“Space” Tourism Without the Rocketry

As the newest iteration of the space race heats up between competing high-altitude tourism companies, the unorthodox World View is offering tickets to the stratosphere in a balloon. Other “space” tourism companies rely on rockets for their ascent, like Blue Origin’s New Shepard, or the carrier-launched SpaceShipTwo from Virgin Galactic. World View believes passengers want more time in the air, and designed the best “room with a view” one could ask for. 

The Jet It Program Is Built Around The HondaJet

We spoke with Jet It Co-founder and CEO Glenn Gonzales for a chat about their aviator-focused hybrid ownership program. Accompanied by one of their fleet's HondaJets, we go over the basics of putting the plane within reach for pilots and customers who may not want to outright purchase one for infrequent use. In contrast to other fractional ownership arrangements, Jet It allows customers to custom tailor their ownership to their use frequency. "If you know you've got 30 trips a year you need to do, we've got a program for you...Your monthly expense with Jet It is going to be less

ESA's BepiColombo Probe Completes 1st Flyby

The ESA's exploration of Mercury announced another successful waypoint on October 1 as the BepiColombo mission returned its first photographs of the planet’s surface. The probe represents a joint collaboration between the ESA and its Japanese counterpart, the Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). Launched in 2018, it is currently en-route to the smallest, least explored terrestrial planet in the solar system to carry out a full analysis of its composition, magnetosphere, and inner workings. 

IFE Internet System Warranty, Rollover, and Service

Gogo Business Aviation released it's new premium membership program geared towards enhancing the protections, pricing, and warranty for users of their AVANCE and classic ATG inflight connectivity systems. For $5,000 per year with a three-year service commitment, SmartShield provides a number of benefits for operators looking to maintain optimum performance of their Gogo systems. The program brings fixed service pricing, monthly rollover of unused data, annual overage forgiveness, expedited shipping, a 50% discount on field service engineer charges, free annual online training, and a full warranty. 

Publishes New Guidance for Global Regulators

The Flight Safety Foundation released a call upon the aviation industry, regulators, and health departments to implement digital health certificates, sometimes referred to as “health passports”, or “vaccine passes” to ease travel and speed economic recovery. They believe that digital certification of COVID-19 vaccination or testing could be rolled out and in widespread use within the next 12 months. Like other industry associations, the Foundation sees the large disparity of regulation between regions as a prime impediment to recovery in the wake of the pandemic.

Sustainability and Safety Improvements Nationwide

The FAA awarded $479.1 million in infrastructure grants to 123 projects in airports across all 50 states and U.S. Territories. In the release, Transportation Secretary Buttgieg said “These grants will help strengthen our country’s airports and the communities they serve by making investments that create jobs and increase safety, sustainability and accessibility.” Among the grants given, notable projects in sustainability and resilience include improvements include the installation of charging stations in Boston’s Logan International, along with an EPA Low-Emission project that will reduce sources of ground emissions and improve air quality. 

Will Use For Primary Flight Training In Southwest And Central China

Sichuan Longhao Flight Training Co., Limited, or Longhao Flight Training School, signed a purchase agreement for 20 Cessna Skyhawk piston aircraft, to be delivered throughout 2022. The school will use them for primary flight training in southwest and central China, as they expand their training scale to meet the immense need for domestic pilots. Licensed pilot numbers have consistently increased since the General Office of the State Council announced efforts to accelerate the training and development of pilots.

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Airbus has announced plans for a new CityAirbus at the Company’s first Airbus Summit. Ushering in the next generation of CityAirbus, the fully electric vehicle is equipped with fixed wings, a V-shaped tail, and eight electrically powered propellers as part of its uniquely designed distributed propulsion system. It is designed to carry up to four passengers in a zero emissions flight in multiple applications. CityAirbus is being developed to fly with a 80 km range and to reach a cruise speed of 120 km/h. Boeing reveals they will build the Navy&

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GE's new, clean-sheet turboprop engine broke new ground Thursday, making its first successful flight on a King Air test bed. Flying out of Berlin Airport, the 1 hour and 40 minute jaunt added another important milestone to the design's continued development. To date, 16 test engines have racked up over 2,600 hours of operation in ground tests and appear on track to continue a streak of promising performance. Dubbed "Catalyst", the engine will find its first home in launch customer Textron's (Cessna) Denali for further testing. Virgin Galactic has announced t

Airplane Nosed Over And Came To Rest Inverted, Resulting In Substantial Damage To The Wings And Fuselage

On September 13, 2021, about 1405 eastern daylight time, a Waco GXE, N8564, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Burt, New York. The airline transport pilot was not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to the pilot, the airplane’s annual inspection was completed on the morning of the accident. During takeoff, the airplane departed the turf runway “normally,” and once it was in ground effect, it would not climb any further even though the “engine was producing power just fine.”

Aero Linx: The Australian Strategic Air Traffic Management Group, ASTRA The Australian Strategic Air Traffic Management Group, ASTRA, is an aviation industry body dedicated to developing an optimum air traffic management system for Australia. As such, it is the Federal Government’s primary source of industry advice on air traffic management directions. ASTRA brings together all of the industry stakeholders including aircraft operators, airports and service providers to develop and continuously review the ASTRA Strategic Air Traffic Management Plan and develop a recommended Target Operational Concept.

Minimum Sector Altitude [ICAO] The lowest altitude which may be used under emergency conditions which will provide a minimum clearance of 300m (1,000 feet) above all obstacles located in an area contained within a sector of a circle of 46km (25 NM) radius centered on a radio aid to navigation.

“We are closing in on the first-ever flight of an all-electric racing plane, and it promises to be a landmark moment in the creation and development of Air Race E as a championship. I will be excited to see the hard work of the Nordic Air Racing team pay off when they make this historic flight, while I am grateful for the dedication and professionalism of all the teams, engineers and personnel who have contributed on our journey towards this milestone.” Source: Jeff Zaltman, CEO of Air Race E, commenting on the Nordic Air Racing Team's recently completed electric race plane -- currently in preparation for the upcoming season of Air Race E. The first racing series between all-electric aircraft, each race will see