Redefining the NCAA

HR 2879, which supports the establishment of the National Center for the Advancement of Aviation, was introduced on 27 April by Representative Andre Carson (Democrat-Indiana) and Representative Pete Stauber (Republican-Minnesota) with 46 cosponsors. The Center would focus on four primary areas: aviation and aerospace STEM curriculum, workforce development, economic and safety data and research sharing, and a forum for cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Mark van Berkel to Succeed Jim Ferrier

The Canadian Owners and Pilots Association (COPA) has named Mark van Berkel its new Chief Operating Officer. Mr. van Berkel, who succeeds interim CEO Jim Ferrier, commands a wealth of aviation business and management expertise by which he stands to aid Canada’s largest aviation association in carrying out its stated mission “To promote, advance and inspire general aviation, and to preserve the Canadian freedom to fly.”

Shades of Always

On 6 February 2023, a Boeing 737-3H4 aerial tanker owned by New South Wales-based Coulson Aviation went down in the Great Southern Region of Western Australia’s Fitzgerald River National Park while fighting multiple fires. The aircraft’s sole occupants—its two pilots—survived the harrowing accident and were transported to hospital with minor injuries. The instance occasioned the first hull loss of a Boeing 737 on the Australian continent. On 04 May 2023 the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) made public its primary report on the accident.

A Rose by Any Other Symbol

On 04 May 2023, the Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA) announced it had created a new logo to better embody the organization’s revived vision and mission statements as well as the values and strategic priorities aligned therewith. The renaissance marks the culmination of an AEA strategic planning initiative that began in 2020, and reflects the association’s forward momentum.

The Once and Future Fed

The Biden administration is eyeing Mike Whitaker, a former Obama-era Federal Aviation Administration official, to supersede Phil Washington as its nominee for the FAA Administrator position. A lawyer by training, Whitaker joined the FAA in 2013 as the agency’s deputy administrator and chief NextGen officer, a capacity in which he was responsible for modernizing the United States’ air traffic control system.

The Things We Do for 'Love'

Air India, the New Delhi-based Indian national airline, found itself in the highly-irregular and unenviable position of having to remind its pilot cadre to maintain sterile flight-decks after one of the air-carrier’s captains—for reasons passing understanding—spent an unauthorized, patently illegal hour in the company of a female friend, locked away in the cockpit of Air India jet during a Delhi to Dubai flight.

Also: Universal Avionics, Japanese Moon Lander Fails, Canada Transportation Act, Flt Education Access Act

The 66th annual AEA International Convention & Trade Show saw the presentation of the Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award to Ric Peri, AEA VP of government and industry affairs.The FAA granted the award in honor of Charles Taylor, the first aviation mechanic in powered flight. Sonex has a new dual-stick option for the company’s Sonex, Waiex, and Xenos B models. The dual-stick configuration will be available as both a forward fit option for new aircraft and a retrofit package. The dual-stick architecture includes a new universal seat pan install

Top General Expects “Immediate Results”

Following his 28 April aviation safety stand-down order, U.S. Army Chief of Staff General James McConville set forth he expects the service’s helicopters to be airborne in a matter of days. Speaking before the Senate Appropriations Committee’s defense subpanel on Tuesday, 02 May, McConville explained he had directed aviation units to pause all flight operations for purpose of reviewing all procedures—from maintenance and safety protocols to training plans and basic flight mechanics.

Another Hybrid VTOL UAV Aims for the Last-Mile Crowd

The race to offer a viable, profitable, cargo capable UAV for 'last mile' delivery has seen another entrant with the unveiling of the RDSX Pelican from A2Z Drone Delivery. The aircraft leverages a multirotor propulsion system and fixed-wing design to combine the best of both worlds, the efficiency of a fixed wing aircraft and the vertical takeoff and landing performance of a rotary wing.

Klyde Has A Plan... For the Playoffs

FMI: www.klydemorris.com

From 2017 (YouTube Version): The Traditional "Zip Tie" Is Dead…

That's the assessment of Mark Patey, Director of Strategic Innovations and Co-Owner of LockRight LLC, who told ANN CEO and Editor in Chief Jim Campbell at AirVenture that the product developed by his company ... GripLockTies ... will make the universally-known version of the fastener obsolete. The rubber lining on the GripLockTies prevents the zip tie from sliding around on whatever it is securing, Patey said.

Also: Nolen to Step Down, Copa Airlines, KY Mechanics School, GA Awards

A new partnership is bringing helicopter training to Delaware State University’s (DSU) Aviation program. Delaware State university President Tony Allen and Deputy Commanding General Amanda Azubuike of the U.S. Army’s Cadet Command signed an agreement authorizing the service to pay U.S. Army ROTC Cadets’ flight lab fees incurred in the new helicopter training program. On Thursday, 20 April 2023, high, gusty winds resultant of a passing storm destroyed eight airplanes and damaged three others at Kansas City, Missouri’s Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport (MKC). The e

Aero Linx: International Federation Of Airworthiness

IFA’s mission is to contribute to the debate and formation of policies, which affect the Airworthiness of civil aircraft worldwide, and to influence Regulators, Airlines, Maintenance Organisations and Governments to constantly improve aviation safety. 

Takeoff Hold Lights (THL)

The THL system is composed of in-pavement lighting in a double, longitudinal row of lights aligned either side of the runway centerline. The lights are focused toward the arrival end of the runway at the “line up and wait” point, and they extend for 1,500 feet in front of the holding aircraft. Illuminated red lights indicate to an aircraft in position for takeoff or rolling that it is unsafe to takeoff because the runway is occupied or about to be occupied by an aircraft or vehicle.

“For more than six-decades, the AEA has been focused on being a global technology-driven association—one that embraces change and invests in innovation. The new logo embodies a renewed sense of purpose of nearly 1,300 member companies and symbolizes an innovative industry on the move. Following a multiyear strategic planning process led by our board of directors and several ad hoc working groups, the new mark captures the spirit of our international industry backed by the expertise of aircraft electronics professionals, and it comes at an important time as the association positions itself for the future. As aviation’s technology experts in more than forty countries around the world, our professional community will come to recognize the logo as a source of pride