anxious moments for passengers and crews as the airline industry coped with the coronavirus pandemic, according to Bloomberg. The news agency said the Commercial Aviation Safety Team, made up of representatives from the FAA, unions and airlines, has issued about 50 safety warnings […]

Senator Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., introduced a bill in the U.S. Senate on Thursday that would require all “U.S.-registered turbine-powered rotorcraft certificated for 6 or more passenger seats” to be equipped with terrain awareness and warning systems (TAWS), flight data recorders (FDRs) and cockpit voice recorders (CVRs). The Helicopter Safety Act of 2020 cites the FAA’s […]

The FAA is proposing fine tuning a massive proposed AD on Piper Cherokee wing spars and removing more than a third of the aircraft originally covered. It’s also added a few models but the net reduction is 8,800 airframes from the original list of more than 20,000. The five aircraft removed from the list are […]

The FAA is proposing an AD on some Cessna taildraggers requiring an inspection of the tail cones and horizontal stabilizers. Almost 7,000 180s, 1802s and 185s are affected and comments are open until June 29. Textron issued a mandatory service letter in 2017 and the AD basically follows its directives but instead of applying to […]

The FAA is investigating after drone video of a close encounter with the Blue Angels appeared online earlier this week. In one shot, the six F/A-18s appear to pass within a few hundred feet of the drone as they performed an America Strong formation flight over Detroit on May 12. The video appears to be […]

Municipal officials all over the country are comparing notes and discovering major disparities in the government aid they’re getting through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The issue first cropped up in Colorado where Northern Colorado Regional Airport, a GA facility serving Fort Collins and Loveland, got a whopping $16.9 million for […]