News

A 61-year-old man flying Tuesday as passenger in a Robinson R44 tour helicopter near Newport Beach, Calif., appears to have opened the door and jumped out while roughly 500 feet above the ocean, according to local police. The man was recovered from the water and later pronounced dead at an area hospital. First reports state […]

The FAAs processes combined with financial constraints have created a bottleneck that has held up roughly 1,000 certifications, industry representatives told a House aviation subcommittee last month – and it could get worse, they said. In the past year alone, the certification office lost resources due to the sequester, instituted a hiring freeze, and had […]

Lighthawk, a nonprofit group based in Wyoming that works to use volunteer airplanes and pilots to promote environmental conservation around the world, recently was awarded a grant from AOPA to help expand outreach efforts. The group was one of 10 recipients of $10,000 grants in AOPA’s first “Giving Back” awards, which were announced at AOPA […]

Yves Rossy flew his unique jet-powered wingsuit above Mount Fuji nine times last week, as part of a celebration of the mountain’s official designation as a World Heritage Site. Each of the flights lasts about 10 minutes. When the fuel is exhausted, Rossy deploys a parachute for landing. It was Rossy’s first flight in Asia. […]

Bombardier has announced that Steve Ridolfi, the president of Bombardier Business Jets, will be replaced with Eric Martel in the New Year. Ridolfi will become senior vice-president of strategy and mergers and acquisitions, reporting directly to Bombardier President and Chief Executive Officer Pierre Beaudoin, according to the Globe and Mail. Martel currently heads up the […]

Embraer’s North American spokesman says the company has been internally investigating “certain commercial transactions abroad” since 2010 and is cooperating fully with authorities in several countries to get to the bottom of bribery allegations involving two aircraft deals. Bob Stangarone told AVweb the company can’t comment directly on reports that some of its employees are […]

The Santa Monica Airport belongs to the city, officials said in a lawsuit filed last week, challenging the FAA’s claim that the field must be operated “in perpetuity.” The city reportedly would like to close the busy airport, which is surrounded by residential neighborhoods, and the recent fatal crash there has intensified opponents’ complaints about […]

A final rule affecting howairlinepilots are trained went into effect on Tuesday, the FAA announced. The rule, which stems mainly from investigations following the Colgan Air crash in 2009, has long been in the works, and recently was delayed by the federal government’s shutdown over funding disputes. The rule, which the FAA said will cost […]

When two airplanes carrying skydivers collidedabove Wisconsin on Saturday, many of the jumpers were equipped with video cameras, and some of that film is now turning up online. The nine skydivers all jumped safely, along with one of the pilots; the second pilot was able to safely land his damaged Cessna 185. The other airplane, […]

A British company has designed and flown a new airplane, the e-Go, powered by a Rotron wankel rotary engine. The design fits into the Single Seat De-Regulated class, established by the UK in 2007, which is similar to the U.S. ultralight class. The e-Go flew for the first time last week, completing several test flights […]