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July 13, 2021

Airborne-Unmanned 07.13.21: USAF & Drone Racing, Drone Delivery Canada, ERAU

Also: Volocopter Acquires DG Flugzeugbau, Oshkosh is Coming!, NASA Selects AURA, Atlas V Rocket

The United States Air Force and the Drone Racing League, are expanding their partnership ahead of the 2021-22 DRL Allianz World Championship Season. Following a successful partnership with the league over the past four years, the USAF added new DRL activations, including custom content, virtual drone racing experiences, and season-broadcast integrations that will inspire drone pilots everywhere to aim high and prepare to fly. Tapping into DRL's fans who are 23x more likely to follow the USAF compared to the general U.S. population... Drone Delivery Canada, with the assistance of Air Canada, has entered into multiple commercial agreements with each of Edmonton International Airport, Ap

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Aero-TV At SnF21: Pipistrel’s Panthera Stops SnF Visitors In Their Tracks

‘Curviest’ Airplane At Lakeland Sure Got A LOT of Pilot Attention

The Pipistrel Panthera is raising a LOT of fuss... the immensely curvy, as well as speedy, four place retractable geared airplane has been seen all over the country. With a cruise speed in the 200 knot arena and solid handling qualities, the Panthera is looking to be a Cirrus-killer when it makes the jumbo from being available as an experimental class aircraft to one that has received certification.

Also: Airborne's 'Telly' Award!, Volatus Acquires ConnexiCore, Navy AWO, USAF Selects Electra

Wing, an FAA approved UAS Service Supplier of the Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC), made its drone flyer app, OpenSky, available in the US for the first time. Available for free in the Google Play and Apple’s App Store, the OpenSky app makes it easy for drone flyers to abide by FAA airspace rules and regulations and request authorization to fly in controlled airspace in near real-time. Parrot has unveiled the ANAFI Ai. ANAFI Ai is reportedly the first drone to use 4G as the main data link between the drone and the operator.

All Fuel Requests Must Be Completed At A Basler Fuel Booth

Basler Flight Service, which supplies aircraft fueling services at Wittman Regional Airport, has updated its procedures for EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2021. All fuel requests must be completed at a Basler fuel booth on the flightline or at the Basler FBO office. General aviation fuel cards are bright green, while warbirds and Basler ramp customers are white. The prop cards from past years will no longer be used, and AirVenture aircraft greeters will be distributing the new fuel cards to pilots when they arrive and park on the flightline. The cards are also available at the Basler fuel booth locations (North 40, South 40, or Vintage Aircraft Camping).

Porter Airlines Orders up to 80 Embraer E195-E2s

Porter Airlines has disclosed plans to extend its service to destinations throughout North America with a firm order for 30 Embraer E195-E2 jets, with purchase rights for a further 50 aircraft. The deal will be included in Embraer's second quarter backlog, and is worth USD5.82 billion, at list price with all options exercised. First revealed in May 2021, this announcement adds the purchase rights and the customer name, which had been undisclosed. Porter Airlines will be the North American launch customer for Embraer's newest family of jets, the E2.

Delivered To Addis Ababa’s Bole International Airport, Which Has An Elevation Of 7,625' MSL

Bell delivered a Bell 505 helicopter to W.A. Oil Factory and Distribution PLC in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, its first corporate customer in the country. With this latest acquisition, there are almost 30 Bell 505s in operation across six countries in Africa and the Middle East. “The Bell 505 is an exceptional aircraft for corporate transportation, exceeding customers’ expectations with a large, customizable cabin and fully integrated high-tech features,” said Lynette Loosen, regional sales manager, Africa and the Middle East, Bell.

Tecnam Appoints New Sales Director For North America

Industry Vet, David Copeland, Is Tecnam US' New Sales Director

Well... this was a pleasant surprise... TECNAM has appointed David Copeland as the new sales director for TECNAM US. David Copeland will report directly to Walter Da Costa, Chief Sales Officer for TECNAM Italy headquarters, and will join the senior leadership team in the US and Canada. In this position, Copeland is responsible for all sales activities within North America as Tecnam continues to expand its presence in the region.

737-800BCF Has Won More Than 200 Orders And Commitments From 16 Customers

BBAM Limited Partnership (BBAM) is expanding its 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighter fleet with 12 additional firm orders. The agreement brings BBAM’s 737-800BCF orders and commitments to 31 as e-commerce and express cargo markets continue to drive strong customer demand for freighters. BBAM will be the first customer to have a 737-800BCF converted at Cooperativa Autogestionaria de Servicios Aeroindustriales (COOPESA), a Costa Rica-based maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) provider. In May, Boeing announced it would open two conversion lines at COOPESA in 2022.

Will Integrate Air Taxis, Cargo Delivery Aircraft and Other New Air Vehicle Concepts into the NAS

NASA has selected AURA Network Systems as an agency partner for its Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) project's National Campaign to continue work towards integrating air taxis, cargo delivery aircraft and other new air vehicle concepts into the national airspace system (NAS). NASA made the announcement late last week that AURA has been named an infrastructure partner for demonstrations as well as for additional communications, navigation, and surveillance flight testing activities. The agency also said that the campaign will include flight demonstrations and simulations at test sites around the country over several months, with the first full phase of test

Also: Strong/ASR OSH Specials, Pilatus PC-24 Update, DG Flugzeugbau Acquired, Oshkosh Rides

Able Flight’s “Class of 2021” will be honored at a pilot wings pinning ceremony at EAA AirVenture on Tuesday, July 27th at 10:00 AM at Theater In The Woods. Six scholarship recipients earned their pilot certificates in the program this year, and all will be on stage to receive their pilot wings. This year’s pilots are T’angelo Magee, Michael Price, Peyton Wolter, David Snypes, Jr. and Sheila Xu. They include a veteran wounded in combat, two veterans who became disabled through accidents, a woman who is deaf, and two new pilots who us

As The Airplane Approached The Canal, It Began To Descend And Impacted The Upper Eastern Edge Of The Canal

On June 20, 2021, about 0900 Pacific daylight time, a Kitfox Series 6 airplane, N617Y, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Likely, California. The pilot was seriously injured, and the passenger sustained fatal injuries. The airplane was operated under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Witnesses located near the accident site reported that they had spoken to the pilot and passenger about 10 minutes prior to the accident. Following their conversation, they watched the pilot and passenger board the airplane. The witnesses stated that the pilot attempted to takeoff

AD 2021-14-02 Identifies The Unsafe Condition As Cracking Of The Retaining Bolt On The NLG

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Aircraft Industries a.s. Models L-420, L 410 UVP-E20, and L 410 UVP-E20 CARGO airplanes. This AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) issued by the aviation authority of another country to identify and correct an unsafe condition on an aviation product. The MCAI identifies the unsafe condition as cracking of the retaining bolt on the nose landing gear (NLG) control. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products. This AD is effective August 2, 2021.

AD: True Flight Holdings LLC Airplanes

AD 2021-14-12 Requires Inspecting The Horizontal Stabilizers, Including The Bondlines

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all True Flight Holdings LLC Models AA-1, AA-1A, AA-1B, AA-1C, and AA-5 airplanes. This AD was prompted by the report of an accident of an airplane exhibiting bondline corrosion and delamination of the horizontal stabilizers. This AD requires inspecting the horizontal stabilizers, including the bondlines, for cracks, buckles, corrosion, delamination, rust, and previous repair and repairing or replacing parts and applying corrosion inhibitor as necessary. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products. This AD is effective July 27, 2021.

Aero Linx: Australian Business Aviation Association (ABAA) The ABAA is a non-profit organisation that was formed to act as a collective voice for the business aviation community in Australia, and to assist its members in all aviation matters. The ABAA is a member of the International Business Aviation Council (IBAC), headquartered in Montreal, Canada and we have close ties with other Business Aviation Associations such as the National Business Aviation Association Inc, Washington, DC.

"With this order for up to 80 of our largest aircraft, the E2 is making a stunning North American debut. As the quietest and most fuel-efficient aircraft in the segment, the E195-E2 also delivers excellent economic performance that shines through." Source: Arjan Meijer, President and CEO Embraer Commercial Aviation, explaining the impact made by a recent and massive order for their new E195-E2.