Let’s be totally honest for a moment. Airplanes crash now and then. They ditch, make emergency landings, have system failures and, once in a while, one of them catches on fire. That’s all true. It’s also exceedingly rare. We need to be truthful and willing to speak on that topic. Because we can tell the […]
Opinion
EASA finally releases LSA certification specifications
Try not to yawn. This is important. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), roughly the equivalent of FAA for the European Union, finally released its CS-LSA, or Certification Specification for Light-Sport Aircraft. While not exactly what the industry hoped for, it at least represents acceptance of the ASTM certification standards. That reduces uncertainty for LSA […]
Should rare planes be grounded?
“Liberty Belle crashed just outside of Aurora. Seven out of seven onboard made it out.” This text message greeted me the morning of June 13. Like so many other warbird enthusiasts, I went to the Internet to search for information about the accident. I found video shot from both the ground and the air showing […]
EPA dramatically scales back ethanol mandates
The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer, aviation sales rep for U-Fuel, and president of EAA1114. The EPA has once again been forced to face […]
Over the horizon LSA producers: Iran and Malaysia
Most of what our media reports about Iran is bad: Islamic militants. Contested elections. Brutal suppression of dissent. Nuclear ambitions. What we don’t hear is about the country’s light aircraft producers. Then consider Malaysia. Do you think of that country relative to aircraft production? Do you think of it in any way? My guess is […]
Triple Play: Pipistrel wins SLSA approvals
After a pause in new SLSA, Pipistrel burst onto the scene with multiple approvals — three at once — reports Michael Coates, the importer for Pipistrel USA. We raced to get these placed on the SLSA List because it’s news, but also because FAA uses this list to verify new models before assigning them N-numbers. […]
Autogas sellers exceed avgas
The GAfuels Blog is written by two private pilots concerned about the future availability of fuels for piston-engine aircraft: Dean Billing, Sisters, Ore., an expert on autogas and ethanol, and Kent Misegades, Cary, N.C., an aerospace engineer, aviation sales rep for U-Fuel, and president of EAA1114. On Independence Day, an important new watermark was reached […]
Let’s focus on the words, not the man
On June 29, President Obama gave the aviation industry a great gift. It may not appear to be a beautifully wrapped present with a bright, tidy bow on top. But it is. Some of us will recognize this opportunity for what it is. Others will not. That’s human nature. Some of us focus on the […]
Irony is Congress lecturing on financial stewardship
Ironic: A member of Congress lecturing the FAA Administrator on financial stewardship. From Tuesday’s (July 5) edition of The [Tacoma, WA] News Tribune: “We need to see a realistic strategy for funding NextGen,” she [Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.] told FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt at a May hearing. “To date, the FAA has filled its budget […]