FAA and Regs

Gainesville, Florida, is the hub of a GA relief effort to help the hurricane-ravaged Florida Panhandle in the wake of Hurricane Michael. Only a few weeks after mounting a major effort to help some of the millions affected by Hurricane Florence in the Carolinas, Operation Airdrop began receiving and distributing supplies on Sunday. Gainesville is […]

As we reported earlier, the FAA is reinstating its $500 rebate for equipage with ADS-B Out as an incentive for aircraft operators to get the new gear installed before the Jan. 1, 2020, deadline. The agency has set aside $4.9 million for the program, which will ease the financial impact on 9,800 aircraft owners and […]

Possible LSA Weight Limit Increase I’ve heard reference to four seats, 3600lb, and 150mph. Now, I won’t complain about the weight number… but honestly I’d rather trade some of that weight increase for a further speed increase. How many four-seaters out there weigh 3600lb and only top out at 150? Maybe if they could make […]

The FAA’s just-revealed report that it would consider raising the light sport aircraft limit from 1320 pounds to 3600 pounds is just a proposed talking point and any rule is at least a year and a half away, according to EAA. And no, the 3600-pound figure isn’t a typo nor confusion over kilogram conversion, as […]

The FAA’s new reauthorization bill was approved by both the House and the Senate over the last few weeks, and now has passed the final hurdle—the president’s signature—to become the new law of the land. The bill provides $90 billion in funding over five years, making it the longest-term FAA bill since 1982. GA advocacy […]

Toyota has filed for patent protection of an unusual flying car design that uses the same drive mechanism for road and the air. According to TransportUp, the “Dual Mode Vehicle With Wheel Rotors” uses the rotor hubs as wheels when the device is on the ground. The rotors fold into the wheel allowing the vehicle […]

A high-ranking FAA source has confirmed that the FAA plans to almost triple the maximum weight for most light sport aircraft to 3600 pounds in rulemaking that will be introduced in January. The source confirmed the scant details of a Facebook post written by AOPA Senior VP of Media and Outreach Tom Haines from the […]

Neither pilot in the cockpit of a Falcon 50 that crashed in Greenville, South Carolina, last week was rated to fly the aircraft as pilot in command, according to the preliminary report issued by the NTSB on Thursday. The report states that the pilot in the left seat “held an ATP certificate with a type […]

A bill to reauthorize the FAA (H.R. 302) was passed by the U.S. Senate by a vote of 93 to 6 on Wednesday. The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, which made it through the House of Representatives last week, now only needs a presidential signature to become law. The legislation has earned praise from many […]

The FAA is investigating an incident in which a police helicopter was used in an effort to disperse a large tailgate party that took place before a Penn State vs. Ohio State football game at Penn State University’s Beaver Stadium last weekend. As shown in the video below, a Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) helicopter flew […]