KLAPMEIER JET DEAL COLLAPSES
Cirrus Design founder Alan Klapmeier announced Friday that negotiations with Cirrus Aircraft over his proposed purchase of the VisionJet program have collapsed and, at this point, there is little likelihood of them resuming. Klapmeier told AVweb there were a number of sticking points in the negotiations, including price, that couldn't be settled. "It appears that we're not going to be able to come to an agreement," he said. AVweb left a voice message with Cirrus CEO Brent Wouters but he did not immediately return our call. Klapmeier said he was disappointed by the outcome. "It's sad, but life goes on," he said. More...

CIRRUS SAYS MORE JET TALKS POSSIBLE
Cirrus Aircraft CEO Brent Wouters opened the door to future negotiations with former CEO Alan Klapmeier to buy the VisionJet program. Wouters said Klapmeier's decision to suspend talks "doesn't mean our conversations are over with Alan" but added that he also wasn't sure why Klapmeier made that decision. He said there had been numerous discussions about a potential deal and it was his impression that they were getting close to an agreement. Wouters stressed Cirrus will continue to develop the jet as part of its product line. "All I can do is continue to run the business," he said. More...

EAA PREVIEWS NEW, LESS CONTROVERSIAL, "51% RULE" CHANGES
The FAA's proposed changes to the so-called "51-Percent Rule" drew just about universal opposition from the kit aircraft industry and homebuilders over the last year or two, but on Friday at AirVenture Oshkosh, the EAA's Earl Lawrence outlined the latest overhaul of that proposal, and it got a warm welcome from the forum audience. Past forums on the issue have been contentious, but this one -- which was perhaps helped by the fact that no FAA representatives were present -- was collegial and calm. Lawrence said that after receiving 2,300 comments on the proposed policy changes, 98 percent of them negative, the Aviation Rulemaking Committee was reconvened early this year and came up with a revised FAA Advisory Circular, which he expects to be published on Aug. 17 or thereabouts. Under the new plan, some of the more troublesome details of the previous proposal have been dropped, including a widely reviled "20/20/11" rule that created a quagmire of questions about what qualifies as "fabrication" or "assembly." (Click here for a detailed analysis of those issues by Kitplanes editor Marc Cook.) The newly revised policy will require checklists for all kits that will clarify which tasks are completed by the builder, or the manufacturer, or commercial assistance; and all kits now in progress will be grandfathered, so they will be assessed according to the rules that were in place when the kit was purchased. More...

VAMPIRE LSA DEBUTS AT OSHKOSH

Click for video of the Vampire in our series of "Product Minutes" from AirVenture

"The idea was to be elegantly simple," Sadler Aircraft Co. co-owner David Littlejohn told AVweb this week at AirVenture Oshkosh, as he talked about the neat folding-wing design on the company's new Vampire LSA. "You just remove the bolts, fold once, then fold again. One person can do it." (To see the folding-up in action, click here for a minute-long video with AVweb's Jeff Van West.) The company, based in Oregon, has worked for three years to bring their LSA design to market, and now they are hoping that ASTM certification is just a few weeks away. The Vampire is built on a scaled-back air-to-ground fighter plane airframe, stressed to more than plus-or-minus 6 g's. The Jabiru 120 hp engine turns a pusher prop that sits between twin tail booms. Wide gullwing cabin doors allow for easy entry and egress, and a 50-pound baggage compartment in the nose has an easy topside access port. Littlejohn said the company is taking orders now, with a base price of $96,900. More...

NATCA PRESIDENT OUT; RUNOFF FOR SUCCESSOR
Patrick Forrey, who has served as president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association since September 2006, has lost his bid for re-election, and the group will hold a runoff to decide between two candidates, NATCA said on Friday. Former Executive Vice President Ruth Marlin and current Executive Vice President Paul Rinaldi will compete in the runoff. It will take at least a month for the association to complete its runoff procedure and name a new president, and perhaps longer. Forrey will remain in office until Aug. 31, the end of his term, but if no successor has been named by then, he will stay in office until the next president is named, NATCA spokeswoman Alexandra Caldwell told AVweb. "If there is no challenge to the election results, the ballots for the runoff election will go out on the 16th day [after July 31]," she said. "If there is a challenge, the ballots will go out 16 days after the resolution to that challenge." Then, a 30-day period will pass after the ballots go out, and the ballots will be counted on the 31st day. Presuming a winner is named, another 30 days will pass until he or she takes office. More...

TWO ECLIPSE OWNERS SUBMIT BID FOR COMPANY ASSETS
Two owners of Eclipse E500 jets, Mason Holland and Mike Press, have submitted a bid of about $40 million to take over the assets of the bankrupt Eclipse Aviation in Albuquerque, N.M. Holland told AVweb that he and Press have formed a company called Eclipse Aerospace that would be based in Albuquerque, and would offer sales and service for the fleet. In a letter to E500 owners, Holland and Press said they have been working hard to put together a business plan, solid financial backing, and a strong support team. They are expecting that the auction will take place in August, and if they are successful, they could take ownership within a few weeks. More...

SPECIAL COUNSEL ACCUSES FAA OF WRONGDOING
The U.S. Office of Special Counsel has written President Barack Obama and Congress alleging that there's a "substantial likelihood that FAA officials and employees engaged in violation of law, rule or regulation, gross mismanagement and an abuse of authority, all of which contributed to a substantial and specific danger to public safety." The Special Counsel also accuses the Department of Transportation of foot-dragging in its investigation of the allegations, which originated with a whistleblower complaint from FAA inspector Rand Foster on July 8, 2008. Forester contends that the FAA decided, for political reasons, against enforcing certification standards on more than 300 emergency medical services helicopters that had non-compliant night vision systems installed on them. The Office of Special Counsel initially gave DOT and the FAA 60 days to answer the allegations and has granted several extensions. On July 20 the Special Counsel decided enough was enough and notified the government.

Related Content:
Special Counsel's letter to the President (PDF) More...

NORAD TRACKS UNRESPONSIVE SR22
Two NORAD F-16s were scrambled over the Midwest on Thursday after the pilot of a Cirrus SR-22 apparently became incapacitated at the controls and the aircraft flew over its destination of Eagle Creek, Indiana. The FAA asked for the fighter escort after they lost contact with the aircraft as it flew over. The plane continued, apparently on autopilot, for more than two hours before crashing near Henderson, West Virginia. More...

ANOTHER YUNEEC PRODUCT — THE ELECTRIC PARAGLIDER
Along with various electric-powered aircraft that were on display at AirVenture Oshkosh this week, down on the Ultralight flight line, Yuneec was displaying a sporty "electric paramotor" called the E-Pac, for the first time in the U.S. The motor/propeller system is designed to be worn like a backpack by a pilot -- or just about any brave soul, since no pilot certificate is required -- who flies beneath a powered-parachute-type canopy. The pack weighs about 65 pounds, about the same as a similar gas-powered unit, said Eric Dufour, an experienced paraglider (and winner of the U.S. national paramotor competitions in 2003 through 2006), who helped Yuneec to develop the product. "It's very quiet and smooth to fly," Dufour said, "so if you fly for only 30 or 40 minutes, it is worth the same as flying for two hours with noise and vibration." More...

ABLE FLIGHT PILOTS GET THEIR WINGS
Able Flight, the nonprofit group that provides flight-training scholarships for people with physical disabilities, honored their three latest scholarship winners in a ceremony at Aeroshell Square at AirVenture Oshkosh on Tuesday morning. "These wings are symbolic of their dedication and will power," said Able Flight executive director Charles Stites. The honorees, all of whom have earned their sport pilot certificate, were Jeremy Maddox, Mal Zackery, and Jessica Cox. Maddox, of Georgia, was paralyzed in a motocross accident, and soloed after only 11 hours. Zackery, also of Georgia, earned his certificate in early July. He was paralyzed less than two years ago when a robber shot him as he was making the night deposit for a store he managed. And Cox, of Arizona, who was born without arms, became the first person to earn a pilot certificate by flying an airplane entirely with her feet. Special guests who pinned on their wings were aerobatic pilots Mike Goulian and Patty Wagstaff, and aerospace reporter Miles O'Brien. More...

EAA AIRVENTURE 2009 GALLERIES: DAY SIX

Click for more photos

For us, EAA AirVenture is beginning to wind down — but for many attendees who are just now arriving for the weekend, the fun has only begun. Intern Adam is on his way home today, but he did manage squeeze out a few more photos before hitting the road. (Watch for his final batch of show photos tomorrow!) More...

EAA AIRVENTURE 2009 GALLERIES: OUR DAY AT THE SEAPLANE BASE (2 OF 3)

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On Thursday, we sent Aviation Safety editor-in-chief Jeb Burnside out to the Seaplane Base at EAA AirVenture. In exchange for his freedom, we demanded pictures — and Jeb brought back three galleries' worth of awesome snapshots. This is the second of these galleries. More...

THIS WEEK, LIVE FROM OSHKOSH: THE AVWEBCAM (LIVE VIDEO FEED)
Watch for live video coverage of EAA AirVenture throughout the web, via our AVwebCam. We'll be broadcasting live from 9am to 6pm local (Oshkosh) time each day of the show. Look for the webcam player on our home page to enjoy the sights and sounds of the show — and maybe catch a glimpse of the AVweb team in action. More...

EAA AIRVENTURE 2009 PODCAST SERIES: EXPERIMENTAL GLASS
Dynon Avionics has become a popular single-unit EFIS solution for light sport and experimental aircraft. The company has grown to include engine management systems and autopilots. Now, with synthetic vision just a few months away, Dynon's Mike Schofield says affordable highway-in-the-sky moving maps and weather are in the queue. If you fly certified aircraft only, this is what you're missing.

This podcast is brought to you by Lightspeed Aviation and WxWorx XM WX Satellite Weather. More...

EAA AIRVENTURE 2009 PODCAST SERIES: NEW WAYS TO TRAIN
When Cessna decided to build the 162 Skycatcher, it also decided to change the way new pilots are trained. It gave that task to King Schools, and John King spoke with AVweb's Russ Niles about the focus on scenario-based training.

This podcast is brought to you by Bose Corporation. More...

EAA AIRVENTURE 2009 VIDEO SERIES: BEAR 360
If this airplane looks like a 2:3 scale Bearcat, that's exactly the idea. The Russian-made Bear 360 is aimed at pilots who want a high-performance sport recreation aircraft but can't afford a real warbird. In this video, Skip Holm explains what the Bear 360 is all about.

This video is brought to you by Bose Corporation. More...

EAA AIRVENTURE 2009 VIDEO SERIES: ARMLESS PILOT JESSICA COX AT OSHKOSH
Jessica Cox, the first person with no arms to be granted a light sport pilot license by the FAA, met with AVweb at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2009. As you watch the video, be prepared to never complain about anything ever again. (For more on Jessica, visit her web site, RightFooted.com.

This video is brought to you by Bose Corporation. 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...

HOW DO YOU LIKE THAT GLASS PANEL? TAKE AVIATION CONSUMER'S USER SURVEY
Virtually every new airplane these days has an electronic flight display system of some kind. Our sister publication Aviation Consumer would like to hear from users of these systems. Click here to take the survey.

(The results will appear in a future issue of Aviation Consumer. For subscription information, click here.) 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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