News

The FAA has issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive (PDF) that directs the owners of all Boeing 737 Max aircraft to amend their operating manuals, to avoid a control problem like the one that apparently caused the fatal crash of a Max 8 last week. “Possible erroneous angle-of-attack inputs on Boeing 737 Max aircraft … can […]

Delaware State University (DSU) has placed an order for 10 new Vulcanair V1.0 aircraft for its aviation department flight training program, according to a joint announcement from the university and Vulcanair’s U.S. distributor, Ameravia. DSU says it also intends to purchase at least one additional V1.0 a year from 2019 to 2027. To support the […]

“We find ourselves on the cusp of the third great era of aviation,” acting FAA administrator Daniel Elwell said on Monday—”the age of autonomous and unmanned aircraft.” In a talk at the Aero Club of Washington, Elwell said, “I’m not sure we appreciate how much of a seismic change it’s going to be—for all of […]

easyJet, a leading regional airline operating in Europe, has partnered with U.S. based startup Wright Electric to develop a small electric-powered aircraft that could efficiently serve on short-haul airline routes. Last week, the airline confirmed the project is progressing—Wright Electric has applied for a patent on “a novel motor design” for “an easyJet-sized aircraft” that […]

The new Airbus A330-800 widebody passenger jet successfully completed its first flight on Tuesday. Test pilots Malcolm Ridley and Franois Barre were at the controls for the trip, which lasted for a little over four hours. Airbus expects to conduct about 300 hours of flight testing on the A330-800 and hopes to receive type certification […]

Divers have recovered the flight data recorder of the Boeing Max 8 that crashed in Indonesia last week, and investigators say it shows the airplane had indicated inaccurate airspeed readings for three days before the crash, The New York Times has reported. CNN said Indonesian officials are working with Boeing and safety experts to further […]

Aireon’s real-time, space-based global flight tracking is now up and running, the company announced on Monday, providing the first tracking system to cover the entire world, even polar regions and oceans. The system uses FlightAware’s intuitive technology interface and an aircraft’s ADS-B system to provide trackers with flight data—including origin, destination, flight plan and ETA. […]

The Wall Street Journal says (subscription required) retired Delta Air Lines VP and former line pilot Steve Dickson is the new favorite to become the next FAA administrator. The Journal says Dan Elwell, who has been the acting administrator since January, “quietly pulled out of the running” because it didn’t seem likely he would be […]

Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) has added the aerial equivalent of drag racing to its popular World Drone Racing Championships and the new record holder got his specialized quadcopter to 114.2382 kmh (70.98 mph) in a 100-meter (328-foot) straight-line course. The drones rise vertically from boxes below the lighted course and then accelerate to the finish […]

One person died but two others were uninjured in a midair collision between a Piper Cheyenne and another unidentified aircraft near Canada’s capital city of Ottawa on Sunday. The Cheyenne pilot reported the touch to ATC and did not declare an emergency. “Somebody hit the bottom side of my aircraft,” the unidentified pilot told the […]