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May 18, 2020

Airborne 05.18.20: Snowbird Tragedy, Drone Idiot, Reserve U-2 Pilot

Also: F-22 Accident, MultiGP's IO2020 Postponed, Women in Aviation Advisory Board, European A/C Have More Time

A Sunday morning accident involving the Canadian Forces famed Snowbirds flight demonstration team has taken the life of one of their team members, and injured the pilot. The accident occurred in the Brocklehurst neighborhood of Kamloops, BC, after rain and low visibility delayed the team’s departure from Okanagan, where they were preparing to launch a planned flyover. The accident occurred shortly after departure. After holding for weather as part of the Operation Inspiration formation flight tour across Canada, a two-ship formation departed the Kamloops airport shortly after 1100 local time. Fearing another black eye from yet another irresponsible drone operator,

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Aero-News Alert (Updated): Snowbird Down! Two Eject, One Survivor

One Surviving Team Member Landed On A Rooftop And The Other Lost Their Life

ANN RealTime Update, 2011ET, 051720: The RCAF has updated their communications with some unwelcome news that had been preiously reported to us, but was withheld out of respect for surviving family members until an official statement, "It is with heavy hearts that we announce that one member of the CF Snowbirds team has died and one has sustained serious injuries. We can confirm that we have contacted all primary family members of those involved."

Also: Nat'l Aviation Hall of Fame, Robinson Windshield Upgrades, Pipistrel USA, FAA Examiner Bribe

ANN is saddened to report the loss of a missionary pilot, Joyce Lin, flying for Mission Aviation Fellowship... an organization that flies and works worldwide for the most selfless of reasons. Official MAF Statement: 'The Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) family is deeply saddened by the loss of their colleague and friend, Joyce Lin. She departed the Sentani, Papua, Indonesia airport early in the morning of May 12, piloting an MAF Kodiak aircraft. Joyce was responding to the needs of the village of Mamit in

Snowbird Public Affairs Officer: Captain Jennifer Casey

The tragedy is shocking Canada and much of the world who thrilled to the precision and professionalism of the CF Snowbirds. It has been confirmed that the team member who did not survive her ejection from the stricken CT-114 Tutor, was the team Public Affairs Officer, Captain Jenn Casey. The aircraft's Pilot and Snowbird 11 Coordinator, Captain Richard MacDougall, survived his ejection, with injuries that have been determined to be non-life threatening. She joined the Canadian Armed Forces in August 2014 as a direct entry officer. Prior to joining she spent several years working in broadcast radio as a reporter, anchor, and producer in both Halifax, NS and Belleville, ON.

Piloted By Corey Eckhart, Senior Test Pilot, And Aaron Tobias, Chief Test Pilot

The first flight of Textron's new twin utility turboprop, the Cessna SkyCourier, has taken place. The milestone flight is a significant step toward entry into service for the clean-sheet aircraft, and it kicks off the important flight test program that validates the performance of the Cessna SkyCourier. "Today was an exciting day for our employees, our suppliers and our customers. The Cessna SkyCourier performed exactly as we expected, which is a testament to the entire team of men and women who worked together to prepare for this day," said Ron Draper, president and CEO, Textron Aviation.

Prior to COVID-19, Analysts Were 'Already Forecasting Flat Performance For 2020'

A bit of news out of NBAA confirms that the pre-owned business jet market is feeling the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, with April 2020 transactions expected to be down about 50% compared to April 2019. “The crisis was largely unrecognized until mid-March,” explained Paul Cardarelli, vice president of sales at JetNet. “As such, it was not until the very end of the first quarter that the market began to reveal real impact from the pandemic,” said Cardarelli. Although preliminary at the time of this publication, JetNet data shows just over 80 sales and leases of pre-owned business jets in April 2020, compared to more than 200 in April 2019. Car

Sixth Orbital Test Vehicle Mission Launches for the US Space Force

The X-37B Is Back In The Space Biz

A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V 501 rocket carrying the USSF-7 mission for the U.S. Space Force lifted off on May 17, 9:14 a.m. EDT, from Space Launch Complex-41. This marks the 84th successful launch of an Atlas V rocket, 139th launch for ULA, the second launch for the US Space Force and the sixth flight of the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV-6).

Department Of The Air Force Expands Potential Locations For US Space Command Headquarters

The Space Force needs to put down some roots... but where? With the establishment of the United States Space Force, the Department of the Air Force, in coordination with the Office of the Secretary of Defense, is announcing its revised approach for determining the permanent location of U.S. Space Command headquarters.

Klyde Can't Quite Master The Concept of Good Titling...

FMI: www.klydemorris.com

From 2017: A Rare U.S. Appearance For The French Precision Demonstration Team

Sun 'n Fun 2017 attendees got a rare treat during the April 3 and 4 air shows ... a performance by the Patrouille de France, the French military precision demonstration team. The team toured North America as part of the 100th anniversary of the U.S. entry into WWI. Maj. Christophe Dubois, Team Leader of Patrouille de France, told ANN CEO and Editor in Chief Jim Campbell that the team came to Sun 'n Fun to show the skills of the French Air Force as part of their partnership with aircraft manufacturer Daher. Maj. Dubois said that

Everdrone Airdrops To The Scene Of Cardiac Arrests

In Sweden, Everdrone is now using UAS to deliver Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) to the scene of cardiac arrests, which will allow bystanders to initiate life-saving measures while they wait for professional medical care. Everdrone notes that each year, out-of-hospital cardiac arrests affect approximately 275,000 individuals in Europe. The survival rate in these instances is about 10 percent, but that number could increase to as much as 70 percent when CPR and early defibrillation is initiated within the first few minutes, according to research.

Power Loss Shortly After Takeoff

On April 25, 2020, about 1340 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-28-151, N33005, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near East Hampton Airport (HTO), East Hampton, New York. The pilot and two passengers were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to the pilot, they departed Igor I Sikorsky Memorial Airport (BDR), Bridgeport, Connecticut about 1045. He landed at HTO about 1115 and parked the airplane. He subsequently returned to the airplane with the passengers about 1315. The pilot then reviewed the weather and performed a preflight inspection of the airplane with no anomalies noted.

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (05.18.20)

Aero Linx: British Model Flying Association The BMFA is the National Governing Body for the sport of model flying. Its aims are to promote, protect, organise and encourage model flying within the UK. Typically there are around 780 affiliated clubs and a combined membership of over 36,000 members, all of whom have entered a partnership to ensure that model fliers have a voice and their rights are recognised by the authorities. The mandate for the BMFA to do this comes from the Royal Aero Club, dating back to 1922, the Civil Aviation Authority and the UK Sports councils.

Ground Clutter A pattern produced on the radar scope by ground returns which may degrade other radar returns in the affected area. The effect of ground clutter is minimized by the use of moving target indicator (MTI) circuits in the radar equipment resulting in a radar presentation which displays only targets which are in motion.

"It is with heavy hearts that we announce that one member of the CF Snowbirds team has died and one has sustained serious injuries. We can confirm that we have contacted all primary family members of those involved." Source: Part of a woeful statement issued by the RCAF, after the fatal accident that took the life of Snowbird PAO, Jenn Casey, and injured another member of the Snowbirds.