The NATA has broken down the current issues involved with being compliant with the new mask mandate sweeping through our transportation systems.... including BizAv and a fair amount of GA. The CDC issued an order requiring travelers to wear masks when entering the premises of a transportation hub, awaiting, boarding, disembarking, and for the duration of travel. The CDC mask requirement applies to aviation facilities such as airports, FBOs and commercial aircraft operations, including part 135 operations.

Tamarack Aerospace has informed one and all that they are the winner of a January 26th “Fly-Off” between an unmodified CitationJet and an Active Winglet modified CitationJet. This event was designed to be a real-world comparison between the Active Winglet’s performance on a Cessna CitationJet against a conventional CJ1. Critics and fans are arguing over the specifics of the contest and what exactly may or may not have been proven as a result... though an advantage seems to be clearly shown by the, strip, h2) ] from C:/inetpub/wwwroot/clients/aero-news.net/components/utils.cfc

Terrafugia tells ANN that it has reached a significant milestone by obtaining an FAA Special Light-Sport Aircraft (LSA) airworthiness certificate for its Transition roadable aircraft. As a unique integration of a two-seat aircraft and an automobile, the Transition is designed to meet safety standards from both the FAA and the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The vehicle that received the certificate is legal for flight and represents the initial version of the Transition roadable aircraft. Terr, strip, h2) ] from C:/inetpub/wwwroot/clients/aero-news.net/components/utils.cfc

Most of us have dreamed of being able to fly like a bird. And while that’s not an option for most of us, unless you’re interested in a wingsuit, one company has devised a way to at least get close. At I/ITSEC 2016 in Orlando, Florida, Tony Isaacs, VP of Development for PLW Model Works, told ANN CEO and Editor in Chief Jim Campbell that they have married high-resolution virtual reality with a fully-immersive simulation to allow you to “fly” over cities, like New York City, for a bird’s-eye view. “It’s , strip, h2) ] from C:/inetpub/wwwroot/clients/aero-news.net/components/utils.cfc

Wingcopter has secured $22 million in Series A funding. Wingcopter reports that they will use the funds to strengthen its leadership in drone-based logistics, with a special focus on healthcare-related applications, including the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. At the same time, Wingcopter reports that it is well-positioned and ready to establish more partnerships worldwide centering around other fully automated delivery applications. The current model, the Wingcopter 178 Heavy Lift, provides both one- and two-way delivery, covering distances of up to 120km.

On January 2, 2021, at 1541 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-24-250 airplane, N8347P, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident in New Hudson, Michigan. The pilot and two passengers were fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. There was no record that the pilot obtained a weather briefing or filed a flight plan on the day of the accident. He departed Cherokee County Airport (CNI), Canton, GA at 1221 and flew GPS (Global Positioning System) direct at 7,500 ft, estimated to arrive at Y47 at 1542. The pilot was not instrument rated.

Every field of effort has a standard to beat. Track and field had the four-minute mile. For baseball, the bar is 762 career home runs. For the V-22 Osprey production line at Fleet Readiness Center East, there was the 300-day turnaround time for returning the aircraft to their fleet customers. On January 15, the V-22 line broke that elusive 300-day mark when the team returned its most recently completed aircraft in 297 days, far below the negotiated standard of 420 days.

Nordic Unmanned has acquired two Camcopter S-100 systems, with the first delivered last week and another joining it in Q2 2021. This acquisition comes after successful sulphur sniffer operations in Denmark and France. The Camcopter S-100 was also recently operated for the world’s first full-scale offshore UAV cargo delivery to the active oil and gas platform Troll A in Norway. These operations were both carried out by Nordic Unmanned and Schiebel.

Virgin Galactic has announced the date of its new flight window for a rocket-powered test flight of its SpaceShipTwo Unity. The flight window will open on February 13 with opportunities to fly throughout February, pending good weather conditions and technical readiness. The test flight will be crewed by two pilots and will carry research payloads as part of the NASA Flight Opportunities program. Pre-flight preparations are already underway at Spaceport America, New Mexico, including rigorous steps to prepare the vehicles, pilots, teams and facilities, with safety procedures as a top priority. In addition, the Virgin Galactic Pilot Corps has completed two flights with its mothership, VMS Eve, for routine pilot, strip, h2) ] from C:/inetpub/wwwroot/clients/aero-news.net/components/utils.cfc

In 2020, SpaceX returned America’s ability to fly NASA astronauts to and from the International Space Station for the first time since the Space Shuttle’s last flight in 2011. In addition to flying astronauts for NASA, Dragon was also designed to carry commercial astronauts to Earth orbit, the space station, or beyond. SpaceX is targeting no earlier than the fourth quarter of this year for Falcon 9’s launch of Inspiration4 – the world’s first all-commercial astronaut mission to orbit – from historic Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Jared Isaacman, founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments, is donating the three seats alongside him a, strip, h2) ] from C:/inetpub/wwwroot/clients/aero-news.net/components/utils.cfc

The United Engine Corporation of Rostec has started testing a new VK-650V engine for Ka-226T and Ansat-U helicopters. The engine's first start proceeded without problems at the UEC-Klimov test bench in St. Petersburg. Currently the engineers of UEC-Klimov in St. Petersburg have completed the first third of the test program, evaluated the key parameters of the product, and adjusted the joint operation of the stand and propulsion systems in various conditions.

An action taken to transfer the radar identification of an aircraft from one controller to another if the aircraft will enter the receiving controller’s airspace and radio communications with the aircraft will be transferred.

<strong>"A key objective of the upcoming flight will be to test the remedial work that has been completed since the December 12, 2020, flight when the onboard computer halted ignition of the rocket motor. The team has since conducted the root cause analysis, completed the corrective work required, and carried out extensive ground testing. The next stage will be to assess and verify this work during a rocket-powered flight."</strong>

<strong>Source:</strong> From a statement by Virgin Galactic, noting that they are opening&nbsp;a flight test window February 13th.