News

After stopping production more than 20 years ago, Aero Vodochody is preparing to bring an updated version of the L-39 Albatros jet trainer back to the market. In the L-39NG, a William FJ44-4M will replace the Ivchenko AI-25 found in the original. The new model will also come with a lighter airframe, wet wings and […]

Air traffic control privatization could trigger government paralysis as the extra $100 billion it costs ripples through the programs that money is needed to fund, according to EAA. The organization cites a memo issued by the Congressional Research Service, which says that because of the dent in the budget caused by privatization “a sequester would […]

Copycat suicide is one of three scenarios being considered by Canada’s Transportation Safety Board in the 2015 crash of a cargo aircraft with a drunk pilot in the left seat.The TSB report on the April 13, 2015, crash of the Carson Air Metroliner in the mountains north of Vancouver says radar tracks show the aircraft […]

The U.S. Air Force F-16, assigned to the Thunderbirds, that crashed following a runway overrun at Dayton International Airport in June was more than 40 knots too fast on final approach and did not touch down until nearly 5,000 feet down the runway. The $29 million aircraft was entirely destroyed when it flipped after departing […]

In a tweet, Finnair announced that they are asking passengers to be voluntarily weighed before flights. The airline assures passengers that they’re not preparing to charge more for larger passengers. “For us, this has nothing to do with ticket pricing or anything like that,” says Pivyt Tallqvist, director of communications at Finnair. The Scandinavian carrier […]

Electric powerplants and autonomous systems continue to make progress, with reports this week of first flights and new designs. In China, the two-seat RX1E-A, an advanced version of the RX1E, designed by Shenyang Aerospace University, flew for the first time this week and proved it can now fly for up to two hours on a […]

Bruce Landsberg, who promoted GA safety for many years at AOPA’s Air Safety Foundation, faced tough questions at a Senate hearing this week regarding his nomination to serve on the NTSB. Six senators signed on to a letter before the hearing asking why he criticized the 1,500-hour rule during his years at AOPA. The rule, […]

The FAA and NTSB both issued safety alerts recently that warn pilots to use proper procedures when operating on runways. The NTSB (PDF) cites several accidents when pilots chose an intersection takeoff to save time, and then lost power. In each case, if the pilot had used the entire available runway, there would have been […]

Now that the Part 23 rules to certify airplanes have been revised, the FAA says it’s ready to take on an overhaul of the regulations for certifying helicopters. “The proposed changes are necessary to address modern designs currently used in the rotorcraft industry and would reduce the burden on applicants for certification of new rotorcraft […]

Two men who died in the crash of a Czech-built light-sport aircraft in Rhoadesville, Virginia, in May 2016 had deployed a parachute recovery system, but it failed when the single front attachment point detached, according to a recent NTSB report. According to the NTSB, the pilot had recently purchased the Jihlavan KP 5 ASA (Skyleader […]