FAA-Required 2-Hour Limit Inconveniences Investigations, Board Says

The NTSB is pushing to require all cockpit voice recorders to migrate from a 2-hour to a 25-hour capacity, bolstering the ability of crash investigators to retain valuable incident data. The Board wants the FAA to create a regulatory requirement for 25-hour recorders, citing a number of recent high-profile incidents that were hampered by a technologically outdated 2-hour recording loop. Since 2018, they've identified "at least 14 NTSB investigations have been hampered because cockpit voice recorder, or CVR, data were overwritten, including seven serious runway incursions that occurred in early 2023."

Oversight Hears and More In Store With Legislation Galore

Democrat Senator Maria Cantwell plans to hold multiple oversight hearings in the wake of the failed Boeing door/plug from a high-profile inflight failure, touching on everything from FAA reauthorization to certification. "We need more sunshine here,” Cantwell said. "We need to start moving towards a process where you move more aviation consumer bills without waiting every five years. When you have near misses out here and you have these things happening right now, I want the FAA to do everything they can today. The air traffic controllers, more inspectors, 25-hour recordings - all these things you can get done, and then go get more.”

Developers Invited to Design Emergency Response Patient Delivery Pods

A new incentive campaign seeks to seed out the design for a single-occupant, autonomous, emergency response aircraft with a $2 million dollar prize up for grabs. The deal was announced at the Vertical Flight Society’s Transformative Vertical Flight meeting earlier this month as the GoAERO Prize. The competition was dreamt up by GoAERO CEO and founder Gwen Lighter who described it as “a three-year global competition with over $2M in prizes to build emergency response flyers that will rescue people and perform critical response missions,” said the GoAero founder.

DJI Matrice to the Rescue as Department Validates Program Funding

A New York police department highlighted the usefulness of one of its FLIR-equipped UAVs with the rescue of a missing 'vulnerable person', finding them safe and sound before nightfall. Vulnerable persons (generally a code for those with mental health or age-related impairments) can prove a difficult issue for worried families, sometimes able to wander off and lose themselves in the surrounding area with little indication beforehand. The Fulton PD was notified of one such missing person, getting the report at 18:30.

Tickets Going Fast for Springtime Air Show

A rare appearance by the Lockheed VC-121A “MacArthur Bataan” is scheduled for this year's Sun 'n Fun 2024, granting attendees a chance to see one of the last 2 survivors of the type. The Constellation will arrive at Lakeland Linder International Airport on Tuesday, April 9th during the airshow, and fly in the show again on Wednesday, April 10th. After static display on Thursday, April 11 and Friday, April 12, she will depart after one final display on Saturday, April 13.

Klyde's Not Sure That 'Whoops' Quite Does It For Him...

FMI: www.klydemorris.com

Also: B-29 Doc To Great Bend, JetBlue Spirit Merger, ALPA v Pilot Shortage, CAF Wants AC-47

Piper Aircraft has added a new model to its PA46 line -- the M700 FURY—a single-engine, 700 shaft horsepower, cabin-class turboprop. Reportedly the next step in expanding their M-Class series, the M700 is powered by the Pratt & Whitney PT6A-52 engine, allowing for a maximum cruise speed of 301 ktas with a max range of 1,149 nm (at max cruise speed, 1,424 nm at normal cruise speed) while maintaining a 'Basic Med compliant' 6,000- pound MGTOW limit. Levil Aviation has introduced the 'Joy.' Described as 'not just another standard joystick' -- it is a

Also: B-29 Doc To Great Bend, JetBlue Spirit Merger, ALPA v Pilot Shortage, CAF Wants AC-47

Piper Aircraft has added a new model to its PA46 line -- the M700 FURY—a single-engine, 700 shaft horsepower, cabin-class turboprop. Reportedly the next step in expanding their M-Class series, the M700 is powered by the Pratt & Whitney PT6A-52 engine, allowing for a maximum cruise speed of 301 ktas with a max range of 1,149 nm (at max cruise speed, 1,424 nm at normal cruise speed) while maintaining a 'Basic Med compliant' 6,000- pound MGTOW limit. Levil Aviation has introduced the 'Joy.' Described as 'not just another standard joystick' -- it is a flight

OBAP’s Open Letter Gets Additional Backup with Separate Statement

Women in Aviation International issued a supporting statement backing up the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals in its open letter impugning those who question the capability of minority professionals in the industry. “As a longtime partner in fostering greater inclusivity in our industry, WAI has proudly signed OBAP’s letter and offers our continued support and resources as one of the many aviation affinity groups with the same goal,” said WAI CEO Lynda Coffman.

Manufacturers Look to Supercharge SAF Output

Embraer has joined up with the United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund, "an investment vehicle focused on scaling up the supply and availability of Sustainable Aviation Fuels through investing in innovative startups." The fund opened its doors in February of 2023, quickly growing to include 22 corporate partners from a variety of industries. All in all, the partners have committed to more than $200 million in capital to invest in startups looking to defray the environmental costs (but not the logistical costs) of aviation as a whole.

Also: Autonomous R22, Airspace Link FAA-Approved, AMA HoF, DeltaHawk Adds 2 More

TEKEVER demonstrated the successful deployment of a lifeboat from its AR5 drone as part of a search and rescue exercise conducted by the Italian Coast Guard, in partnership with the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA). Via a fully automatic operation, sensors onboard the drone enable the detection of vessels or humans on the water. As expected, Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas is a ‘No Drone Zone’ for Super Bowl LVIII. Drones also are prohibited around several additional locations during the days leading up to the event. Drones will be restricted during several times

Airplane Departed From Runway 36, And Subsequently Began A Turn Back Toward The Runway

On January 31, 2024, about 1325 central standard time, a Piper PA-24-180, N5520P, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident at Weedon Field Airport (EUF), Eufaula, Alabama. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to the airport manager, she saw the pilot on the day of the accident on the ramp and they spoke briefly.

From 2016 (YouTube Version): Vibration Component Added For A More Realistic Training Experience

The Bell 206 has been around for a while with a variety of missions. So an updated simulator for the aircraft has a broad audience. That's the assessment of Sebastien Loze, Director of Marketing for D-Box, who spoke to ANN CEO and editor in chief Jim Campbell at the Interservice Industry Training Simulation & Education Conference (I/ITSEC) conference late last year. Loze said the sim is a 1-1 scale replica of the Bell 206 cockpit with move

Aero Linx: Northern California Business Aviation Association (NCBAA) Mission: To promote safety principles and practices through education and outreach while encouraging continual growth of a positive safety culture within the Northern California business aviation community. We aim to deliver a series of events that allows everyone in the NorCal area an opportunity to connect with other business aviation professionals, learn about topics of interest and grow our aviation community.

Permanent Echo Radar signals reflected from fixed objects on the earth's surface; e.g., buildings, towers, terrain. Permanent echoes are distinguished from “ground clutter” by being definable locations rather than large areas. Under certain conditions they may be used to check radar alignment. 

"We need more sunshine here. We need to start moving towards a process where you move more aviation consumer bills without waiting every five years. When you have near misses out here and you have these things happening right now, I want the FAA to do everything they can today. The air traffic controllers, more inspectors, 25-hour recordings - all these things you can get done, and then go get more.” Source: From statements by Democrat Senator Maria Cantwell, who plans to hold multiple oversight hearings in the wake of the failed Boeing door/plug from a high-profile inflight failure, touching on everything from FAA reauthorization to certification.