NEXT WEEK: AIRVENTURE 2008!
Over the next few days, AVweb's crew will be packing up our gear, heading for various airports, and winging our way to Oshkosh, Wisconsin, ready to bring you daily news (including a full AVwebBiz edition next Wednesday) from the EAA AirVenture grounds all next week. The show promises to be an exciting one, with several aircraft making their debut, new products galore, a diverse lineup of unique aircraft on the flight line at Aeroshell Square, the unveiling of the Rocket Racing fleet, the latest experimental electric aircraft, the world's best airshow pilots, and much more. Staffers from Kitplanes and other Belvoir publications will be pitching in to help AVweb bring you the fastest, most complete, and in-depth coverage possible. Watch for frequent blog updates, daily videos and podcasts, and of course our daily AVwebFlash newsletter to bring all the news from the show straight to your desktop. And if you are in Oshkosh next week, check in with AVweb on your handheld device to be sure you are not missing a thing. More...

LANCAIR EVOLUTION PROTOTYPE TO FLY DEMOS AT EAA AIRVENTURE
When the first Lancair Evolution showed up at Sun 'n Fun earlier this year, still in its plain white undercoat, the design attracted plenty of attention. Pressurized and turbo-powered, the four-seat kit aircraft promised high performance, with 385-mph speed. Now prospective buyers will be able to find out for themselves how it performs. The company is bringing the newly painted prototype to Oshkosh, where it will be available for demo flights. Lancair also said this week it has delivered the first Evolution kit, and the buyer will participate in the two-week builder assist program at the company's facility in Redmond, Ore. Also, Forward Vision said this week its EVS-100 synthetic vision system will be offered as an option for the Evolution. More...

AUSTRO DIESEL ENGINE AT AIRVENTURE
Diamond Aircraft will be exhibiting the new AE 300 Austro engine next week at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh. The Austro is a jet-A-burning, 170-hp, next-generation turbo-diesel engine that soon will be available on the DA42 Diamond twin. The AE 300 offers 26 percent more power than the engines currently on the DA42, says Diamond, for better takeoff and climb performance, better single-engine performance and more speed. Diamond has been working with MB Tech (a Mercedes Benz daughter company) and Bosch to develop the engine, and they expect European certification within a few months. The "next-generation" features include a clutch-less gearbox, a cast-iron crankcase, integral oil/coolant heat exchanger and improved turbocharger air induction and cooling systems. More...

VANDALS PULL PIPER TWIN APART, DAMAGE 10 OTHERS
Vandals spray painted, slashed tires and smashed instruments on and otherwise tampered with at least 11 aircraft, including a Citation 550, in a spree that caused hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of damage at Monmouth Executive Airport, near Belmar, N.J. last week. It's speculated that the vandals used a vehicle to tear the tail and part of the wing off a twin-engine Piper. "It appears that a motor vehicle, with a cable attached, may have been used to accomplish this damage," Wall Township Police Lt. John Gavin told the Coast Star. More...

VINTAGE AIRCRAFT WINGS RECOVERED FROM METAL THIEVES
Thieves were apparently in search of scrap metal when they made off with two irreplaceable vintage aircraft wings from a storage yard used by the Wingspan Aviation Heritage Foundation in Mesa, Ariz. When the theft was discovered, about a week ago, foundation director Robert Kropp went to the media in hopes of uncovering information about the wings' fate -- and he got lucky. An anonymous tipster led Kropp and police directly to both wings, hidden in two separate remote locations in the desert. "I really feel like I found a winning lottery ticket in the street," Kropp told The Arizona Republic. "I'm just absolutely elated. Without the media exposure, it was gone, baby, gone." The wings, from a 1940s-era Lockheed T-33 trainer and a 1950s Lockheed PV-2 bomber, were found intact and police dusted them for fingerprints. More...

FIVE TEAMS PREPARE FOR CAFE CHALLENGE
The General Aviation Technology Challenge, hosted by the CAFE Foundation and funded by NASA, has announced the five teams that will take part in this year's event, coming up Aug. 5 to 9 in Santa Rosa, Calif. The competition aims to promote the development of "green" and efficient GA aircraft. CAFE will award $300,000 in prizes for achievements in noise reduction, fuel economy (mpg), safe handling, and speed. The five teams will be: "Team Pipistrel" flying a Pipistrel Virus 912, team leader Frank Vance Turner; "Team Aerochia" flying a modified Diamond DA20-A1, team leader Geoff Stevenson; "Team Wilkinson Aero Sport" flying a Dynamic WT9, team leader Neil Wilkinson; "Team Lambada" flying a UFM-13 Lambada, team leader John A. Dunham; and "Team Flight Refine" flying a Flight Design CT, team leader John Robert Basham. All of the competing aircraft are two-seaters, and four of the five are light sport aircraft. One will fly on biodiesel fuel. More...

ANOTHER CHANCE FOR SEAWIND AMPHIBIAN?
The Seawind amphibian may yet make it to the long-elusive certification finish line, if the company can raise the next round of funding it needs. The airplane drew a loyal following for its kit version, which is no longer in production, but efforts to achieve certification have run into numerous delays. When the only flying prototype and its pilot were lost in a flight-test accident last year, that seemed like the end of the story. Now Seawind President Richard Silva says that he's been encouraged by an "overwhelming" outpouring of support from the Seawind pilot community, and he's ready to move forward with the certification project. He said he needs to raise $2 million to complete certification and it will cost $2 million to ramp up production. "We did not give up, and we have our production facility secured. If it is at all possible, we will resume operations, and the Seawind will be coming back," he said this week. More...

GA PILOTS COMPLETE AROUND-THE-WORLD FLIGHT
"It was a great adventure," said Thierry Pouille, president of Air Journey, this week, after his small group of GA pilots completed the company's first-ever 10-week-long, 25,000-mile trip around the world. "We're all back -- and we're doing it again!" Pouille said the company will definitely offer the tour a second time in 2009. The six aircraft on this year's trip -- a PC12, two TBMs, a Cessna Conquest, a Cessna Mustang and a Duke Turbine conversion -- all completed the journey without any major mechanical problems or other setbacks, he said. "It takes a lot of organization and preparation and office support," Pouille said, to make the trip run smoothly and on time. "But it's been a fantastic experience." Since AVweb last checked in with the group, they have flown up the east coast of Asia via Taipei, Taiwan; Seoul, South Korea; and Vladivostok, Russia; then across the Bering Sea to Anchorage, Alaska. The pilots stopped in Juneau for a cruise and ended their journey in Seattle, then each aircraft headed for home. More...

FOREIGN FLIGHT STUDENTS TO LOSE WORK-STUDY OPTION
Work-study visas that allow foreign flight students to train and work in the U.S. will no longer be granted, effective June 2010, according to a new policy issued by the U.S. State Department. The current J-1 visa program allows foreign students to train in the U.S. and work as flight instructors to build flying time. Eight U.S. flight schools make use of the program, and some of them could lose up to half of their revenue once the program is eliminated, according to AOPA. "While this only impacts a small number of students, we are deeply disappointed that the State Department believes that flight training programs no longer further the public diplomacy mission of the United States," said Craig Spence, AOPA vice president of aviation security. "This country has long been a world leader in flight training, and we want to see that continue." More...

ON THE FLY ...
A Cessna twin crashed into a construction site in Ocean Ridge, Fla....
NTSB is investigating a near-midair between an ERJ-145 and a Learjet at O'Hare...
Bombardier Challenger training should emphasize stabilizer trim, says NTSB...
British pilots lead in Red Bull Air Race in Rotterdam, London is next. More...

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: SECURITY AT YOUR AIRPORT
AVweb has recently run two stories in which aircraft were tampered with or parts were stolen. Programs like Airport Watch work well when there are people around. This week, we'd like to know how you rate the night security at your airport. Plus: See how many single-engine personal jets AVweb readers think will be around in ten years' time. 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...

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

BATTERY BASICS
Here's how to get the most out of all that money you paid for your last new battery. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: GA HAS ITS OWN VERSION OF THE AIRLINE MESS ...
In the latest installment of our blog, AVweb Insider, Paul Bertorelli opines on why GA is asleep at the switch when it comes to doing something about the escalating price of oil. More...

FBO OF THE WEEK: TAC AIR (KGMU, GREENVILLE, SC)

AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to TAC Air at GMU in Greenville, South Carolina.

AVweb reader John Hey hadn't stopped at GMU for six months, but he tells us "they still remembered me":

Great, cheerful, and competent service — even though I had just saved $30 using their self-service pump. Call ahead, and they get you a great discount on the nice Phoenix Motel one block away with the best free full Southern breakfast ever!

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!

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: F-16 INTERCEPTS JET & TURBOPROP LEGALLY FLYING THROUGH MOA
Last March, AVweb told you about a close encounter between two private aircraft, a Pilatus PC-12 and a Beech Premier and an F-16 in an Arizona Military Operating Area (MOA). AOPA has obtained the radar video and audio from the incident, and AVweb Video Editor Glenn Pew has put them together in an enlightening package. (Click through to watch.) More...

PICTURE OF THE WEEK: AVWEB'S FLYING PHOTOGRAPHY SHOWCASE
Bruce Van Beek of Sioux Center, Iowa serves up this fantastic image of the AeroShell Team doing what they do best. Believe it or not — and, to be honest, we're not sure we would! — the fact that our top photo this week features the AeroShell Aerobatic Team is completely unrelated to the fact that we're giving away a chance to right with these guys during their Monday morning practice at Oshkosh. (But, of course, we will take the opportunity to link to the page where you can enter our drawing.)

("POTW" will be on hiatus during the show, but we'll return with more of your pictures in two weeks. Don't forget to send 'em, though, or we won't have anything to share!) 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

Contributing Editors
Mary Grady
Glenn Pew

Features Editor
Kevin Lane-Cummings

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