A Quick 6-Minute Roundabout Proves the Prototype Capable

Samson Sky followed up on its recent testing with its longest voyage to date, sending their Switchblade prototype up for more than 6 full minutes aloft. The development is great news for the youthful ‘flying car’ program, and so far one of the few designs that seems like a plausible product. Test pilot Robert Moehle took the aircraft up well out of ground effect, in a refreshing change of pace for a program that has no shortage of media showing its performance in ground effect. The switchblade flew up to an altitude of 500 feet for a tour of the local countryside before coming back down to Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake, Washington.

Curiosity Continues the Search for Germs

NASA's handiwork continues to impress on Mars, with their Curiosity rover doggedly continuing on its mission past the 4,000th day on the planet since touching down on August 5th, 2012. The Rover was originally sent to evaluate the possibility of microbial activity near the 3-mile tall Mount Sharp. The plan was for Curiosity to slowly inch its way up the mountain, using the layers of the rock to evaluate the Martial epochs as it went. The latest sample retrieved will hopefully show how the Martian climate evolved over time, particularly what happened to the once-salty oceans of the basin.

The Hiring Competition Heats Up with Yet Another Bonus Scheme

American Airlines subsidiary PSA Airlines is aiming for experienced UPS and FedEx captains in an effort to bolster their services to smaller routes - and they believe a $250,000 bonus should help to fill seats. PSA hopes that the bonuses will defray such concerns. Should they bite, pilots will see $175,000 of the bonus drop with their first paycheck, with the remaining $75,000 coming in at their 1-year anniversary. They’ll stick with the CRJ 700 and 900s, with starting wages sitting at $150 to $217 an hour depending on experience.

Starlink Constellation Swells to 5,000 Satellites in Burgeoning Global Network

A Falcon 9 rocket tendered 23 more Starlink satellites to the cold of space after a successful launch from Cape Canaveral just past midnight on November 8th. The launch was the 11th for the particular rocket used, or at least the 1st stage. The equipment had previously launched a bevy of client packages, including “SES-22, ispace’s HAKUTO-R Mission 1, Hispasat Amazonas Nexus mission, and CRS-27”. Now, with the most recent mission completed, the rocket has successfully delivered 7 Starlink payloads too. Overall, the launch makes for the 80th for SpaceX in 2023, with more than 1,000 metric tons delivered into orbit.

More History Gone to Dust in Another Hangar Blaze

The Orange County Fire Authority said a fire had destroyed a large World War II-era hangar once used to house military blimps, sadly admitting the best way to combat the blaze was to let it burn out of its own volition. The Fire Authority said the fire died down after the facility collapsed around 1 in the morning on November 7th, a somewhat speedy end to the all-lumber hangars. Each was 17 stories high, 1,000 feet long, and 300 feet wide, making them some of the largest wooden structures in the region. The hangars currently belong to the US Navy, having passed through to Marine Corps operation after the war until 1999.

Almost 20% of the Workforce On the Outs Heading into 2024

Virgin Galactic will lay off 18% of its employee base, as the space tourism operator looks to save money and hone its focus on a newer, more profitable line of spacecraft. Along with the layoffs, the company is pausing all launches until at least midway through next year, hoping to put its resources towards a pair of new spacecraft. Once the layoffs are complete, Virgin Galactic will have only 840 full-time employees, coming away about $5 million lighter after severance and termination costs. Exact cuts remain a mystery but execs gave the impression that most of the layoffs will be personnel associated with the VSS Unity platform. The upcoming Delta-class spacecraft will incorporate le

Flying Motorcycle, That Is…

Developed by Redmond, Oregon-based Samson Sky, the Switchblade is a flying car 14-years in the making. On 15 July 2022, the FAA granted approval for flight-testing of the machine to commence, and Samson Sky got eagerly about the business of vetting its creation. In its road-going iteration, the three-wheeled Switchblade invokes images of a radically-modernized Robin Reliant grown a longer snout and broader hips. The contraption features all-wheel disc brakes and an enclosed, climate-controlled cabin accommodating two occupants in a side-by-side seating configuration and fifty-pounds of baggage. The Swit

Also: DeLand Showcase, Rich Stowell Blog, EAA On Whitaker Confirmation, EAA Youth Program

Zenith Aircraft is returning to central Florida on 01 and 02 December 2023 for purpose of hosting its hands-on kit aircraft building workshop... to be held on the SUN ’n FUN Expo campus, and followed immediately by an informal regional Zenith fly-in gathering. The workshop will get underway on the morning of Friday, 01 December, inside the Buehler Aerospace Restoration and Training Center. Van’s Aircraft is facing serious cash-flow issues resultant of a confluence of unfavorable events and circumstances. Van’s will take time, through

Also: DeLand Showcase, Rich Stowell Blog, EAA On Whitaker Confirmation, EAA Youth Program

Zenith Aircraft is returning to central Florida on 01 and 02 December 2023 for purpose of hosting its hands-on kit aircraft building workshop... to be held on the SUN ’n FUN Expo campus, and followed immediately by an informal regional Zenith fly-in gathering. The workshop will get underway on the morning of Friday, 01 December, inside the Buehler Aerospace Restoration and Training Center. Van’s Aircraft is facing serious cash-flow issues resultant of a confluence of unfavorable events and circumstances. Van’s will take time, through

1-3/4 Miles Visibility; Mist; Broken Ceiling At 400 Ft Above The Ground

On October 25, 2023, at 1829 central daylight time, a Lancair 320 airplane, N320P, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal flight. The pilot held an airline transport pilot certificate for multiengine land airplanes with commercial privileges for single engine land airplanes. He held type ratings for B-737, DC-9, CV-640, and CV-600 airplanes. He also held a flight instructor certificate with single-engine airplane, multiengine airplane, and instrument airplane ratings. 

Aero Linx: The Air Charter Safety Foundation The Air Charter Safety Foundation is a 501c3 non-profit organization. Founded in 2008, our mission is to lead and support the advancement of the highest aviation safety standards. By sharing information, resources and tools, we help enable the business, charter and fractional ownership industry to offer the safest aviation operations in the world.

Landing Minimums The minimum visibility prescribed for landing a civil aircraft while using an instrument approach procedure. The minimum applies with other limitations set forth in 14 CFR Part 91 with respect to the Minimum Descent Altitude (MDA) or Decision Height (DH) prescribed in the instrument approach procedures as follows: Straight-in landing minimums. A statement of MDA and visibility, or DH and visibility, required for a straight-in landing on a specified runway, or Circling minimums. A statement of MDA and visibility required for the circle-to-land maneuver. 

“The types of sulfate and carbonate minerals that Curiosity’s instruments have identified in the last year help us understand what Mars was like so long ago. We’ve been anticipating these results for decades, and now Sequoia will tell us even more... They have also found ways to overcome challenges from wear on the rover’s drill system and robotic-arm joints. Software updates have fixed bugs and added new capabilities to Curiosity, too, making long drives easier for the rover and reducing wheel wear that comes from steering (an earlier addition of a traction-control algorithm also helps reduce wheel wear from driving over sharp rocks)." Source: Ashwin Vasavada, Curiosity project scientist at NASA’s J