Will Consolidate All 787 Production in South Carolina in 2021

Rumored for quite some time, Boeing has finally made a decision about the future of 787 production... and Washington workers are NOT thrilled. Boeing has said it will consolidate production of 787 jets at its facility in North Charleston, SC, starting in mid-2021, according to the company's best estimate. The decision comes as the company is strategically taking action to preserve liquidity and reposition certain lines of business in the current global environment to enhance efficiency and improve performance for the long-term. While Boeing notes that it's 787 family has outperformed other widebody airplanes during the challenging market downturn, its production system, "has been a

Also: NASA Polishes Image, Drone Airspace Access, All-Electric Ecomax Heli, 1st Brazilian Gripen

One of the efforts ANN and Jim Campbell are best known for, are our flight test reports. However; the amount of work required to keep ANN on the straight and level hasn’t allowed us to do any for a while. Further; we’ve been aggressively pursuing a new plan for how to conduct them in terms of the many media options currently available. Well... for now, the highly detailed and long-awaited flight test report on the Pipistrel Panthera is now online with parts 1 and 2, so far, of the massive 8000 wo

Aircraft Returns To Oshkosh Immediately Following The Tour Stop

Sheltering in place has a lot of downsides and few upsides... and now that it might be possible to get out a little bit and see the world once again, EAA has an idea that will allow them to bring some aviation history to warbird lovers in selected locations. EAA’s Flight Operations team is currently exploring sending the B-17 Aluminum Overcast on its first tour stops of 2020. These will be significantly modified tour stops adjusted because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The first stop is currently scheduled in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on October 23-25, hosted by EAA Chapter 33.

Bombardier Announces Senior Management 'Reorganization'

The disassembly of Bombardier, supposedly in pursuit of a concentration on BizJets, has created another casualty of those changes. Bombardier has begun the process of streamlining its senior leadership team as it transitions to a pure-play business jet company. As part of this process, the Company has eliminated the Bombardier Aviation president role and announced that David Coleal will depart the Company.

Still... They're Hopeful SOME Kind Of An Agreement Can be Reached

Capt. Joe DePete, president of the Air Lines Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA), has issued a statement after Congressional leaders and the White House failed to reach agreement to extend the CARES Act Payroll Support Program (PSP), but announced they will continue negotiating on an overall coronavirus relief package: “Despite bipartisan support for the most effective job-loss prevention measure on record, Congress and the White House are poised to miss the deadline to extend the PSP. While government leaders have stated they will continue talks tomorrow, for many pilots, tomorrow will be too late—their jobs will already be gone. The consequences of this inaction has

From 2008: Rotax's 100HP Four-Stroke Is The Backbone Powerplant For The Sport Aviation/LSA World

At the US Sport Aviation Expo, Aero-TV caught up with an old friend, Eric Tucker... a guy who is known worldwide as "Mr. Rotax." The most well-known (and easily the hardest working) expert on the Rotax 900 series sport and certified engines, Eric took a few minutes to help us profile each of the amazingly compact, powerful and fuel-efficient 900 series engines, this time concentrating on the 100 HP Rotax 912S/ULS.

Voting From Space Starts With A Federal Postcard Application

Americans exercise their right to vote from all over the world, and for November’s election, few ballots will have traveled as far as those cast by NASA astronauts living and working aboard the International Space Station. During earlier days of human spaceflight, astronauts would only visit space for days, or maybe weeks, at a time. Today, astronauts typically stay in space for six-month missions on the space station, increasing the odds of a spacefarer off the planet during an election. So how does one vote from space? Like other forms of absentee voting, voting from space starts with a Federal Postcard Application, or FPCA. It’s the same form military members and their fam

Opposes Decision to Pull 787 Production Out of Washington State

After Boeing decided to put all its 787 eggs in the one SC basket, it was only a matter of time before various politicians decided to opine about it. Here's one of the first... Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02) released the below statement on Boeing’s decision to pull 787 production out of Washington state: “Boeing’s decision to pull its 787 production out of Washington state is shortsighted and misplaced..."

About Three Hours Into The Flight... The Engine Sputtered And Lost Total Power

On September 16, 2020, about 1251 central daylight time, an amateur-built Zenith CH 750 airplane, N4744M, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Montgomery City, Missouri. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot estimated 22-23 gallons of fuel were onboard the airplane during the preflight and he estimated a fuel consumption rate of about 6 gallons per hour for the flight.

AD 2020-20-02 Requires Inspecting Each Fire Extinguisher Bottle For A Crack

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for Leonardo S.p.a. (Leonardo) Model A109E, A109S, and AW109SP helicopters. This AD requires inspecting each fire extinguisher bottle for a crack. This AD was prompted by a report of a cracked fire extinguisher bottle. The actions of this AD are intended to address an unsafe condition on these products. This AD is effective November 3, 2020.

Aero Linx: The Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI) Since 2006, the Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI) has sought to enhance energy security and environmental sustainability for aviation through the use of alternative jet fuels. CAAFI is a coalition of airlines, aircraft and engine manufacturers, energy producers, researchers, international participants and U.S. government agencies. Together these stakeholders are leading the development and deployment of alternative jet fuels for commercial aviation.

Navigation Reference System (NRS) The NRS is a system of waypoints developed for use within the United States for flight planning and navigation without reference to ground based navigational aids. The NRS waypoints are located in a grid pattern along defined latitude and longitude lines. The initial use of the NRS will be in the high altitude environment in conjunction with the High Altitude Redesign initiative. The NRS waypoints are intended for use by aircraft capable of point-to-point navigation.

“Despite bipartisan support for the most effective job-loss prevention measure on record, Congress and the White House are poised to miss the deadline to extend the PSP. While government leaders have stated they will continue talks tomorrow, for many pilots, tomorrow will be too late—their jobs will already be gone. The consequences of this inaction has a serious impact on those who are set to be furloughed at midnight tonight. ALPA strongly encourages all parties to continue negotiating toward a coronavirus relief package that will help stabilize the airline industry and protect frontline aviation workers.” Source: Capt. Joe DePete, president of the Air Lines Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA), issuing a st