WASHINGTON, D.C. — Reaching reliable sources of information here can often be confusing and frustrating. I sought to interview someone about the Christmas holidays and wanted to go directly to the source for gift giving. Knowing the problems of getting correct answers in Washington, I started checking sources around the nation. Everyone I talked to […]
FAA
Paper charts still needed, but AeroNav is wrong
Does anyone dispute the need for paper charts for pilots? I hope not. Likewise, there can be no doubt about the rapid rise of digital chart usage. More and more general aviation pilots (and airlines and flight departments for that matter) are adopting “appified” navigation via [insert app here] on Apple’s iPad and a few […]
Marinvent and Embry-Riddle expand R&D relationship
Marinvent Corp. and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University have expanded their long-standing relationship, and will now cooperate on the development, testing, and certification of new avionics concepts and technologies that will become part of the FAA’s NextGen system. “The lessons that I learned as a post-graduate student at Embry-Riddle have helped me build Marinvent into a world-class […]
FAA seminars discuss the aging pilot
A pair of FAA Safety seminars on the topic of the aging pilot will be held on November 2 (5:30 pm at the Spokane Falls Community College, Building 24, Room 110, Spokane, Washington) and December 6 (5:30 pm at the Museum of Flight theater, on Boeing Field in Seattle). Following is the complete FAA Safety […]
‘Congress must now act responsibly’
By Ben Sclair The U.S. Senate passed legislation today (Thursday, September 15) that extends funding for the FAA four months and avoids a second partial FAA shutdown. The following quote on the topic blows me away. “It is a positive step for the country that the Congress has passed this historic combination of extensions, which […]
Did you notice the FAA is shutdown?
With the debt crisis averted.. for now, the FAA’s funding status has regained prominence in the mainstream media. However, a series of press releases, news stories and the recently completed EAA AirVenture have me thinking. A July 28 press release from Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.) titled, “Facts About FAA Partial Shutdown” includes 17 “facts.” Following […]
Irony is Congress lecturing on financial stewardship
Ironic: A member of Congress lecturing the FAA Administrator on financial stewardship. From Tuesday’s (July 5) edition of The [Tacoma, WA] News Tribune: “We need to see a realistic strategy for funding NextGen,” she [Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.] told FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt at a May hearing. “To date, the FAA has filled its budget […]
Quixotical Questions at the Atlanta FSDO
First, a permit is issued and then, as a condition of the permit, the inspection is made and a log book entry completed. Then flight can occur. That’s how it works. Except in Atlanta.
NextGen’s role in reducing noise
A generation’s worth of gains in aerodynamics and aircraft engine technology have dramatically reduced the number of people exposed to high noise levels near U.S. airports, but future noise reductions will depend largely on advances being developed through the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), according to FAA officials. In the late 1970s, noise from […]