James Missler of Bellevue, Ohio, is in the process of breaking in a Jabiru 2200 engine in his Kitfox. But he has a problem. James Missler of Bellevue, Ohio, is in the process of breaking in a Jabiru 2200 engine in his Kitfox. But he has a problem. “”For initial break-in at average temperature right […]
March 2005 Accident Reports
The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from obstacles while in cruise flight at low altitude, which resulted in a collision with a powerline.
Virginia Fly-In grows into Expo: Event lands at Suffolk Executive Airport
Suffolk Executive Airport (SFQ) at Suffolk, Virginia, will be the site of next year’s Virginia Regional EAA Expo, according to Gordon Campbell, president of the Virginia Council of EAA Chapters, sponsors of the annual event. The event, traditionally held in October at Dinwiddie County Airport (PTB) near Petersburg, will move up to June 14-15 in […]
Relive a bygone time at Massey Aerdrome
The Massey Aerodrome and Museum (MD1), tucked away in the northeast corner of Maryland’s Eastern Shore, is a hidden treasure — but you don’t need a treasure map to find it. A sectional chart or a decent road map will do. The actual aerodrome is a grass airfield that started as the dream of four […]
Sport-Jet redux: Second prototype in theworks to replace onelost in last year’s crash
A second Sport-Jet prototype is being built to replace the one lost last June in a spectacular, but remarkably injury-free, crash. Bob Bornhofen, Sport-Jet founder, says the new fuselage is being built now and should be flying early next year. The original proof-of-concept Sport-Jet crashed during takeoff on June 22, 2006, after 25 hours of […]
Restoring a legend: Lost for decades, this Boeing 40 will take to the air next year
Aviation is filled with legends about airplane crashes. One of the more enduring tales out of southern Oregon is the one about a Boeing 40C, loaded with diamonds, that crashed on a mountain. Allegedly, the wreckage was never found. The story has been told for generations around campfires, kitchen tables and in tree houses. But […]
SPECIAL REPORT: Restorations
There is a special fascination to old machinery, and particularly that which has been restored to its original working condition. Unlike static displays, working machines let us hear, smell, touch and feel the strength, the beauty, the inventiveness of mechanical things that did the work of the nation in bygone times. Aircraft restorers know the […]
Relief in sight for vintage aircraft owners: Proposal would release dataneeded to maintain airworthiness
One of the challenges of owning a vintage aircraft is getting the information needed to do required maintenance. This is especially true of so-called “orphaned” aircraft — those no longer in production or supported by a factory. For years, aviation advocacy groups, such as the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) and the Vintage Aircraft Association (VAA), […]
Eclipse problems “a perfect storm”
Eclipse Aviation has had “far more challenges than we anticipated,” wrote the company’s CEO Vern Raburn in a letter to customers at the end of February. Raburn called the company’s cumulative problems, which have plagued everything from tip tanks to avionics to production certification, “a perfect storm.” The letter came on the heels of successive […]