FAA TO REVISE NMAC INVESTIGATIONS
The FAA is planning to bring pilots and air traffic controllers together to share information after near midair collisions to help develop better strategies for prevention, according to a report in Tuesday's Wall Street Journal. United Airlines is expected to be the first airline to participate in the project. Currently, pilot and controller reports are analyzed independently. The FAA will also consider possible changes in training for air-traffic controllers and will explore new ways to encourage controllers and their supervisors to report mistakes voluntarily and avoid punishment, according to the Journal. A series of recent close encounters prompted an FAA review of the current procedures. More...

SIX SAFE IN BAHAMAS DITCHING
Six people, including a pregnant woman and two children, were rescued virtually unhurt from the wreckage of their Piper Aztec in the water off Grand Bahama Island Monday. With nothing more than a few scrapes and bumps between them, all six were found clinging to the tail section of the twin, which went down on a short flight from Walter's Cay to Grand Bahama. Jamie Rose, of the Bahamas Air Sea Rescue Association, told the Associated Press that the aircraft lost an engine and was ditched about three miles from shore. More...

RJ CRASHES IN CHINA, 42 SURVIVE
An Embraer 190 regional jet operated by Henan Airlines crashed in northeast China about 10 p.m. local time on Tuesday, killing at least 42 of the 96 people on board, according to early reports. The jet reportedly ran off the end of the runway and burst into flames at Yichun Airport, a small airport that opened last year. Three of the survivors were reported to be in critical condition. China has been working to expand its aviation sector and improve safety, building new airports and opening more airspace to civilian use. The last major civil accident was in 2004, when a CRJ200 operated by China Eastern Airlines crashed into a frozen lake shortly after takeoff, killing all 53 on board. More...

ARIZONA CONSIDERING FLIGHT SCHOOL FEES?
Arizona may be planning to take a chapter out of California's regulatory text book, and that could lead to significant extra costs for flight schools. National Association of Flight Instructors President Jason Blair says Arizona officials are meeting Thursday to discuss the regulation of flight instructors and flight schools. A similar meeting by California officials some time ago that lead to AB48, a hugely unpopular measure that will require flight schools to pay significant registration fees and prove financial viability through a debt-to-equity formula. The California law could lead to school closures and increased training costs and Blair says NAFI is afraid the same thing will happen in Arizona. "As a state that has a significant number of flight training providers, we're concerned about the chilling effect those fees may have on those businesses," Blair said. "We're encouraging our members in that state to get involved in this issue, so we don't have a repeat of the California situation." California legislators say the move is needed to protect flight students from unscrupulous operators but some aviation businesses have dismissed it as a ploy to raise revenue. More...

JOHNSON'S JETSTAR ON DISPLAY
The U.S. government has paid $261,000 to pull a long-retired Lockheed JetStar from an Arizona boneyard and repaint it for static display. As you might have guessed this isn't just any JetStar, nor is it just any paint job. The JetStar was used to shuttle former President Lyndon Johnson between Washington and his ranch in the Texas Hill Country. The shiny new-looking 13-seat aircraft will be put on permanent display at the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park at Johnson's ranch near Stonewall, Texas. The official dedication is Aug. 27. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: HARSH REALITIES — CHINESE INTERESTS BUY SUPERIOR AIRPARTS
The first (and understandable) reaction is to decry another sellout of an American business. On the AVweb Insider blog, Paul Bertorelli says he gets that — but for those who reach for the emotional high notes about how awful such deals are, here's a question: What's the alternative when no Western buyers come forth? Read more and chime in with your own thoughts at the blog. More...

GARRETT TO REBTECH AS VP

Jim Garrett

Jim Garrett is the new vice president of operations at REBTECH, which specializes in night vision conversions for aircraft and helicopters. Garrett has worked in the field for 40 years.
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BROWN TAKES OVER GULFSTREAM IN MEXICALI

Randy Brown

Randy Brown has been promoted to vice president and general manager of Gulfstream's Mexicali site, which makes various subassemblies and components for Gulfstream aircraft. Brown has been with Gulfstream since 2006 as senior manager of production operations in Savannah.
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WHO'S WHERE? YOU TELL US
Get a promotion or a new job? Your colleagues want to know about it, and AVwebBiz can get the word out. Drop us a line about the staff appointment, with a nice recent photo, and we'll do our best to include it in our new section, "Who's Where." The items will be permanently archived on AVweb for future reference, too. More...

AVWEB'S NEWSTIPS ADDRESS ...
Our best stories start with you. If you've heard something 200,000 pilots might want to know about, tell us. Submit news tips via email to newstips@avweb.com. What have you heard? More...

AIRCRAFT DITCHING TRAINING WITH THE EDITORS OF AVIATION CONSUMER
Aviation Consumer's Jeff Van West got water up his nose as he practiced exiting an aircraft that has sunk and flipped over. It was quite a ride. More...

AVIATION CONSUMER REVIEWS AVIDYNE'S DFC 90 DIGITAL AUTOPILOT
Avidyne has a slide-in replacement for the STEC-55X autopilots common to Cirrus SR20s and SR22s. Aviation Consumer's Jeff Van West took it up for a flight to the claims of improved performance and new safety features. More...

15 YEARS AND NOW 15 GRAND GIVEAWAYS ... WE'RE GIVING YOU ANOTHER CHANCE TO WIN A BOSE AVIATION HEADSET X

Our 15th anniversary celebration continues, with a second chance to win a Bose Aviation Headset X! All you have to do is click here to enter your name and email address. (You only have to enter once, and you'll be entered in our prize drawings for the entire year — so if you've already entered, you're all set.)

And no, we're not going to rent or sell your name, ever. Tell your friends, and invite them to sign up for AVweb so they can qualify for our 15 Grand Giveaways prize drawings, too. (We won't spam them, either — but we hope they will sign up for our newsletters.)

Deadline for entries is 11:59pm Zulu time Friday, September 3, 2010.

Click here to read the contest rules and enter.

Congratulations to Roger Newcomb of Austin, TX, who won our last drawing, for a Spidertrack Aviator! (click here to get your own from Spidertracks)

MEET THE AVWEBBIZ TEAM

AVwebBiz is a weekly summary of the latest business aviation news, articles, products, features, and events featured on AVweb, the internet's aviation magazine and news service.

The AVwebBiz team is:

Publisher
Timothy Cole

Editorial Director, Aviation Publications
Paul Bertorelli

Editor-in-Chief
Russ Niles

Contributing Editors
Mary Grady
Glenn Pew

Features Editor
Kevin Lane-Cummings

Webmaster
Scott Simmons

Contributors
Jeff van West

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