As new ATC systems and increasingly sophisticated information options are introduced, more and more older airplanes are falling behind. Consequently, many owners whose airframes have a lot of life left in them are looking at the many options for upgrading their old avionics panels. Most of the time that makes more sense than going out […]
First jet flight made on biodiesel: Around the world flight is next, company says
Aviation history was made earlier this month when an L-29 jet trainer flown by Carol Sugars and Douglas Rodante completed the world’s first jet flight powered by 100% biodiesel fuel, over the high desert near Reno, Nevada. The flight was backed by the partnership of Green Flight International and Biodiesel Solutions. The former was founded […]
50 years and counting…
Philip Carrell sold his first airplane 50 years ago. It was a 1947 Stinson 108. Since then he has sold more than 500 airplanes, some for as much as $8 million, to customers as far away as Australia, Brazil and the Czech Republic. Late last month Carrell celebrated his 50th anniversary as a salesman for […]
Become a World War II ace — at least on your Wii
Roll, loop, dodge and shoot like a World War II ace with the new “WWII Aces” game for the Nintendo Wii system. Fly alone or with a friend via split-screen co-op as you join the ranks of the Royal Air Force, Soviet Air Force or Luftwaffe and pilot 12 authentic airplanes, including the Spitfire, Mosquito […]
New secuirty proposals worry pilots: Cross-border GA flights could be complicated by new screening plans
Homeland Security and U.S. Customs plans to increase screening of general aviation aircraft entering the United States could make cross-border travel much more difficult in the near future. That isn’t the intention, of course, but it falls into that broad regulatory category known as “unintended consequences.” Homeland Security has proposed a new GA security program […]
Put a Mustang in your house — or on top of it
Want to own a Mustang — or Spitfire, Corsair or Air Tractor — but just can’t come up with the cash? Now you can express your love for these classic planes with a 1/5th scale replica that can be used as home décor or a weather vane. “If the house is big enough, some of […]
Airplane, heal thyself
Are self-healing airplanes the next big thing in GA? Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed technology by which airplanes can heal their own skins and engine parts can protect themselves from hazardous materials. Scientists are working on a process where damage triggers the repair mechanism in epoxy-based materials. When a crack […]
Air show performers Steve Oliver and Suzanne Asbury-Oliver dance through the sky
“It sure beats working for a living.” That from Steve Oliver. He and his wife, Suzanne Asbury-Oliver, perform at air shows across the country in the Oregon Aero SkyDancer. Steve is the aerobatic pilot in the family while Suzanne is a skywriter — one of the few left today. Together, they travel about nine months […]
European investment in Eclipse ‘in excess of $100 million’
Eclipse Aviation CEO Vern Raburn announced Jan. 14 an “expansion” of his company’s partnership with European Technology and Investment Research Center Aviation (ETIRC), which has invested “substantially in excess of $100 million” in the Albuquerque-based VLJ builder. The investment makes ETIRC the largest shareholder in Eclipse, according to Raburn. ETIRC already was the sales, customer […]