News

A West Virginia company says it wants its “day in court” to fight a seemingly perplexing decision by the FAA to ground dozens of French-built helicopters, some of which have been operating in the U.S. for years. As AVweb reported last month, the agency sent owners of some Alouette helicopters telling them they must have […]

Six operational errors over six days at the Memphis Air Route Traffic Control Center last week were due to fatigue and training errors caused by inadequate staffing, according to the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA). “Memphis Center was authorized by the FAA to have 354 controllers on staff for a safe staffing level,” NATCA […]

Eclipse Aviation on Monday told AVweb that “we are excited to see the aircraft being used in the way we have always envisioned,” referring to the first Part 135 charter flight of an Eclipse 500 last Friday. North American Jet Charter flew two passengers round trip from Chicago to Baltimore on one of the very […]

Clearwater, Fla.-based Aerosonic Corporation, a supplier of precision flight products for commercial, business and military aircraft, on Wednesday announced that it acquired avionics maker Op Technologies. Oregon-based Op Technologies currently makes cockpit avionics for experimental aircraft, including the Pegasus Integrated Avionics System. In June, Op said it is developing an avionics system for certified aircraft. […]

With FAA Administrator Marion Blakey’s term about to expire in just over two weeks, aviation leaders are urging President Bush to quickly appoint a new leader for the agency. “General aviation and the airlines dont agree on the FAA funding issue, but when it comes to choosing an FAA administrator, all of aviation is flying […]

Aviation students at Bridgewater State College in Massachusetts are scrambling to find flight instruction after a flight school at the New Bedford Regional Airport unexpectedly shut down, The Associated Press reported. The Delta Connection Academy, a Florida-based operation, has trained hundreds of students from the New Bedford flight school, but told employees early this month […]

A problem that stalled shipments of Garmin G1000 avionics last week, affecting deliveries of some piston aircraft, has been resolved, Garmin said on Monday. Garmin has resumed shipments of the GRS 77 AHRS (Attitude Heading Reference System) units, which were the cause of the snafu, used in G1000 installations. “All affected aircraft manufacturers will begin […]

Two Gulfstream GV business jets will undertake an unusual mission in the early morning hours of Sept. 1, when the two jets, privately owned by Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, will carry scientists aloft to view an extremely rare Aurigid meteor shower. A brief shower of tens of meteors will radiate from the constellation of Auriga, many […]

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers has announced a campaign to organize the 1,200 Flight Service Specialists employed by Lockheed Martin Corporation. The specialists, who work at 18 sites in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, were employed by the FAA until last year when the work was contracted to Lockheed Martin. “With our […]

A new job is literally waiting in the wings for Marion Blakey when her term as FAA Administrator ends next month. It was announced on Tuesday that Blakey will be the next president and CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association, the trade association representing the nation’s manufacturers of aerospace equipment. The appointment officially takes effect […]