News

Flaris, the single-engine very-light jet that has been in development in Poland for about six years, has been in taxi testing since last month and a first flight is expected soon, according to the company website. Test pilot Henryk Szkudlarz will be at the controls for the first tests, which will take place from the […]

The 87-year-old pilot who skipped a gear-up Piper Aerostar off a runway in Florida earlier this month told AVweb he didn’t forget to drop the gear. In fact, Chris Gaklis said in an interview he retracted the gear a few seconds before the aircraft was caught on video clattering down the short strip at Aero […]

A new electric motor developed by Siemens, a German company, will make it possible to build four-seat hybrid-electric aircraft, the company said recently. The motor’s capabilities also suggest “that the use of hybrid-electric drives in regional airliners with 50 to 100 passengers is a real medium-term possibility,” said Frank Anton, head of the company’s e-aircraft […]

Pilots planning to fly into EAA AirVenture, which for several days during the show is the site of the world’s busiest airspace, are always advised to “study the Notam,” and this year’s FAA Notam (PDF) is now available online. The show is coming up July 20 to 26 at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. […]

The FAA’s proposed rule for allowing small unmanned aircraft systems (under 55 pounds) into the federal airspace drew more than 4,400 comments, including input from aviation advocacy groups. Several of the advocacy groups, including EAA, AOPA and GAMA, said the FAA should lower its ceiling for small UAS ops to 400 feet, instead of 500, […]

An experienced flight nurse fell from a medical helicopter during a rescue mission in Austin, Texas, Monday night and was killed, officials have reported. The Star Flight EC-145 was operating at about 9:45 p.m. and the crew was working to hoist aboard a woman who had fallen from a cliff in a hiking area and […]

Piaggio Aerospace has delivered the first Avanti Evo, its third-generation version of the twin turboprop, to a customer in Greece, the company has announced. The seven-seat airplane, with a VIP interior, will be used for charter. Piaggio CEO Carlo Logli said the company expects to deliver five more of the airplanes by the end of […]

Although there were widespread predictions (including by the FAA itself) that the agency’s proposed rule (PDF) for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) would overwhelm the bureaucracy with comments, only a relatively manageable 4,428 people and organizations took the time to make their feelings known. The devil is in the details, however, and some of the comment […]

The heads of all seven unions representing FAA employees have jointly condemned Congress’s exploration of privatization of the air traffic operation, saying what’s needed is reliable funding for the agency. “On behalf of the thousands of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employees represented by our organisations, we are writing to express our viewpoint regarding recent discussions […]

Forums and blogs are buzzing about video of a remarkable touch and go that, based on everything we can determine, happened at Aero Acres Air Park, near Port St. Lucie, Florida, on April 11. A Piper Aerostar landed gear-up but instead of grinding it to a stop and climbing sheepishly out of the damaged aircraft, […]