FAA ASKS UNIONS, REGIONAL AIRLINES TO MAKE CHANGES
FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt said on Wednesday a new rule establishing flight and rest rules for pilots at regional airlines will be drafted by Sept. 1, and called on the airlines and unions to make changes in hiring and safety practices by the end of July. "We know that the airline industry is committed to operate at the highest level of safety," Babbitt said. "Now is the time to push these initiatives forward." The FAA wants airlines to obtain all available FAA records before hiring pilots, and all carriers who don't have Flight Operations Quality Assurance and Aviation Safety Action Programs in place should implement them immediately. Also, airlines that have contractual relationships with regionals should ensure that the regionals follow the same standard of safety. By July 15, the FAA will establish an Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) comprising representatives from the FAA, labor and industry, which will develop recommendations for the new FAA rule regarding flight time and rest standards. More...

ELECTRIC AVIATION MOVES FORWARD
Last week it was the SkySpark project flying fast on batteries, this week we heard that the first electric-powered airplane has flown in China, and on Wednesday Bye Energy announced that it has received a grant from the Wolf Aviation Fund to research electric motors for small GA aircraft. It's getting easier to believe the age of gasoline is on its last legs -- and while that may not be the case just yet, we do expect to see a lot of new emissions-free technology on display at EAA AirVenture next month. One of those displays will be the new airplane from China, the Yuneec International E430, which flew for the first time on June 12. It has since flown at least two more times, and is now being shipped to the U.S. so it can be ready to fly at Oshkosh. Test pilot Shun Xun said the E430 has plenty of power and the ride is exceptionally quiet and smooth. Takeoff speed was 40 mph and top flight speed was about 93 mph. More...

SOLAR IMPULSE UNVEILING SET FOR FRIDAY
Solar Impulse, an airplane designed to fly around the world on solar power, will be unveiled tomorrow, Friday, June 26, at Dubendorf airfield near Zurich, Switzerland. The aircraft has a wingspan of 210 feet and weighs about 3,500 pounds. It's powered by four 10-hp electric motors and carries more than 11,000 solar cells on the wing and the horizontal stabilizer. "The design of the aircraft, pure and futuristic, will itself be the symbol of the spirit of the project in the sky," says the company Web site. The project has been in the works since 2003, and organizers hope to launch the round-the-world flight in 2012. Five flight legs are planned, each lasting three to four days, "which is considered to be the maximum a single pilot can endure," according to the Web site. More...

VOLUNTEER PILOTS, TAKE NOTE -- ANGEL FLIGHT REQUIREMENTS VARY
AVweb noted on Monday that some Angel Flight organizations have amended their pilot requirements in the wake of last year's three fatal crashes, but we would like to re-emphasize -- as we stated in that Monday story -- that several different groups use the "Angel Flight" term and not all of them have the same rules. David Prutzman, the president of Angel Flight East, wrote to let us know that his organization reviews its policies, pilot requirements and safety recommendations on an ongoing basis and has recently implemented several changes as a result of those reviews. However, the group is maintaining its previously published requirements for pilot qualifications and aircraft TBO. Aviators should check with their particular volunteer group, whether it is some form of Angel Flight or any other organization, for details on requirements and updates about changes. More...

WACO UPDATES ITS CLASSIC BIPLANE
Waco Classic Aircraft, of Battle Creek, Mich., announced this week that it has overhauled its YMF-5C biplane, adding many new features and upgrades, and is now introducing the YMF-5D. "This new model of aircraft delivers greater performance than ever before," the company said in a news release. It has more horsepower, thanks to a new Jacobs R755-A2 300-hp engine, and the weight of the aircraft is lower, due to design changes and the expanded use of lightweight materials. More...

BOEING'S LATEST DREAMLINER SETBACK
Boeing said on Tuesday that first flight of the 787 Dreamliner will be postponed again, due to a need to reinforce an area within the side-of-body section of the aircraft, and it will be several weeks before a new first flight or delivery date will be announced. Boeing officials had said as recently as last week at the Paris Air Show that the Dreamliner's first flight would take place by the end of this month, and deliveries would start by next March. The need to modify the aircraft raised questions about whether the computer models that are used to design aircraft and predict performance are adequate, especially when using advanced composite materials, but officials at Boeing said the process is working as it should: Computer models predict how the design will behave, but extensive real-world testing is always required to validate those predictions and, if necessary, modify the models. The aircraft will require structural reinforcements at about 36 points near the area where the wing joins the fuselage, Boeing officials said, but the changes will not significantly impact weight or performance. More...

LANCAIR EVOLUTION IN GEAR-UP MISHAP
Lancair International says serial number 01 of its Evolution Turbine kit speedster will be back on tour within a week after a gear up landing at Northeast Georgia Regional Airport, near Winder, Ga. In a news release Monday, Lancair said the aircraft suffered "minor" damage to its rudder and tail cone in the mishap and technicians were dispatched immediately with all the tools and supplies needed to get the plane fixed and back in the air. "True to the nature of high strength composites the damage is expected to be fully repaired in three to five days, the company said. Company pilot Bob Jeffrey was flying at the time.

Related Content:
See video of the Evolution's debut at Sun 'n Fun 2008 here. More...

ON THE FLY ...
PDFPlates.com will offer free approach plates for your Kindle...
Two Australians survived a helicopter crash in remote crocodile-infested mudflats...
Cessna has begun deliveries of its Corvalis models from its plant in Independence, Kan....
The FAA is accepting comments on a request to ban nighttime traffic at Bob Hope Airport. More...

FAA'S NEW YORK REGION AIRSPACE REDESIGN WINS IN COURT
The FAA's plan to redesign the New York/New Jersey/Philadelphia region airspace cleared a key legal barrier last week when a court struck down a group of legal challenges, the FAA said on Monday. A federal appeals court ruled on June 10 that the FAA can continue to move ahead as planned. Challenges had been filed by several state and local governments in the region, as well as a citizens group, claiming that the FAA didn't properly perform an environmental impact study of the changes in air traffic patterns that would result from the redesign. The court disagreed. "The FAA's environmental impact analysis was procedurally sound and substantively reasonable," the court wrote in its decision. The FAA says the redesign will help reduce delays by about 20 percent, and NBAA agrees. "This is welcome news for everyone," Steve Brown, NBAA's vice president for operations, told AVweb on Tuesday. "This redesign is absolutely a good thing for airspace users. It will make traffic flow more efficiently, with fewer delays. It will save fuel and increase capacity." The redesign will be completed in 2012, the FAA said. More...

SAM WILLIAMS, FOUNDER OF WILLIAMS INTL., DIES AT AGE 88
Dr. Sam B. Williams, founder and chairman of turbine engine company Williams International, of Walled Lake, Mich., died on Monday at the age of 88, the company announced in a news release on Tuesday. The small, efficient fanjet engines that Dr. Williams developed and patented were crucial to the development of very light jets and today are widely used on general aviation jet aircraft. The first Williams International jet engine, the FJ44-1A, was certified by the FAA in 1992, and since then, 4,000 FJ44 engines have entered service. Dr. Williams was inspired by a "lifelong dream of making jet travel safe, convenient, and affordable," the company said. He left a secure career at Chrysler Corp. in 1955 and started his own company with limited funds. Besides VLJs and bizjets, Williams engines have powered cruise missiles, the X-Jet flying platform, the V-Jet II designed by Scaled Composites that flew in 1997, and military drones. Dr. Williams was the recipient of many awards for innovation, including the Collier Trophy, the Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy, and the National Medal of Technology. He was also inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame and the National Aviation Hall of Fame. More...

AVWEBBIZ: AVWEB'S BUSINESS AVIATION NEWSLETTER

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Delivered every Wednesday morning, AVwebBiz focuses on the companies, the products and the industry leaders that make headlines in the business aviation industry, making it a must-read.

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AVMAIL: JUNE 25, 2009

Letter of the Week: Age 65 Rule

Regarding your article "APA Uses Continental 61 to Support Age 60 Rule": Scott Shankland's comments are biased and not founded in fact or reality. The referenced pilot could have just as easily been under age 60 and died of a heart attack. Many do. The causes related to heart attacks are tied to genetics and physical fitness, not age. Depending on the individual, one may live a very long life without anyheart condition. It is not related to age.

In your article, you stated the FAA had changed the age 60 limit to age 65. Not true. Congress made the change after we lobbied them for more than a decade.

Also, I'd like to know why you interviewed a pro-age 60 pilot but failed to give equal coverage to pro-age 65 pilots?

Actually, we did not ask for age 65 as the new retirement age for airline pilots in the legislation. In fact, we asked for, and got written into the legislation, that pilots could retire at their individual social security retirement age. Thus, there would have been no fixed age for retirement — we believe a fixed age is wrong. However, Sen. Stevens came out of conference one day about four years ago and said he could not get consensus so he was changing the age limit to match the ICAO's standard of age 65. That's how we ended up with age 65 — not because we asked for it.

Stan Sutterfield

Click through to read the rest of this week's letters.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: IS THIS THE DAWNING OF THE AGE OF ELECTRIC ENGINES?
Positive announcements from SkySpark and the Yuneec E430 have a lot of people wondering if electric-powered airplanes are ready to make the leap from high-tech concept to everyday reality. This week, we'd like to know where you think the technology is headed.

Plus: Last week, we asked AVweb readers if they would still recommend a job in the airline industry to young people shopping around for a career; click through to see how they responded. 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...

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: YUNEEC E430 ELECTRIC AIRPLANE MAKES ITS FIRST FLIGHT
The Yuneec E430, a 54hp two-seat Chinese electric airplane, gets put through its paces and undergoes its first flight. More...

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

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: LIGHT SPORT AMPHIBS — IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER
If you've forgotten why it is you started flying in the first place, Paul Bertorelli and Jeff Van West suggest you pay a visit to Progressive Aerodyne and fly the SeaRey amphibian. If there's not a law against having this much fun, maybe there ought to be. See why it's all Paul can talk about in the latest installment of the AVweb Insider blog. More...

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: SEAREY LSX LIGHT SPORT AMPHIBIAN FLIGHT TRIAL
Aviation Consumer's Jeff Van West takes a SeaRey LSX for a spin on the water. Testing this light sport amphibian turned out to be more fun than we were expecting — what a blast! More...

FBO OF THE WEEK: IDEAL AVIATION (ST. LOUIS AIRPORT, CAHOKIA, IL)

AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to Ideal Aviation at St. Louis Downtown Airport (KCPS) in Cahokia, Illinois.

To explain why Ideal is so great, we need to invoke a couple of very similar acronyms: First up is NIFA, the National Intercollegiate Flying Association, which held their 2009 SAFECON event in May, and second is NAFI, the National Association of Flight Instructors, whose Executive Director Jason Blair visited Ideal during SAFECON. Jason writes:

During the last two weeks in May, Ideal got "bombed" by over 100 aircraft from 30 university flight schools from all over the country. Ideal allowed the [SAFECON] competitors to park their aircraft across their ramp, and provided fuel and maintenance services to schools that required it. (Western Michigan University brought 2 Cirrus SR-20 aircraft to the event, one of which suffered a small alternator issue during the course of the week. The mechanic from Ideal had the issue rectified, and the aircraft tested and returned to service within a matter of hours.)

When I arrived to attend the final banquet, not only was a ramp space waiting for me in front of the building, but I didn't even have to put my plane in it. I parked in front of the door, and their capable line staff put my plane into a spot later and fueled it for me.

Ideal Aviation showed a great amount of patience, support, and help, to all of the students, advisors, and coaches who attended the 2009 SAFECON event. They deserve a huge round of applause for their amazing efforts during a time in which they were swarmed ... not only the company owners and reception employees, but the two line gentleman that choreographed a safe, efficient, and safe ramp environment, as well.

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
Oh, yeah — happy days are here again, as "Picture of the Week" submissions returned to their usual summer high point this week! Bad news for those of you in heated competition for the high-quality AVweb-branded baseball cap we give away to the top photo each week, but great news for the rest of us. Congrats to Phil Dietro of Victorville, California, whose photo come out on top in a very competitive week. 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

Webmaster
Scott Simmons

Contributors
Jeff van West
Mariano Rosales

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