Flight Safety

AVweb’s Flight Safety section offers in-depth coverage of aviation safety topics, including accident analyses, risk management strategies, regulatory updates, and pilot training insights. Designed for pilots, instructors, and aviation professionals, this section provides timely information to enhance situational awareness and promote best practices in flight operations.

Jammed Elevators Cited In Houston MD-87 Overrun

The actuators that move the elevators of a privately operated MD-87 that crashed at Houston Executive Airport Oct. 19 were jammed in the trailing edge down position and that made it impossible for the aircraft to take off. The NTSB preliminary report says the elevator actuators were both bent enough that they prevented the elevators […]

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FAA To Start Vetting, Monitoring Boeing Inspectors

The FAA will start vetting the engineers Boeing designates as safety inspectors after the agency found many didn’t have the qualifications or experience needed to be effective in the job. In a letter of complaint to Boeing obtained by the Seattle Times, the agency said it came across inspectors, who are designated to sign off […]

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Blue Origin Passenger, Flight Instructor Killed In C172 Crash

Medidata Solutions co-founder Glen de Vries and flight instructor Thomas Fischer were killed in the crash of a Cessna 172 on Thursday. A private pilot with an instrument rating, de Vries, 49, travelled to space alongside actor William Shatner onboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard spacecraft last month. Fischer, 54, owned Fischer Aviation, a flight school […]

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NAFI MentorLIVE Lines Up 50th Broadcast

The National Association of Flight Instructors (NAFI) is preparing for the 50th broadcast of its monthly MentorLIVE livestreaming program. The program, which launched in June 2017, is designed to provide specialized safety messages and educational content for flight instructors and general aviation pilots. MentorLIVE has logged more than 116,000 unique viewers to date. “This important […]

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Flaps In A Gusty Cross?

There’s normal, and then there’s normal. Which is to say that while much of aviation relies on routine procedures and aircraft configurations, among other things, there are exceptions to most norms. For example, the FAA long ago declared a “normal” landing to be one with an airplane’s wing flaps, if any, fully deployed. That’s not […]

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General Aviation Accident Bulletin

AVweb’s General Aviation Accident Bulletin is taken from the pages of our sister publication, Aviation Safety magazine. All the reports listed here are preliminary and include only initial factual findings about crashes. You can learn more about the final probable cause on the NTSB’s website at www.ntsb.gov. Final reports appear about a year after the […]

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FBI Called In On Worst Passenger Violence Cases

The FAA is calling in backup to tackle the continuing surge in violent behavior in airliners. The agency is now referring the worst examples of unruly passengers to the FBI for criminal prosecution. “This is a priority for both agencies,” the FAA said in a tweet posted Saturday. Among the cases heading to the FBI […]

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FAA Holding ‘Inclusive Language Summit’ Nov. 10

The FAA is starting the consultation process on a gender-neutral rewrite of its vast trove of rules, regs and other documents with a virtual “Inclusive Language Summit” on Nov. 10 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. EST. The event will be livestreamed on all of the agency’s social media platforms and the public is welcome […]

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Pilot Says Too Many Jumpers Outside Led To King Air Spin

The pilot of a King Air C90 that went into a spin while skydivers prepared to jump over South Africa on Oct. 14 says the plane departed controlled flight because too many jumpers got out of the rear exit at the same time. The dramatic video of the incident has gone viral and been featured on […]

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AOPA Set To Hold High School STEM Symposium

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) Foundation has announced that it is on track to hold its annual High School Aviation STEM Symposium on Nov. 16. Now in its sixth year, the symposium is designed to help educators bring aviation-related science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) programs to their classrooms. Citing continued challenges posed […]

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