One Day After Getting FAA Launch Permit

Hot on the heels of receiving it's FAA license, Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne team had a perfect rocket-powered flight Thursday, reaching an altitude of 105,000 ft.

Goal: FAA Certification By November

One of the most exciting GA R&D programs we've seen in MANY years, seems to be coming to fruition, and after watching the market embrace a new generation of exciting single engine piston aircraft, Diamond appears ready to set THE mark for multi-engine pistons. With unparalleled economy/performance, Diamond's new twin diesel "Fast-Glass" is finally exciting pilots over a market segment that has been devoid of innovation for well over a decade.

Antoine De Saint-Exupery's P-38 Found In Mediterranean

The mystery surrounding the death of noted French author Antoine De Saint-Exupery has been solved -- almost exactly 60 years later.

NATCA Protests Testing Of STARS Fix On Real Traffic

The Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System is designed to revert to a backup system when problems arise, such as incorrect identification of planes, which is now plaguing STARS in the Detroit Terminal Radar Approach Control room. But the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) says it's "bad policy, not bad technology," that the FAA is testing possible fixes not in a simulator but with live traffic on the STARS system itself, which remains plugged in while Detroit's backup system sits ready and free, but unused.

Friends Says Report "Hugely" Shocking

The crash of a firefighting helicopter near Estes Park (CO) in 2002 was caused by pilot error, according to the NTSB final report, a finding that shocked the pilot's best friend.

Says Requested Increase "Not Necessary"

The EAA has formally responded to an FAA proposal that would increase the Class D airspace at Selfridge Air National Guard Base (MI), from the current radius of 4.3 miles to 6.6 miles. In a Federal Register notice published on February 25, 2004, the FAA asked the public to consider the above change to support Category E aircraft using circling approach procedures.

Richard Abruzzo Makes Record-Breaking Flight Across US

The National Aeronautic Association awarded Richard Abruzzo the Harmon Aeronaut Trophy for his 2003 solo transcontinental gas balloon flight across the United States.

Airline Hopes For Cost Savings

Hoping to slash the cash gash (alliteration is fun!), Continental Airlines says it'll do away with paper ticketing in almost all circumstances by the end of the year.

Attorney Says FAA Told Plaintiff He Was "Wrong Color For The Job"

Michael Ryan says FAA repeatedly passed him over for promotion because he is white and male. The case, Michael C. Ryan v. Norman Y. Mineta, Secretary, US. Department of Transportation, pits merit promotion principles against the FAA’s unlawful affirmative action program.

Klyde's Still Having Fun With The Airline Wars

This One Goes To Unijet

Cessna Aircraft Company has delivered its 200th Citation CJ2 to Unijet, a European charter operation based at the Le Bourget Airport in France.

Sun Country To Charge Passengers By The Mile

Sun Country Airlines has very quietly launched a new program where passengers pay $29 for a round trip flight, plus nine cents a mile. It's a new way of pricing airline travel and, if you belong to the company's "VIP Club," you pay the same rate right up until departure time -- no advanced purchase required.

"This is an unacceptable way of doing business," NATCA Director of Safety and Technology Doug Fralick said. "Why did the FAA spend millions of taxpayer dollars to develop a system that has the capability to fall back to ARTS in the event things don't go as planned and then steadfastly refuse to use it? The FAA is experimenting in Detroit with untested adaptations, putting the system on Emergency Service Level to install the adaptations, then waiting to see what happens with live traffic. It's unbelievable. Detroit has a fully functional Electronic Target Generator lab, which would allow the FAA to see if its proposed fixes will work. Why not use it?" Source: NATCA Director of Safety and Technology Doug Fralick, angry that the FAA is testing bug fixes on its Standa

Designed To Complement Helicopter Services

A group of heart doctors has come up with a new service it says will better transport cardiac patients from rural hospitals in Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana to more sophisticated facilities. The service, Cardiac Air Transport, is backed by Oklahoma's biggest group of heart doctors.

Approval Has Been Delayed For Months

Craven Community College has been waiting four months, hoping the FAA will certify its new Institute of Aeronautical Technology. Now, college president Scott Ralls is reportedly calling up students who want to enroll in the program, telling them to be ready as early as next week.

NOTAM: 4/2963  Issued: 04/08/2004 18:10  Effective: Immediately - Until Further Notice  State: FL  Facility: ZJX - JACKSONVILLE (ARTCC),FL.  Type: HAZARDS  Description: 11W CRAWFORDVILLE, FL. 

NOTAM: 4/2965  Issued: 04/08/2004 18:13  Effective: 04/09/2004 21:00 - 04/09/2004 21:45  State: TX  Facility: ZHU - HOUSTON (ARTCC),TX.  Type: VIP  Description: HOUSTON, TEXAS, APRIL 9-12, 2004. 

NOTAM: 4/2959  Issued: 04/08/2004 16:38  Effective: 04/12/2004 21:50 - 04/12/2004 22:55  State: TX  Facility: ZFW - FORT WORTH (ARTCC),TX.  Type: VIP  Description: WACO, TEXAS, APRIL 12, 2004 LOCAL. 

AD NUMBER: 2004-07-22 MANUFACTURER: Boeing SUBJECT: Airworthiness Directive 2004-07-22 SUMMARY: This amendment supersedes two existing airworthiness directives (ADs), applicable to all Boeing Model 747 series airplanes, that currently require that the FAA-approved maintenance inspection program be revised to include inspections that will give no less than the required damage tolerance rating for each structural significant item, and repair of cracked structure. Those ADs were prompted by a structural re-evaluation that identified additional structural elements where, if damage were to occur, supplemental inspections may be required for timely detection of fatigue cracking. This amendment requires addit