The FAA has released a study called “General Aviation Airports: A National Asset.” The 18-month study was conducted “to capture the many diverse functions of general aviation (GA) airports,” FAA officials said, in the hopes that the “general public will have a better understanding of GA airports in the community and within the national air […]
FAA
Teaching and Testing CFIT Avoidance seminar created
The Society of Aviation and Flight Educators (SAFE) recently delivered the eighth in its series of “Seminar-in-a-Box” products for use by the FAA Safety Team (FAASTeam), “Teaching and Testing CFIT Avoidance.” The latest seminar was prepared by SAFE members and Master Instructors Bill Castlen, Hobie Tomlinson, and Doug Stewart. Tomlinson is also the 2012 National […]
FAA revises flight blocking rules
The FAA has published new procedures that would give aircraft owners broader control over their flight information’s disclosure, according to a report at AOPA.org. The agency will accept comments on its notice of proposed process until June 8.
Much ado about nothing
LeRoy Brown should hate me, but he doesn’t. He should at least be mad at me, but he isn’t — and for that I’m eternally grateful. You see, I met LeRoy in the worst of circumstances for an editor. We had published a story from a freelancer that told of the long-ago exploits of a […]
DWI charge against former FAA administrator dismissed
The Driving While Intoxicated case that led to Randy Babbitt’s abrupt resignation as the FAA’s leader has been dismissed, according to a report at AOPA.org. Babbitt told reporters he bears no ill will against the police officer who arrested him for driving while intoxicated in December, after a Fairfax, Va., judge ruled May 10 that […]
Making safer general aviation pilots
Many years ago when I took my Commercial checkride, the Designated Pilot Examiner told me that a pilot’s commitment to safety ebbs and flows. We are at our safest right after a checkride. As we gain experience, our vigilance can diminish, replaced by a new-found confidence that can lead to complacency. Over the years efforts […]
FAA forecast for LSAs improbable
The FAA recently issued its 20-year forecast for aviation, showing growth prospects for business jets and LSAs. It also forecasts a decline in the total number of piston-powered aircraft. Viewed from a distance, this might seem beneficial to LSA producers and sellers. Reasonably, FAA’s report appears to suggest recreational pilots will enjoy more hours aloft […]
Latest FAA Safety Briefing online
The May/June 2012 issue of FAA Safety Briefing is now available online. The issue focuses on extreme weather. Articles provide tips on how to detect, prepare for, and avoid some of the more extreme varieties of weather conditions you may encounter in your region of the country. The issue also highlights several weather-related tools and […]
General Aviation Airport Coalition launches petition against $100 fee
The General Aviation Airport Coalition has initiated a petition on the White House website that, if signed by 25,000 people or more by May 16, 2012, will elicit an official response by the administration about how they determined that the proposed $100 fee for general aviation aircraft is fair. “Even if we don’t get the […]