Aviation faces some fundamental issues: While the FAA reports there were 41% fewer private pilot certificates issued over the last decade, Boeing is projecting the need for 460,000 new pilots globally by 2031. Meanwhile, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association is reporting that up to 80% of student pilots drop out of training. “It’s a […]
Ohio pilots pitch in to recruit next members of the aviation community
What began in 1997 with two pilots helping Boy Scouts earn their aviation merit badges has grown into Youth Aviation Adventure (YAA), with 26 partner programs across the United States. It all began when Columbus, Ohio, pilots Dan Kiser and Steve Wathen offered to help Steve’s son and some friends earn their Boy Scout Aviation […]
1.7 million Young Eagles and counting…
It’s an impressive number: Since its founding in 1992, more than 1.76 million kids have flown as Young Eagles — a number that’s growing even as you read this. The premise is simple: Introduce kids to aviation through a flight in a general aviation aircraft and — hopefully — inspire the next generation of pilots. […]
North Carolina students ASCEND
One summer day North Carolina teacher Jana Brown got to thinking about what her students were doing with their summer off. Then her thoughts wandered to a story her husband told her about being given a helicopter ride one summer at the beach when he was 8 years old. “While he didn’t pursue his pilot’s […]
SUN ’n FUN volunteers remember one of their own
Ask anyone at SUN ’n FUN about Albert Borchik and a smile immediately comes over their faces, followed by the slight glistening of tears in their eyes. That’s because for the first time in more than two decades, he’s not at the fly-in. He passed away suddenly Jan. 30. To commemorate his memory, several volunteers […]
Sequestration’s silver lining
The news last week that the FAA will delay closing 149 contract control towers should come as a bit of a relief to the folks at SUN ’n FUN, since Lakeland-Linder Regional Airport was among the first slated to close. That meant SUN ’n FUN had to come up with the money to pay controllers […]
Sequestration’s silver lining
The news last week that the FAA will delay closing 149 contract control towers should come as a bit of a relief to the folks at SUN ’n FUN, since Lakeland-Linder Regional Airport was among the first slated to close. That meant SUN ’n FUN had to come up with the money to pay controllers […]
Texas airport looks to become seaplane haven
Joey Baker says he never met a pilot who didn’t want a seaplane rating. Working off that premise, he’s hoping that Sulphur Springs Municipal Airport (SLR) in Texas will become a destination for seaplane pilots across the United States. “There’s a big gap in the middle of the United States,” he says he’s been told […]
Cirrus Aircraft’s Vision becoming reality
After years of stagnation, development of Cirrus Aircraft’s Vision SF50 jet is full steam ahead. Introduced at AirVenture in Oshkosh in 2006, the jet’s first flight was in 2008. Then came the economic collapse and the company’s search for new capital, resulting in the sale of Cirrus to China Aviation Industry General Aircraft (CAIGA). With […]