Recent Updates

CubCrafters has announced that its two-seat XCub received type certification from Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA) and the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) last week. The company has been growing steadily since 2009 and recently announced plans to significantly increase production in 2019. According to CubCrafters, the first XCub delivery has already landed in Japan. […]

Bloomberg is reporting that Pratt & Whitney has been quietly assessing excessive vibration in its new-design geared turbofan engines in the latest of a string of teething problems with the fuel-sipping design. Bloomberg says a vibration issue has caused cockpit alerts in A320neos that have been delivered to airlines all over the world. Pratt told […]

The world’s largest kit aircraft manufacturer is about to become the world’s newest aircraft manufacturer. Van’s Aircraft has announced it will expand its Aurora, Oregon, facility to build its popular RV-12 light sport aircraft. Factory-built RV-12s have been available for several years but Van’s contracted out the building of them to Synergy Air. Van’s is […]

Airbus’ Perlan glider beat the U2’s altitude record on Sunday, reaching 76,000 feet in pressure altitude in the mountain wave over Patagonia in southwestern Argentina.It came a week after Perlan broke its own record and hit more than 62,000 feet. The high-tech sailplane was piloted by Jim Payne and Tim Gardner, both of Minden, Nevada, […]

The pilot and builder of the one-of-a-kind Jet Eze aircraft was killed in the crash of the airplane on approach to the airport in Covington, Tennessee, on Saturday afternoon. Lance Hooley, who adapted the canard design of Burt Rutan’s Long Eze to take a GE-T58-8 engine, died when the aircraft crashed 2,000 feet short of […]

AVweb‘s weekly news roundup found reports on a new exhibit at the Tillamook Air Museum, a research team looking for ASRS report from GA pilots, installation of a new in-flight connectivity system on a Bombardier Challenger 300, an updated white paper for business aircraft operators and an agreement between Hawaiian Airlines and MINT Software Systems. […]

Swift Fuels Suspends PAFI Activities I’m not at all surprised to see Swift bow out. They began life as a biotechnology company shopping microbial technology that might be used to produce aviation fuel. The economics were rarely discussed. During the clean energy boom eight years ago they (and other marginal concepts) were able to find […]

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company christened its newest blimp, Wingfoot Three, on Thursday, completing the company’s goal to renew its iconic blimp fleet. The ceremony took place on the 89th anniversary of the christening of a previous Goodyear Blimp by Amelia Earhart. Wingfoot Three was christened by Shaesta Waiz, who is known for being […]

The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) released the results of its annual Compensation Survey last week, showing an overall increase in pay for industry employees of 3 to 4 percent on average compared to the 2017 survey results. The 2018 survey collected salary data on 16 job descriptions from 790 member companies that represent 4,130 […]

The Aeronautical Repair Station Association (ARSA) has asked for a review of FAA enforcement of rules regarding instructions for continued airworthiness (ICA) such as aircraft maintenance manuals. In a comment filed with the U.S. Small Business Administration National Ombudsman’s office, ARSA stated that it believes “the FAA strictly enforces the requirement that repair stations possess […]