News

The FAA has issued a notice removing several regulatory restrictions identified as major contributors to increasingly long wait times for pilot practical exams. FAA Notice N 8900.485 (PDF) gives designated pilot examiners (DPEs) the ability to conduct up to three tests and an unlimited number of retests per day and lets flight instructor applicants schedule […]

The failure of a Soyuz-FG launch vehicle on Oct. 11 was caused by abnormal separation of one of the rocket’s boosters, according to Russian space agency Roscosmos. The committee investigating the incident says the malfunctioning booster hit the vehicle’s core stage in the fuel tank area, resulting in its decompression and a loss of attitude […]

A law firm has filed a second class-action suit against the FAA based on the agency’s air traffic controller hiring practices in 2014. The lawsuit alleges that the biographical assessment added to the initial air traffic controller application process in late 2013 was used to “intentionally disadvantage [Hispanic, Asian, Caucasian, and other] applicants based on […]

The Catalina Island Conservancy has announced that it will be partnering with the U.S. Marine Corps to repair the runway at Catalina Airport (AVX), also called the “Airport in the Sky.” AVX is the only airport on California’s Santa Catalina Island, which is home to approximately 4,100 people and sees over 1 million visitors annually. […]

Six aviation associations released a document detailing a series of communications best practices for FBOs on Wednesday. “Know Before You Go” (PDF) calls on FBOs to provide clear, complete and easily accessible online descriptions of available services, along with all associated prices and fees. The organizations, which include the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), […]

Seventy years after it was lost during World War II, amateur divers found the wreckage of a B-24 Liberator bomber in the Adriatic Sea, off the coast of Italy. The U.S. Air Force airplane was badly damaged during an aerial engagement with the Luftwaffe in 1944, and the crew was forced to ditch. Several of […]

The Red Bull Air Race will close out its 13th season Nov. 17-18, at the Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. The venue, one of the largest stadiums in the U.S., can accommodate up to 190,000 fans, and tickets are on sale now online, with prices starting at $29 for adults and $10 for kids […]

Thrush Aircraft announced that its 510G Switchback was granted full FAA certification last week. The GE H80-powered Switchback is a Single Engine Air Tanker (SEAT) aircraft that can be changed quickly from an agricultural spray setup to a firefighting configuration. Thrush says the switch can be made in “a matter of minutes” thanks to a […]

The FAA is accepting comments until Dec. 21 on its proposed new ATP certification standards, which have been posted online. The standards were revised by an industry group chaired by David Oord, AOPA senior director of regulatory affairs, working with the FAA’s Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee. The working group proposed the new standards, and the […]

Officials in Indonesia, where a nearly new Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed into the sea on Monday, killing all 189 on board, ordered on Tuesday that all Max 8 aircraft in the country operated by commercial airlines must be inspected. It was not clear if the aircraft are grounded pending the inspections, or precisely what […]