FAA and Regs

A law firm has filed a second class-action suit against the FAA based on the agency’s air traffic controller hiring practices in 2014. The lawsuit alleges that the biographical assessment added to the initial air traffic controller application process in late 2013 was used to “intentionally disadvantage [Hispanic, Asian, Caucasian, and other] applicants based on […]

The Government Accountability Office has bitten on AOPA’s two-year-long campaign to end what it says is gouging by FBOs at some airports. At the request of House Transportation Chairman Bill Shuster and aviation subcommittee chairman Frank LoBiondo the GAO is specifically looking at whether the FAA is doing its job ensuring airports that receive federal […]

Virgin Orbit has rolled out its solution for making space more accessible to those who want to put small payloads into orbit. The company has modified a Boeing 747-400 to take a 57,000-pound, 70-foot rocket on a launcher between the inboard left engine and the fuselage. The rocket, called LauncherOne, was lifted into place and […]

When a crime is committed within a mile of the Chula Vista Police Department in southern California, chances are the first on the scene will be a drone. The police in the community near San Diego are the first to get an FAA waiver to fly over buildings and people to help officers assess a […]

In the late 1970s I began my checkered ATC career at Oakland Center, which I was disappointed to learn was not located at Oakland, California, or even at an airport but, instead, in not-so-nearby Fremont. The next letdown was the facility itself, which resembled a federal penitentiary, complete with barbed wire and security guards to […]

The FAA has proposed a regulatory change that would allow flight training in experimental light sport aircraft (E-LSA) to be conducted for compensation or hire under a letter of deviation authority (LODA). Aviation organizations including the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association (LAMA) and United States Ultralight Association (USUA) have been working toward […]

A Florida aircraft mechanic has been charged with multiple counts of theft for allegedly removing serviceable parts from aircraft, selling them and charging his customers to replace them with new parts. Joseph Lippo, who operates J.L. Aircraft Services in Deland, was arrested on Wednesday and has since been released on a $15,000 bond. The investigation […]

Raptors Wrecked By Michael In addition to being the main Raptor roost, Tyndall AFB is also the location for the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center. In other words, when your 406MHz ELT goes off in the lower-48, they’re the ones who hear the alarm and start the response. I wonder if their operations are affected, […]

The theme for this year’s NBAA-BACE convention was the future of aviation and a lot of the companies attending embraced that theme. There were lots of virtual reality gizmos in the displays and an overall sense that profound change, from technology through hardware to environmental realities, is all around us. Please, I know some of […]

Aviation is changing and Uber is leading an effort that will result in a system virtually unrecognizable by today’s standards but not that far away, says the company’s chief of aviation program. Eric Allison, of Uber Elevate, told the opening session at the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA-BACE) convention in Orlando on Tuesday that the […]