The GA world got another black eye this week as a Mooney M20C, piloted by Richard Langone, 47, of Atlantic Beach, Long Island, was caught circling the Statue of Liberty and violating a number of restricted areas in the New York City area. General media outlets glommed the story up, made us all look like fools, and the pilots's statement of having been "confused," sure didn't help the matter. Langone's errant adventure left Republic Airport sometime around noon on the 28th with three friends aboard the single engine Mooney. The flight proceeded North to Sky Acres Airport in Poughkeepsie before "following the Hudson River" down the west side of Manhattan and running afoul as he got confused, and transgressed by flying over the Whitestone Bridge and down the east river toward Laguard

The fine folks at AEA tell ANN that, "After meeting with the FAA a viable option could not be reach to allow turbojet operators to continue flying beyond January 1st, 2004 without an installed ELT. The rule will stand as written with no relief for the hundreds of aircraft awaiting ELT installations. After meeting with the FAA a viable option could not be reach to allow turbojet operators to continue flying beyond January 1st, 2004 without an installed ELT. The rule will stand as written with no relief for the hundreds of aircraft awaiting ELT installations."

The NTSB will lead a team of US-based investigators to assist the government of Benin in its investigation into the crash of a Boeing 727 on Christmas day that apparently resulted in the deaths of more than 100 passengers and crew. NTSB Chairman Ellen Engleman Conners has designated Dennis Jones, a senior investigator for the NTSB, as the United States' Accredited Representative to the investigation. He will lead a team that includes investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration, Boeing Commercial Aircraft, and Pratt & Whitney Engines.

The Department of Homeland Security has announced that it issued three aviation emergency amendments to further enhance security on both passenger and cargo aircraft flying to, from and over the United States. International air carriers, where necessary, will now be required to place armed, trained, government law enforcement officers on designated flights as an added protective measure. Some countries already place armed law enforcement officers on flights traveling to, from or over the United States. The measures contained in these Emergency Amendments are in addition to requirements of federal regulations currently in place. The directives are effective immediately. Homeland Security remains concerned about Al Qaeda’s desire to conduct attacks against com

You have to admit that tumbling end over end is a helluva test of an aircraft... especially when all those within the airframe, at impact, get to escape the accident with their lives and surprisingly minimal injuries. Registered, currently to Alex Mesa of Winston Salem, North Carolina, this aircraft used to belong to none ohter than Cirrus Design CEO Alan Klapmeier and is featured in a number of Cirrus promo photos. It's obviously ONE TOUGH BIRD.   Regis#: 742CD Make/Model: SR22 Description: SR-22  Date: 12/27/2003 Time: 2050  Event Type: Accident Highest Injury: Minor Mid Air: N Missing: N DESCRIPTION  AIRCRAFT CLIPPED A POWER POLE AND GUY WIRE AND FLIPPED END OVER END AND  INTO HAY BALES, THREE PERSONS ON BOARD R

Seeing the previews and reading the news releases is one thing. But being the first ANN staffer to tour the new National Air and Space Museum facility at Dulles International Airport (VA) is something else. Exactly 48 hours after I was cold and soaked to the bone on the sands of Kitty Hawk, I pulled into the huge parking lot for the Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Museum, which opened less than two weeks ago.

The US Marine Corps has filed paperwork for two proposed military operations areas (MOAs) that, if established, would compress civilian general aviation pilots flying near North Carolina's Outer Banks into an area that the military considers unsafe for its own pilots. "If the FAA permits these two MOAs, they will have an unavoidable adverse effect on civil aviation in the Outer Banks area," said AOPA Manager of Air Traffic Heidi Williams. "Besides some obvious safety issues, MOAs that are in constant use, as the Marines envision these, become de facto airspace restrictions for many GA pilots."

Fred M. Coon of Victoria, Texas, and Dr. Mark Stolzberg, of Stony Brook, New York, tell ANN that they broke a United States Transcontinental air speed record October 16, 2003. The pair broke the record in Coon's Grumman AA-5A Cheetah aircraft flying from John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California, to First Flight Airport in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, in 14 hours, 53 minutes and 32 seconds. They averaged a speed of 159.78 miles per hour during the trip. The flight by Coon and Stolzberg represents the fastest recorded speed across the country by a piston-engine aircraft weighing between 1,102 and 2,205 pounds, a significant portion of the general aviation fleet. To qualify as a 'Transcontinental' record, the start and finish points must be within 60 kilometers (37.3 miles) f

Proving that disaster knows no politics, US service members are delivering humanitarian aid to Iran in the wake of an earthquake that has left an estimated 25,000 Iranians dead. A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck the area near the city of Bam. Unreinforced mud brick buildings crumbled, killing thousands as they slept. Iranian officials said today the death toll could reach 40,000 in Bam and the surrounding countryside. Soon after word of the catastrophe spread, President Bush was informed on it. "We are greatly saddened by the loss of life, injuries, and widespread damage to this ancient city," Bush said in a written statement Dec. 26. "I extend my condolences to all those touched by this tragedy. The thoughts of all Americans are with the victims and their families at this t

The first flight of an aircraft you've crafted for yourself is ALWAYS an extraordinary milestone... but when it's one of the first of a new breed of sport helicopter, it's particularly noteworthy. ANN Reader Tom Sled tells us that, "Back in 1969 I became an Army helicopter pilot and flew Huey's in Vietnam. I saw BJ Schramm flying the HeliCycle at El Mirage in 2000 and I decided to build one. In August of 2001 I took delivery of the first crate of HeliCycle parts from BJ's Eagle R&D. I watched the videos during the week and did the construction mainly on weekends. With the detailed videos and well packaged aircraft quality parts, I found the HeliCycle a very easy to build kit. No costly tools or special training is needed, and the techniques for the different parts of the assem

Israel's AMOS 2 telecommunications satellite was successfully placed into geostationary transfer orbit Sunday by Arianespace/Starsem Flight ST12 - which used a Soyuz/Fregat vehicle launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The 3029-pound AMOS 2 was deployed from the Fregat upper stage approximately 6 hours 47 minutes after the liftoff from Baikonur Cosmodrome's Launch Pad #6, which occurred at 2:30 a.m. local time (21h30 GMT, 10:30 p.m. at Paris, and 11:30 p.m. in Tel Aviv).

The US Navy has awarded Boeing a multiyear procurement contract valued at $8.6 billion for the production of an additional 210 F/A-18 Super Hornets and a $1 billion contract for system design and development (SDD) of the EA-18G airborne electronic attack aircraft. Under the terms of the multiyear contract, the Navy will purchase 42 aircraft in each of the fiscal years 2005 through 2009. The agreement provides the Navy with the flexibility to increase the quantity of aircraft on order by as many as six aircraft per year. Deliveries for aircraft purchased in the second multiyear will begin in fiscal year 2007. The 5-year SDD program for the EA-18G runs from FY04 until early FY09 and encompasses all laboratory, ground test, and flight tests from component level testing through

F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 510th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron dropped two Joint Direct Attack Munition bombs on an enemy safe house near AR RAMADI, Iraq, Dec. 27. Operation Stocking Stuffer was launched to destroy an abandoned two-story house known to be a launching pad for attacks against coalition forces, according to a U.S. Central Command release. The house had been used on six different occasions to attack coalition forces and is located about two miles northwest of Khalidiyah.

The FAA is holding a training session on field approvals and the supplemental type certificate (STC) application process in Wasilla, Alaska, on January 7, 2004. AOPA had requested that additional sessions be held to provide the opportunity for dialog on the impact of policy changes, which went into effect in Alaska on October 1. The Wasilla training session follows similar training held in Fairbanks and Anchorage. "Field approvals are important in the lower 48 states but absolutely crucial in Alaska's harsh flying environment," said AOPA Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Melissa Bailey. "After all the confusion created when the FAA amended the field approval process in 2002, these training sessions are important to make sure that inspectors are all working from the same r

Life Rescue New Mexico's valued Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin N2 was repositioning itself over the weekend when its rotors struck the side of a hangar. The resultant forces involved destroyed the $3 million machine. Primarily used to transport urgent care patients to St. Vincent Hospital in Santa Fe, NM, company officials note that it will take several months to replace the machine, though the search for a second machine was already underway at the time of the accident. ** Report created 12/29/2003 Record 10 ** IDENTIFICATION  Regis#: 291LL Make/Model: AS65 Description: AS-365/565 DAUPHIN 2, PANTHER (HM-1, PAN  Date: 12/27/2003 Time: 2230  Event Type: Accident Highest Injury: Minor Mid Air: N Missing: N  Damage: Destroyed

"After meeting with the FAA a viable option could not be reach to allow turbojet operators to continue flying beyond January 1st, 2004 without an installed ELT. The rule will stand as written with no relief for the hundreds of aircraft awaiting ELT installations." Source: AEA, explaining that the FAA has refused to allow for any extensions to the ELT Regs that will be taking effect in little more than a day.

JetBlue Airways has named Captain Dave Bushy, Vice President, Flight Operations. Capt. Bushy fills a vacancy created by the promotion of Al Spain to Senior Vice President, Operations. Capt. Bushy joins JetBlue after a 24-year career with Delta Air Lines, where he started in 1979 as a Boeing 727 Second Officer, and held numerous management positions during his tenure at Delta, most recently as the company's Senior Vice President, Flight Operations.