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The FAA will award $7.7 million to eight companies developing alternative fuels (biofuel), the agency announced Thursday, seeking a test product by next year. The companies will receive guidance from the FAA to develop an approved drop-in jet fuel alternative derived from sustainable sources for use in current systems and current infrastructure. Source matter will […]

Following a string of Russian aviation accidents, a Russian lawyer says he will ask Russia’s Supreme Court to curb the authority of the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC), The Associated Press reported Wednesday. Formed in 1992, the IAC is a post Soviet Union era creation. According to lawyer Igor Trunov, it embodies a conflict of interest […]

The European Commission decided in November to ban airport body scanning X-ray backscatter machines after studies found a small number of cancer cases linked to use of the devices. The decision affects all airports in Europe, with an exception for U.K. airports that will be allowed to test them, but not deploy them permanently. According […]

More than 2,400 airplanes and helicopters operated by the federal government, known as “public aircraft,” are not subject to FAA rules, and this week the NTSB is holding a two-day forum to examine the safety record of these operations. Public aircraft are used for high-risk endeavors such as firefighting, law enforcement, and search and rescue. […]

Pilot Stanmore Cooper wants to sue the government for the emotional distress caused when the FAA obtained his medical records from the Social Security Administration, and on Wednesday the case was heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. A lower court already has ruled that Cooper’s privacy rights were violated, but the Supreme Court will decide […]

While Cessna recently announced a price hike to $149,000 for its Skycatcher LSA, Pipistrel says it plans to introduce a new LSA trainer early next year and sell it for about $83,000. The Alpha trainer aims to be “affordable to acquire [and] economical to maintain,” the company said. “We believe no other LSA training aircraft […]

Airlines in the U.K. are protesting a government decision to delay application of a passenger tax to business aircraft flights until 2013. The Air Passenger Duty is now paid by all airline passengers leaving a U.K. airport and private aircraft are exempt. It currently adds between $15 and $120 to the cost of an airline […]

An NTSB investigator says he’s considering controversial changes to the airspace around Phoenix as a possible contributing factor in the crash of a Turbo Commander last week that killed six people, including three children. Mike Huhn told the Arizona Republic that comments he’s heard concerning the role of the airspace design make it a potential […]

Don’t see a video screen?Try disabling ad blockers and refreshing this page.If that doesn’t work, click here to download the video directly. A new product scheduled to come on the market early next year promises to provide a durable coating on metal surfaces that can make them repel water, providing resistance to icing and corrosion. […]

American Airlines on Tuesday filed for bankruptcy protection, the last of the legacy airlines to do so. Flight schedules will not be affected, said AMR Corp. (PDF), the parent company of both American and American Eagle. American was the only major carrier that wasn’t profitable last year, according to The Wall Street Journal. American said […]