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If a wing flaps in Canada, and nobody’s paying attention, does it make a stir? Luckily for aeronautical engineer James DeLaurier, who last Saturday saw his one-seat ornithopter fly for the first time, a reporter at The Toronto Star who shares his fascination with flapping flight got the story out. The aircraft flapped its way […]

“NATA feels the Miami Herald did not give a true picture of the air cargo industry,” Lindsey McFarren, research and special projects manager for the National Air Transportation Association (NATA), told AVweb yesterday, in response to a request for comment. “Rather, the Herald focused on a few operators with safety or regulatory problems instead of […]

The Herald says its reporters spent nine months researching the story, and in checking thousands of pages of documents, found 12 fatal cargo crashes that had not been counted in NTSB statistics. By the Herald’s analysis, there have been 69 fatal crashes and 85 deaths since 2000 in cargo operations. The 12 uncounted by the […]

Unsafe practices are common in cargo operations, according to a three-part investigative series that ran in The Miami Herald this week. Shorter versions of the story were widely reprinted in newspapers around the country. The Herald says that on average, one pilot per month dies in a freight-hauling accident, making it the deadliest form of […]

The state’s Transportation Department, however, notes that Florida’s aviation growth has exceeded the national average and fears too much of a good thing could cause problems. “Florida stands at the threshold of an exciting new era in aviation, an era full of promise but also with many potential pitfalls,” the DOT says in a recent […]

Florida is the second-busiest aviation state in the U.S., according to the Orlando Business Journal, and while that’s generally seen as a good thing for industry and tourism, the article raises concerns about overcrowding and safety. Central Florida has seen a lot of recent growth, with both people and aircraft moving in at a steady […]

It’s not just soybeans and corn that can be turned into fuel additives. Agifish, an aquaculture company based in Vietnam, can turn catfish fat into diesel fuel, Reuters reported on Tuesday. Agifish has been using the fuel, made from fat left over from processed fish, to run pumps at its fish ponds, Deputy Director Nguyen […]

So, you’ve heard diesel engines can run on cooking oil. It may still be a while yet before you can fill your tank with recycled cooking grease and take off smelling of french fries — but maybe not as long as you think. Rising gas prices have reignited interest in alternative fuels, and increased research […]

With the way the show has turned into such a commercial extravaganza, the roots and original purpose of the fly-in can be easy to overlook. However, the educational and safety training component of AirVenture is as strong as ever, with hundreds of forums and numerous hands-on training opportunities available just by signing up, or finding […]

Of course, every manufacturer wants its latest and greatest at the big show but they’re often cagey about making promises they can’t keep. However, reading between the lines, there appear to be some new aircraft set for debut. Comp Airannounced introduction of a new pressurized, eight-place turboprop single called the Comp Air 9. CubCrafters’ new […]