The pilot was practicing landings on Pelican Lake in Wisconsin, in his Seawind, an experimental amateur-built amphibious airplane. During the accident landing, he reported the airplane “skipped slightly about 2 feet off the water, I held attitude and let it come down again, but I accidentally let the left wing tip sponson settle onto the […]
And the winner is…
Pilot James Consalvi, flying the highly modified P-51 “Strega,” took first place in the Unlimited Gold Championship at the 54th annual National Championship Reno Air Races on Sept. 17, 2017. Consalvi, captured here after the race by William E. Dubois, beat Steven Hinton Jr. in Voodoo in the final lap. Hinton has won first place […]
A dangerous flight
Dispatch from KSAF, Santa Fe, New Mexico: By dawn’s early light I can see the silver fins of the stroker engine through the air intakes in the nose bowl, the front cylinders a pair of griffins in twin caves, ready to leap from their lairs and devour slower prey. The new engine is ready to […]
Invite them and they will come
Image this scene: Your child just finished reading Disney’s Planes book…again. She has watched the Planes video so many times even you can repeat Dusty Crophopper’s lines. Now she is begging you to take her to the local airport so she can “live the magic” right in her own hometown. So you and the neighborhood […]
More than 40,000 aircraft now equipped with ADS-B
As of Sept, 1, 2017, rule-compliant Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) equipment is now on board more than 40,000 aircraft flying in the United States. The FAA estimates that 100,000 to 160,000 general aviation aircraft will need to be equipped with ADS-B Out before the Jan. 1, 2020, mandate. The FAA is also offering a $500 rebate […]
Drones help speed Florida’s hurricane recovery
After the widespread devastation Hurricane Irma wreaked on Florida in early September 2017, unmanned aircraft — commonly referred to as drones — have been invaluable in supporting response and recovery efforts in the battered Sunshine State. When Irma’s winds and floodwaters damaged homes, businesses, roads and industries, a wide variety of agencies sought FAA authorization […]
Movie plane to be auctioned
A full-size Stampe SV.4 Biplane, tail section and character figures from Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award-winning adventure sequel Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Stephen Sommers’ The Mummy will be auctioned off Sept. 26, 2017, in London. Can’t attend, but still interested? You can watch the auction online. The plane is estimated to sell for […]
Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics expands Youngstown campus
Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics cut the ribbon on its $1.3 million expansion of its campus in Youngstown, Ohio, Sept. 20, 2017. In 2016, PIA invested $1.3 million in its purchase of the site and construction of a new two-story teaching facility at its Hangar 3 site. This new facility includes electrical and welding classrooms, an aeronautics […]
Pilot blinded by sunrise loses control of 177
The pilot said that during the landing roll at the airport in Aztec, N.M., he was “blinded by the sunrise coming straight down the runway.” Unable to see, he applied power to abort the landing, but the Cessna 177RG departed the runway to the left and hit shrubs. He reduced power to idle and stopped […]