Ownership

MIT researchers say they’ve come up with an electric motor design with a power-to-weight ratio high enough to be practical in regional airliners. The team says they’ll get 17 kilowatts per kilogram out of the complex design, which means they can create a one megawatt motor that weighs just 125 pounds. “Many things together make […]

There it is. Right there on the ramp in front of you. You finally pulled it off. You’ve wanted a turboprop—no, that turboprop—ever since you saw one a few days after you soloed. Now, look at yourself. You just closed on the purchase of that Cessna 425. That one, with the incredibly cool four-bladed prop […]

The FAA will issue a fleet authorization this year that will allow more than two-thirds of the gasoline piston fleet to operate on 91UL avgas. In a news conference held to update progress on the development of an unleaded high-octane replacement for 100UL, Lirio Liu, the head of certification for the FAA, said the agency […]

Engine and airframe manufacturers are calling for greater transparency in the process toward eliminating lead from aviation gasoline so they can ensure the safety and reliability of the fuels for their products and customers. The General Aviation Manufacturers Association held a video news conference on Monday to give an update on the Eliminate Aviation Gasoline […]

I’ve long-term tested every model of Garmin’s D2 aviator watch since the first in 2013, and as reported in the November 2022 issue of Aviation Consumer, of them all the D2 Air was Garmin’s best attempt at an everyday smartwatch that nicely suits aviator athletes. It was just the right size, had a feature set that’s […]

For years, it seems that the most common disagreement between airport management and hangar tenants is what the tenant can store in his or her hangar. The answer depends on whether the airport is a public use airport that receives Federal Airport Improvement Program (AIP) grant money or a private airport (we’ll lump public use airports […]

Pratt & Whitney Canada introduced its new PW545D turbofan engine this week at the 2023 European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva, Switzerland. The latest addition to the company’s PW500 family, the PW545D was designed to offer improved specific fuel consumption (SFC), thrust and time between overhauls (TBO). It will power the Cessna […]

Rolls-Royce announced on Thursday that it has successfully completed the first tests of its UltraFan technology demonstrator engine. Considered the world’s largest aeronautical engine to date, the UltraFan has a fan diameter of 140 inches and offers features including Rolls-Royce’s Advance 3 core architecture and advanced low emissions combustion system (ALECSys), carbon titanium fan blades […]

DeltaHawk announced on Thursday that it has received FAA type certification for its 180-HP DHK180 piston engine. The four-cylinder, clean-sheet design features an inverted-V engine block, turbocharging and supercharging, mechanical fuel injection, liquid cooling, direct drive and, according to the company, “40 percent fewer moving parts than other engines in its category.” It is capable […]

If you’re doing your own routine maintenance—and if you’re not, why not?—you’re going to need a means to open your canister oil filter after every oil change. There are choices on the market, and each design seems to follow a slightly different philosophy, even if the desired result is much the same: Cut the base […]