Ownership

ECi is using a new web page to highlight resistance to the FAA’s proposed Airworthiness Directive targeting TITAN brand 520/550 series cylinders produced between 2002 and 2009 that may cost $83 million in compliance-associated costs, but the resistance isn’t universal. The FAA wants to require initial and repetitive inspections of the cylinders, plus full replacements […]

It wasnt long ago that an entry-level, two-axis autopilot was priced around 10 grand-including installation. Today, that price is double. Add some options and the bottom line could soar toward $30,000. These big proposals have many owners repairing older autopilots. But as service parts for older systems become obsolete, repair costs are high, downtime is […]

Twin Otters are nothing new in the Canadian North but a California company has supplied an Alberta company with a new version of the venerable design. G-Sky Aviation of Fort McMurray recently took delivery of aIKHANA RWMI DHC-6-200HG Twin Otter. The aircraft is a top-to-bottom rebuild and modification of a de Havilland DHC-6-200 that gives […]

NASA is generally associated with space exploration, but the first “A” in NASA is for “Aeronautics,” and last week Administrator Charles Bolden unveiled a new strategic vision for the agency’s aeronautical research programs. The new plan will focus on key drivers that are expected to affect aviation over the next two to four decades, Bolden […]

Ive always figured there were two theories of aircraft ownership: the magic carpet school and the ticking time bomb philosophy. The former gets tangled up in the romance and passion of airplanes as a means of justifying virtually any aircraft-related expense, no matter how irrational or how large. The time bomb view, which is what […]

Last weeks massive proposed airworthiness directive aimed at thousands of Engine Components International cylinder assemblies is drawing mixed reactions from engine overhaul shops, according to an AVweb canvass of shops this week. While some say the proposed AD is a kneejerk over reaction, at least one shop told AVweb that the AD is justified, based […]

As part of the Eclipse 550 certification process, Eclipse Aerospace now has available a new “safety enhancement” package offering new or existing owners upgrades from brakes to multifunction displays, plus one “industry first,” the company has announced. According to Eclipse, the addition of autothrottles as part of the new safety package marks a first within […]

Researchers at MIT say they have created a new structure that is “10 times stiffer” than existing ultralight materials, can be easily disassembled and reassembled for maintenance or repair, and is “useful for anything you need to move or put in the air or in space.” The research team says the structure is made by […]

Brent Owens is a professional pilot, RV-8 builder, and former (and current) AVweb podcast subject who has recently found the attention of aviation publications for his written articles and his latest endeavor — a blog dedicated to money-saving tips for pilots. The website, FixedWingBuddha.com, is a collection of articles that detail methods that can help […]

The company is not currently building airplanes, but Mooney had a presence at AirVenture 2013 to recognize the 60-year anniversary of the M20 and two pilots who set records in Mooneys, and to say the company isn’t going anywhere. The company says it is still working to support the roughly 7,000 aircraft it produced that […]