News

The Society of Aviation Technicians at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University are testing the performance characteristics of biofuels used in aircraft engines. The tests will subject a four-cylinder Lycoming to E85 biofuel (an 85/15 ethanol/gasoline mix) to asses the fuel’s performance and its potential to reduce aircraft emissions and lower costs. Under controlled conditions, student researchers aim […]

Two companies promoting the Quasar Lite — a Brazilian-made light sport aircraft currently aiming for S-LSA approval in September — are hoping an experimental version of the aircraft will this year successfully fly “from California to Florida on a single [40-gallon] tank of fuel.” No date for the flight has been announced. Powered by a […]

Boeing and Lockheed Martin have been selected, along with Aurora Flight Sciences, by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to design and develop an unmanned solar-powered aircraft that can stay aloft for five years. The venture, DARPA’s “Vulture” program, would ultimately see a fixed-wing aircraft ascend to 60,000 to 90,000 feet carrying a 1,000-pound […]

Brazil’s air force Thursday suspended efforts of finding a Roman Catholic priest, 42-year-old Reverend Adelir Antonion de Carli, presumed missing off the coast of Santa Catarina, where pieces of the hundreds of helium party balloons that carried him aloft (Sunday April 20) were found. After an initial climb to 20,000 feet, Denise Gallas, treasurer of […]

The supervisory board of Thielert AG, the German company that manufactures Thielert diesel aircraft engines and also owns Texas-based Superior Air Parts said in a statement today it has dismissed “with cause” company founder Frank Thielert and cancelled his employment contract in light of preliminary findings of a criminal investigation into the company’s financial affairs. […]

With Earth Day celebrated around the world on Tuesday, executives from Boeing and Airbus joined together at the third Aviation & Environment Summit, in Geneva, to announce they will work together to create a more efficient air traffic system that will save energy. “I am convinced technology and innovation hold the key to reducing aviation’s […]

A new nonprofit called the Scott Crossfield Foundation has launched this week. The foundation’s mission is to continue and expand upon the lifelong work of the legendary test pilot, the first to fly Mach 2, who died in 2006. The group will work to promote the Aerospace Education Teacher of the Year Award, which was […]

Plenty of people have turned to the Internet to find dates for social occasions; now the Aircraft Partnership Association aims to use the Web to find matches for pilots who want to share airplane ownership. “Trying to find suitable aircraft partners by posting a flyer at your local airport … is tremendously ineffective,” says David […]

A subpoena issued by a California court last week in response to a request by Eclipse Aviation seeks to obtain the names of about 28 people who have posted anonymous comments on the Eclipse Aviation Critic NG blog. The blog, hosted by Shane Price of Dublin, Ireland, is the “next generation” of the original Eclipse […]

The diesel engines produced by Thielert in Germany have made inroads in general aviation aircraft, with installations in both Cessna and Diamond airplanes. But the company has run into multiple financial problems — as AVweb recently reported, CEO Frank Thielert has resigned as CEO, though he will remain with the company as chief operating officer. […]