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.

Short Final: Team Rivalry

I was approaching Gainesville, Florida the week after the Florida Gators were destroyed by the Nebraska Cornhuskers in a bowl game and I listened to the ATIS. The code was Gator. When I called the tower I thought I would be cute so I said I had Cornhusker. The tower controller got me real good […]

Read More »

Plane Propelled By Ionic Wind

MIT engineers have developed an aircraft propulsion system with no moving parts. A team led by Steven Barrett, an MIT professor of aerospace engineering, flew a five-pound model the width of a gymnasium using “ionic wind” to maintain flight after an initial push using bungee cords. The first flight occurred almost a year ago. After […]

Read More »

Lion Air Crash: Pilots Struggled To The End

As lawsuits swirl around last month’s crash of a Lion Air 737 MAX8 into the Java Sea, Indonesian investigators say the crew struggled to control the aircraft right up to the moment of impact. And a member of Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee confirmed to The Guardian that the aircraft had experienced similar problems on […]

Read More »

FAA Issues Fuel Contamination Alert

The FAA has issued a Safety Alert for Operators (SAFO) addressing several aircraft refueled with contaminated jet fuel at Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport (OPF) in Opa-locka, Florida. The agency reports that five aircraft were serviced with jet fuel containing diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) between Aug. 12 and Aug. 16, 2018. Nine additional aircraft were serviced […]

Read More »

Modern Navigators Are Unerring, But Also Numb To The Universe

When I was a callow lad, private pilot ground school was interactive. It was interactive not in the sense of the Pavlovian clicking of choices on a webpage, but of having a human instructor who actually talked and answered questions. Chalk was a thing then. One of the instructors must have been an old school […]

Read More »

Southeastern University Launches Accelerated Flight Training

Southeastern University and International Aero Academy, both based in Lakeland, Florida, announced last week the launch of an aviation program that will provide a fast track to a professional pilot career. The partnership will pair four-year and two-year bachelor’s and associate’s degrees from SEU with IAA’s accelerated FAA Part 141 pilot training programs, based at […]

Read More »

FAA Seeks Input On ATP, Type Rating Changes

The FAA has proposed some changes to its standards for obtaining an Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate in the airplane category or for obtaining an airplane type rating, and if you have any opinions about the proposal, the FAA wants to hear from you. The proposed rule change is posted online, and comments will be […]

Read More »

Three Dead In Air Ambulance Accident

A Cessna 441 crashed near Bismarck, North Dakota, late Sunday night, killing all three people on board. The aircraft, which was owned by Bismarck Air Medical and used as an air ambulance, was en route from Bismarck to Williston, North Dakota, to pick up a patient. The victims have been identified as Todd Lasky, 48, […]

Read More »

Boeing Schedules, Cancels Call On Max 8

Boeing’s stock continued to tumble on Tuesday as the company apparently has been struggling in its response to the recent crash of a nearly new 737 Max 8 in Indonesia. Boeing officials scheduled a conference call Tuesday morning with operators to address their questions about the flight-control system on the jet, and whether the manuals […]

Read More »
Sign-up for newsletters & special offers!

Get the latest stories & special offers delivered directly to your inbox

SUBSCRIBE