NTSB: AVIATION FATALITIES DOWN
According to preliminary figures released Thursday, overall transportation fatalities in the United States fell 4 percent year over year from 2006 to 2007 and did include a larger reduction in aviation fatalities. Aviation deaths, specifically, decreased from 784 to 545, with general aviation as the segment's largest contributor. In 2007, nearly 90 percent of aviation deaths were attributed to general aviation accidents. For 2006, 703 of the 784 deaths were attributed to general aviation. For 2007, the numbers show 491 of 545 deaths attributed to GA. The numbers were delivered independent of total hours flown. Overall, there were 43,193 transportation fatalities recorded in 2007 versus 45,085 in 2006. Highway fatalities, the segment that accounts for nearly 95 percent of all transportation deaths, also dipped in 2007 from the previous year. Within that category, however, motorcycle fatalities were marked by a 6 percent increase -- the single largest increase in any specific category across all the included modes of transportation. More...

LOCKHEED MARTIN CITES LOWER DEMAND IN FSS CLOSURES, AOPA RESPONDS
Lockheed Martin announced Oct. 15 that five satellite flight service stations will be closing in February and AOPA was quick to take exception with the way the change in service was announced. "We are extraordinarily displeased that the FAA, which is supposed to be managing this contract, did not consult with its 'customers' before allowing this," AOPA President Phil Boyer said. The FAA told AOPA it wants to work with the association to ensure service meets its contract requirements. But Boyer expressed concern that "some of our members will be incensed" upon notification of the non-discussed closures. For its part, Lockheed Martin said that the closures are the result of improvements to the nationwide network coupled with a reduction in the amount of general aviation pilots seeking use of the FSS system. Reasons for that reduction were not addressed. The specific stations targeted for closure are Oakland, San Diego, Denver, Albuquerque and Macon (Georgia) and Lockheed Martin says incoming calls will be routed to specialists who, regardless of their physical location, are knowledgeable about the particular flight area. More...

TEXTRON'S TAKE ON THE ECONOMY -- IT'S DOWNSIZING
Textron Thursday announced a nearly 20-percent decline in third-quarter profits and plans to shrink its workforce through layoffs and workforce consolidation that along with other measures could save the company $40 million per year. The company's financing division -- which, among other things, provides financing for buyers of new and used Cessna business jets -- showed a 66-percent decline in profits. It earned $18 million where Textron had originally expected $30 million. That reality, plus the uncertainty expressed in the financial markets and credit industry, is countered with another fact: Sales across of most of Textron's businesses rose, including sales of Cessna business jets. Textron Chairman Lewis B. Campbell believes the future economic environment "will continue to be uncertain over at least the next several quarters, but believes "the actions we are taking, combined with our government programs and aircraft order backlog, position us to perform well through these difficult times." Textron's stock lost nearly 80 percent of its value between December of last year and mid-October of 2008. More...

AMERICAN AIRLINES' 787 DREAMLINER DEAL
American Airlines has entered into a purchase agreement with Boeing for 42 787-9 Dreamliners (with options for up to 58 more), expecting first deliveries in 2012, but its pilots retain the right to have a say in that. The airline believes the up-to-290-passenger, 8,500-nm cruising jet could theoretically operate on every route it currently serves, while allowing it the flexibility to seek new routes as conditions warrant. American has not yet decided on a preferred cabin configuration for the wide-body, or even its engine type. But provisions in the agreement allow the company to not acquire any number of the 42 aircraft if it has not reached an agreement with its pilots union to operate the aircraft. Until then, American will take delivery of 76 Boeing 737-800 aircraft as it continues to phase out its fleet of narrow-body MD-80s. Once expected to fly for the first time in the spring of 2009, program delays and the current strike by Boeing's machinists could set first flight of the 787 Dreamliner beyond the fall of 2010. More...

MEDICAL HELICOPTER DOWN AS SAFETY CONFERENCE KICKS OFF
Officials Thursday released the names of four victims killed when a medical transport helicopter crashed in a field in Illinois Wednesday night and as the Association of Air Medical Services prepared for its annual conference held this year on Oct. 20-22. The aircraft came to rest near a newly damaged AM radio tower. As the accident (which may bring the total to at least 12 crashes and 32 killed in the past 12 months) is investigated and safety concerns for the industry deepen, industry leaders will be meeting in Minneapolis to "put a specific focus on safety in air medicine." Safety-related products like night vision goggles, TAWS (terrain awareness and warning systems) and weather services will be highlighted and on display on the show floor, as will risk assessment and safety training programs. A special pre-conference workshop will be under way Sunday afternoon when the Commission on Accreditation of Air Medical Transport Services will also offer a course designed to create a culture of quality and safety. Then, research presentations will be given "on several safety topics all day on Monday." The FAA released its own safety recommendations (not regulations) on June 30. More...

WRONGFUL DEATH AT FLY-IN RULING OVERTURNED
A wrongful death suit that originally levied a $10.5 million judgment against the EAA and the Northwest Experimental Aircraft Association (NWEAA) has seen a reversal judgment in a Washington court of appeals. The court found that Don Corbitt was alive in the wreckage of his RV-6A after it crashed shortly after departure at the Northwest Fly-In at Arlington, Wash., on July 7, 1999, but that Corbitt died in the post-crash fire as bystanders attempted to extinguish the flames. The court found that the fire was ultimately extinguished by an Arlington Fire Department truck that arrived on the scene within three to five minutes of the crash. One concern of the lawsuit involved the assignment of responsibility for fire safety at the location of the accident. A common law duty had in a previous judgment been assigned to NWEAA and EAA, along with the multimillion judgment against them. Records from the appeals case now indicate that the fire was ultimately extinguished on property not included in usage areas identified by special use agreements. The court of appeals found that neither NWEAA or EAA controlled the portion of the airport where Corbitt crashed, they were not in control of fire or fire aid personnel and had no duty to provide first aid services to Corbitt "once he had left premises possessed by NWEAA." More...

EPA SETS NEW STANDARD FOR LEAD IN AIR
The EPA has specifically cited airplane fuels among "significant sources of lead" and there is new concern among pilots that engines burning leaded fuel may be targeted by new standards for lead in the air set Wednesday night by the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA's new limit is the first update since 1978, according to the Associated Press, and sets "a new health standard for lead to slash the amount of the toxic metal in the nation's air by 90 percent." The last update helped phase out leaded gasoline -- the new limit of .15 microgram per cubic meter is ten times lower. Based on air quality data collected from 2004-2006, only 14 counties across the country may be in violation of the new standard when the EPA makes its report in 2011. At this time any future impact of the new standard on general aviation and its use of 100LL fuel is uncertain. More...

SPORTY'S GIVES AWAY G1000 SKYHAWK
More than 200 people met Jeff Hux at the airport when he came home to Missouri with a brand new G1000-equipped Cessna Skyhawk courtesy of Hal Shevers' Sporty's Sweepstakes. Sporty's has given away at least one new aircraft every year since 1986 and this year's winner received training from a Cessna Flight Industry Training Standards certified instructor, Sporty's own Charlie Masters. (Sporty's isn't just a pilot shop, it also conducts flight training, performs aircraft maintenance, operates an avionics shop and sells new Cessna aircraft.) With training under the pilot's belt, Sporty's then put some hot dogs behind it with a celebratory customer lunch at the company's weekly fly-in, with AOPA's Phil Boyer among those in attendance. Sporty's next sweepstakes winner will be selected in a May 16, 2009, drawing, and will win another brand-new Cessna Skyhawk ... that one will have Garmin's Synthetic Vision. 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

TAILS FROM THE CRYPT: MAKING SENSE OF SALVAGE
The harsh reality is that parts are becoming scarce, so learn your way around the boneyard. More...

FBO OF THE WEEK: HOMESTEAD EXECUTIVE JET CENTER (X51, HOMESTEAD, FL)

AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to Homestead Executive Jet Center at X51 in Homestead, Florida.

AVweb reader Skip Weld has been there twice and found them to be an outstanding FBO on both visits, going "far beyond what a normal good staff would do":

They have offered to stay late or open after hours ... [even] offering me the code for the pilots room so I could wait out bad weather in comfort. When I was too tired to fight bad weather, they made sure I got into a reasonably priced hotel at a good price, made sure I knew where to eat, and picked me up the next morning and brought me to the airport. All because I filled up with fairly-priced self-serve gas. (They also have full serve.) It is clean and neat [and] doesn't have gold-colored fixtures in the bathroom! ... I will be back every time I am going to the Homestead race track.

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!

GAMA'S JENS HENNIG ON THE COUNTDOWN TO ADS-B
As AVweb reported recently, the general public is awakening to the benefits of ADS-B. Just as that's happening, the industry is finally making headway on agreeing on a technical standard, as explained in this podcast with GAMA's Jens Hennig. More...

VIDEO OF THE WEEK: CESSNA CITATION OVERRUNS THE RUNWAY ... AND DIVES INTO THE WATER
This week's video clip documents a rather unusual botched landing that we reported on a while back. An AVweb reader recently sent us a link to the Flight Safety Foundation page about the incident (in which a Cessna Citation CJ2 overran the runway and plunged into water), where we found the following video. (Click through to watch.) More...

AVWEB'S NBAA CONVENTION 2008 VIDEO ROUND-UP
In case you missed any of our videos from the 2008 NBAA Convention & Trade Show in Orlando, Florida, you can watch all eight of them (plus two shorts you may find interesting) right here. (Click through to watch.) More...

SHORT FINAL

Overheard in IFR Magazine's "On the Air"

Heard at Gainesville, Florida Airport:

Cessna:
"Gainesville Tower, Cessna XXXXX, seven west with Tango."

Tower:
"Cessna XXXXX, cleared to land, Runway Six."

Cessna:
"We'd prefer Runway One Zero. We have some passengers to drop off at the terminal."

Tower:
"Cessna XXXXX, you can't do that. You have to use the general aviation FBO."

Cessna:
"We called ahead, and they said we could drop them off as long as we stayed clear of the gate."

Tower:
"I don't know who told you that, but I'll ask the airport manager."

Later ...

Tower:
"Cessna XXXXX. I'm sorry, but you can't taxi to the terminal. However, if you'd like, I can clear you for a low approach, and your passengers can jump out as vou fly by."

Cessna (laughing):
"How about I just use Runway Six?"

Peter Schoaff
via e-mail

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
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Glenn Pew

Features Editor
Kevin Lane-Cummings

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Scott Simmons

Contributors
Jeff van West

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