What happens when the lights go out? Phrased one way or another, that is among the first questions to cross the minds of people unfamiliar with glass cockpits, but all too familiar with Microsoft’s notorious Blue Screen of Death. It’s a good question. Backup instruments are required by the FAA. How they are provided is […]
Vimy to recreate first transatlantic flight
“Yesterday I was in America, and I am the first man in Europe to say that!” John Alcock said that, shortly after landing a World War I-era Vickers Vimy bomber in Ireland on June 15, 1919. He and Arthur Brown had left St. John’s, Newfoundland, a mere 16 hours and 12 minutes earlier. If all […]
Hurricane outlook: up to five big ones expected
The National Hurricane Center’s forecasters are predicting another above-normal hurricane season for 2005, unhappy news after last year’s destructive season. “NOAA’s prediction for the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season is for 12 to 15 tropical storms, with seven to nine becoming hurricanes, of which three to five could become major hurricanes,” said retired Navy Vice Admiral […]
A 60-something celebration
On May 28, 1943, the first class of Women Airforce Service Pilots graduated from Avenger Field in Sweetwater, Texas. Now, 62 years to the date, the field will host another WASP first, the first WASP Memorial Day Fly-In. About 25 WASP from around the country are slated to attend the event, which will feature aircraft […]
Glacier Giel by the numbers
Would you like Glacier Girl to fly at your fly-in or air show? It’s possible, for a price. One of the rarest airplanes around, P-38s are not operationally inexpensive. According to Bob Cardin, operations manager for Glacier Girl, it costs $2,300 an hour to fly the grand old dame. That includes fuel, pilot salary and […]
Back-room legislation may force airport closure
University of North Carolina Chancellor James Moeser has tried for years to get Horace Williams Airport (IGX) closed. The airport is on university grounds at Chapel Hill, grounds that Moeser wants used for other purposes. Through what airport supporters call a “back-room, private effort to influence legislation,” Moeser and some UNC trustees have had a […]
Curiosity and invention
“Results! Why, man, I have gotten lots of results. I know several thousand things that won’t work.” That was Thomas Edison talking. Edison probably was the most prolific and successful inventor of our, or any, time and his statement emphasizes the importance of curiosity. In Edison’s case, that often meant research just for the sake […]
Tempest unveils a new oil filter
Aero Accessories, which manufactures Tempest brand dry air pumps, pneumatic components and fuel pumps, now makes a line of oil filters. The new product, dubbed the Tempest Original Aviation Spin-on Oil Filter, is an improved version of a design used by Champion for 30 years, before that firm made significant changes, explaining the use of […]
Airplane in a box
Yingling Aviation has launched a new international aircraft shipping enterprise for Cessna 172 Skyhawks, 182 Skylanes and 206 Stationairs. The firm, which was named the first Cessna Authorized Service Center in 1946, made its initial shipment of five Cessna 182s to Hanseo University in South Korea at the end of February. The university will use […]