Fuel Tax Increases Prove Quite Unpopular With Industry

General Aviation Manufacturers Association President Pete Bunce weighed in on the Biden administration's plans for Fiscal Year 2025, finding issue in the same elements that similar bodies in the aerospace industry have. “While the President’s Budget is an outline of the Administration’s priorities, we encourage Congress to have a more constructive approach as it works to set and pass the budget for the federal government in the coming fiscal year.

SD-05 eVTOL Aircraft Now Built by Sky Works

Japan's most high-profile eVTOL candidate, SkyDrive, has said that it has already begun working on building out the first handful of prototype aircraft. The line is expected to one day produce up to 100 aircraft per year. The team behind it has been working with Suzuki subsidiary Sky Works to begin rolling out all their new SD-05s, paving the way to hold some public flight demonstrations at the 2025 Osaka World Expo. They’re on track to cut it pretty close, since the SD-05 is the larger, higher-capacity version of the already airworthy SD-03 that's already seen full-scaled operation.

PenFed CEO Honored for Work With Veterans Groups, Students

The National Aeronautic Association has announced that James Schenck of PenFed Credit Union will be the 2024 recipient of the Bruce Whitman Memorial Trophy. Schenck is recognized for his "selfless humanitarian and dedication to commemorating, celebrating, and advocating for the impact and heritage of America's military veterans", according to the NAA citation. His selection follows the pattern of the Whitman Memorial Trophy, established in 2019 when the award was first given posthumously to its namesake. Since then, the NAA has sought to find those who shine brightest in the field of aeronautical volunteering and philanthropy, whether that comes by helping up downtrodden aviators or b

Expansions to Dayton Facility Presage Increased Production

Joby Aviation announced the acquisition of a new facility on the premises of the Dayton International Airport in Ohio, with plans to use it as a primary production line. The facility was "underutilized" by its previous tenants, according to Joby. They have found the local Ohio economy quite accommodating to their plans of building more of the eVTOL tester, so they will be moving full speed ahead to finish their Dayton line. Once at full tilt with an accompanying facility in the plans, they believe it will be able to put out more than 500 aircraft per year.