SPORT AVIATION EXPO OPENS GA YEAR IN SEBRING
It's the first general aviation show of the year, so lots of eyes are on the sixth annual Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring, Fla., this week, hoping to get a sense of how 2010 will go. The last two months of 2009 were unexpectedly slow, Dan Johnson, president of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association, told AVweb on Wednesday, ending the year with LSA registrations overall down about 42 percent from the year before. Weather reports for the weekend look good, and some big news is expected, with an airplane under wraps outside the Piper booth -- this is the first year Piper has appeared at the show, and they are expected to announce on Thursday that they are adding an LSA to their flight line. As of Wednesday, the show grounds were filling up, exhibit space was pretty much sold out, and Johnson said he was hopeful for a strong turnout. "We're hoping to kick off the year with a good start," he said. The show runs Thursday through Sunday. More...

ON EXHIBIT AT LSA EXPO: AMPHIB CUB, SKYCATCHER, LATEST TECNAM, LOTS MORE
Visitors to the Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring, Fla., this week will find plenty of new products to look at, climb into, salivate over, and even go flying in. American Legend Aircraft Co. will be there with their new Legend AmphibCub, which started deliveries just last week. With aluminum floats, Garmin avionics, and a useful load of 432 pounds, the Amphib sells for $159,000. Cessna is displaying its No. 1 production copy of the Skycatcher, which belongs to Rose Pelton, wife of CEO Jack. Van's Aircraft, which has entered the segment with its RV-12 LSA, will have an exhibit at Sebring for the first time. Tecnam has two new aircraft to show this week, the P2008, making its U.S. debut, and the P2006T twin that debuted at Oshkosh last summer (click here for a video tour of the twin, with AVweb's Jeff Van West). Compared to earlier models, the P2008 has a new wing, a bigger cabin and larger doors. The Remos GX that is AOPA's Fun-to-Fly Sweepstakes airplane this year will be on display. Flight Design, one of the big players in the LSA segment, will have the latest version of its Metal Concept airplane to show. That's just for starters; there are dozens more exhibitors on the field. More...

GA CONTRIBUTES TO HAITI RESPONSE
With continuing aftershocks and seemingly endless misery to cope with, responders and residents in Haiti face overwhelming challenges, and general aviation is stepping up to help ease that burden. While access is still limited at the main airport at Port au Prince, some smaller outlying fields are now open and GA pilots are delivering supplies from the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic. "General aviation has the unique flexibility to use reliever airports to enhance the relief efforts taking place in Port-au-Prince," AOPA President Craig Fuller said this week. "Working through a variety of humanitarian groups here in the United States and in Haiti, pilots are making a real difference." Bahamas Habitat, a relief-mission group, is asking pilots for help. "General aviation aircraft are needed to deliver supplies and then do short round trips between Haiti and Inagua in the Southern Bahamas to evacuate missionaries and others unable to leave Haiti," according to the group's blog. "We have medical and other supplies in Nassau and Fort Lauderdale that need to be moved in and the list of people needing to be evacuated continues to grow," the group told EAA. So far the flight missions have involved aircraft such as Cessna 182s, Beech Bonanzas and Barons, Piper Aztecs, and Cessna 340s and a Caravan. The organization seeks other volunteers with twin-engine aircraft and high-performance singles. More...

'MIRACLE' A320 WRECKAGE TO BE AUCTIONED OFF

Click for more photos

The wreck has been stripped of its engines, and it's a bit the worse for wear, with extensive water damage and impact damage to the underside, but the remains of the Airbus A320 that was made famous in last year's Hudson ditching are about to go on the auction block. Interested parties can contact Chartis Aerospace Insurance Services to get a look at the airframe, or click through to visit the Web site's set of 20 detailed photos. An inspection will be scheduled probably within the next 45 days. The aircraft is for sale "as is," and the buyer must move it from its storage site in Kearny, N.J., by April 10 or take over the storage payments. The wreckage was treated with a corrosion inhibitor last summer, but otherwise has not been repaired. The auction closes March 27. More...

NEW FROM GARMIN: ADDED FUNCTIONS FOR G3X GLASS PANEL; APP FOR WX ROUTING
The Garmin folks are at the Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring, Fla., this week with two announcements -- add-on capabilities for the G3X glass panel that was introduced last year, and a new app for the iPhone that overlays your flight route directly onto weather information. Users of the G3X now can add an engine information system (EIS) and an integrated autopilot interface that were designed specifically for the G3X. The result, according to Garmin, is "an affordable way for experimental and light sport aircraft (LSA) pilots to bring Garmin integration and quality into their cockpit." The EIS can be added on to existing systems with a free software download and the installation of a sensor kit, both of which will be available next month for most of the popular engine types. The new integrated autopilot interface will be available next month as a free software upgrade. Click here for more details from Garmin and click here for a preview of an upcoming review of the G3X by Kitplanes editor Marc Cook. The basic G3X system starts at $9,995. The new app for the iPhone or iPod Touch is called Pilot My-Cast and provides aviation weather, flight planning, and flight filing capabilities, and it is available now. More...

SKYCATCHER DELIVERIES DELAYED
Cessna is telling 162 Skycatcher position holders that their order will be delayed six to 10 months because of design changes that resulted from the flight test program. "We did find a few things during our flight tests," Cessna spokesman Doug Oliver told AVweb. Most of the changes were needed to fix spin-recovery issues. Cessna lost two aircraft to unrecoverable spins, although the pilot in each instance was uninjured. Oliver said the rudder needs more surface area and the elevator and aileron travel needs to be decreased on each aircraft and that work is currently being done after the aircraft are finished by the factory in China. Eventually, the design changes will be integrated into primary production but in the meantime it's causing delays as Yingling Aviation, which is reassembling the crated aircraft in Wichita, makes the modifications. More...

DREAMLINER READY FOR SECOND TEST PHASE
Boeing's 787 Dreamliner has reached the end of its initial airworthiness test phase, the company said last week, which means more crew members and engineers now can fly in the cabin and additional aircraft will be added to the program. "This is an important step forward," said Scott Fancher, general manager of the 787 program at Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "We are very pleased ... The pilots have told me the results we are seeing in flight match their expectations and the simulations we've run." The 787 has flown 15 times and accumulated about 60 hours since the first launch in mid-December. Pilots took the airplane to 30,000 feet and speeds up to Mach 0.65. Initial stall tests and other dynamic maneuvers have been run, as well as an extensive check-out of the airplane's systems. In the next phase of testing, the team will expand the flight envelope to altitudes above 40,000 feet and up to Mach 0.85. 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."

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

BRAINTEASERS QUIZ #147: FROM BRIEFING TO TOUCHDOWN
From preflight briefing to IFR cancellation, the PIC faces a boatload of Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM). Helping, or hindering, are countless FARs and AIM suggestions. Count how many you can handle with this quiz.

Take the quiz.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: TRAINING IN AN LSA?
The U.S. Sport Aviation Expo is happening in Sebring, Florida this week, and that has us wondering about the role of LSAs in learning to fly. We're curious what our readers think: Would you learn in an LSA?

Plus: Last week, we tackled a hot-button topic and asked if general aviation pays its fair share into the system; click through to see how AVweb readers answered. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: AIRLIFTS, HAITIAN RELIEF, AND HOW TO HELP
Paul Bertorelli has a couple of posts on the AVweb Insider blog about aviation lending a helping hand with Haitian earthquake relief. Click here and then click here to see how you may be able to do more good at this stage by dropping a little cash out of your wallet than by dropping supplies over Haiti. 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...

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...

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: IMPROVING YOUR COCKPIT LIGHTING
Ancient 1970s-style post lights don't cut it for night flying in a modern world. Aviation Consumer's Larry Anglisano explains some of the products available to improve panel lighting. 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: RECTRIX AERODROME (KSRQ, SARASOTA, FL)

AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to Rectrix Aviation & Aerodrome at KSRQ in Sarasota, Florida.

AVweb reader Rollin Wiggington took a chance on the FBO on a recent trip to Sarasota and was blown away by the service:

We go into SRQ often and thought we would try the new guy. [We were] treated like a Bizjet! [This is] the newest and nicest FBO I've been to, fuel was priced right, and they even gave us free tie-down for a week because we were first-time customers. We'll go back to Rectrix again and again.

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
This week's selection of "POTW" entries is top shelf, boys and girls. As usual, we've picked five to share here, but you don't want to miss the bonus pics we've got in the slideshow on AVweb's home page. Once you've enjoyed these pics, but sure to point your clicks over there and check out our runners-up. 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

Click here to send a letter to the editor. (Please let us know if your letter is not intended for publication.)

Comments or questions about the news should be sent here.

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

If you're having trouble reading this newsletter in its HTML-rich format (or if you'd prefer a lighter, simpler format for your PDA or handheld device), there's also a text-only version of AVwebFlash. For complete instructions on making the switch, click here.

Aviate. Navigate. Communicate.