News

Virgin Galactic unveiled the final designs of SpaceShipTwo and WhiteKnightTwo at a press conference in New York on Wednesday. The construction of WhiteKnightTwo, the gangly mothership that carries the spaceship aloft before it ignites its rocket engine, is now very close to completion at Scaled Composites in Mojave, Calif., the company said, and flight testing […]

Alpha Aviation, a Hamilton, N.Z.-based planemaker, laid off most of its 70 staff and went into liquidation this week after a three-month search to find a buyer failed to turn up any prospects. In 2004, the company bought the rights to the French-made Robin two-place low-wing aircraft. The plan was to sell updated versions of […]

“Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but ski-flying is so delightful. So long as you fly in Minnesota, let it snow, let it snow …” Who’re we kiddin’? Winter sucks. So hasten spring’s arrival by smoking this quiz. Take the quiz. More Brainteasers

The manager of a small airline that had a fatal crash on Vancouver Island two years ago is suing Transport Canada and three of its senior employees for defamation. Nikolas Todd Chapman claims the officials unjustly lifted his authority to act as the operations manager for International Express Aircharter the day after one of its […]

The National Business Aviation Association paid lobbyists Ernst and Young to pressure Congress and the Treasury Department on “tax issues related to fuel and aviation” in the first half of 2007. The figure was reported by Thomson Financial and based on disclosure documents filed by Ernst and Young. Although the description is vague, it appears […]

Bombardier Aerospace has picked Grob Aerospace to develop the all-composite structure of the Lear 85 business jet that was announced last October but without much detail. The new aircraft is Bombardier’s first venture into composites and the 85 will be the first composite bizjet certified under FAR Part 25, the company said. Grob will build […]

Delegates from North America and Europe are gathering in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. for the rest of this week to talk about the air taxi business, particularly as it relates to the use of very light jets. Most of the companies represented have been in business less than a year and there’s plenty for them to […]

Eclipse Aviation and Hampson Aerospace announced Tuesday that they’ve settled claims and counterclaims that resulted from contractual issues between them. Late last year Hampson, a large British company which has a subassembly plant in Grande Prairie, Tex., sued Eclipse for alleged non payment for tail sections it had built for the very light jet. Eclipse […]

Adam Aircraft faces “liquidation” if it doesn’t raise $25 million by the end of January. In a letter to shareholders, CEO John Wolf said that without the immediate cash injection, Adam will have to take action to meet the terms of agreements with “senior lenders,” according to the Wichita Eagle. The lenders were not identified. […]

Investigators from the NTSB are trying to figure out why a Cessna 172 and a Cessna 150 collided in midair about a mile south of the Corona Municipal Airport in California on Sunday, killing the pilot and passenger of each aircraft plus one person on the ground. According to the The Associated Press, the Riverside […]