Buckshot of Industry Quotations Supports Urgent Action, Signature Expected This Week

Despite the fact that the legislation to keep the FAA going has hit the home stretch, it hasn't crossed home plate yet - and stakeholders are a little miffed. As the vote crawled through Congress, the Air Line Pilot Association, International blasted the press wire with a buckshot of quotations from anyone and everyone within the greater aviation industry. It's apparent that they want to throw their full force behind the bill this time, urging action so the industry can finally return to "normal", with an operating FAA.

Air Race Classic Traces Its Roots To The 1929 Women's Air Derby, Aka The Powder Puff Derby

It should be an amazing event... and usually has been, in past iterations. Women pilots from across the United States and around the world will take off Tuesday, June 18, from Southern Illinois Airport in Carbondale, Illinois, for a 2,610-statute mile competition across 11 states that ends Friday, June 21, at Northern Colorado Regional Airport in Loveland, Colorado. The oldest race of its kind in the nation, the Air Race Classic traces its roots to the 1929 Women's Air Derby, aka the Powder Puff Derby, in which Amelia Earhart and 19 other daring female pilots raced from Santa Monica, California, to Cleveland, Ohio.

Amazilia Aerospace GmbH, Develops Digital Flight Control, Flight Guidance And Vehicle Management Systems 

Textron eAviation has acquired substantially all the assets of Amazilia Aerospace GmbH, a developer of digital flight control, flight guidance and vehicle management systems for civil manned and unmanned aircraft. “We’re excited to welcome Amazilia Aerospace’s talented employees and innovative technologies to the Textron eAviation team,” said Kriya Shortt, President & CEO, Textron eAviation segment. “This integration represents our continued dedication to pushing the boundaries of technology to deliver exceptional solutions for our customers.”

Aviation Governance Secured...At Least For a While

The National Business Aviation Association similarly applauded the passage of the FAA's recent reauthorization, contentedly recounting its passage through the house by a vote of 387 to 26. Congress really cut things close to the wire, with the current expiration of the FAA's governing bill sitting right around the corner on May 17th. The bill gains the NBAA's blessing for all the usual reasons, but this year's includes a '1st-ever' general aviation title, a "key section of the legislation focused on enhancing safety, streamlining regulations and improving certification processes for general aviation aircraft, supporting certification for advanced air mobility (AAM) powered-lift aircraft and other technologies, and protecting flight privacy." 

Company Celebrates Niche-but-Important Advancement in Industry Standards

Echodyne has announced full integration of its proprietary 'EchoFlight' radar into the e American Aerospace Technologies, Inc. (AATI) AiRanger aircraft, recently granted its BVLOS approval from the FAA. It's good news for the UAS industry to some small extent, showing that the regulator is content to approve efficient, affordable operations beyond immediate line of sight. That's the way of the future, of course, allowing operators to command a semiautonomous aircraft from a distance, but it's not an easy sell to a very danger-averse administration like the FAA. 

FAA’s Net Controller Count May Only Climb by 10% of Targets

Airlines for America sees a pretty active summer coming up, with more than 271 million passengers expected to use US carriers around the world - but the horizon isn't totally free of clouds. Digging into the numbers, it seems the FAA has brought on just a dozen more controllers than it had targeted in 2023, at 1,512. Thanks to attrition, national ATC lost more than 1,300 employees, accounting for retirements and drop-outs from the industry. After running the numbers to account for those in training, those who will likely wash out of ATC school, and drop out in line with historic trends, and the math works out to maybe a tenth of what the FAA had needed just to maintain ranks. 

Honeywell's Primus Brings New Tools and Niceties for Hawker Operators

Hawker 4000 business jet operators have a new installation on the table, now that the FAA has granted an STC for Honeywell's Primus Epic integrated cockpit suite. The STC gives operators access to some pretty nifty, futuristic gear, thanks to theEpic cockpit featuring Future Air Navigation System (FANS) and Protected Mode Controller Pilot Data Link Communication (PM-CPDLC) systems in addition to the usual host of automation and QoL enhancements. Those in the flight deck should appreciate the improved comms with ATC, too, since they can now enjoy the same Data Link capabilities the heavies do...

From 2021 (YouTube Version): Colorado Campus Offers  aVariety Of Aerospace Entertainment And Education

Wings over the Rockies Exploration of Flight is the second location for the Wings Over The Rockies Museum. ANN spoke with Keith Palmer, the Director of Operations at WOTR Exploration of Flight to find out what this campus offers to the community. “The goal was to build something on the airfield, so that we could start teaching kids, our next generation, up close, personal, touching aircraft and seeing working aircraft. These are not museum pieces. Everything at the Exploration of Flight Campus is a working, functional aircraft,” Palmer explained. “We have multiple showcases, and our main focus is on the weekends where we have everything from fixed wing aircraft, to helicopters, to gliders, we have even had hot air balloons out here.”

Airplane Canopy Suddenly Opened, So He Elected To Land The Airplane On A Dirt Road Ahead

Analysis: The pilot reported that during level flight, the airplane canopy suddenly opened, so he elected to land the airplane on a dirt road ahead. On approach to the dirt road, he encountered power lines and climbed to avoid them, then he continued the emergency approach to the road. When the airplane touched down on the dirt road, it veered aggressively to the left, becoming airborne momentarily, then landing in a ditch and nosing over before coming to rest inverted. 

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