Recent Updates

In collaboration with General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA‑ASI) and the FAA, NASA successfully completed the first flight of its Systems Integration and Operationalization (SIO) demonstration activities last Friday. According to NASA, the SIO demonstrations are designed to “highlight commercial UAS [unmanned aircraft systems] missions that have the potential to provide economic and public benefit” […]

Airbus announced on Wednesday that it is reducing average production rates for the A320, A330 and A350 by approximately one-third due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Monthly A320 production will drop to an average of 40 units. A330s will be produced at a rate of two per month and A350s at six per month. “We […]

This story originally appeared in KITPLANES. By Ken Scott The Moose, designed and sold by Murphy Aircraft of Chilliwack, British Columbia, is one of the few kit airplanes designed to haul large loads in and out of unimproved strips—it’s a kind of Experimental-category deHavilland Beaver. Over a hundred Moose (Mooses? Meece?) have flown, but up […]

Boeing has announced the initiation of a voluntary layoff (VLO) plan as a means to address financial difficulties caused by the coronavirus pandemic. According to the company, the plan “aims to reduce the need for other workforce actions” by allowing eligible employees who want to leave do so with a pay and benefits package. As […]

Instead of canceling an upcoming builder workshop, kit manufacturer Zenith Aircraft has turned it into a virtual affair. Zenith has been running a hands-on workshop for prospective builders for decades, but this one is, obviously, different. “Instead of participants traveling to our factory to attend the rudder build workshop,” says Zenith’s Sebastien Heintz, “we will […]

This story, as part of a series on building the SubSonex, originally appeared in KITPLANES. There comes a day in every airplane build where there is nothing left to do but fill it with fuel, get in and take it aloft. But between the time when you have turned the last bolt and applied the […]

Airbus has closed the doors on its Voom urban air mobility (UAM) project, according to an announcement from Voom CEO Clément Monnet on Monday. The on-demand helicopter “air taxi” booking platform officially launched in 2016 and has been operating in São Paulo, Brazil, since 2017, Mexico City, Mexico, since 2018 and California’s San Francisco Bay […]

While Boeing and Textron have shut down manufacturing facilities already, it’s not yet the same for smaller manufacturers and service providers. Many small manufacturers have been able to stay open with a combination of work-from-home employees, reconfigured manufacturing layouts, staggered shifts and other tweaks. While everyone has seen temporary hits to productivity, these smaller companies […]

At least one American and one Canadian were among eight people killed in the reported explosion and crash of a Westwind business jet that was on a medevac flight from Manila to Haneda, Japan, on Sunday. “The plane caught fire and exploded as it was taking off the [Ninoy Aquino International Airport] Runway 24,” Philippine […]

Textron Aviation announced on Monday that it has successfully completed initial ground engine tests on the prototype of its Cessna SkyCourier twin-engine turboprop. According to the company, initial testing covered verifying fuel systems and engine function along with avionics and electrical systems interfaces. The SkyCourier is powered by Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65SC engines. “The […]