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October 27, 2008
By The AVweb Editorial Staff
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Smart Safety ... Leave Anxiety Out of Your Flight Plan
As a Cirrus owner, you join a lifestyle that takes safety very seriously. Whether flying for pleasure or business, you always fly smart and safe. Cirrus Perspective by Garmin is
designed to help by giving you more time and information to make better decisions, reduce workload, and improve your overall flying experience. Cirrus Perspective adds more ability to
experience the Cirrus lifestyle fully and leave anxiety out of your flight plan.
For complete
features, go online. 
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Top News: Staying Ahead of the Economic
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Cirrus Design has gone to a three-day work week (from four) in an effort to balance production against reduced demand. Company CEO Alan Klapmeier also told the Duluth News Tribune last week that the 2009 target for introduction of its SRS light sport model will be pushed back
because of a slowdown in the LSA sector. Development of the Vision SJ50 personal jet will not be affected. "We're looking at the situation progressively, on a week-by-week basis," he said. Without
an increase in demand, the three-day week will be in place at least until the end of the year, Klapmeier told the newspaper.
In September, Cirrus laid off 100 staff in Duluth and at its composites parts plant in Grand Forks, N.D. and reduced production from four aircraft a day to three aircraft a day. Business is off
about 10 percent at Cirrus, and the General Aviation Manufacturers Association reported that, overall, sales of piston aircraft were down 16 percent in the first half of 2008. Klapmeier said he's
hoping for a spike in demand toward the end of the year as customers cash in on an accelerated depreciation measure passed by Congress earlier this year.
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When Is the Last Time You Reviewed Your Estate Plan?
Estate tax reform is a hot button issue in Washington. The federal estate tax may change significantly. What can you do to move ahead on your estate plan? Review your existing plan now —
especially if you haven't done so within the past year. Pilot Insurance Center's combination of insurance expertise and aviation underwriting can help provide the most competitive products for
your estate-planning needs. To schedule an estate-planning review, call PIC at 1 (800) 380-8376 or
visit online. 
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| Click for images from Alamos |
The small Mexican village of Alamos, close to the Gulf of California and the Copper Canyon region, is a popular destination for GA pilots
from the Southwest, who enjoy its quiet colonial charm and mountain scenery. But last week, the small local airstrip at Alamos became a lifeline, as villagers struggled to recover from a devastating
hurricane that caused floods and landslides and destroyed several local bridges. "Hurricane Norbert washed away over 100 homes and damaged an additional 150 homes, all belonging to Mexican families
who lost basically all their worldly possessions," Jack McCormick, president of the Baja Bush Pilots, told AVweb this week. So
McCormick put out the call for help to the GA community, and last weekend 31 fully-loaded small aircraft departed from the U.S. to bring food, bedding, diapers, tarps, tools and more to the
village.
The Mexican government allowed direct flights into the local airport, waiving the usual requirement to stop at an international airport first. "To see the look of joy and then the tears of
appreciation on the faces of the people who receive these much-needed items is what it is all about," said McCormick. He added that many more donated supplies need to be delivered, and he is
organizing a second airlift.
For more information (or to volunteer or make a donation), visit the Baja Bush Pilots web site.
Click here to view photos.
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JA Air Center Is Offering Great Incentives for the King Air 200 Series G1000 Upgrade
The G1000 Integrated Flight Deck includes XM weather & radio, FliteCharts®, SafeTaxi®, GWX68 radar, TAWS-B and RVSM compliance. Register your King Air with JA Air Center before
November 30, 2008 and qualify for $20,000 in free upgrades.
For more information,
go online. 
Call JA Air Center at (800) 323-5966 to speak with an expert about your King Air 200.
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AOPA has told the Canadian government that American pilots will stop crossing the border in droves if it means spending thousands of dollars on a new 406-megaHertz ELT. Transport Canada is considering
making the installation of the devices mandatory in all aircraft flying in Canadian airspace as of Feb. 1, 2009. AOPA says a survey of members who routinely fly north indicates 51 percent will find
somewhere else to go rather than spend the money on equipment that's not required in the U.S. On Feb. 1, the search-and-rescue satellites will stop monitoring the 121.5 MHz frequency emitted by the
majority of small aircraft ELTs and will only look for 406 signals. American authorities have essentially left it up to aircraft owners to decide whether to equip with the satellite-friendly ELTs.
AOPA has suggested Transport Canada allow American aircraft to carry handheld 406 beacons as a compromise to the new regulation, but AOPA's Canadian counterpart, the Canadian Owners and Pilots
Association, wants the whole notion of mandatory 406 equipage scrapped because there are better technologies available.
COPA President Kevin Psutka has been fighting the proposal vigorously and says ELTs, no matter the frequency, fail to activate in many crashes because of damage to antennas, damage to the
transmitters or masking of the signal by wreckage or terrain. He said the rule will cost the Canadian industry up to $120 million for no tangible benefit. AOPA agrees with COPA on the technology
involved, noting that the forthcoming adoption of ADS-B will make ELTs redundant, since all aircraft will be constantly monitored.
The comment period for the proposed regulation ended Thursday.
New York Times business travel columnist Joe Sharkey says he was unaware of a lawsuit launched against him by the relatives of victims of a Brazilian plane crash until he read about it in an American
online publication. The suit was launched by Rosane Gutjhar, the widow of Rolf Gutjhar, who was among 154 people who died when the GOL Boeing 737 they were on collided with an Embraer Legacy 600. The
Association of Relatives and Friends of GOL's Flight 1907 Victims issued a news release that
Sharkey was on the Legacy, which made a safe emergency landing at a Brazilian military base, minus a winglet and part of its tail. Sharkey wrote extensively about the accident, defending the business
jet's pilots and blaming Brazilian controllers for the tragedy. In the suit, Gutjhar is seeking compensation for "moral damages" she claims were caused by Sharkey's accounts of the developing story.
Sharkey told AVweb he can't comment directly on the suit since he hasn't seen a copy but he defended his reporting and commentary about the accident. "Obviously, anyone who followed my
reporting knows that I have consistently expressed the deepest sympathy for the relatives of those who were killed," he said.
But Gutjhar claims that Sharkey's "personal attacks" against Brazil's president, air traffic controllers and, allegedly, Brazilians in general, somehow resulted in discrimination against her in the
ongoing criminal proceedings against the Legacy pilots, Jan Paladino and Joe Lepore, who were ferrying the aircraft to New York from the Embraer factory. "Nothing can justify the words he used against
all Brazilians. All I want from him is to take it all back," Gutjhar said in the news release. Her lawyer, Oscar Fleischfresser, was a little more pragmatic, however. "Only amends will restore the
widow's dignity," he said. No figure was specified for those "amends."
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Discover the Thrill of a Family Getaway
Discover that the best family vacation photos aren't taken through the window of a minivan. In a brand-new Cessna Stationair, every single weekend becomes your chance for a family getaway.
Without ever hearing the dreaded words "Are we there yet?" Call 1 (800) 4-CESSNA.
Or visit
CessnaYouAreHere.com. 
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Pilots know they must always keep learning to keep safe, and one way to keep sharp is to study the mistakes made by others. To promote that effort, the FAA has created an online safety library that
teaches "lessons learned" from some of the world's most historically significant transport airplane accidents. The FAA said that even though some of the accidents happened as long as 40 years ago,
they all teach timeless lessons that are relevant to today's aviation community.
Each report features the accident investigation findings, resulting safety recommendations and subsequent regulatory and policy changes. The lessons learned from each investigation are explained in
detail and grouped into relevant technical areas and common themes. Although all 11 accidents now online deal with transport-category aircraft, many deal with issues that are also relevant to GA
aircraft, including bird strikes, wake turbulence, human error and flawed assumptions. The FAA said it plans to add another 40 accident reports to the library by the end of the year.
Something we like about aviation is that someone is always thinking about new ways to use it or apply it, and a couple of ideas have been floated recently that stretch current technology, not to
mention the imagination. Now the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) spends most of its time (and considerable budget) out on the edge, and its latest invitation to the dreamers and
thinkers out there isn't new, but it may be something whose time has come. DARPA is calling for proposals to develop a submersible airplane that can cover 1,l00 nm (the last 100 nm at sea-skimming
height), then travel underwater for 12 nm to drop off commandos. Then it has to be able to loiter in the area in seas of up to 13 feet, presumably waiting for pickup. DARPA doesn't say it'll be easy,
but it does want to know if it's possible.
Meanwhile, British firm Falx Air
is hoping to develop a hybrid electric tilt-rotor personal aircraft that will go up to 230 mph. The rotors will be powered by electric motors that will get their power from a gasoline-powered
generator. An onboard battery will provide the power boost necessary for takeoff. The proposed price of the aircraft, which could weigh as little as 1,000 lbs., is $1.5 million. The company
acknowledges there's a long way to go in getting the project off the ground but claims the technology is ready.
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Fly With Bose Aviation Headset X®
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Quotes reprinted with permission: Professional Pilot, 2007 Headset Preference Survey, 12/07; Aviation Consumer, 8/07.
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There are plenty of people who live and breathe airplanes, but it may not be too long before 37 California families get to live with their airplanes. Bob Banman and Bill Lindsay, a couple of aviation
buffs, have navigated the regulatory waters to create a 37-condo development on the airport at Santa Paula, Calif., a quiet farming community about 60 miles north of Los Angeles. Now there are plenty
of residential air parks where owners have their homes and hangars on the runway, but in the Sky Lofts of Santa Paula, their $800,000
home is their hangar.
In the Sky Lofts, the ground floor is all for the airplane, while the living quarters, complete with observation deck, are on the top floor. Lindsay admits there's a narrow market to draw from in
the already-tough real estate market but he's upbeat about the project. "I think it is enough of a supply-and-demand type of thing, enough of a niche, that we'll be fine," Lindsay told the Associated Press.
Air show pilot Patty Wagstaff is scheduled to appear in court in Oshkosh Tuesday regarding charges stemming from an incident at EAA AirVenture July 31. In addition to the civil
charges of drunk driving and refusal to provide a breath sample, Wagstaff has recently been criminally charged with resisting arrest ...
The Vancouver International Airport Authority, which recently won a bid to run Chicago Midway Airport for 99 years, is bidding, with financial partner CitiBank, to take over London Gatwick. That
deal is worth $3.1 billion ...
The NTSB says the crew of an American Airlines Boeing 757 with 192 people on board decided to continue
the flight from Seattle to New York on battery power alone after electrical problems shortly after takeoff. The plane made an emergency landing in Chicago when the batteries drained and the aircraft,
minus several systems handy for landing, went off the runway.
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AOPA Expo 2008 — Destination for the Latest in Aviation Products & Services
The 2008 AOPA Expo November 6-8, in San Jose, California offers the latest in aviation-related products and services.
Register
online
for daily Seminar and Exhibit passes and social event tickets. Expand your aviation knowledge with over 60 hours of educational seminars, stroll through AOPA's largest show hall ever (with
over 500 booths), and view over 80 aircraft at Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport.
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Between Wheels Up and Wheels Down, There Is One Important Word: How
As the team managing the FAA AFSS system, Lockheed Martin serves nearly 90,000 general aviation pilots every week. Providing timely, accurate information and helpful service 24/7. From
weather forecasts to en route information, from Hawaii to Puerto Rico, ensuring flight safety in the National Airspace System is all a question of how. And it is the how
that makes all the difference.
Click here for
more. 
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It can best the ILS for minimums and requires no fancy equipment, yet this approach is becoming a thing of the past.
Click here for the full story.
Air Canada unbundled its airfare structure in 2004. Could the same solution keep U.S. passengers from getting steamed when charged to check a bag? In the latest installment of our AVweb
Insider blog, Editorial Director Paul Bertorelli lays out the case for a la carte air fares.
Read more.
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Envision® Integrated Flight Deck Available for Retrofit Installation in Select Cessna 300-Series Aircraft!
Avidyne has added the popular Cessna 320/335/340 piston-engine twins to the growing list of Envision® Integrated Flight Deck–approved aircraft. The big-glass Envision
system is the industry's easiest-to-use integrated flight deck, providing state-of-the-art situational awareness and safety, with a highly-reliable all-solid-state ADAHRS, a full-featured moving map,
electronic approach charts, color lightning, traffic avoidance, and satellite datalink weather.
Click here for more
information. 
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File Size 9.0 MB / Running Time 9:50
Podcast Index
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How to Listen
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Subscribe Via RSS
Last summer, the airlines got deservedly bashed for charging customers to check bags. Although the execution was ham-handed, the concept might not be. In this podcast, Robert Buckman of
Amadeus (a travel industry IT giant) explains why a la carte pricing is the way of the future.
Click here to listen. (9.0 MB, 9:50)
Recommend a Video
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VOTW Archive
Last week, we mentioned all the great radio-controlled flyer videos that have found their way to our inbox over the last couple of weeks. Just today we came across a new one (from
AVweb reader Mike Whaley) that takes the cake. As Mike writes, making a successful landing with one wing is an impressive feat "in any scale."
For the full story, check out this forum posting Mike sent to us in his e-mail:
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=931845
Don't forget to send us links to any interesting videos you find out there. If you're impressed by it,
there's a good chance other AVweb readers will be too. And if we use a video you recommend on AVweb, we'll send out an official AVweb baseball cap as a "thank you."
Original, Exclusive Videos from AVweb
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Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos
Related Content:
Want more AVweb media from the show?
Click here for podcasts from NBAA 2008.
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Nominate an FBO
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Rules
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Tips
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Questions
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Winning FBOs
AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to Western Aviation Services (WAS) at Rafael Hernandez Airport (TJBQ) in Aguadilla, Puerto
Rico.
Almost all of this week's nominations came from pilots who experienced Hurricane Omar evacuations firsthand and made it through with the help of outstanding FBOs and careful planning — but the
fact that Western Aviation was nominated by a group of some 30 pilots at various airports ("TJSJ, TJIG, TJAB, TSTT, TSTX, and others," according to the form) made it stand above the rest. So did
AVweb reader A.B. Ravelo's rundown of everything the team at WAS did for the GA community. Here are some of the highlights of A.B.'s account:
The panic button hit all regional aviation as the storm had projected winds of 105 mph. ... Mr. Ruben Hernandez, owner of Western Aviation Services, and his team went into high gear and offered
hangar facilities free of cost to over 60 aircraft and ramp facilities to another 20. BQN controllers saw over 100 flights in less than four hours, as King Airs lined up on the downwind for
Runway 8, behind C-150s and others. Overnight, the storm's easterly track pushed it out of range, and it became a non-event. However, the Good Samaritan spirit of WAS and their staff are ... [the
reason why] the folks at WAS are your first friends when traveling into the Caribbean USA.
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!
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While I was on short final into KFHU (Fort Huachuca, Sierra Vista Arizona):
Shadow-1:
"Shadow-1 at runway 26, ready to take off."
Tower:
"Shadow-1, hold short for landing traffic."
I then looked over at the holding aircraft and noticed that it was a Military UAV, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. This being the first one I'd ever seen, I struggled between landing my plane and
looking at the UAV. Landing the plane finally caught my attention.
After landing, while on rollout, I overheard:
NXXXXX:
"Tower, was that an unmanned airplane I just passed?"
Tower:
"NXXXXX: Yes, it was."
Shadow-1:
"There is actually a man sitting somewhere ... ."
Mark Harris
Flagstaff, AZ
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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.
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