The U.S. Air Force said this week it has unmanned aerial vehicles ready to deploy in North Dakota, but is being held back by the FAA’s reluctance to open airspace access for the aircraft. The military has asked for an area 35 miles wide by 45 miles long to be designated for UAV training. “We […]
An air traffic controller distracted by a “nonpertinent” phone call while on duty was the main factor causing an August 2009 midair above the Hudson River in New York, the NTSB said on Tuesday. All nine people on board a Piper Lance and a tour helicopter were killed. The board also faulted the FAA’s see-and-avoid […]
A twin-engine Dornier 17 that was shot down and crashed in the English Channel 70 years ago will be recovered, the Royal Air Force Museum said recently. The bomber was part of a large formation that was intercepted by RAF aircraft in August 1940. The Dornier pilot successfully landed wheels-up on the sandbank, but the […]
click for larger image If the various indignities of modern airline travel haven’t been enough to push some disgruntled passengers toward private aviation, the SkyRider just might. Italian airliner seat manufacturer Aviointeriors will introduce a saddle-shaped design at next week’s Aircraft Interiors Expo in Long Beach. It says can be installed in just 23 inches […]
A rudder pedal jam may have led to the fatal crash of former U.S. Aerobatics Champion Vicki Cruse during qualifying for the world championships in England last year. The British Air Accidents Investigations Branch says it also can’t rule out pilot incapacitation as a contributing factor in the accident. The AAIB report (PDF) says Cruse […]
Zimbabwe’s national airline has fired all of its pilots after they ignored a Friday deadline to end their strike. Air Zimbabwe pilots stopped flying Wednesday to pressure the cash-strapped airline into restoring full monthly salaries of $2,500 a month. Wages were cut in half in February. The BBC reported the airline says it doesn’t have […]
When an unmanned Navy helicopter disregarded its directions and errantly flew toward the U.S. capital last month it may have validated the concerns of many pilots, but it immediately engaged military officials who had pressing decisions to make. The Aug. 2 incident put a runaway MQ-8B Fire Scout over populated areas near busy airspace. The […]
New rules (PDF) proposed by the FAA to manage pilot fatigue were announced Friday; they provide limits on duty time of any kind, provide 30 consecutive hours weekly of time off and attempt to guarantee at least eight hours sleep between shifts. The new requirements aim to create a single consistent rule that “would eliminate […]
The coming departure of Mayor Richard Daley from Chicago has some aviators hoping the window has opened for a return of Meigs Field to Chicago, although there’s currently no hard evidence to support that hope. Meigs Field was rendered unusable in the early hours of March 30, 2003, when Mayor Daley sent heavy construction equipment […]
A lawsuit brought by a former Guantanamo Bay prisoner and four others that sought to hold Jeppesen Dataplan Inc responsible for aiding the CIA in flying them to secret interrogation sites was dismissed Wednesday by an appeals court. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco “reluctantly concluded” in a 6-5 vote that the […]
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