Risk Management

I recall an instructor, who before signing students off for the commercial checkride, would explain a few things he felt were critical when exercising commercial privileges. First, commercial pilots had to be smooth. After all, paying passengers would not be impressed if we could not fly the airplane well. Second, commercial pilots had to be […]

Five people were killed and three injured in the crash of a Cessna 414A in a neighborhood in Yorba Linda, California, east of Los Angeles. Early reports and video from the scene show aircraft parts on a street in front of two houses on fire. Fire officials confirmed the casualties and said only the pilot […]

A New York Times investigation of the Oct. 29, 2018, Lion Air Boeing 737 MAX crash suggests marketing considerations were at least partly behind Boeing’s and the FAA’s joint decision to not specifically train pilots in the maneuvering characteristics augmentation system (MCAS) that may have played a role in the crash. The Times story quotes […]

An unoccupied Beechcraft V35B Bonanza crashed at California’s Modesto City-County Airport (MOD) after an unplanned engine start on Wednesday afternoon. It has been reported that two people had been working on the aircraft’s electrical system and manipulating the propeller. The engine accidently engaged, sending the Bonanza into a parked car and through the airport fence […]

The rebuilt prototype XP-82 celebrated its first official flight on Monday and by all accounts it went well. The Tom Reilly XP-82 Twin Mustang Restoration Project confirmed the flight, which was a lot longer than its first hop three weeks ago. As we reported in early January, the aircraft, which is actually based on the […]

Time for a pop quiz: What do these three accidents have in common? (Our descriptions omit the phrase “the pilot of” as redundant.) 1) A Piper PA-32R-300 Lance attempted to take off from a 3200-footlong grass runway on a June morning with flaps retracted. It lifted off at the end of the runway, then descended […]

AVweb’sGeneral Aviation Accident Bulletinis taken from the pages of our sister publication,Aviation Safetymagazine. 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 website atwww.ntsb.gov. Final reports appear about a year after the accident, although some take longer. […]

The leadership of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association has distanced itself from any notion that a staff shortage that caused delays at some East Coast airports on Friday was orchestrated to pressure the government to end the shutdown. The union issued a statement shortly after an uptick in sick calls at Washington Center reduced […]

A Hawaiian Airlines flight from Honolulu to New York diverted to San Francisco after a flight attendant fell ill and died over the Pacific on Thursday. The 50-year-old flight attendant suffered an apparent heart attack on the flight. There were reportedly several doctors on board who administered aid but could not revive the crew member. […]

A tornado ripped through the airport at Antalya Turkey on Saturday, injuring 12 people and causing millions of dollars in damage as it marched down a line of airliners parked on the ramp. None of the injuries are considered life threatening. The wind knocked over buses and service vehicles on the ramp and pushed equipment […]