Volume 9, Number 41a October 6, 2003

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The Top Headlines From AVweb's Expanded, Illustrated News Coverage At AVweb's NewsWire.

BLINDSIDED BY HOMELAND SECURITY
That kinder, gentler FAA we've been telling you about is taking steps to keep you out of TFR trouble. Communications Director Greg Martin told AVweb the agency will soon (loose definitions suggested) launch a new Web-based information system designed to give pilots up-to-date, accurate information on airspace restrictions, including those following the president. "We are committed to getting information out better," said Martin. He said the looming presidential election campaign will make timely TFR information even more critical and the agency is responding, in part, as a reflection of its new attitude toward "customer" service. Martin said they're still working on the system and no date has been set for its launch but he promised it would deliver the information pilots need, including graphical depictions, at the click of a mouse. More...

...AS SECURITY INCIDENTS ABOUND...
With any luck, the new system and the heightened awareness of TFRs during the campaign will help prevent incidents like the one near Milwaukee on Friday now counted among some 1,500 such incidents since Sept. 11, 2001. The Associated Press reported last week that military pilots now train up to four times a week to shoot down hijacked airliners. Fortunately, the pilot of a Cessna 210-5 that blundered unannounced into the three-hours-long, 30-nautical-mile TFR that veiled Milwaukee won the booby prize -- a practice session formation flying with a couple of F-16s. He was forced to land at Crites Field, near Waukesha, after reaching within 20 nautical miles of the TFR's bull's-eye. The plane was registered to Tony Vendramin, of Hobart, Ind., and his son Tony Jr. said his father was undoubtedly mortified by the trouble caused. "He voted for Bush." More...

...AND LOBBYING CONTINUES
The litany of blunders by pilots in restricted airspace isn't making the job of alphabet-group lobbyists any easier as they try to lessen the impact of security-related restrictions on our behalf. They do, however, keep soldiering on in a quest to restore some sense of pre-9/11 normalcy. EAA announced it will be going to the "highest levels" of the Department of Homeland Security to press for abolition of the air defense identification zone that blankets Washington, D.C. EAA acknowledges it's an uphill battle against Secret Service and defense officials who have apparently grown quite fond of the airspace cushion around the Capitol and are unlikely to give it up without a fight. More...

THE SEARCH FOR A MISSING 727
Over the last few months AVweb has reported on the strange disappearance of an African-based Boeing 727, reportedly modified to serve as an air tanker. While some subsequent reports speculated the jet had been found sporting a new paint job in Guinea, the actual location of the aircraft has never been determined. Joseph Padilla, the younger brother of the man assigned to arrange flight of the aircraft out of Angola, contacted AVweb to help clear his brother’s name and hopefully gather clues to find him alive. More...

…MANY THEORIES, FEW CLUES…
Joseph Padilla, the missing pilot’s brother, told AVweb the trail of clues has gone somewhat cold. However, Padilla told AVweb the FBI investigated and interviewed a pilot who claimed to have overheard a conversation by an aircraft mechanic that detailed the location of the jet. The mechanic in Beirut, according to Padilla, said the aircraft was located inside a hangar and would be used for an aerial attack against the Israeli government. The federal government is still investigating. Padilla says the government hasn’t told him much but his U.S. State Department contact assured him his brother was not viewed as a person who would intentionally steal the aircraft. More...

…LOOKING FOR ANSWERS
Joseph Padilla hopes to find some additional clues to piece this disturbing mystery together. While his hopes are high, he understands the gravity of the situation. Right before the jet departed, his brother was seen boarding the aircraft with a Congolese mechanic. As the aircraft taxied to the runway, several witnesses reported seeing the jet performing "crazy ground maneuvers" as it approached the runway. Padilla fears his brother was fighting for control of the aircraft and possibly for his life as well. Mr. Padilla requests that anyone with information that could help solve this mystery contact him via e-mail at padilla1956@cox.net or via phone at 850-944-9688. More...

DIAMOND GOES GLASS WITH GARMIN
Diamond's DA40 is the platform for the first certified installation of Garmin's new integrated glass panel. The G1000 is said to incorporate more features and offer better situational awareness to pilots by getting rid of all the conventional panel-mounted instruments and rolling their functions into two 10-inch sunlight-readable displays. In addition to all the information you'd expect on the primary flight display and multifunction display screens, the DA40 installation includes digital audio, a WAAS-capable IFR GPS, VHF navigation with ILS and VHF communication through 16-watt transceivers and 8.33-kHz-channel spacing. The electronics bundle also has Mode S, solid-state attitude and heading, a digital air data computer and optional weather and terrain data. It's all hooked up to a Bendix/King KAP two-axis autopilot. All those goodies will add $25,000 to the cost of a dial-and-gauge IFR-equipped DA40. More...

YEAGER CAUGHT BY CROSSWIND
Even a legend can be brought down to earth by a crosswind. Just ask Chuck Yeager. The pilot synonymous with edge-of-the-envelope flying met his match while taxiing after landing at Heaven's Landing, an airport development near Clayton, Ga. The 80-year-old retired Air Force general apparently bumped his head when the aircraft went off the runway and into a ditch. His wife was also not seriously injured. Physical injuries notwithstanding, the crowd of onlookers awaiting Yeager's arrival could feel his pain. More...

NEW JERSEY SEEKS RUNWAY EXTENSION BAN?
A couple of New Jersey assemblymen believe they can reduce noise at airports by limiting runway length. AOPA claims that legislation proposed by Democrats Herb Conaway and Jack Conners will stifle airport development and compromise safety without necessarily cutting noise. If passed, their bill would prohibit an airport from widening or lengthening a runway that is within 3,500 feet of a school, 1,000 feet of a house or if there are more than 7,000 homes within two miles of the runway. In a letter to the legislators, AOPA Vice President Andy Cebula says banning runway improvements won't necessarily cut noise. More...

AWARD HONORS LONG CAREERS
Mary S. Feik and Ann Wood-Kelly are this year's recipients of the National Aeronautic Association's Marjorie Stinson Award for Achievement. The award is handed out annually to women who have made an "enduring contribution, a meritorious flight, or a singular technical development" in aviation-related endeavors. Bud Orr, chairman of the Stinson Award selection committee, said both recipients fill the bill admirably. "These ladies helped blaze the trail for others to follow," he said. Long before the term "non-traditional occupation" was coined, Feik and Wood-Kelly were hard at work in the man's world of aviation. More...

EMBRY-RIDDLE AIR SHOW FUNDS TURNED DOWN
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University could be left holding the bag for expenses resulting from the air show it sponsors in Florida in November. The university had hoped Volusia County would chip in a total of $101,000 worth of beach patrol, law enforcement and cleanup services needed to stage Wings and Waves but came away with only $14,000 that is expected to be raised from the county's beach toll during the event Nov. 8 and 9. More than 200,000 people attended last year's show and the county contributed the beach fees plus $30,500. The Thunderbirds and various aerobatic performers have been scheduled to perform. More...

KITPLANES JOINS AVWEB UNDER BELVOIR
Belvoir Publications, Inc., announced this weekend the acquisition of KITPLANES Magazine from PRIMEDIA. Continuously published for over twenty years, KITPLANES is the leading independent provider of information for the homebuilt community, and joins other Belvoir aviation periodicals Aviation Consumer, Aviation Safety, IFR, Light Plane Maintenance, IFR Refresher, and Used Aircraft Guide. Belvoir also publishes AVflash and AVweb, the industry's leading general aviation electronic news service. "KITPLANES brings important synergies to Belvoir's aviation publishing operations," according to Timothy Cole, Belvoir's executive vice president and AVweb publisher. "The magazine is a terrific fit, allowing us to leverage our long-standing position in aviation to offer greater value for both KITPLANES readers and advertisers." More...

ON THE FLY...
Ann Devers has taken over as director of advertising sales for AVweb...
Airworthiness Directives are coming on Cessna 400-series aircraft...
A promising race-car driver died in a plane crash in California...
The Copperstate Regional EAA Fly-In runs Oct. 9-12...Legendary designer Walter Extra will be at the controls...
A high-flying teddy bear that's part of a geography project for school kids has been grounded...
A name change could be coming for Atlanta's mega-airport.
More...

AVWEB'S AVSCOOP AWARD...
Congratulations and an AVweb hat go out to Bill Underwood, this week's AVscoop winner. Submit news tips via email to newstips@avweb.com. Rules and information are at http://www.avweb.com/contact/newstips.html.

More...

NEW ARTICLES AND FEATURES ON AVWEB
COLUMNS
The Pilot's Lounge #66: What Is That Thing Inside The Cowling?
When you learned how to preflight an aircraft, you probably learned to check certain items for wear or breakage, but were you ever shown examples of what things looked like when they were worn too much? Or do you just guess? AVweb's Rick Durden found a class for pilots to learn enough so they don't have to guess.

REVIEWS
Survival Tech Aviation Survival Kit
Like a seatbelt or an ELT, you hope you never need to use a survival kit, but in an emergency you'll be glad you've got one. Doug Ritter reviews a recent entrant to the survival kit market. More...

SHORT FINAL...
I was taking my brother for his first flight in a GA airplane. He was somewhat nervous and a little overwhelmed by what we go through to launch a flight. I picked up the local ATIS on my handheld before engine start and, after we got in the plane and were ready to call for taxi clearance, I briefed him on the kind of radio transmissions he would hear as we taxied out and took off. That education behind us, I called for taxi clearance:

Me: Skylane 12345, West hangers, with MIKE, taxi.

Before I could get a word in edge-wise, my brother, Mike, (with awe in his voice...) said, “You have to even tell them who is with you?”

It took several minutes for me to regain composure and get on with the flight. More...

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AVflash is a twice-weekly summary of the latest aviation news, articles, products, features and events featured on AVweb, the Internet's Aviation Magazine and News Service. http://www.avweb.com

Letters to the editor intended for publication in AVmail should be sent to mailto:editor@avweb.com.com. Have a comment or question? Send it to mailto:newsteam@avweb.com.

Today's issue written by News Writer Russ Niles:
http://www.avweb.com/contact/authors.html#rniles
AVweb's editorial team: http://avweb.com/contact/authors.html.

Have a product or service to advertise on AVweb? A question on marketing? Send it to AVweb's sales team: mailto:sales@avweb.com.

Let's all be careful out there, okay?

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