A new company, ONE Aviation Corp. has been formed, which will continue development of the Kestrel K350 single-engine turboprop, as well as manufacturing of the Eclipse 550 jet. Alan Klapmeier, who founded Cirrus Aircraft with his brother, Dale, will lead the new company. “I feel privileged to lead this experienced team of aviation professionals as […]
Aircraft
9,000 Van’s flying
On April 9, Van’s Aircraft received a first-flight report from Thomas Damm, of Billund, Denmark. Damm’s RV-8 became the 9,000th RV kit to be completed and flown by a customer. Damm bought the barely-started kit from a close friend and completed it over a span of nine years. Using his life-long experience as a pilot for SAS, he […]
First flight: Merlin LSA
Glasair Aviation’s new light-sport aircraft, Merlin, took its first flight through the skies above Arlington Municipal Airport (KAWO) in Washington state, April 7. Following detailed validation testing, including engine run-up, high-speed taxi, and ground roll lift off, the team at Glasair stood back and watched as Merlin departed the surface of runway 34 with test-pilot […]
Donation moves Wright B Flyer closer to new airplane
MIAMISBURG, Ohio — When Wright “B” Flyer Inc. takes its one-of-a-kind airplane to AirVenture 2015 in July, it will take more than filing a flight plan. The Wright “B” Flyer, a modern lookalike of the Wright brothers’ first production airplane, has short legs and is tiring to fly. Instead, the nonprofit organization’s volunteers will disassemble […]
Pietenpol Aircraft Co. revived
The grandson of Bernard Pietenpol, who is known as the Father of the Homebuilt Aircraft, has joined with Aircraft Spruce to offer Pietenpol Air Camper kits. The revived Pietenpol Aircraft Company offers six wooden Sitka Spruce Official Pietenpol Air Camper component kits. Kits start at $17.50 for an Pietenpol Vertical Stabilizer kit. Pietenpol’s flying legacy […]
Tecnam twin tapped for NASA project
NASA has selected the Tecnam P2006T twin as the airframe on which it will evaluate the potential of LEAPtech (Leading Edge Asynchronous Technology), with the aim of developing safer, more energy efficient, lower operating cost and greener general aviation aircraft. LEAPTech is a key element of NASA’s plan to help a significant portion of the […]
Bede LSA enters Phase 1 of flight testing
Officials at Bedecorp report that the New BD-22 Light-Sport Aircraft has begun Phase I of its flight testing program. Tim Becker, an engineer with Bedecorp, said he believes the BD-22L will meet or exceed all of the company’s design expectations. The BD-22L is the big brother of the BD-17L, which incorporates the same bonded honeycomb fuselage. (The […]
C4 to start tests with new Continental engine
When Continental Motors recently announced FAA Type Certification of its new alternative fuel powerplant, IO-360-AF, this encouraged Flight Design to move its test article C4 from the fabrication plant to its German headquarters in Kamenz, where it will undergo final tests leading to first flight of the new design. Flight Design’s senior engineering staff is […]
CubCrafters names two new sales centers
Backcountry aircraft manufacturer CubCrafters has appointed two new Certified Sales Centers: SWT Aviation Northeast will cover the Northeastern United States, and SunCountry Cubs will support states in the southwest. SWT and SunCountry are now the exclusive authorized dealers in their territories for new and pre-owned CubCrafters aircraft, including the Sport Cub S2 and Carbon Cub SS […]