More than a year of lobbying work by general aviation’s advocacy groups on the FAA’s sleep apnea policy has brought considerable revisions to the agency’s original proposal, which would have forced costly sleep studies on pilots even if they had shown no symptoms of the disorder. The new policy, which takes effect March 2, will […]
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GA groups file amicus brief in SMO case
The City of Santa Monica’s efforts to absolve itself from an agreement with the federal government are “obviously intended to restrict or end operations at Santa Monica Airport in violation of longstanding federal law and a specific contract it signed,” the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) argued in a federal appeals court filing Thursday, […]
Can you guess the world’s most popular airplane?
It’s not often we get general aviation news off The Motley Fool, but the investment website teased this headline recently: Can you guess the world’s most popular airplane? (Hint: It’s Not From Boeing or Airbus). Blogger Alexander MacLennan, who writes about “Industrials, Airlines, and Financial companies,” opens his post with: “Aerospace manufacturers Boeing and Airbus […]
Buddypilots enters aircraft management market
Owning, renting or borrowing an airplane can be complex – from both sides of the relationship – but help is available. Canada-based Buddypilots Aviation has recently launched buddypilots.com to serve everyone from FBOs and flight schools to partnerships, sole owner-operators and even non-owner pilots and mechanics. I recently met with Thibaut Souyris, Buddypilots’ VP of Business Development for […]
SD CAP Wing holds search and rescue training
Each year the Civil Air Patrol’s South Dakota Wing holds statewide search and rescue training exercises. The first for 2015 was Saturday, Jan. 24. The training is referred to as a “Split SAREX” (Search and Rescue Exercise), split because coordinated training is conducted simultaneously in the East River and West River areas. Saturday’s focus was on training […]
Sebring LSA Expo grows
By BILL WILSON Florida’s sometimes finicky winter weather released its grip midway through the 11th annual U.S. Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring, allowing the event to hit its stride. Attendees, and a record number of exhibitors, crammed four days worth of activity into the last two days of the show Jan. 16-17. From preliminary reads, […]
FAA issues flight advisory for Super Bowl
The FAA flight advisory for Super Bowl XLIX has been issued. It describes the expected, but not final, plans for the Temporary Flight Restriction that will be in place during the Super Bowl. A 10-nautical-mile ring around University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., where the game will be played, will prohibit general aviation traffic at […]
Alphabet groups lobby to ease ADS-B barriers
General aviation’s alphabet groups are urging the FAA to address barriers to ADS-B (automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast) equipage, including high cost and lack of certified solutions for some types of aircraft. In a joint letter sent to FAA Administrator Michael Huerta on Jan. 23, general aviation groups representing tens of thousands of aircraft owners asked the […]
RPA test flights slated over Atlantic Ocean
The New Jersey Institute of Technology plans to conduct remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) flight in the National Airspace over the Atlantic Ocean Jan. 27-29.The flights, which will take off from the U.S. Coast Guard Training Center (TRACEN) in Cape May, N.J., will test the feasibility of safely integrating RPAs into the public airspace and to assess the […]