Flight Safety

I remember my first flight as left-seater in a TAA (technically advanced aircraft). Too. Many. Buttons. And each switch, knob and button had multiple roles, depending on my stage of flight and the information I wanted to pull up or program into it. And harmony? Well, other than the integrated glass panels available on then-new […]

A Beechcraft Bonanza crashed in a residential area on New York’s Long Island Tuesday after the pilot declared an emergency, reporting a failed vacuum system. All three people on board are dead and the aircraft appears to have broken up in flight. The Bonanza departed Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, about 12:45 p.m., heading for Plainville, […]

Although there haven’t been many accidents involving unmanned aircraft systems, there have been enough for the NTSB to begin building the investigatory resources to determine causes, just as they have for years with manned aircraft. In this exclusive AVweb podcast recorded at the AUVSI trade show in New Orleans, the NTSB’s Bill English explains what’s […]

As Amazon bolts at breakneck speed toward package delivery by autonomous drone, it sees future air traffic control and de-confliction as a series of overlapping but collaborating apps in which aircraft and controllers share separation tasks. Amazon’s Gur Kimchi, who’s overseeing the company’s PrimeAir drone development efforts, outlined a view of the future in which […]

The FAA will hold a public hearing on its proposed Part 23 revisions today and tomorrow in College Park, Georgia. On the eve of the event, a coalition of general aviation groups sent a letter (PDF) to the FAA urging them to work swiftly and implement the revised rule by the end of this year. […]

The National Association of Flight Instructors announced on Monday thatthe group’s founder, Jack Jay Eggspuehler, died on April 30. He was 86 years old. Eggspuehler was a flight instructor and professor of aviation at The Ohio State University from 1958 to 1980. In 1967, he led a small group of aviation professionals to create NAFI, […]

Recently, on flight following above Santa Barbara on a beautifully clear afternoon, approach was uncomfortably quiet. After several minutes of silence I called: Mooney 1234:“Approach, Mooney 1234. Is there anybody there to talk to?” Approach:“Mooney 1234, say request.” Mooney 1234:“Just checking to see if it really is this quiet.” Approach:“Yes, it really is.” [Pause.] Approach:“Mooney […]

The U.K. government is downplaying a widely circulated reportthat a British Airways A320 collided with a drone last month. Shortly after the incident hit the headlines, Robert Goodwill said the object hit by the aircraft might have been a plastic bag. Later in the month transport department officials told members of Parliament that that the […]

If the increasingly strident messages from the FAA about ADS-B equipage have you feeling the slightest pangs of guilt that you haven’t written the check yet, take heart. The agency doesn’t seem to be in too much of a hurry to get its own aircraft in compliance and it’s shopping around. As every aircraft owner […]

Dave strolls into the FBO carrying a travel bag and a pizza box. I let out a sigh. “Well, look who showed up. Dave, you’re 45 minutes late.” “Well, I needed gas, and there was a pizza place next door and, well, that smell hit me. I got some for everybody.” “We’re already late and […]