PIPER TO ACQUIRE ITS OWN LSA?
Conflicting reports were flying on Wednesday about an alleged multimillion-dollar deal between Piper Aircraft and Czech Sport Aircraft, which builds the SportCruiser LSA, one of the more popular models in its segment. A local business daily in the Czech Republic reported that Piper was preparing to get into the LSA market, and the story was picked up by Flight International, then reported by AOPA Online. A Piper spokesman would neither confirm nor deny the report. But by later in the day, Dan Johnson's Sport Pilot blog was reporting that a Piper spokesman said no deal has been made. Calls from AVweb to Piper were not returned by our deadline. With the annual Sport Aviation Expo coming up soon in Sebring, Fla., Jan. 21 to 24, we expect to have more on this story, one way or the other, in the next week or so. More...

CANADIAN PILOT REPORTS FROM HAITI
Jason Krul, one of several pilots with the Mission Aviation Fellowship based in Haiti, was home with his wife, Willemien, and their two-year-old son, Jason, on Tuesday afternoon when the earthquake struck. "I remember hearing what sounded like a heavy dump truck drive past on our street," Willemien wrote in their blog the next day. "Then everything started shaking violently." The family, originally from British Columbia, Canada, came through OK, but their home was damaged and gas and water lines are broken. "If I walk down the street fifty steps, there is absolute and complete destruction," Jason told the Globe and Mail. [Click here for the podcast interview (MP3).] "There are dead bodies in the streets ... a lot of confusion and shock ... It's so incredibly overwhelming." The Kruls live just outside the capital city of Port-au-Prince, near the epicenter of Tuesday's devastating earthquake. The MAF plans to send at least three more pilots and four aircraft to help with relief efforts in the next week or so, spokesman Mark Field told AVweb on Wednesday. Rol Murrow, of the Air Care Alliance, told AVweb that other public-benefit flying groups in the U.S. have been in contact with relief officials to offer their help. More...

ADS-B UP AND RUNNING IN THE GULF
Houston air traffic controllers now are beginning to use the satellite-based Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) system to more efficiently and safely separate and manage aircraft flying over the Gulf of Mexico, where radar can't reach, the FAA said on Tuesday. "This is a significant, early step toward NextGen," said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt, in a press conference at the Houston Air Route Traffic Control Center. "We're delivering, on time, a system that's not only more accurate than radar but comes with significant safety and efficiency benefits. This will save time and money for aircraft operators and passengers and reduce our carbon footprint." Previously, controllers had to rely on an aircraft's estimated or reported -- not actual -- position. About 5,000 to 9,000 helicopter operations to and from oil platforms take place every day in the Gulf. Under IFR at low altitudes the helicopters were isolated within 20-mile-square boxes to ensure safe separation from other aircraft. Commercial aircraft in the non-radar airspace were separated by as much as 120 miles. More...

BEECHCRAFT KING AIR 350I GETS FAA APPROVAL
Hawker Beechcraft Corp. said on Wednesday its new Beechcraft King Air 350i twin turboprop has been certified by the FAA and the European Aviation Safety Agency and deliveries have already started. "With the new King Air 350i, our customers are benefiting from the same fuel efficiency and mission flexibility expected from a King Air, while now also enjoying an ultra-modern, state-of-the-art cabin rivaling that of global business jets costing millions more," said HBC Executive Vice President Shawn Vick. "We are pleased to have the King Air 350i in operation in the U.S. and Europe and look forward to additional certifications worldwide soon." The 350i is equipped with a new cabin system by Rockwell Collins that supports various devices such as MP3 players, video-game consoles, and laptop computers. The cabin is also designed to be quiet and easy to reconfigure for various missions. The 2010 standard equipped price is $6,622,100. More...

TWO EVENTS TO HONOR AVIATION LEGENDS
Coming up next week, the Living Legends of Aviation, a group of famous pilots, astronauts, entrepreneurs, and others involved in the world of flight, holds its 7th annual event to honor those who have made significant contributions to aviation. On Jan. 22, in Beverly Hills, Calif., John Travolta will present awards to actor Tom Cruise and astronaut Buzz Aldrin. Cruise, an accomplished aerobatic pilot, owns a P-51 Mustang, and inspired generations of moviegoers with his work in Top Gun, the highest-grossing aviation movie ever. Aldrin is one of the 12 humans who have walked on the moon. The ceremony is open to the public, but be prepared to dig deep -- tickets go for $800 each, or just $250 for the after-party only. Click here for more info. Also coming up is a one-of-a-kind event honoring the crews of the B-25s that delivered the first bombing raid on Japan in 1942. Only eight of those crew members remain, and about 40 of the airplanes are still flying. This April, seven of those survivors and 25 of the airplanes will meet in a one-time event to be held in Dayton, Ohio, to honor the Doolittle Raiders. More...

"POSITION AND HOLD" CHANGE EXPECTED SOON
The FAA could soon implement a changeover from "position and hold" to "line up and wait," to conform with international phraseology standards, NBAA said this week. If approved later this month, the new terminology could be implemented as soon as this June. It's long overdue, according to NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman. She said the NTSB issued six recommendations in July 2000, asking the FAA to change various ATC procedures to reduce the risks of runway operations. "In response, we were recently advised that the FAA soon plans to adopt a single change: the use of "line up and wait" instead of "position and hold" to instruct pilots to enter a runway and wait for takeoff clearance," Hersman said at a runway safety summit in Washington last month. "We needed to wait nine years for that?" Bob Lamond, of NBAA, told AVweb on Tuesday he doesn't expect too much distress over the change. "Folks are going to stumble over it at first, but we'll get used to it," he said. "It's been talked about for years, so it's really a non-issue for us." More...

WASHINGTON EYES AIRCRAFT OWNERSHIP TAX
Washington State aircraft owners are getting ready to fight a new tax that could add hundreds or even thousands of dollars a year to their fixed costs. State Sen. Cheryl Pflug told the Washington Pilots Association that a citizens' commission on tax preferences has recommended a 1 percent yearly excise tax based on the value of aircraft. An aircraft worth $100,000 would therefore be taxed $1,000. Pflug told the association that the commission views the tax as a "revenue opportunity" and is recommending the state legislature impose it. She urged the WPA to give her ammunition to fight the proposed tax in the form of economic impact analyses and the volunteer efforts of pilots in maintaining state-owned airports. WPA spokesman John Townsley told AVweb that aircraft owners now pay a flat annual registration fee ($65 for a piston single) and that the proposed tax wouldn't benefit aviation. More...

AVWEBBIZ: AVWEB'S BUSINESS AVIATION NEWSLETTER

Have you signed up yet for AVweb's no-cost weekly business aviation newsletter, AVwebBiz?

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.

Add AVwebBiz to your AVweb subscriptions today by clicking here and choosing "Update E-mail Subscriptions."

HAD AN ENGINE OVERHAUL? AVIATION CONSUMER WANTS TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE
Aviation Consumer is conducting a survey to hear your experiences with engine overhaul shops. Whether the experience was propulsion bliss or aggravation of a new order, please take a couple minutes to let others know how it went. Your response will help inform an article on engine shops for Aviation Consumer magazine. Click here to participate. 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

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: PAYING THE PIPER (AND THE GOVERNMENT)
Washington State is considering a new tax on aircraft ownership, and the fat cat image of private aircraft ownership never seems to change outside the aviation community. This week, we want to know what you think: Does general aviation pay its fair share?

Plus: Last week, we asked about increasing airline security and whether it will discourage people from traveling commercially; click through to read what AVweb readers had to say on the subject. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: ALL SULLY, ALL THE TIME
As an aviation editor, Paul Bertorelli has seen enough coverage of the US Airways Flight 1549 ditching to last him a lifetime — but still, he found TLC's Brace for Impact worth watching. Read Paul's comments and add your own at the AVweb Insider blog. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: FILMS YOU GOTTA WATCH
What is it about World War II pilot training films that make them so interesting to watch? Paul Bertorelli offers no answers in his latest post to our AVweb Insider blog — but he does have plenty of links, so you can watch a few and develop your own theories. Click here to revisit the golden age of training films. More...

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: SMA'S CESSNA CONVERSION — ONE CLUB'S EXPERIENCE
Despite good fuel specifics and power-to-weight ratio, SMA's Jet A-fueled SR305 hasn't made major inroads into the aircraft engine market. The Paramus Flying Club in New Jersey converted one its 182s to diesel power nearly a year ago, and in this joint report by AVweb and Aviation Consumer magazine, we report on the club's encouraging operational experience. More...

15 YEARS AND NOW 15 GRAND GIVEAWAYS ... IT'S YOUR CHANCE TO WIN A BOSE AVIATION HEADSET X

Win a Bose Aviation X headset as we celebrate our 15th Anniversary! All you have to do is click here to enter your name and e-mail address. (You only have to enter once, and you'll be entered in our prize drawings for the entire year — so if you've already entered, you're all set.)

And no, we're not going to rent or sell your name, ever. Tell your friends, and invite them to sign up for AVweb so they can qualify for our 15 Grand Giveaways prize drawings, too. (We won't spam them, either — but we hope they will sign up for our newsletters.)

Deadline for entries is 11:59pm Zulu time Friday, January 29, 2010.

Click here to read the contest rules and enter.

FBO OF THE WEEK: BUSINESS JET CENTER (OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA)

With the holidays behind us, AVweb readers are criss-crossing the skies with their usual fervor once again — and telling us about the outstanding FBOs they encounter along the way. Our latest "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to Business Jet Center at Oakland International Airport (KOAK) in Oakland, California.

Student pilot Erika Amir tells us why BJC is a favorite destination:

[T]he service can't be beat! They have beautiful facilities, and I'm always greeted with a smile. There have been many days that I've enjoyed a cold drink after a hot afternoon in the plane and have always been glad for the air-conditioned lobby. The folks who work the line are professional and friendly and are always willing to go the extra mile. I definitely recommend Biz Jet!

Click here to tell us about your favorite FBO. 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 RETURNS MONDAY ...
"POTW" will return on Monday. (We're a little behind this week, but we'll give you a peek at this week's photos Monday. Be sure to check the slideshow on AVweb's home page for a preview over on Thursday.) 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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