DETAILS ARE DEVILS FOR SOME 60-PLUS PILOTS
When Congress last year hurriedly passed the Fair Treatment for Experienced Pilots Act, which raised the mandatory retirement age for airline pilots to 65, nobody read the small print, say some age-60-plus pilots who have lost their jobs. About 3,000 pilots who were required to retire between Nov. 23, 2006, and Dec. 13, 2007, were specifically barred from being rehired at their same seniority levels, the Kansas City Star reported on Monday. The law also bars pilots from challenging the law in court. "I just don’t see how Congress can do that," said Lew Tetlow, president of the Senior Pilots Coalition. He plans to challenge the law in federal court nonetheless. "The new law is poorly written and expressly denies carriers the right to treat older pilots fairly," says the group's lawyer, Jonathan Turley. "Congress clearly enacted this law with little understanding of its implications," he said. He added that a legislative remedy would be preferable to a court fight. More...

LIGHT SPORT AIRCRAFT SALES CONTINUE TO GROW
Almost twice as many light sport aircraft were sold in 2007 as in 2006, according to numbers compiled by Dan Johnson at bydanjohnson.com. By year's end, 565 new fixed-wing LSAs had been registered, bringing the total fleet to 1,118 airplanes. Johnson said he expects the numbers to continue to grow. "I've forecast 1,000 units in 2008 and doubling that again in another year or two," said Johnson. "If I'm right, LSA may someday meet or exceed all other single engine pistons in the USA." More...

FAA GRANTS EXTENSION FOR ULTRALIGHT CONVERSIONS
When the FAA issued its complex Light Sport Aircraft rule about three years ago, owners of two-seat ultralights were issued a deadline of Jan. 31, 2008, to convert their aircraft to the experimental-LSA category. More than 6,000 owners requested transition kits from EAA. With the deadline looming, applications have backlogged, as owners await required inspections by designated airworthiness representatives, who are in short supply. EAA asked the FAA for more time, and last week, FAA granted an exemption. Owners still must get their registration application to the FAA on or before Jan. 31. Then they can apply for an exemption to be allowed to complete the process. More...

FAA ADOPTS MU-2B STANDARDS
The FAA has adopted a final rule that imposes standardized training requirements and operational procedures aimed at curbing an increase in the number of accidents by Mitsubishi MU-2B aircraft. The aircraft, which use spoilers for roll control rather than ailerons, were involved in a spate of accidents in 2004 and 2005, prompting calls by some to ground the fleet. Defenders of the ubiquitous freight hauler argued there was nothing inherently wrong with the airplane, but agreed pilots needed to understand its quirks. More...

RADAR'S REPLACEMENT? MAGNETIC FIELDS TRACK AIRCRAFT
New technology now being studied in Europe can track aircraft by detecting tiny changes in the Earth's magnetic field, according to a recent report in ICTWeb. Structures that cause "shadows" for today's radar systems -- a problem for ground surveillance at large, sprawling airports -- do not impair the magnetic field detectors. Recent tests of the system in Greece and Germany showed that it could detect 100 percent of the passing aircraft, and pinpointed their location to within 7.5 meters [25 feet], a level of accuracy comparable to most existing air traffic management systems, says researcher Haibin Gao. The system uses an array of small, cheap sensor units, which could be as small as a coin in the future. They can be installed at the entry and exit points of each runway, and would be affordable even for small airports. More...

ORLANDO EXPLORES NEW AVIATION TRAINING CENTER
Aviation is a growing industry, and that means manufacturers, flight schools, airlines and maintenance shops all need trained workers. To fill that need, a coalition of business and education leaders in central Florida is working on a plan to build a new aviation-themed campus at Orlando International Airport, the Orlando Sentinel reported on Tuesday. More...

CARS ON RUNWAYS — UNSAFE AT ANY SPEED
Just a day after five teenagers were killed while speeding down a runway in a BMW at a private Florida airport, a woman was arrested for allegedly driving drunk on a runway at Grand Junction Regional Airport, in Colorado. The 36-year-old woman was found by police just after 3 a.m., when her car got stuck. "The vehicle was high-centered on electrical conduits and the wheels spun as she applied the accelerator," the officer wrote in an arrest affidavit, according to the Vail Daily. Police at the scene contacted air traffic controllers, who said there were no inbound aircraft. The woman reportedly failed field sobriety tests and was charged with driving under the influence, driving with a suspended license, second-degree trespassing and careless driving, according to the Vail Daily. Meanwhile, investigators in Florida said the 18-year-old driver of the BMW had gone online hours before the crash, seeking advice about how to handle the car at high speeds. More...

BOEING 767, THE 'GIMLI GLIDER' FINALLY RETIRED

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Air Canada has retired one of the most famous Boeing 767s in pilot lore. Fleet no. 604 was flown to a storage area in the Mojave Desert, Thursday, 25 years after surviving, along with its crew of eight and 61 passengers, one of the most amazing dead-stick landings ever attempted. After the computerized fuel gauges on the then state-of-the-art aircraft failed because of a faulty solder joint, the ground crew decided to dip the tanks to ensure there was enough fuel for the 2,000-mile trip from Montreal to Edmonton. What they didn't know is that the dip gauges were calibrated in centimeters rather than inches and since a centimeter is less than half an inch, nowhere enough fuel was put on board. Sure enough, about half way through the trip, near the border of Ontario and Manitoba, both engines quit. Fortunately, Capt. Robert Pearson was a trained glider pilot and what happened next earned a footnote in airline history. More...

FIRST OFFICER REMOVED FROM AIR CANADA FLIGHT
An Air Canada 767 en route to London diverted to Shannon Airport in Ireland on Monday morning and the first officer was taken off the aircraft by medical personnel. Local news reports said the pilot was taken to a psychiatric hospital for evaluation and may have suffered a nervous breakdown, but officials would not confirm those reports. "This is an issue around one of our employee's health," airline spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick told reporters. "We're quite limited in what we can say. There are privacy concerns." The 146 passengers on board were never in danger, he said. "We have standard operating procedures in place to deal with these situations and at no time was the safety of anybody compromised." The passengers were transferred to another airplane with a fresh crew and arrived in London eight hours late. More...

GERMANS READY TO TRY FLYING NUDE
A German travel agency says it will offer the country's first-ever nude tourist flight in July, flying up to 55 passengers to a Baltic beach resort in a chartered aircraft. "It's an unusual gap in the market," travel director Enrico Hess told Reuters. Passengers cannot undress until they are on board, he said. "But then they will be able to enjoy the hour-long flight in the way God intended." Commenters at the Web site for Britain's Telegraph were uncomfortable with the concept. "Rubbing more than shoulders unclothed [in narrow airline seating] is statistically unlikely to be an agreeable experience," says one. "Wouldn't any exit down escape-chutes guarantee friction burns? These questions demand not so much answers as a cover-up." The world's first nudist flight was offered by a U.S. company in 2003. More...

ON THE FLY ...
Pilot Robert Maxson is new director of NOAA's Aviation Weather Center ...
"Space weather" scientists in the U.K. devastated by budget cuts ...
VirginGalactic will have a "significant exhibit" at Oskhosh, says EAA. More...

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: NEXTGEN AVIONICS SUBSIDIES TO PREPARE FOR ADS-B?
The Governor of Alaska is proposing that aircraft owners be offered low-interest loans to equip their aircraft with avionics that will be required under the FAA's NextGen airspace management system. Should similar subsidies be offered to owners in Hawaii and the Lower 48, or should the government be even more involved?
Plus: When are AVweb readers planning to buy their first LSA? Or do they already own one? More...

TELL US ABOUT YOUR INTERIOR SHOP
Our sister publication, Aviation Consumer, is preparing a report on interior shops. If you recently had an interior redone, the editors would like to hear from you, whether the experience was good or bad. To take part in the online survey, click here.

The results will appear in a future issue of Aviation Consumer. For subscription information, click here. More...

Columns | Features | What's New | Calendar | Brainteasers

ACROSS THE POND #13: CHANGING PILOT CERTIFICATION
AVweb's European correspondent, Liz Moscrop, reports on changes in instrument ratings, the future of GA in Europe and more. More...

Original, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos

On November 2, 2007, an F-15C with the 110th Fighter Squadron (of the 131st Fighter Wing) broke up while conducting an air-to-air training mission. This video, produced by Glenn Pew for AVweb, covers the military investigative board's findings.

Don't see a video screen? Try disabling ad blockers and refreshing this page. If that doesn't work, click here to download the video directly.

Related Content:
F-15s Grounded, Structural Failure Suspected

FBO OF THE WEEK: EPIC AVIATION (KEVB, NEW SMYRNA BEACH, FL)

In a week filled with stellar FBO recommendations, our "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to Epic Aviation at KEVB in New Smyrna Beach, Florida.

According to AVweb reader Robert Edelson, Epic really stepped up to the plate on a recent visit, despite having their hands full with other pilots:

The self-service pump was inop, but they refueled me by truck at the same price. Furthermore, they changed by CHT probe and cleaned a partially-blocked injector plus moved and returned our plane to its tie-down by tug, all for a time charge of one and half hours. They operate a busy flight-training operation, maintaining 20 aircraft, yet they graciously took the time to help me ... all for a reasonable rate!

Keep those nominations coming. For complete contest rules, click here.

AVweb is actively seeking out the best FBOs in the country and another one, submitted by you, will be spotlighted here next Monday!

PICTURE OF THE WEEK: AVWEB'S FLYING PHOTOGRAPHY SHOWCASE
A slight dip in the number submissions this week has turned out to be a blessing in disguise. For one thing, we can run a few more of last week's incredible photos in our home page slideshow. (Seriously, we almost had enough from last week to have run a second "POTW" column!) While the quantity may be lower this week, the quality certainly isn't! We can't recall when we've had a tougher time deciding which of our finalists should receive heaping accolades (and a free AVweb baseball cap) — but somehow we managed to agree on this incredible shot from J.T. Vink of Terre Haute, Indiana. More...

AVWEBBIZ: AVWEB'S BUSINESS AVIATION NEWSLETTER
HAVE YOU SIGNED UP yet for AVweb's NO-COST weekly business aviation newsletter, AVwebBiz? Reporting on breaking news, Business AVflash focuses on the companies, the products and the industry leaders that make headlines in the business aviation industry. Business AVflash is a must read. Sign up today at http://www.avweb.com/profile/. More...

MEET THE AVWEBFLASH TEAM

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

The AVwebFlash team is:

Publisher
Timothy Cole

Editorial Director, Aviation Publications
Paul Bertorelli

Editor-in-Chief
Russ Niles

Managing Editor
Meredith Saini

Contributing Editors
Mary Grady
Glenn Pew

Features Editor
Kevin Lane-Cummings

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