Able Flight has announced its Class of 2024 will receive their wings in a ceremony at the upcoming EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. This will be Able Flight’s first year partnering with Southern Illinois University at Carbondale for flight training of its scholarship recipients. Mayor John Nichols of College Station, Texas, sent a letter to the FAA asking it to delay the increase in the number of deliveries requested by Amazon Prime Air for its facility in College Station. The letter was sent on behalf of the City Council of College Station as a public comment on the Draft Supplemental Environmental Assessment (EA) submitted by the company for ex
Boeing has begun flight testing its 777X large-cabin commercial jetliner for FAA certification under a Type Inspection Authorization (TIA), the company announced on July 12. Certification test flights are conducted with FAA personnel and Boeing representatives on board to observe and validate the safety, reliability, and performance of the aircraft. For the 777X series, the certification flights will be performed with four different 777-9 aircraft. Each aircraft is slated to test a specific set of systems under different flight conditions and scenarios. The FAA observers will report their findings back to the agency for evaluation and a final determination of its effectiveness for certification.
Costs, Delays, and Future Expenses Shut Down Polar Explorer
NASA has announced the end of its Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover, putting the VIPER for good. It's an unfortunate end but an understandable one. Originally, the rover was slated to launch in late 2023, but delays in development and preflight testing nudged that date to 2024, and eventually on to September of 2025. The Commercial Lunar Payload Services launch to take it up would have taken place using Astrobotic's Griffin lander, which was delayed to about the same time. As such, NASA said that "continuation of VIPER would result in an increased cost that threatens cancellation or disruption to other CLPS missions".
DC-3 Display Outlived Its Usefulness, Time For A Change
As many readers know, Kermit Weeks has amassed more than 140 vintage military and civilian aircraft during his life. He also established the Fantasy of Flight Museum in Polk City, Florida, along Interstate I-4 which traverses Polk County. The museum comprises several buildings and hangars which house the extensive collection of aircraft, many of which are airworthy. Other aircraft are in various stages of restoration or repair, or off-site at air shows or other events. To advertise the museum and attract visitors, Weeks mounted a Douglas DC-3 at the I-4 exit near the museum. Initially, Weeks had the airplane mounted in a nose down position with the Fantasy of Flight name emblazoned on th
Mayor John Nichols of College Station, Texas, sent a letter to the FAA asking it to delay the increase in the number of deliveries requested by Amazon Prime Air for its facility in College Station. The letter was sent on behalf of the City Council of College Station as a public comment on the Draft Supplemental Environmental Assessment (EA) submitted by the company for expanding its commercial drone package delivery service. The company is requesting an increase in the number of hours and days for the service, and residents living in neighborhoods adjacent to the facility have been expressing concerns about noise levels, especially during takeoffs and landings.
SkyView HDX and AF-5000/6000s Get Just a Little Bit Safer
Now, operators of the SkyView HDX will be able to use an Emergency Glide feature to reduce workload and take the guesswork out of a perfect descent. The feature will be included in the SkyView software 17.1 update, and its equivalent for Advanced Flight Systems AF-5000 and AF-6000 models. Just by holding down the NRST key, the SkyView will engage the autopilot at a pre-programmed best-glide speed while showing the nearest airfield in range. That airport will be given after SkyView runs the numbers for wind and terrain, ensuring that the aircraft isn't sent anywhere that isn't immediately feasible as a landing site.
Cincinnati Municipal Airport, commonly known as Lunken Field (KLUK) in Cincinnati, Ohio, has decommissioned Runway 3L-21R, its shortest strip. Discussions about a closure plan had been ongoing for several years and last year the decision was made to permanently close it. Two primary reasons were cited: the pavement is in poor condition with cracks and draining along the centerline causing puddling, which had already caused several closures of the runway for safety. To bring it up to current standards the runway would have to be completely rebuilt at a cost of about $15 million.
Annual Fundraising Event Kicks Off Cleveland National Air Show Weekend
The International Women’s Air & Space Museum (IWASM) collects, preserves, and showcases the accomplishments, culture, and history of women in all areas of aerospace and aviation. They serve to educate the public about the contributions of women and, by bringing the history to life, inspire young women to pursue careers in aerospace and aviation. The museum’s annual fundraiser, “Corks on the Concourse” will be held Friday, August 30, 2024, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. The event marks the beginning of the Cleveland National Air Show weekend at the airport, and will provide crucial support for IWASM’s objectives and goals. It also represents an opp
Vertical Aviation International has opened nominations for 11 award categories in its Salute to Excellence program, and applications will be accepted through September 30th later this year. The program now includes a fresh addition to the Salute to Excellence, the Harold Summers Legacy Award. It pays tribute to the late Summers, the association's deceased director of maintenance, and will be presented by his widow to the inaugural recipient. Vertical Aviation International now offers awards for service to the industry in communications, humanitarianism, education, safety, maintenance, airmanship, and lifetime achievement alongside legacy awards named after titans of the organization.
Also: USCG MH-60T Crew Save, Second Las Vegas Airport, CAF PT-19, Diamond-Turkish Airlines
SpaceX’s Starship will launch in four weeks according to SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk. Musk, who also owns social media platform X, posted there on July 5, "Flight 5 in 4 weeks." The approximate two-month turnaround after its last flight June 6 is faster than the previous launch interval for Starship. That’s because Flight 4 went entirely according to plan so there were fewer technical issues to resolve... A new fee schedule under the Bahamas Customs Management Regulations 2024 popped eyeballs with manifold increases over previous fees, with inbound
Also: College Internship, Pilots Request Mediation, RAA Speaks Up, New iPad Organizer
UAS4STEM is an Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) sanctioned competition for students aged 11 through graduating high school seniors. Teams compete throughout the year to make it to the championship at AirVenture. NBAA returned to the grind of angling for fresh blood in the industry, urging congress to implement some of the high-minded plans enclosed in their recent FAA reauthorization legislation. Every so often the industry seems to remember the impending wave of retirements, which is followed by some anxious glances at the unimpressively slim pilot production
Also: PAL Aerospace, ERAU Eclipse, Second Las Vegas Airport, Drone MIL Exhibition
The Alabama Aerospace and Aviation High School (AAHS) enrolled its first 9th and 10th grade students to begin classes in the fall of 2022. Just two years later the school broke ground on a new campus at the Bessemer Municipal Airport (KEKY) in Bessemer, Alabama. The school is the first aviation, aerospace, and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) focused public charter school in the state. And it’s free to attend. A final rule just published by the FAA provides relief for check pilots and flight instructors in Part 135 commuter and on-demand operators who
Aero Linx: The Mooney Mite Site
Dedicated to the Mooney M-18 Mite, "The Most Personal Airplane," and to supporting Mite owners everywhere. The Mooney M-18 Mite is a single-place, low-wing monoplane with retractable, tricycle landing gear. It is mainly of fabric-covered wood construction designed for the general aviation market and offering extremely low operating costs. It has a wingspan of 26.8 feet, a length of 17.7 feet, an empty weight of 520 pounds, a maximum weight of 850 pounds, and a range of 350 miles or more.
The Left Wheel Departed From The Left Strut. The Airplane Began Sliding On The Turf And Nosed Over
Analysis: The flight instructor and the pilot, who was also the builder of the airplane, were practicing soft field landings with the tailwheel-equipped experimental airplane. They performed two threepoint landings to the dry turf without incident. During touchdown on the third landing, with the pilot on the flight controls, the left wheel departed from the left strut. The airplane began sliding on the turf and nosed over, coming to rest inverted. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, both wings, and the empennage.
From 2010 (YouTube Version): Aero-TV Takes to the Skies Alongside ANG’s John Klatt
John Klatt is a man who truly lives and breathes aviation. As the pilot for John Klatt Airshows, he travels across the country bringing stunning aerobatic performances to aviation enthusiasts and aerobatic experts alike. Flying for over 23 years with over 13,000 hours of flight time, Klatt took an interest in flying shortly after high school. After discovering the Air National Guard while a student at the University of Minnesota, Klatt joined the ANG pilot training program where he earned his wings at the Air Force in Texas. Now assign
En Route Automation System (EAS)
The complex integrated environment consisting of situation display systems, surveillance systems and flight data processing, remote devices, decision support tools, and the related communications equipment that form the heart of the automated IFR air traffic control system. It interfaces with automated terminal systems and is used in the control of en route IFR aircraft.
“It was getting old. We had some hurricane damage. The rudder blew off one time.”
Source: Fantasy of Flight's Kermit Weeks, explaining the legend behind the DC-3 that adorned the I-4 highway between Tampa and Orlando, for many years--and why it's time for it to go... To advertise the museum and attract visitors, Weeks mounted a Douglas DC-3 at the I-4 exit near the museum. Initially, Weeks had the airplane mounted in a nose-down position with the Fantasy of Flight name emblazoned on the wings. After some years and some number of concerned drivers calling police and news stations to report a “plane
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