News

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 […]

An FAA order to remove supplemental oxygen from airline lavatories puts passengers and crew at risk, the Association of Flight Attendants told USA Today last week. The order, made earlier this year in conjunction with the FBI and TSA, was a “precautionary measure,” the FAA said, because the chemical oxygen generators were easily accessible and […]

The FAA requires that you fly with ADS-B Out by 2020, but one member of a rulemaking committee last week told AVweb he expects many pilots and operators will opt to also equip with ADS-B In (which is not mandated) within the next few years. FreeFlight Systems’ president and CEO, Tim Taylor, confirmed that the […]

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. The Thanksgiving Eve crash of a Turbo Commander near Phoenix could reignite debate over a controversial 2007 airspace redesign that substantially changed procedures for VFR aircraft flying in the area of the crash. […]