News

Is the industry a step or two closer to a viable supersonic business jet? Could be, after what Gulfstream is calling last week’s successful test of its so-called Quiet Spike “sonic boom mitigator.” According to the company, the device successfully completed its first supersonic flight on Friday, Oct. 20, attached to the nose of a […]

The FAA is holding a meeting today at its headquarters involving all U.S. operators of the Mitsubishi MU-2 aircraft, apparently to provide updated information designed to enhance the type’s safety. In a lengthy Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) published Sept. 28, the FAA announced it is seeking to create a Special Federal Aviation Regulation (SFAR) […]

Last week, AVweb updated you on Boeing’s business jet program (BBJ), noting the debut of the BBJ3, based on the 737-900ER. What we didn’t report is that Boeing also has new orders for VIP-configured versions of its commercial jets. According to the company, Boeing will build one 787-8 Dreamliner, three 787-9 Dreamliners and three 747-8 […]

Another way to measure success at last week’s NBAA event is to count the numbers of airframes sold or ordered. While it’s always difficult to track orders and compare them to delivered airframes throughout a model’s manufacturing life, most makers left with something to smile about. Among them was Cessna, which says it received 115 […]

If one used an old-style phonograph record as a metaphor by which to measure how successful an annual National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) annual meeting and convention might be, there are pieces of smashed vinyl all over the Orange County (Fla.) Convention Center. And none of it should come as a surprise: AVweb noted before […]

Everything might be bigger in Texas, but not everythings better, especially when it comes to the cost of operating the states fleet of two Cessna piston singles, four Cessna Conquests and five Beech King Air B200s. The Texas state auditor said a recent review of flight services provided by the state Department of Transportations aviation […]

My, how time flies. Has it really been 40 years since the Gulfstream GII made its first flight? It has, according to the company, which noted the occasion last week. On Oct. 2, 1966, Grumman Aerospace test pilots Carl Alber and Bob Smythe flew the first Gulfstream II (GII) on its maiden flight from Bethpage, […]

In response to recent mandates by Congress, the FAA is changing its rules to require written permission from a supplemental type certificate (STC) holder to use its data for follow-on installations that alter the affected aircraft, engine or propeller. The changes became effective Oct. 2, 2006. Although written in a manner requiring the STC holder […]

San Antonio, Texas-based Sino Swearingen Aircraft Corp. (SSAC) is being visited by Taiwan Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-hsiang this week. The company is a joint venture in which Taiwan holds a more than 90-percent share. According to the China Post, the vice minister was at SSACs headquarters mainly to find out why it […]

Next week’s National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) annual meeting and convention promises to offer a little something for everyone and a lot for most of us. The event, scheduled for the Orange County Convention Center Oct. 17 through 19, is the 59th edition of NBAA’s annual extravaganza and, according to the association, exhibit floor and […]