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Although it may look like a Lyoming 360-series engine, Superior claims its new engine is much different on the inside, where it counts. Blockus said they re-engineered just about every part of the decades-old design, improved materials throughout and made it breathe, oil and run better. Blockus said they decided to “stick to the basics” […]

Now, Superior isn’t the first to launch a certified autogas engine project but the most recent entrant in that market was conspicuously absent from the sunny grounds of Lakeland Linder Regional Airport. Bombardier, which created a major stir at last year’s AirVenture in Oshkosh with the introduction of its V-6 GA engines, was a no-show […]

Lycoming-Inspired Superior Vantage Uses Mogas… The first GA engine certified to run on unleaded automotive gasoline is a reality. Superior Air Parts officials told a packed Sun ‘n Fun news conference their Vantage O-360 (aspirated) and IO-360 (injected) engines will happily sip mid-grade 91 Octane mogas. Keith Blockus, who was in charge of development of […]

How It Sounded In The Tower With the weekend on its way and the sun finally blazing down in all its Florida exuberance, Sun ‘n Fun started to live up to its name yesterday as the clouds disappeared, Wednesday’s relentless winds died down, and the sky filled with airplanes. “Move! Move! Move!” was the mantra […]

Cirrus officials are also hesitant to speculate on the factors leading up to the Canadian mishap or a subsequent chute deployment (this time on an SR22) two days later in Florida. Interviewed by AVweb at Sun ‘n Fun, Cirrus spokesman Randy Bolinger said that in both cases the aircraft have to be examined before any […]

Spiral Dive Preceded Parachute ‘Save’… Canadian authorities have determined a Cirrus SR20 was in a potentially-deadly spiral dive when the pilot deployed the aircraft’s emergency parachute over the rugged mountains of southern British Columbia last Thursday. “We have radar data showing the aircraft in a spiral before it goes off radar,”said Bill Yearwood, who heads […]

The proposed rule — one of the most complex in FAA history — would establish a new sport pilot license with a minimum of 20 hours of flight training, use of any state driver’s license for medical qualification, and day VFR flying with one passenger or solo. Sport pilots could be endorsed to fly any […]

OMB on Sport Pilot/LSA: Not Now but Maybe… FAA officials made clear on Tuesday at Sun ‘n Fun how highly the agency views its still-pending sport pilot/light-sport aircraft (LSA) proposal … sort of. Many view LSA as the salvation of sport, entry-level aviation and continued flying by older pilots. Meetings yesterday with industry leaders at […]

The da Vinci Project, an X PRIZE contender based in Toronto, Canada, announced last week that it is ready to launch a test flight later this year, and will announce a date by the end of this month. Computer designer-turned-astronaut Brian Feeney told AFP News, “We are going for it, it’s getting exciting.” Feeney said […]

Last week’s events brought aircraft designer Burt Rutan another step closer not only to capturing the X PRIZE , but to realizing his dream of creating a commercial space-tourism industry. “We look to the future, hopefully within ten years, when ordinary people, for the cost of a luxury cruise, can experience a rocket flight into […]