News

A phenomenon known as loss of tailrotor effectiveness may have had something to do with the crash of a Bell 206 in the East River off Manhattan 14 months ago. The NTSB factual report into the crash (PDF) says an uncommanded right yaw while the pilot was trying to land the aircraft preceded the crash, […]

Airbus pilots all over the world have been warned how to react if they suddenly lose data from the angle-of-attack sensors on the aircraft and confuse its fly-by-wire system. EASA and the FAA both issued emergency ADs last week ordering flight manuals for single-aisle Airbuses to be updated. It came two weeks after a similar […]

Gulfstream ended the year with a brace of accomplishments for its G650 program that set the stage for a busy 2013 in terms of deliveries. The company delivered its first G650 to a U.S. customer last week. “The first delivery of an aircraft is always an auspicious occasion and this one is especially so. This […]

The former director of a flight school in New Zealand, Ravindra Pal Singh, 65, has been found guilty by a local District Court judge of separately assaulting two student pilots while providing instruction to them in the air. One student testified that Singh had slapped him in the face and pushed his head into the […]

A county audit has found that managers at the Los Angeles county Sheriff’s Department dispatched aircraft for personal reasons, costing the county tens of thousands of dollars, the LA Times reported, Thursday. The county audit was prompted in part by allegations that misuse of county aircraft was impacting response to emergency calls. The audit found […]

A banner posted on the FAA’s popular preliminary accident and incident notices page as late as Thursday afternoon told visitors the service will be discontinued at the end of the year, but actual human beings at the FAA have told AVweb otherwise. The site provides preliminary information, updated daily, regarding the most recent aircraft accidents. […]

The State of New Mexico has abandoned plans to ban seaplanes from landing on lakes in its state parks, thanks, it would seem, to a lobbying effort among seaplane pilots. Faced with significant opposition, the New Mexico State Parks Division issued this statement: “The Division proposed adding a new section prohibiting the taxiing, landing, or […]

The National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) this week announced who it will welcome next October as its “incoming Enshrinee Class of 2013” and the list includes three former military pilots and a former CEO of Cessna. Captain Robert L. “Hoot” Gibson, USN (retired) has served as a fighter pilot, flight test pilot and Commander […]

A pilot whose daughter was killed when his Cessna 310F twin crashed in 2011 has pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in Massachusetts. Steven Fay, 58, of Hillsboro, N.H., was sentenced to probation until Dec. 31, 2013, and is prohibited from operating an aircraft or seeking reinstatement of his certificate during that time, according to The […]

An energy company in Canada says an experimental drill rig that can be transported via helicopter has proved to be a viable alternative to building roads into remote regions to explore for oil. Cenovus Energy said recently it has been working on the rig, called SkyStrat, for two years. The rig provides the company with […]