Nine aviation advocacy groups have asked Congress to fully fund the Contract Tower Program as part of the FAA’s fiscal year 2019 appropriations bill. In a March 2 letter to lawmakers, industry leaders voiced support for language in the current version of the bill that calls for “not less than $172,000,000” in funding for the […]
FAA
ATC privatization threat beat by unified grassroots effort
A controversial ATC privatization plan has been removed from an FAA reauthorization bill in the House of Representatives, scoring a victory for general aviation against a powerful, well-financed lobby that sought to give control of the national air traffic system to the country’s largest airlines. Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pennsylvania) announced Feb. 27, 2018, that he […]
Video: Have questions about ADS-B equipment?
Have questions about what equipment you need to satisfy the 2020 ADS-B mandate? A new video from the FAA features a GA pilot, Jamal Wilson, asking David Gray, an FAA official, lots of questions about what equipment he needs for his Cherokee 180.
Video: Avoiding a close call in the air
Have you ever had a mid-air close call in what seemed like wide-open skies? Even the most seasoned pilots have occasionally been surprised by unseen aircraft. In a new video from the FAA posted on YouTube, several pilots talk about the advantages of having ADS-B in their airplanes, noting that having a near-miss turned them […]
A dose of FAA revenue reality
I was recently poking around the FAA website when I came across the Airport and Airway Trust Fund Fact Sheet for fiscal year 2016. It was like re-reading a section of the FARs after too many years. The trust fund was created in 1970 to fund aviation programs with aviation-related excise taxes on passengers, cargo, […]
Former FAA chief gets a new job
Macquarie Group has appointed Michael Huerta as a senior advisor. In his new role, the former FAA administrator will support Macquarie Capital, the corporate advisory, capital markets and principal investment arm of Macquarie Group, and provide insight to the firm and its clients and partners to build on existing initiatives and seek new opportunities in […]
Aeronautical Chart User’s Guide updated
The FAA recently released an update to the online and PDF versions of the Chart Users Guide. The guide’s website provides easier navigation and access to information, chart updates, and expanded content including the “What’s New” section to highlight recent changes. The guide provides chart symbology information for VFR charts, helicopter charts, Flyway Planning charts, […]
New report: Only a small percentage of drone reports pose safety risk
The Unmanned Aircraft Safety Team (UAST) Drone Sightings Working Group has released a new report on the FAA’s 3,714 drone sightings reports collected by flight crews, air traffic controllers and citizens from November 2015 to March 2017. The report found that only a small percentage of drone reports pose a safety risk, while the vast […]
How will you be found?
Can you still use a 121.5 MHz ELT? The vast majority of Emergency Locator Transmitters (ELT) in operation today are based on 1950s technology. Back in February 2009, satellite monitoring of 121.5 and 243 MHz ELT signals was terminated. What does that mean for you? To help answer those questions – and more — WINGsReality EDU […]