AOPA‘s Aviation Summit is the end of our fly-in/event season. Phew. I’m glad we’ve wrapped for the year. Being last in our schedule, however, certainly doesn’t make Summit least. Not in my opinion anyway. This year a Flight Training Summit kicked things off the day before opening day. A lot of data — enough to […]
Opinion
So long GPSMAP 496, Hello aera!
Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, is an expert on Light Sport Aircraft. Over the years, Garmin has become a staple of LSAs. Stick your head inside the cockpit of virtually any SLSA and you’ll probably see a Garmin 296, 396, 496, or 495. The handheld gizmos are ubiquitous, often nestled securely […]
Coming clean in the TSA era
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. The conversation turned to the TSA at my morning coffee gathering today. Pretty much everyone at the table flies for business or pleasure, at least occasionally. So it is […]
Birds fly, men drink
In 1948, the local park was transferred to the U.S. Parks Service and became a national park, where today it provides an inspirational legacy for more than 600,000 visitors each year.
‘Washing’ ethanol out of mogas
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 and aviation journalist. The process of separating ethanol out of unleaded auto fuel is a much discussed topic […]
Whirring into the air on electricity
Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, is an expert on Light Sport Aircraft. You’re probably aware of the auto industry’s billion-dollar bet on electric cars. Skeptics are plentiful. Same for airplanes. Despite doubts, even Cessna and Bye Energy are teaming up on an electric 172. Other LSA electric projects are also underway […]
Coming of age
Are Light-Sport Aircraft truly coming of age? I think so and, while I’m biased by my closeness to the industry, I have observed three noteworthy changes from summer to the recent AOPA Aviation Summit. Starting shortly before and at AirVenture, conversations with numerous established flight schools identified an impending purchase or two of LSAs to […]
Senators push for lame-duck passage of FAA reauthorization
The FAA might get reauthorization after all this year if two powerful senators of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation have their way during this lame-duck session of Congress. Senators John (Jay) Rockefeller (D.-W.Va.), chairman of the full committee, and Byron Dorgan (D.-N.D.), chairman of the aviation subcommittee, say the FAA has been without […]
FAA proposes photos on pilot certificates
The FAA wants your opinion on whether photos should be on pilot certificates. The FAA announced the proposal Thursday, Nov. 18, and set a deadline of Feb. 17, 2011, for submitting comments. Under the current proposal, a new pilot certificate would cost $22 and be valid for eight years. At the end of that time […]