An eight-week Instrument Pilot Ground/Refresher Webinar from Bob Miller Flight Training will begin Jan. 13, 2011. The course is designed for the serious instrument pilot who wants to review all the critical components of the complex world of IFR flight, according to Miller. The course will include the organization and structure of the national airspace […]
Fun flight ends in fatalities
This December 2008 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others. Aircraft: Ercoupe 415-D. Injuries: 2 Fatal. Location: Sebring, Fla. Aircraft damage: Destroyed. What reportedly happened: The 70-year-old pilot, who held commercial, instructor, multiengine and instrument […]
Know your neighbors
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. Years ago when I was flying as an instructor out of Meriden Markham Airport in central Connecticut, I attended a meeting held in the city hall building in East […]
FlightPrep defends patent; RunwayFinder.com shuts down
The offices at FlightPrep, an Oregon company that received a patent for its online flight planning software, have been inundated in the last few days with calls and e-mails from concerned GA pilots who are angry that one of their favorite websites, RunwayFinder.com, has been shut down because FlightPrep is trying to enforce its patent. […]
Chinese company buys Continental
Teledyne Technologies Inc. has agreed to sell its GA piston engine business, which includes Teledyne Continental Motors and Teledyne Mattituck Services, Inc., to Beijing-based AVIC International Holding Corp. for $186 million in cash. Headquartered in Mobile, Ala., Continental Motors is a leading manufacturer of FAA-certified piston engines, as well as spare parts and components, used […]
Commander Premier Aircraft Co. to move?
The new owner of the Commander Premier Aircraft Co. in Cape Girardeau, Mo., has not yet purchased the factory’s 52,000-square-foot building, a deal breaker that could result in the company being forced to move, according to a report at AOPA.org, which notes that company owner Ronald Strauss has tried to complete the building purchase since […]
First flight of a privately owned MiG-29
Air USA at Quincy Regional Airport in Illinois made aviation history Dec. 10 when it successfully flew the world’s first flights of a MiG-29 Fulcrum in private hands. The flight makes the culmination of several years of effort by the company, which is owned by Don Kirlin, a Naval Aviator and commercial airline pilot. “Believe […]
Founder of Associated Air Center passes away
Lee Juan Lanford, founder of Associated Air Center (AAC), died Dec. 6 from complications due to Alzheimer’s disease. He was 87. Lanford, an aviation business entrepreneur, created the Associated Radio Company in 1948, at Love Field in Dallas, Texas. The small start-up company, which initially specialized in the repair and installation of surplus radio equipment […]
CAF president elected to 2011 ICAS board
Stephan Brown, president/CEO of the Commemorative Air Force (CAF), has been elected to serve as a member of the board of directors for the International Council of Air Shows (ICAS). “Steve is an outstanding choice for the ICAS Board,” said ICAS President John Cudahy. “He brings a wealth of experience to the board, as well […]