Also: 2nd ERAU Arrow Wing Cracked, Memphis Airport, Orbital ATK Launch, Flexjet Pilot Salaries

Last week, representatives from the City of Santa Monica and the FAA sat before a judge in the D.C. Circuit Court jointly defending their consent decree that led to the shortening of the runway at KSMO, and will eventually lead to its closure. The two were before the court to respond to a Petition to Review filed by aviation interest groups in February 2017 asking the court to invalidate the Settlement Agreement between the FAA and the City. That agreement gave the city the authority to shorten the runway, which it did last December. The FAA has certified Boeing's design for folding wingtips on the 777X airliner that will allow the aircraft to operate at existing airport gates. The FAA said that the Boeing Model 777-8 and 777-9 airplanes will incorporate CFRP wings with folding wingtips. Boeing will inco

DJI Sponsors Inaugural AUVSI XCELLENCE Humanitarian Award

Five organizations that flew drones on critical, life-saving missions were recognized with the inaugural XCELLENCE Humanitarian Award by the Association for Unmanned Vehicles Systems International (AUVSI). The award, which is sponsored by DJI was presented at the AUVSI XPONENTIAL 2018 conference at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, Colorado.

Also: Drone Ops Over DoD Facilities, Space Needle Drone Crash, NAA’s Most Memorable, Textron's X5-55

As the reputation of the drone community, hobby and professional, continues to evolve, drones involved in rescue and recovery efforts are making our rep shine ever brighter... and we could use all of that we can get. A recent example resulted in the the recovery of two hikers and an incapacitated dog who found themselves stranded in New Mexico along a wooded hiking trail -- and who now owe their well-being to the use of a firefighter's personal drone. A five member search team was deployed when one of hikers, a man and a woman, called 911 at 1700 local time, to request help. The couple and their dog were lost in Otero Canyon, according to reports from the  Bernalillo County Fire Department. AMA has been busy and has reported what’s been a successful year lobbying in Washington on b

Also: Aero-TV: Textron's X5-55, InfraDrone App, NASA's Mars Helicopter, Gremlins on Track

This month, Aurora’s Autonomous Aerial Cargo Utility System (AACUS) successfully delivered cargo to U.S. Marines in the Integrated Training Exercise at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms in California. AACUS completed its first closed loop mission from takeoff to landing for its intended purpose of actual cargo resupply to Marines, as it successfully completed an autonomous cargo sustainment flight delivering more than 500 pounds of water, gasoline, MREs, and replacement communications gear including a packed cooler to represent urgently required cargo such as blood. Aurora says that this was the first ever “autonomous point-to-point cargo resupply mission” providing critical logistics support to Marines in need. The HorseFly truck-launched Autonomous Drone Package De

The Secret To Success Is Sincerity, Klyde. Once You Can Fake That, You've Got It Made

FMI: www.klydemorris.com

We Need YOUR Help To Find AND Celebrate The Coolest Stuff At EAA AirVenture 2018, #OSH18COOL

Stuff that’s new is cool… we get it… that’s why we’re bringing our AirVenture Innovation Preview webcast to you on Saturday evening, July 21, to introduce the things that are new and unique at EAA AirVenture 2018. However, there is a lot of cool stuff that has little to do with being new stuff, but still deserves the designation of 'cool.' This is where we need your help. Despite the fact we have the largest news staff on the ground at AirVenture, our nearly 30 staffers still aren’t enough to find out what’s ‘really cool’ because what’s really cool is not all about us or what we think, it’s about what the thousands of people think who attend this great adventure known as AirVenture. To help us share what’s really cool to you, we are initiating our first time ‘#OSH18Cool’ program that allows you to tweet

An Amazing Experience Awaits The Chosen Few...

E-I-C Note: There's very little we can say yet, but there is a reason why this may be THE year to throw in with ANN to cover the extraordinary event that is OSHKOSH. Like in years past, we have something up our sleeves -- actually SEVERAL big somethings -- BUT, this year, they could be some of the biggest upgrades/surprises we've pulled off yet -- so we're going to be changing quite a few things about how we cover Oshkosh, as a result. IF YOU want to be a part of this unique adventure, speak up NOW, rather than later, because we're going to looking for the best volunteer folks we can find and are planning to do so ASAP. You've been warned (grin)....

Stunningly Successful Innovation Program Draws Hundreds of Thousands of Eyeballs to ‘All Things AirVenture’

E-I-C Note: We're tremendously excited to work with EAA again... on this and some other truly exciting programs to be announced shortly -- stay tuned! We’re onto something… Something huge. In the years since the truly astounding results for the 2+ hour debut of the 2015 AirVenture Innovation Preview, as well as nearly a decade of coverage of the AEA New Product Introductions and other efforts conducted at Sun ‘n Fun, XPONENTIAL, and other exciting venues, ANN is already hard at work on the next edition of our Airborne Innovation Preview programming for this year’s amazing EAA/AirVenture Fly-In in Oshkosh, WI., now set for July 23-29, 2018. Even more important, the highly-regarded AIP series will also be used as the flagship for a major industry initiative that will be announced at AirVenture… a program that has the potential to significantl

We're Everywhere... Thanks To You!

Even with the vast resources and incredibly far-reaching scope of the Aero-News Network, every now and then a story that should be reported on slips through our fingers. There's a lot of news out there, and sometimes we just don't get to all of it... so we came up with the idea of News Spies.

“The Aviation Security Advisory Committee plays a vital role in helping TSA focus on risk-based security. I thank the outgoing, current and newly appointed members of the committee for their service and dedication to helping TSA strengthen its layered approach to aviation security.” Source: TSA Administrator David P. Pekoske.