The Lakeland Aero Club on the campus of SUN ‘n FUN at Lakeland-Linder Regional Airport (KLAL) has added a Redbird FMX full motion flight simulator to its fleet. This installation will be different from the norm as club members will perform the installation themselves. Two of the club’s student leaders, Katie Esker, a sophomore, and […]
News
Your check ride ends in crash: What happens next?
By BOB MACKEY The designated pilot examiner (DPE) and student pilot were conducting a private pilot check ride. The DPE reported that, during climb-out, he retarded the throttle to simulate an engine failure. The student attempted to recover the airplane by lowering its nose to maintain controlled flight. However, the airplane descended. The DPE terminated […]
Georgia Tech wins first Collegiate Drone Racing Championship
Georgia Tech won the first-ever Collegiate Drone Racing National Championship hosted by Purdue University on April 15, 2017, scoring more than $15,000 worth of equipment and prizes. Gusty winds and a winding track were no match for the 48 pilots and their homemade drones. The races went off without a hitch, despite challenging 19-20 mph winds, according […]
Love at first flight
Braylon Faulkner, 6, fell in love with airplanes on his first flight. Traveling with his mother Michelle Faulkner and grandmother Carol Faulkner-Davis in September 2012 from Orlando to Providence, Rhode Island, his excitement came to the attention of the Southwest Airlines pilot who invited him to the cockpit before the flight. His father, Brian Faulkner, […]
Aircraft insurance: Building and flying
By BOB MACKEY Whether you are building or flying, there are a few things you should know about aircraft insurance so you aren’t wasting your money and you have the insurance protection you paid for. During the building phase you have essentially two risks: Someone gets hurt while working on the project and the project […]
Piper unveils M600 personalization package
VERO BEACH, Florida — Piper Aircraft has introduced a personalization program exclusively available on the new Piper M600. The package, named Expression or EXP, enables customers to have greater involvement in the design of the interior for their new Piper M600 aircraft.With the M600 EXP package, customers have a choice of a variety of interior enhancements, […]
FAA restricts drone operations over some military bases
The FAA has restricted drone operations over 133 military bases. Agency officials say they are using the FAA’s existing authority under Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) §99.7 – “Special Security Instructions” – to address national security concerns about unauthorized drone operations over those military facilities. This is the first time the agency […]
Aeroplex takes over self-fueling at SMO
The City of Santa Monica, California, has selected Aeroplex Group Partners, a division of the Aeroplex/Aerolease Group, to provide interim management of Santa Monica Municipal Airport’s (SMO) self-serve fueling station starting April 16, 2017, following the scheduled departure of American Flyers, the tenant that has been maintaining the facility. “We recognize the urgent need to transition […]
Commemorating the centennial of World War I
Star Novak sent in these photos, taken April 6, 2017, of a World War I Centennial Commemoration ceremony of the U.S.’s entry into the war at the National World War I Museum & Memorial in Kansas City, Mo. In thanks of the US involvement in joining the war, the Patrouille de France did a commemorative fly-by of […]