Upper-Stage Breaks Up After Ascent, First Stage Booster Caught Successfully

SpaceX launched its Starship spacecraft for the seventh time on January 16. After a clean launch and first-stage booster catch, SpaceX was forced to accept that the rocket’s upper stage had been lost in the flight. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk listed an “oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity above the ship engine firewall” as the preliminary cause.

One Drone Collides With Super Scooper, Creating a Hole in the Wing

Three drone pilots have been arrested for conducting unauthorized flights near firefighting efforts in southern California. The most significant incident left a Super Scooper air tanker grounded with a hole in its wing. So far, fires in the Los Angeles region have scorched over 40,000 acres of land.

50-Year-Old Kelly Melvin Located Near Rock Springs, Wyoming

Search teams found the wreckage of a small plane crash near Rock Springs on January 15. 50-year-old Kelly Melvin, who had been reported missing a day prior, was killed in the accident. The file stated that he took off from Southwest Wyoming Regional Airport (RKS) in his Piper Comanche, but never arrived at his destination in California.

FAA-Approved Satellite Training Facility Expands Program's Reach

The Illinois Aviation Academy (IAA) announced the addition of a second training facility at the DeKalb Talyor Municipal Airport (KDKB) in DeKalb, Illinois, expanding operations from its current location at DuPage Airport (KDPA) in West Chicago.

Judged For Essay On ‘My Most Memorable Flight’

Sporty’s and the Richard Collins Family announced the submission period for the 2025 Richard Collins Writing Prize for Young Pilots has opened, and essays will be accepted through March 7, 2025. The winners will be announced in April, with first place receiving $5,000 and $2,500 for second place.

New Editions Updated to Modern Standards

Aviation Supplies and Academics (ASA) announced that its new editions of the Glider Flying Handbook and Balloon Flying Handbook have been updated to conform with modern standards and practices for safe glider and balloon flight and training operations.

Seven Pilots Chosen For Jet, Five For Helicopter Spots

Twelve Air Force ROTC cadets at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University have been selected for highly selective slots in two separate pilot training programs. Seven were selected for the Air Force Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training and five were chosen for the Helicopter Training Nest program.

Options From Last Year Converted Into Firm Orders

Embraer announced the purchase of five A-29 Super Tucano aircraft by the Uruguayan Air Force (FAU). The deal is part of a commitment signed in August 2024 to purchase one aircraft plus the options that have now been converted into a firm order. The agreement also includes mission equipment, integrated logistics, and a flight simulator.

Also: WV $2m Fairmont U Grant, Final T-1A Jayhawk, Young Eagles Rally, Air Force JROTC 

The FAA is working to diversify and strengthen the aviation workforce by placing fresh funds in two key pools: Aircraft Pilots Workforce Development Grants and Aviation Maintenance Technical Workers Workforce Development Grants. These are designed to address workforce shortages. Growing up in Camarillo, California, Zachary Erck often went to the Waypoint Café at the Camarillo Airport with his family and was fascinated by the airplanes and the pilots and the stories they told. He did a discovery flight when he was 13 but ‘life got in the way&rs

Also: WV $2m Fairmont U Grant, Final T-1A Jayhawk, Young Eagles Rally, Air Force JROTC 

The FAA is working to diversify and strengthen the aviation workforce by placing fresh funds in two key pools: Aircraft Pilots Workforce Development Grants and Aviation Maintenance Technical Workers Workforce Development Grants. These are designed to address workforce shortages. Growing up in Camarillo, California, Zachary Erck often went to the Waypoint Café at the Camarillo Airport with his family and was fascinated by the airplanes and the pilots and the stories they told. He did a discovery flight when he was 13 but ‘life got in the way’ an

Airplane Began An Un-Commanded Roll Forward And It Subsequently Struck An Unoccupied, Parked Company Raytheon Aircraft Company C90A

On December 20, 2024, about 2315 Hawaii-Aleutian standard time, a Raytheon Aircraft Company (formerly Beech) twin-engine, turbine-powered C90A airplane, N438CA, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Honolulu, Hawaii. The pilot-incommand, seated in the left seat, second-in-command pilot, seated in the right seat, and two medical center specialty team members were uninjured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 air medical flight.

From 2019 (YouTube Edition): True Blue Power Makes Additional Airline Inroads

Ravn Alaska has installed the company’s TB44 (46 amp-hour) Advanced Lithium-ion Batteries on DeHavilland DHC-8 aircraft. Ravn will install TB44 batteries during routine C-check maintenance operations throughout 2018. The battery outperforms existing nickel-cadmium (NiCad) and lead-acid alternatives, delivering more power, significantly less weight, increased safety, longevity and reduced maintenance costs. The high-performance lithium-ion battery received a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) on DHC-8 10

Aero Linx: The Honourable Company of Air Pilots

We are a Livery Company of the City of London; a philanthropic membership organisation which represents and protects the interests and welfare of pilots and navigators and strives to encourage and assist all those (from any background) who wish to become a pilot. 

Common Traffic Advisory Frequency (CTAF) A frequency designed for the purpose of carrying out airport advisory practices while operating to or from an airport without an operating control tower. The CTAF may be a UNICOM, Multicom, FSS, or tower frequency and is identified in appropriate aeronautical publications.

“These fire suppression efforts using aircraft is probably the most effective tool that our firefighters have against fighting these fires to help contain them. When you take one plane out of commission like that, it’s going to impact the speed in which the fire grows, it’s going to cause loss of property, potentially loss of life, and it’s a danger to everybody all around." Source: Akil Davis, FBI assistant director of the Los Angeles field office, explaining the impact made by three drone pilots who have been arrested for conducting unauthorized flights near firefighting efforts in southern California. The most significant incident left a Super Scooper air tanker grounded with a hole in its wing.