A Heavy Subject

A coalition of seven aviation stakeholder organizations has formally submitted comments pertaining to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed endangerment finding pertaining to lead in aviation gasoline (avgas). The coalition reaffirmed its support of removing lead from avgas, but decried the consequences of doing so abruptly.

Disaster on War’s Periphery

An Airbus H225 helicopter (formerly Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma) carrying an estimated nine passengers, including Ukraine’s interior minister Denys Monastyrskyi, went down in the Ukrainian city of Brovary, a suburb of the nation’s capital city of Kyiv. The aircraft came to ground in the vicinity of a kindergarten and a multistory apartment building, killing three children and injuring another 11. In all the accident appears to have injured 25 persons, and claimed some 18 lives—including those of Minister Monastyrskyi, five Interior Ministry officials, one national police official, and all three helicopter crew members.

Hail the Unsung Hero

The National Association of Flight Instructors (NAFI) announced on 16 January that nominations for 2023 Flight Instructor Hall of Fame inductees are open and will be accepted until 01 April 2023. Appropriate Flight Instructor Hall of Fame inductees are individuals who’ve made significant contributions to aviation education and flight instruction while distinguishing themselves and the profession of flight instructing.  

Green to the Tune of $1.15-Billion

Culminating, perhaps, its hunt for a private sector partner willing to ante up monies and manpower to help design, build, test, and fly a large-scale, sustainable technology demonstrator aircraft, NASA announced on Wednesday, 18 January 2023 that it had issued an award to Boeing under the auspices of the agency’s Sustainable Flight Demonstrator project. Per the agreement, Boeing will team with NASA to develop an aircraft featuring technologies commensurate with the near-future manufacture and fielding of a sustainable airliner.

Inroads to Hradec Kralove

Enstrom Helicopter Corporation, the American helicopter manufacturer based at Michigan’s Menominee–Marinette Twin County Airport, announced on 18 January 2023 that it had signed DSA a.s.—a Czech aviation concern comprising Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS), flight school, and aircraft sales and maintenance divisions—as a Dealer and Service Center for Enstrom Helicopters in the Czech Republic.

Aero Linx: The T-34 Association The T-34 Association was formed in July 1975 so that individuals purchasing then military surplus T-34A's  had an organization which would provide support for these aircraft.  The idea was to share operating and maintenance information to all members.  As the popularity of the T-34 Mentor grew over the years so did the T-34 Association.  Today there are over 600 members in the Association and many are not aircraft owners.

Coupled Approach An instrument approach performed by the aircraft autopilot, and/or visually depicted on the flight director, which is receiving position information and/or steering commands from onboard navigational equipment. In general, coupled non-precision approaches must be flown manually (autopilot disengaged) at altitudes lower than 50 feet AGL below the minimum descent altitude, and coupled precision approaches must be flown manually (autopilot disengaged) below 50 feet AGL unless authorized to conduct autoland operations. Coupled instrument approaches are commonly flown to the allowable IFR weather minima established by the operator or PIC, or flown VFR for training and safety.

“The transonic truss-braced wing is the kind of transformative concept and investment we will need to meet those [sustainability] challenges and, critically, the technologies demonstrated in this project have a clear and viable path to informing the next generation of single-aisle aircraft, benefiting everyone that uses the air transportation system. NASA’s goal is that the technology flown on the demonstrator aircraft, when combined with other advancements in propulsion systems, materials, and systems architecture, would result in fuel consumption and emissions reductions of up to thirty-percent relative to today’s most efficient single-aisle aircraft, depending on the mission.” Source: NASA associate administrator