ANN will list our Top Ten choices over the next few days's, but in order to kick off the New Year right, let's lead off with our TOP SELECTION for 2008...

Aero-Hero #1: AOPA President Phil Boyer

Prepares For 'A Year Of Challenges, Opportunities'

 Craig L. Fuller has taken the controls as president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association - only the fourth president in the Association's nearly 70-year history. Fuller became president on January 1, 2009, following an orderly three-month transition leading up to outgoing president Phil Boyer's retirement on December 31, 2008.

But... enough of the preamble... let's dig into our Overall Selection for 2008 Plane Of The Year... The Cirrus TN22-G3. ANN's 2008 Plane Of The Year - Overall: Cirrus SR22-GTS Turbo

The LSA Market Shows Signs of Life... and Growth at the US Sport Aviation Expo (Part 1)! 

One More E-I-C Note: We're immensely proud of the work that Aero-TV has done in the past year with the better part of 300 HIGH-Quality features shot and produced... and thought that, withthe 2009 Sebring US Sport Aviation Expo barely three weeks away, that you might enjoya chance to see what all the fuss was about last year. . -- Jim Campbell, ANN E-I-C.  

Despite last summer's soaring avgas prices, airplane manufacturer layoffs, and looming increases in government regulation, 2008 was a landmark year for General Aviation.

Entry Level Aircraft Delivered To US Customer

Embraer has made their first delivery of a Phenom 100 jet, on Christmas Eve, in São José dos Campos. The aircraft, which landed on New year's Eve in the U.S. after successfully completing its ferry flight, was recently certified by Brazil’s National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) and by the FAA.

From established products that continue to impress, to new and exciting developments across the range of general aviation... here, to our eyes, is the VERY BEST from our list of the 10 most worthy 'gadgets' and programs of 2008. Let's start 2009 off with a bang with the announcement that Garmin's GPSMAP 696 RAN AWAY from the competition and has earned its selection at the top of ANN's Aero-Products Of The Year List for 2008.

Aero-News pays tribute to the following aviators -- in body and in spirit -- who slipped the surly bonds of Earth in 2008... and extends our sincere sympathies to their families, and to any of our readers who also lost a loved one last year...

...And Here, Darn it, Are The Heartbreakers

  Shame on those issues, folks, or groups that made our lot so much tougher in 2008... but our top selection... and all those who populate both Houses of Congress have a reason to be ashamed of themselves (aeronautically-speaking) in 2008.

Aero-Linx!

The Association is a national not-for-profit aerospace and community service organization composed of aviation-minded citizens established to remind Canadians of their country's rich aeronautical tradition and history, to support Canada's Air Force and to support and encourage the civil aviation component within the country.

In just a few minutes, as I write this, the responsibility for running the world's largest pilots organization passes from Phil Boyer to Craig Fuller. And while we feel the selection of Fuller to be an inspired one, full of promise, and one that seems especially suited for the years ahead, we have to admit that we're going to miss working with Boyer. He was more than good at his job, he has been a ball to work with. So… Phil Boyer retires, and while we hope this means everything that he personally wants it to mean for him and his family, we doubt he'll be a stranger. Knowing of his deep love for aviation, and his commitment to the world of GA, I have no doubt we'll be hearing from him again and again… which can only benefit us all.

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