Last year was a tough one for The New Piper Aircraft Co. The Vero Beach, Fla.-based company was hit by a “couple” of hurricanes last year, said Chuck Suma, president and CEO. “But from adversity comes strength,” he noted. “The company is a lot stronger today than it was before the hurricane.” Employees pulled together […]
New Cessna Center planned for Sun ‘n Fun campus
Cessna will build a permanent facility on the Sun ‘n Fun campus. The Cessna Center, which will be built with a $200,000 donation from The Cessna Foundation, will be used for Sun ‘n Fun’s year-round education programs, an essential element in bringing more young people into aviation, said Jack Pelton, Cessna’s president. During the annual […]
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 […]
Air Force Academy gives us the bird
You’ve heard the expression “”fight fire with fire?””‘ When it comes to chasing nuisance birds, such as starlings, away from your airport, try using a bigger bird. It works, say Ted Rosander and John Tekell. The young men are part of the falconry program at the Air Force Academy in Colorado. According to Rosander, the […]
A corporate jet with some assembly required
Imagine, if you can, an eight-place corporate jet kit plane. Imagine that it cruises at 400 mph, at nearly 30,000 feet, and will carry you 1,224 statute miles on its 480 gallons of Jet-A. Steve Young and Ron Lueck of Aerocomp not only imagined such a plane, they built it, they’ve flown it and they’ll […]
Epic’s impressive epic
The Epic LT turboprop is a phenomenon. Two years ago it was artwork on display stands. Fourteen months later it was an airplane, flying to the Oshkosh air show, where it was introduced. Last month, it was in the Homebuilt area at Sun ‘n Fun, fully fitted with a glass panel cockpit and luxurious interior. […]
Lancair controls the weather
If luxury cars can have set-and-forget climate control, why not far more expensive airplanes? That question was raised by the people at The Lancair Co., whose answer was along the lines of “Why, indeed?” As a result, new Columbia 350 and 400 certified Lancairs now can be delivered with that option, a $22,500 add-on. It […]
A last wish for ‘Memphis Belle’
It has been roughly a year since Col. Robert Morgan, the man who flew the B-17 “Memphis Belle” on 25 missions over Europe, died from complications after a fall. At Sun ‘n Fun in 2004, Col. Morgan had a booth where he signed copies of his book, photographs and artwork inspired by his famous B-17. […]
What’s this? A four-place jet for $600K
It’s a four-place, 320 knots (cruise), glass cockpit jet and you’ll pay only $611,628 for it. No, it isn’t one of the new crop of very light jets. In fact, it’s a very old jet in one sense, having been designed in the 1960s. In another sense, though, it is virtually new, says Greg Webster […]