The very colorful Brazilian Air Force Demonstration team, the Esquadrilha da Fumaca (The Smoke Squadron), has been involved in a significant training accident. At least two aircraft collided in flight, requiring each flight crew to use ejection seats to avoid further injury. There were four crewmen on board the two aircraft. Major Luiz Francisco Tolosa, Captain Marcio Guimaraes de Oliveira, Captain Jose Marcio de Almeida and Tenente Fabricio Calomeno Axe all egressed the aircraft safely and were examined and released by medical officials.

The DoD has partnered with the FAA to give enlisted mechanics in the military the same credentials as their civilian counterparts. For Sailors and Marines, the Navy and Marine Corps Airframes and Powerplant Program (NMCAPP) has been established at the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training (CNATT), to ensure all aviation technicians are given the opportunity to earn the federal agency’s industry standard certification. In the past, military experience was not widely recognized by the FAA, significantly decreasing Sailor and Marine marketability in the civilian sector. “Trying to get a civilian job without an A&P License is similar to trying to gain access to a military base without the proper credentials--almost impossible,” said CNATT NMCAPP Officer, L

The story is just starting to make the rounds, so we can't/shouldn't ignore it... but an aviation legend is undergoing some legal heartache, courtesy of his 3 of his 4 kids. The legendary Chuck Yeager, who has remarried, is undergoing some family problems due to his children's mistrust/dislike of his new spouse. Yeager, 81, married 45 year old Victoria Scott D'Angelo (pictured together, above) last August after having lost his wife Glennis to cancer over 13 years before. Yeager's principal foe in the upcoming legal battle is his daughter, Susan. She has filed a claim over yeager's 1.35 million dollar ranch, charging that Chuck's new spouse is an "undue influence" over him. A trial is scheduled for this May, in a Nevada county Superior Court.

An intriguing briefing paper from Forecast International seems to have some good news for turboshaft powerplant manufacturers. The report told the ANN crew that "rising worldwide demand" for new military helicopters, combined with large-scale U.S. re-engining requirements, will propel an otherwise flat turboshaft engine market to higher levels during the coming decade, according to a Forecast International market analysis. "The Market for Aviation Turboshaft Engines: 2004-2013" points to several key U.S. military programs that will drive production of current-technology turboshaft engines; it also describes emerging military requirements mandating new and more efficient powerplant designs.

Two F/A-18 Hornets, being preserved at the NAVAIR Depot North Island Test Line awaiting induction for the Center Barrel Plus Program, will have their 15 minutes of fame later this year. The aircraft will serve as background for a made for television movie scheduled to be aired in late summer or early fall on the Disney Channel. According to Lt. Jose Fikes, with the Navy Office of Information in Los Angeles, the aircraft are providing the background for several scenes in “Tiger Cruise” that was filmed aboard USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) pier side at the North Island naval air station.