Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, is an expert on Light Sport Aircraft. On the aviation calendar, AOPA’s Aviation Summit represents the year’s last national event. Formerly known as Expo or Convention, unlike well-anchored airshows such as Sun ‘n Fun or AirVenture Oshkosh, AOPA’s annual gathering moves around the country, albeit repeating […]
Opinion
Service with a smile
Jamie Beckett is a CFI and A&P mechanic who stepped into the political arena in an effort to promote and protect GA at his local airport. It’s a simple concept. Be kind and courteous to your customers, and they’ll remain your customers for a good long time. Even better, they’ll be inclined to tell their […]
Aircraft shipments dip again in third quarter
Factory shipments of general aviation aircraft dipped again in the third quarter of the year with business jets dropping 20.3% from last year while pistons declined only 6.6% below 2009, according to figures released by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. In the first nine months of 2010, total general aviation airplane shipments fell 14.5%, from […]
A ‘Favorite Fly-Out’ and a cautionary tale
Drew Steketee was president of BE A PILOT, senior vp-communications for AOPA and executive director of the Partnership for Improved Air Travel. He also headed PR and media relations for Beech, GAMA and the Airport Operators Council International. More than 10 years ago, I asked AOPA members to vote for their “Favorite Fly-Outs.” These would […]
N.J. airport puts open land to innovative use
Drew Steketee was president of BE A PILOT, senior vp-communications for AOPA and executive director of the Partnership for Improved Air Travel. He also headed PR and media relations for Beech, GAMA and the Airport Operators Council International. In rural southern New Jersey, GA seems to be going one way and high-end sports car racing […]
Arachnophobia
And those quacks at Oklahoma City? Turns out they do know what they hell they’re talking about.
Helping others see the light
LETTER TO THE EDITOR After reading The fallout from sonic booms, I couldn’t help but share some of the things that our flight club in Elkhart, Indiana, have been doing. I personally think that people look at pilots and planes with much wonder; we are not mainstream and the only experience people have is either […]
Oberstar’s defeat stuns aviation community
After 36 years in the House of Representatives, Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.) went down to defeat and his congressional seat will be taken over by a former airline pilot, an event that has members of Washington’s general aviation community shaking their heads in disbelief. A Democrat, he was swept away by what he termed “a […]
Study shows FAA delays and inconsistencies inflate costs and slow production
Irregular procedures, delays, and consistency problems in FAA’s programs to certify aircraft, aviation equipment and systems can inflate costs, lose production time, and put U.S. firms at a competitive disadvantage, according to a study by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The study says there is a lack of uniform standards and evaluation criteria with FAA […]