The General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) reported a record year in 2005 for general aviation manufacturers. The industry reached an all-time high for billings in 2005 — $15.1 billion, a 27.2% increase over 2004. Year-end, worldwide shipments of GA airplanes totaled 3,580, up 20.8% over the previous year’s total of 2,963 units. All sectors of […]
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Tuskegee Airmen receive honorary degrees
At the Sixth Annual Tuskegee Airmen Convocation held Feb. 23 at Tuskegee University, 63 surviving airmen received honorary degrees from the Alabama university. Between 1940 and 1946 approximately 1,000 African-American pilots trained at Tuskegee in segregated units. They earned more than 850 medals during the war, destroyed 260 enemy aircraft — and didn’t lose a […]
It’s now easier to buy a Legend Cub
American Legend Aircraft Co. has launched a new deposit program designed to make it easier to buy a Legend Cub. The Legend Cub is a two-place, single engine piston-powered aircraft designed to meet Light Sport Aircraft category certification requirements. Under the new plan, a customer can secure a production slot for the presently backlogged Legend […]
HEICO eyes Chinese market for its parts
A Hollywood, Fla.-based company is set to tackle the Chinese aviation market. HEICO Corp. has signed a deal with the China Aviation Import and Export Group Corp. (CASGC) of the Peoples Republic of China to sell FAA-approved aircraft and engine replacement parts in China. The cooperative agreement is the first of its kind in the […]
Sun ‘n Fun to celebrate the final frontier
Planning continues for Sun ‘n Fun, scheduled to kick off April 4 at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in Florida. This year’s event, which runs through April 10, includes a tribute to the 25th anniversary of the Space Shuttle program, as well as a 20th anniversary reunion of the volunteers who made the epic flight of […]
Stennis Airport honored for post-Katrina efforts
The FAA’s Southern Region Airports Division has selected Stennis International Airport in Bay St. Louis, Miss., to receive the 2005 General Aviation Airport Safety Award. Immediately following Hurricane Katrina, Airport Manager Bill Cotter and his son cleared debris from operational and safety areas and repaired runway edge lights to allow resumption of night operations. The […]
Finding a type club that’s just right for you
When World War II ended there was a general aviation boom. Thousands of people learned to fly during the war and there was a glut of military airplanes on the market that were defanged and made available to civilian pilots. Civilian manufacturers got into the act too. Many had been under contract to produce aircraft […]
Expansion continues at Kissimmee Gateway
Florida’s Kissimmee Gateway Airport (ISM) is soaring to new heights with recent developments. Ranger Aviation, an FBO at ISM, is in the process of building a 60,000-square-foot executive terminal. This facility will house corporate offices, tenants, conference rooms, pilot facilities and a full-service restaurant. Meanwhile, another FBO, Marathon Flight Services, is nearing completion of a […]
Ormond Beach Aviation leases 35 Liberty XL2s
A Montana-based aircraft leasing company, LAFT, LLC, placed firm orders for 35 Liberty XL2 aircraft late in January. LAFT, in turn, leased the two-place planes to Florida-based Ormond Beach Aviation, which will use them as trainers. Ormond Beach Aviation plans to operate the XL2s as replacements for its current single engine Cessna and Piper training […]