Business & Military

NTSB: Pilot Error Caused 2014 Phenom Crash

The pilot of an Embraer Phenom failed to turn on crucial de-icing equipment during an approach to the airport in Gaithersburg, Maryland, on December 8, 2014, causing a deadly crash, the NTSB said in its probable-cause hearing today. All three people on the jet and three on the ground were killed. “Pilots must rely on […]

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Private Moon-Shot Race Heats Up

With a $20 million X Prize in play, 16 private companies are vying to be the first to launch a mission to the Moon, and now one of the contenders, Moon Express, may be just weeks away from being the first to gain government approval for its plan. “Until now, only governments have undertaken space […]

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Autonomous System Can Fly Any Helicopter

Aurora Flight Sciences has successfully tested new technology that will enable pilots to remotely fly standard helicopters, the U.S. Defense Department said last week. The sensor package, called the Autonomous Aerial Cargo/Utility System, or AACUS, enables a soldier to control the aircraft via an intuitive application on a tablet computer. “The AACUS is a sensor […]

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GPS Interference Notam For Southwest

A Notam (PDF) is warning operators of “all aircraft relying on GPS” of widespread GPS outages starting Tuesday throughout the Southwest and especially southern California. Although the FAA doesn’t go into detail, it seems the military is testing something that can disrupt GPS over a huge area, centered on China Lake, California, home of the […]

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Cub Crafters Rolls Out New XCub

Cub Crafters this week rolled out a new airplane. It’s a Part 23 certified aircraft called the XCub, which the company says takes the Cub idea to the ultra level, with fast cruising speed and luxury interior. AVweb traveled to Yakima, Washington, to fly the new entry. view on YouTube

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Blue Origin To Build Space Coast Rocket Plant

Blue Origin LLC is ramping up its spaceflight programs, breaking ground for a rocket factory as it begins a new three-year launch contract under NASA. The Texas-based company is prepping for construction of an eight-story, 475,000-square-foot facility at Exploration Park, the industrial site at Kennedy Space Center, according to a Florida Today report this week. […]

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New This Week

AVweb‘s weekly review of aviation news found announcements from Embraer, the Aviators Model Code of Conduct Initiative, the Coast Guard Foundation and EAA. Embraer Executive Jets began the production of its Legacy 450 and Legacy 500 in Melbourne, Florida, and held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its recently expanded facility, where the Phenom 100 and Phenom […]

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NASA Balloon Succeeds In Flight Test

An 18.8 million-cubic-foot super-pressure balloon flown remotely by NASA has successfully completed a midlatitude circumnavigation of the Earth, NASA said today. The balloon, carrying a Compton spectrometer and imager payload, achieved the milestone 14 days, 13 hours, and 17 minutes after launching from Wanaka Airport, New Zealand, on Tuesday, May 17. At the moment the […]

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Is The Icon A5 Aviation’s iPad?

Last week, when AVweb Editor-in-Chief Russ Niles phoned me about Icon’s breaking announcement of its retrenchment, he happened to mention he had been reading Walter Isaacson’s bio of Steve Jobs and … “Stop right there,” I said, “I know where you’re going and I already have that blog written.” And so I did, displaced by […]

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