Engine Failure Forces Use of Airframe Chute Over Mountains

Pilot Albert Youngwerth has been telling an interesting tale on Facebook... after having walked away from the emergency parachute deployment of his chute-equipped Lancair ES. Posted October 15th, Albert gets right to the point... "Crashed my airplane yesterday??" That's one way to get a reader's attention... He continues, "Descending into Eugene, 35 miles out or so, over the mountains, bit lower than I would normally be for a broken cloud layer. Sudden engine decel and misfire. Ruhroo. Made a quick glide assessment, nothing but forest. Went through all the emergency checklist items in my head, engine just got worse, cockpit starting to fill with some smoke, not a ton of altitude, committed to a forced landing. Let ATC know where I was at, surveyed my glide options again, nothing but dense forest."

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The Citation Jet Pilots Owner Pilot Association (CJP), the largest organization for operators of the Cessna Citation series of light jets, has successfully completed 12 months of accident and incident-free flights. They say their dedication to safe operation through continual education is key to the accomplishment. David Miller, director of programs and safety education for the CJP Safety and Education Foundation, believes their efforts have paid off. Whatever projects they pursue, their market penetration and unique approach towards the end-user tends to have an effect on every product ecosystem they enter. It’s not an overstatement to say that whatever they do, there will be an industry reaction. The imperious swiss watch industry had a brief panic upon release of the highest tier Apple watch in 2014, fearing their watches would be knocked from their $5,

More Environmentally Friendly Fuels Approved For Cessna Piston-Powered Aircraft

Textron has confirmned that that many Cessna piston-powered aircraft are now approved to utilize a more environmentally friendly aviation gasoline (AvGas). Owners and operators of Cessna 172 Skyhawk, 182 Skylane can utilize 91-octane unleaded (91UL), 94UL or 100VLL (very low lead) fuel in their aircraft wherever it is available. The 206 Turbo Stationair HD aircraft is approved for 100VLL. Unleaded and lower-leaded fuels burn cleaner than higher-leaded fuels currently used on most piston aircraft.

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A final flight time of 8 days, 50 minutes, and 47 seconds covering 12,200 miles of continuous flight was achieved when the Vanilla Unmanned prototype ISR UAS touched down October 2. It created the newest world record for unrefueled, internal combustion endurance of an unmanned aircraft. The ET-CTF has been essential to the development of Vanilla’s prototype drone aircraft, trying to create a cost-effective, airborne intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance demands for long-term periods aloft. Honda Motor Company recently released its ambitious "2030 Vision", an series of changes and projects geared towards future-proofing the company by integrating its wide range of expertise in combustion, electrics, aeronautics, and robotics into a series of products suited for a rapidly changing economy. Central to their new "mobility ecosystem" will be a hybrid gas turbine and el

Active Winglet Technology Specifically Sought After By SERIOUS King Air Operators

Tamarack Aerospace showed off their newest addition to the Performance Smartwing line at NBAA 2021, their Active Winglets for King Air 200 and 350. Nick Guida, CEO of Tamarack, talks with us about the origins and development of their new King Air add-on, its similarities to their Cessna Citation upgrade, and what to expect for King Air operators. Tamarack has gained a lot of interest this year, as one of the few companies offering a turnkey upgrade that can increase performance, fuel efficiency, and comfort.

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Textron Aviation released news of a recent order for 10 Cessna Skyhawks, destined for Kansas State University Salinea Aerospace and Technology Campus, bringing their total fleet to 20. “K-State” also owns Bonanzas, Barons, motorgliders, and sailplanes in their collection, all put to use in their Part 141 pilot training program. The Salina, Kansas school was one of the earliest participants in Textron’s Top Hawk program, receiving their position in 2015. Since then, they use their customized, branded Skyhawks for promotional activities and flight training. The United State Air Force (USAF) found itself short of its annual goal for 1,500 new pilots, as increased airline hiring and low retention draw away aviators towards other careers. The Air Education Training Command (AETC) is the center of USAF's efforts to create pilots fi

"Orbital Reef" To Be A "Mixed Use Business Park" in Orbit

Blue Origin and Sierra Space have announced plans for their Orbital Reef, a commercially developed, produced, and operated space station to be placed in low earth orbit. The new frontier of space business development will be backed by industry partners Boeing, Redwire Space, Genesis Engineering Solutions, and Arizona State University. The school will lead a global consortium of universities on the Orbital Reef Advisory Council to manage academic needs, share research, evolve standards, guide ethics, and advise new researchers. The announcement from one of the biggest players in commercial space services may signal an increase in the momentum of private orbital development, with a possible “space station race” on the horizon.

North Carolina DOT Presents panels, Speakers on Future of Regulation

Elon University and the North Carolina Department of Transportation are jointly offering a free drone safety awareness and general information seminar to registrants on November 8, 2021. Elon Drone Day 2021 will be held in the Elon University School of Communications, from morning to early afternoon.  Keynote talks, panel discussions, and contributions cover a wide spectrum of commercial and public safety applications, from night operations, flight over populations, FAASTeam Ops and Maintenance, the TRUST program, Part 107 certification, drone-based delivery, educational implementation of UAS tech, public safety utility, and legal considerations.

Prototype Aerial Survey Plane Abandoned In Flight, Pilot Bails Out Safely

A prototype Sonaca 200 Airplane went down during the conduct of a testing regimen on October 24, in the midst of a field near Yves-Gomezée, Belgium. Designated 00-STI, it had been undergoing supervised ground and flight tests under certification authorities, when the pilot ran into difficulty and decided to escape the aircraft over a space reserved for off-airport emergency landings. Witnesses in the local area described seeing a "sinking plane spinning before touching down."

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Swedish company Jetson has officially launched their ONE, a commercially available, personal electric aircraft with VTOL capabilities. The cockpit is flanked by four twin rotors, and the folding, ultralight vehicle appears ready for sale in its recently released promotional video. The ONE appears suited for the recreational crowd, with space for a single pilot and… well, there’s probably somewhere to wedge a granola bar somewhere in that tubing. Piloting is accomplished by a fighter like HOTAS configuration, with the right hand controlling three axes of flight, and power on the left. Ten years ago, history maker Pat Moorehead completed a record 81 jumps on his 80th birthday to raise funds for the International Skydiving Museum & Hall of Fame (ISMHF), bringing in $20,000 with his efforts. Now, for his 90th birthday, he will jump again. For th