News

Solar Impulse HB-SIA began its 24-hour flight at 6:51 a.m. local time, Wednesday, seeking to finish it Thursday, after surviving the night over Payerne, Switzerland, on stored solar power and aerodynamic efficiency. The aircraft climbed all day to about 28,500 feet. It began that trip using stored battery power, but as the sun rose the […]

Cessna CEO Jack Pelton and AOPA President Craig Fuller flew into Ada, Okla., on Wednesday to get a look at a new 100LL replacement proposed by General Aviation Modifications Inc. As we’ve reported previously, GAMI’s G100UL appears to perform similarly to 100LL and the company claims it’s producible using conventional refining methods. GAMI invited Pelton […]

Prowler Command is a different kind of flying club that’s using a North American B-25 Mitchell bomber and a C-47 Gooney Bird to woo dues-paying members, and the group says it’s hoping to add more warbirds to the mix. Membership includes a type rating with “second in command privileges” in either aircraft. The “second in […]

Airshow season is in full swing, and one new act on the circuit aims not just to entertain but also to raise awareness about injured veterans who are transitioning back into civilian life. Team Vandy-1, based in Maryland, operates a black L-39 aerobatic jet that now is branded with the Wounded Warrior logo on its […]

The FAA is considering making some major changes in the way special light sport aircraft are approved, Dan Johnson, chairman of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, said on Wednesday. FAA officials told LAMA that in the future, LSA manufacturers may have to pass a compliance audit conducted by a specially trained cadre of FAA inspectors. […]

It’s been three years since International Lease Finance Corp., ordered a new aircraft and it’s now poised to dip its toe in the water again. In fact, the company may make a splash with an order for 10 Airbus A380 aircraft. ILFC’s new CEO Henri Courpron told Bloomberg there are no plans to sell off […]

Business consulting firm AlixPartners predicts consolidation in the corporate aircraft sector as prolonged slow growth becomes the “new normal” in the aerospace sector in general and the bizjet market in particular. The firm released a study on the industry’s outlook on Tuesday and says the future looks especially hard for business aircraft makers. “Business jets […]

Cessna and Bell Helicopters will introduce new models and upgrades of existing aircraft as early as 2012 as parent company Textron boosts investment in the two companies to coincide with an expected industry turnaround next year. In an interview with Bloomberg, Textron CEO Scott Donnelly said work is already under way on the recovery plans. […]

Colton Harris-Moore, a 19-year-old accused of stealing several airplanes since leaving a group home near Seattle in 2008, is now suspected in the theft of a Cessna Corvalis that went missing from its locked hangar in Indiana and showed up in the Bahamas on Sunday, more than 1,000 miles away. The airplane was ditched in […]

Lancair International, of Redmond, Ore., on Tuesday announced new ownership, new leadership, and an infusion of new operating capital for the company. Gene Wolstenholme is now majority owner and chairman, and his son Robert Wolstenholme, who built and flies his own Lancair IVP, was named presidentand CEO. The company now will focus on the owner-built […]