Recent Updates

Diamond’s new seven-seat DA62 twin debuted last April at Aero Friedrichshafen in Germany and visited the NBAA show in Las Vegas in November, so it’s already familiar to many aviators, and as of today it’s officially FAA-certified. The twin offers a “combination of cabin volume, utility, performance and efficiency,” said Diamond CEO Peter Maurer. The […]

The name of Eric “Winkle” Brown may not be familiar to U.S. readers, but to the British, he was celebrated as the Royal Navy’s most decorated pilot. He held world records for having flown more different types of aircraft than anyone — a total of 487 — and the most carrier landings — 2,407. During […]

If it seems that airline seats are getting narrower, while the average size of passengers gets wider, Airbus has an idea that could reverse that trend — replace at least some of those seat rows with benches. Airbus has filed a patent (PDF) for bench seats, which could accommodate not only larger-than-average passengers but also […]

The phrase “witness to history” is an overused one in the obituary writer’s vocabulary and probably just as often overstates the departed’s life role. But in the case of Eric “Winkle” Brown, it’s barely adequate to describe the man. As you read in this week’s news columns, Brown died thisweek at the age of 97. […]

Flight Design GmbH, based in Germany, said in a news release it has applied for “a planned receivership which allows for reorganization of the company.” The filing will enable the company to deal with a “liquidity crunch.”The crunch is driven mainly by one international customer that “has not settled a bill of over seven digit […]

The controversial FAA reauthorization bill that would create a private air traffic control organization will not be introduced in the full House this week as originally scheduled, according to Politico. Quoting unnamed sources, the Washington political publication says it was told by a “leadership aide” that the House Transportation Committee, which approved an amended version […]

Although most of the drone news these days is about regulations and dangers (perceived and real) their use can result in some truly magnificent marriages of art and technology. We missed this when it first surfaced in November of 2015 but the Guinness World Record flight of 100 drones controlled by Intel software to a […]

Virgin Galactic is keeping SpaceShipTwo’s flight schedule under wraps even as the company unveiled the new model at a splashy ceremony Friday at the Mojave Air and Space Port. The company did emphasize the spacecraft is already undergoing an elaborate series of component tests in the name of safety. “Our commitment to safety can be […]

U.S. Army researchers are experimenting with making 3D-printed drones on demand. The Army Research Laboratory recently proposed the concept as a means to quickly build and deploy small unmanned aircraft in the field. The idea won a spot in the 2017 Army Expeditionary Warrior Experiments, which allow selected project teams to demonstrate new technologies, the […]

In rural Holden, Missouri, roughly 50 miles southeast of Kansas City, is a 10-acre island of recreational aviation in a vast ocean of corn and soybeans. The pole barns adjacent to its 1000-foot grass strip look like those on neighboring farms, until you look inside. The hulking gray lathe, milling machine, and drill press don’t […]