Ownership

I‘m often asked to sum up an airplane in one word. The problem is that most airplanes resist such a simple label. As a result, my responses usually trend toward “neat,” “cool” and “fast,” to “impressive,” “heavy” and “demanding” or to “slick,” “nimble” and “comfy.” Of course, these choices explain next to nothing about the […]

In many ways, watching Cirrus Design Corp. evolve into the two-model company it is today felt similar to watching a child mature from adolescence into adulthood. From its roots in the experimental community, Cirrus evolved from a niche airplane-kit maker into an advanced manufacturing firm. From serious airplanes for people with money and building ambitions, […]

Books reviewed for this article: Violation, by Howard Fried Paper; 184 pp; Kindred Spirit Press Inc.; 1999; U.S. $29.95 Flying & Learning: Basics For Every Pilot, by William “Phil” Heitman Paper; 156 pp; Dreamflyer Publications; 1997; U.S. $14.95 TRACON, by Paul McElroy Paper; 493 pp; Japphire Productions LLC, 2000; U.S. $7.50 So, You Want To […]

Diamond’s New Star, the DA40: More than a Katana AllGrown Up Is it safe? That’s generally a good question to ask before any flight in the first of anything: The newer the program, the more daring the design, the more important the question. But rolling the prototype DA40 from base to final at the Plant […]

Frankly, I think I was conned. While I’m not a GPS-junkie (explained later), my saliva glands were stimulated by the first announcement of the GPSMAP 295. Now THIS is what I’ve been expecting to see come out of today’s technology. And when I first heard Mike was getting a demo unit to evaluate and review […]

  Also see Mike Busch’s review of LightSPEED’s top-of-the-line 25XL headset.   LightSPEED just introduced a what? Did you say a passive headset? In the year 2000? Are they nuts? Well, yes, LightSPEED’s latest headset is indeed passive. And no, they’re not nuts. In fact, after having just flown my Cessna T310R across the country […]

Immediately after Air France’s Concorde crash, graphic photographs and video of the disaster were broadcast to millions of television viewers. So-called industry experts appeared on various networks soon after and speculated about the cause of the crash. One pundit, who has authored a book on aging aircraft, raised the specter of the inherent danger to […]

In this four-part series, AVweb provides an in-depth look at aviation life rafts. We examine the regulatory requirements, the common-sense requirements and what you should look for when selecting an aviation life raft. We also examine both the approved and unapproved rafts for the GA market and let you know which ones will more likely […]

In this four-part series, AVweb provides an in-depth look at aviation life rafts. We examine the regulatory requirements, the common-sense requirements and what you should look for when selecting a life raft. We also examine both the approved and unapproved rafts for the GA market and let you know which ones will more likely save […]

In this four-part series, AVweb provides an in-depth look at aviation life rafts. We examine the regulatory requirements, the common-sense requirements and what you should look for when selecting a life raft. We also examine both the approved and unapproved rafts for the GA market and let you know which ones will more likely save […]