Flight Safety

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

Former Major League pitcher Roy Halladay had three drugs in his system when his Icon A5 crashed off the coast of Florida in November. The retired ballplayer had trace amounts of morphine and amphetamine along with an intoxicating level of the sedative zolpidem, commonly known as Ambien, in his bloodstream according to an autopsy report […]

Not to get all metaphysical, but the heart is at the very center of who we are and what we do. It feeds the brain with nutrients and life-giving oxygen, and fuels the cells out to the extremities. Any abnormalities of the heart, especially at the controls of an airplane, can lead to stress if […]

Students of all ages who are working toward a career in aviation can find scholarships available from a wide range of sources. GAMA said last week it is now accepting applications from high school students for its Edward W. Stimpson “Aviation Excellence” Award, named for the organization’s founder. The $2,000 award will go to a […]

Pilots may think that talking to ATC or using ADS-B protects them from midair collisions, but mistakes still can happen, and they can be fatal. AOPA’s Air Safety Institute is taking on the midair threat in a big way, offering in-person seminars at 48 sites across the U.S. this year. “What we hope pilots take […]

In 2016, the FAA terminated its certification of certain ELTs manufactured by Ameri-King, and this week, Orolia announced it has developed a new version of its Integra model that has been specially adapted and packaged to make it easy to replace the affected ELTs. The new Kannad Ameri-Fit pack is available through Aircraft Spruce, Mid-Continent […]

The NTSB issued its final report on Tuesday following its investigation of the Bell 525 crash in July 2016 that killed two pilots during a test flight in Texas. The board cited a “severe vibration” of the helicopter, “which was not predicted during development,” as the probable cause of the crash. The vibration led to […]

Discovery Aviation has started production of a new version of the XL-2, a two-seat trainer first FAA-certified in 2004, the company announced last week. The IFR-certified XL-2 features a Garmin G500 dual-screen flight display, as well as DME, ADF and an option to add an autopilot. The XL-2 runs an IOF-240 engine from Teledyne Continental, […]

The Bob Hoover Academy, an aviation-themed nonprofit youth outreach program based in Austin, Texas, has partnered with Redbird Flight Simulations to add a full-motion flight simulator to the curriculum. “As with any program, time in our aircraft and with our instructor is limited,” said BHA chairman and founder Sean Tucker. “Simulation helps our students make […]

It was one of those days where the winds were very gusty, and the pattern was just a mess at ILG (Wilmington, DE). It’s a training site for controllers and downwinds were being extended by miles, clearances were changing, and everything was just a bit messy. Combined with the gusts, it wasn’t a fun day. […]