The FAA recently issued a 20-year forecast for aviation to 2030. According the agency, LSA sales will grow by 825 per year through 2013 and then taper off to 335 per year. Hmmm? One wonders why it should fall so dramatically and so soon? Except in a lousy 2009, the LSA industry has generously exceeded […]
Opinion
LSA sales brisk at Sun ‘n Fun
Sun ‘n Fun’s annual “Spring Break for Pilots” is over and it was indeed a break. Most visitors find the spring show a good way to kick off a new season of recreational aircraft flying and the Lakeland, Florida, event did not disappoint. Generally, pilots were plentiful and most appeared to have a bounce in […]
Another temporary extension for FAA
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Senate and House are expected to not complete agreement on reauthorization of the FAA before the temporary extension expires April 30, so Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.), chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, introduced legislation Wednesday to again extend federal aviation operations and programs through July 3, 2010. “We […]
NextGen delays continue
WASHINGTON, D.C. — NextGen (the Next Generation Air Transportation System) is running into problems, causing delays, which mean the program might not be fully operational before the half-century-old radar-based system is scheduled to be replaced. Seven government agencies and offices are involved with the FAA in developing NextGen. The House Subcommittee on Aviation recently held […]
First: Ask the right question
When I was a relatively young instructor I had the good fortune to call a small uncontrolled airport in central Connecticut my home base. Meriden Markham may not make the annals of aviation as a hotbed of technical achievement, innovative design, or the home of a manufacturing marvel, but I learned more about teaching, and […]
GAFuels bloggers hold seminars at Sun ‘n Fun
GAFuels blogger Dean Billing sends the following report on his three talks held last week at Sun ‘n Fun 2010: There was a lot of media coverage of Sun ‘n Fun, but you will notice that none of it was about the fuel situation facing GA. There was only one group of pilots that presented […]
FAA reauthorization expected in 2-3 weeks
Within the next two to three weeks, the FAA might have its first full reauthorization in four years, Rep. James Oberstar (D-Miin.) said at a Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing Wednesday. Oberstar, who chairs the full committee, said he and Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), chairman of the Senate committee on transportation, and their staffs have […]
Presenting a whole new perspective
While dodging raindrops and chatting amiably on Sun ‘n Fun Radio with the three highly animated hosts of the Uncontrolled Airspace podcast, the question came up: “What interested you most during Sun ‘n Fun this year?” To be honest, those may not have been the actual words spoken. The fact that a river of air-cooled […]
You’ve talked the talk, now walk the walk!
As I write this blog post it is Monday afternoon, April 12. In a few hours I will sit at the dais at City Hall, flanked by four fellow city commissioners, all committed to doing the business of the people. But tonight will be different. Tonight will have an undeniably pro-aviation angle to it, something […]