Maintenance

Cirrus is promoting aircraft ownership to non-pilots through “Cirrus On Demand,” which offers two programs of service as an option for purchasers of new Cirrus aircraft. Both programs come at additional cost to the buyer and in either case, includes a pilot “trained to the company’s corporate flight standards.” The program can operate like a […]

A section of President Obama’s proposed 2014 budget aims to “reduce the deficit and more equitably share the cost of air traffic services” through a “$100 per flight fee” payable to the FAA, with exceptions. The fee would not apply to piston, military, public, or air ambulance aircraft as detailed on page 43 of the […]

The good news is that you probably won’t need cylinders, but you’ll always get a new crank. Buying a factory-new exchange is sometimes a practical choice. When Diamond introduced the two-seat Katana to North America in 1995, it might as well have been powered by alien technology. The 81-HP Rotax 912F3 was about as familiar […]

A U.S. District Court Wednesday dismissed a suit brought by Friends of the Earth that aimed to push the EPA to decide whether emissions from general aviation aircraft are a threat to public health, but did not dismiss the possibility of further policymaking. The ruling found that the Environmental Protection Agency does have discretion to […]

Former aircraft mechanic Joel Stout Thursday pled guilty to charges that involve a retired FAA examiner and falsified documents in a case affecting inspections that took place over a span of several years, last decade. Stout worked as an aircraft mechanic at the Flying Tigers aircraft maintenance facility at Donegal Springs Airpark in Marietta, Pa., […]

Although the tower at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in Florida is on the FAA’s list for closure (so is Wittman Regional’s in Oshkosh) the facility will be manned as usual by FAA controllers through Sun ‘n Fun. Under the sequestration closure plan, Lakeland is among 149 towers being closed due to sequestration cuts and was […]

Pilots have been required to carry plastic certificates since 2010, but the deadline for replacing other paper FAA certificates, such as mechanic, repairman, flight engineer, or ground instructor, is coming up March 31. You still have time to meet the deadline, as long as you apply online, which takes about 7 to 10 days for […]

The fleet of older Cirrus airframes could face further depreciation because of pricey parachute upkeep. We look at the economics and the CAPS repack process. Cirrus owners rave about having the CAPS parachute system as the ultimate safety backup, but if you’re shopping for a used Cirrus, know this: Many used airframes are coming up […]

While there is evidence CorrosionX provides the best protection, ACF-50 also works well. Get it applied by a pro, however, or you’ll be cleaning it up for months. Corrosion is like aging; it does its damage slowly and is easy to overlook-until major systems begin to fail. Unlike aging, we know how to stop corrosion […]

In the Northern Hemisphere many of our airplanes hibernate in their hangars sometime between November and March, maybe even longer depending on how far north we live. Oh, we probably pay them a monthly visit and run the engines a bit so we keep them at least minimally lubricated. But our faithful aerial steeds typically […]