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Sir Richard Branson, who financed many of Steve Fossett’s adventures, told CNN on Wednesday that he is “obviously worried” about his friend, but remains optimistic. “If he’s landed and he’s not too badly hurt, he’s the one person in the world who will be mentally and physically equipped to get out of it,” Branson said. […]

The FAA should require that all emergency locator transmitters in general aviation aircraft must be upgraded, the NTSB said (PDF) on Wednesday. The newer 406 MHz transmitters have significant advantages, the NTSB says, including longer range, better accuracy, and the ability to encode identification information, so rescuers know exactly what airplane is in distress. The […]

LISA Airplanes, a French aircraft manufacturer, has successfully launched the first flight of its Akoya design, a two-seat amphibian that can land on the ground, the snow, and the water. Test pilot Grald Ducoin flew the prototype for about 15 minutes on Aug. 22. “This maiden flight confirmed the very healthy general behavior of the […]

photo by Dan Johnson While the Light Sport Aircraft getting the most attention tend be those like Flight Design CT and Cessna, which are selling well in the $100,000 range, more models are coming online at lower costs. The latest is the Sport Hornet, a tandem fixed-wing airplane with full three-axis control, for sale as […]

There’s no lack of demand for their services — in fact, the need seems to be growing — yet the crop-dusting profession is a graying one, and new pilots ready to enter the field are scarce, Forbes.com reports. The work is dangerous, and the bar to entry is high. Costs for equipment and insurance, and […]

The design for New Mexico’s Spaceport America, unveiled on Tuesday, will incorporate the natural landscape, with a low-profile, 100,000-square-foot building that mimics a sand dune. A rolling concrete shell will act as a roof, with massive windows that open to a view of the runway and spacecraft, the designers said. A team of U.S. and […]

In the continuing fallout from a 2002 midair collision in Swiss-controlled airspace in which 71 people died, four air traffic control managers on Wednesday were convicted of manslaughter, Reuters reported. The judge said the managers were responsible for ensuring that at least two controllers were on duty at all times, and the collision could have […]

The FAA has authorized DayJet to use Eclipse 500TM very light jets in its operations, the company announced on Wednesday. DayJet is preparing to use its fleet of VLJs to launch “Per-Seat, On-Demand” jet service. “This milestone is the culmination of more than five years of dedicated work to develop the world’s first fully automated […]

Hawker Beechcraft announced sales of a total of 10 mid-sized business jets in the Asia-Pacific region on Tuesday. The company will be sending four Hawker 900XPs and four Hawker 750XPs to Jet Asia Ltd. The aircraft will be used by Sociedade de Jogos de Macau (SJM), a casino company owned by Sociedade de Turismo e […]

The surging business jet market has helped cash-strapped Bombardier recover from its post-9/11 problems and the Canadian planemaker is ramping up production. According to the Toronto Globe and Mail, Bombardier sold 212 business jets in its last fiscal year and orders continue to pour in. It’s also doing well in the regional jet market and […]