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| AVflash! Kyle, Amanda Franklin Accident | back to top |  |
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Franklins Injured In Air Show Mishap
Kyle and Amanda Franklin, a young husband and wife aerobatic and wingwalking team, were seriously injured after the Waco Mystery Ship they use in their routine caught fire in flight during a performance at the Brownsville/South Padre Island Air Fiesta Saturday. The Brownsville Herald reports Amanda Franklin was on the wing of the Waco "Mystery Ship" when fire erupted from the engine at low altitude, all of which is visible in video shot by a member of the audience. Amanda was able to get into a seat while her husband made the best of a very bad situation as the aircraft came down in a wooded area and burned. Emergency crews responded almost immediately, apparently while the aircraft was still coming down. They arrived and drove through the shorter brush to douse the flames. Kyle's worst injuries may have been suffered while trying to remove his wife from flames in the forward cockpit. Amanda was more seriously burned. An update on their condition was posted to the Younkin Airhsow Facebook page (PDF) by Amanda's brother Matt Younkin, who credits Kyle Franklin's decisions and skill as pilot in saving both their lives.
Their fathers Jimmy Franklin and Bobby Younkin were killed in a midair collision at a show in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan in 2005. Kyle was calling the show when the accident occurred. The couple married shortly after the Moose Jaw accident and formed their own air show team.
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| Japanese Aviation Copes with Crisis | back to top | |
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CCTV Catches Airport Tsunami Wave
Narita airport was closed and coastal Sendai Airport was flooded by tsunami waves after an earthquake of magnitude 8.9 -- the seventh most powerful earthquake ever reported -- hit northern Japan Friday. The initial quake was centered roughly 81 miles east of Sendai, which suffered meters-high tsunami waves that swept well inland, taking up boats and cars and washing away homes. At Sendai airport, people took refuge on the terminal rooftop. At Guam, two U.S. Navy submarines had to be secured by tug boats after the waves broke them from their moorings. In the Hawaiian islands, CAP launched speaker-equipped aircraft to warn residents. The islands reported tidal surges that flooded some low-lying roadways and hotel lobbies. Exaggerated tidal flows later affected coastal areas from Oregon to California, with some marinas suffering damage.
More than 160 aftershocks (click for current map) stretched from north of Sendai to south of Tokyo, with more than 25 registering over 6.0. More than 140 registered over 5.0. Experts warned the tsunami waves could reach from Russia to Hawaii, New Zealand and Chile. Some feared the waves could submerge low-lying Pacific islands. Geophysicists say evidence suggests the quake moved the main island of Japan by eight feet, according to CNN, and shifted the earth on its axis by 4 inches.
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| Aviation Safety and the FAA | back to top | |
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FAA Lowers Ceiling On Eclipse Jets
The FAA has released a mandatory safety directive, effective March 21, that reduces the maximum operating altitude of Eclipse Aerospace EA500 jets from 37,000 feet to 30,000 feet in response to reported engine problems. The AD affects the whole fleet of 259 EA500s that use Pratt & Whitney Canada PW610F-A engines. Operators are required to make the change to the limitations section of the airplane flight manual. The FAA says that hard carbon buildup on the static vanes of the engines has resulted in at least six reported incidents of engine surges. Pilots may be forced to respond to those surges by decreasing the power of the affected engine. According to the FAA, that "could result in flight and landing under single-engine conditions" and, if present in both engines, it could require dual engine shutdown.
The FAA considers the altitude restriction an interim action while Transport Canada and Pratt & Whitney Canada consider actions to address the problem. Holland told The Wall Street Journal that he thinks a 90-minute time limit for high-altitude cruise could be sufficient without imposing "a fuel penalty" on Eclipse operators. He expects a permanent fix from Pratt & Whitney within two months. The carbon build-up problem was addressed with an earlier AD that set an altitude limit for the jets at 37,000 feet. Of the six known events, five occurred at or below 37,000 feet and four of those took place in one two-week period. The FAA has determined its earlier action did not sufficiently address the problem and has set the new lower limit. Find the full AD online here. Comments including data, views, or arguments about the AD are being accepted.
Secret AD Disables Lavatory Oxygen
The FAA says it will take comments until April 22 on an airworthiness directive (PDF) that was issued in secret on Feb. 10 to all U.S. airlines with airplanes that have bathrooms. The existence of the AD, which required the airlines to disable the chemical oxygen generators that create oxygen for decompression masks in the lavs, was made public last week after all those who got the February notice had confirmed their compliance with it. About 6,000 aircraft were affected. The agency said in the AD that the systems could "jeopardize flight safety" and that it was in the public interest to have the work done quietly. The FAA didn't say specifically what the hazard is but there are various reports that suggest the action was taken to prevent would-be terrorists from going behind closed doors to turn the bathroom oxygen generators, which are identical to those in the main cabin, into something capable of bringing the aircraft down.
While the cockpit crew has bottled oxygen to breathe in an emergency, according to Wikipedia, the drop-down masks in back get their oxygen from the chemical reaction between sodium chlorate, barium peroxide and potassium perchlorate. When passengers pull on the tube, it triggers a small detonator that starts an "exothermic" reaction (which sounds like burning to us) that produces oxygen for about 20 minutes. The reaction creates a lot of heat and the typical eight-inch canister's metal exterior can reach 500 degrees. The FAA went public with the AD to pick up any aircraft that might have been missed by the secret AD. The canisters have to be disabled by March 14 and the easiest way to do that is to activate them and let them work. |
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| Bandwidth Battle Heats Up | back to top | |
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The Coalition To Save GPS From 4G
A group of representatives from ATA to GAMA announced Thursday they have formed the "Coalition to Save Our GPS" from the potential threat of interference from 4G broadband signals. The FCC in January granted to LightSquared a waiver that allows the company to build 40,000 ground-based broadband transmission stations if it can demonstrate the stations won't cause harmful interference. The coalition says the move reverses the process of test first, approve next, and has put forth a series of recommendations to provide "additional safeguards."
The coalition recommends the FCC clarify that LightSquared can only pursue its project if a mandated study shows the 4G signals have no harmful effects on GPS reception. It suggests the FCC stop LightSquared from investment in the 4G system until the FCC makes a final decision on the matter, that the terms of approval stipulate that the issue is resolved to the satisfaction of GPS users and providers, that resolution be the sole obligation of LightSquared and not impose cost on the GPS community, and that public comments be accepted for at least 45 days after a report is produced on the interference study. Learn more at SaveOurGPS.org. |
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| News Briefs | back to top | |
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Quest Attracts Equity Investors
Quest Aircraft says it has attracted some equity investment that will help it boost production and expand its service network. The company, which certified the highly regarded Kodiak utility aircraft in 2007, did not disclose who the investors are or how much money is involved. The aircraft is a clean-sheet design that was developed by a consortium of missionary flying groups to be a purpose-built back-country airplane for mission work. There are plenty of other applications for an airplane with the STOL and payload capabilities of the Kodiak and they're in service in a variety of roles in the U.S. Canada, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and South Africa. In a statement, CEO Paul Schaller said the new money is part of Quest's long-term plan.
"The last two years have been extremely challenging for the aviation industry, and Quest is no exception," Schaller said. "We have injected equity into Quest which allows us to significantly reduce debt, ramp up production and invest in customer service centers." The money will also help it ramp up marketing efforts. It has six sales people located throughout the U.S. and will have a display at Sun 'n Fun for the first time this year.
Trappe Pilots The "Up" House
March 5, Jonathan Trappe, like some sort of aerial Willy Wonka, has again taken to the sky in a unique aircraft (this time for a National Geographic special) -- a likeness of the cartoon house from the Disney Pixar movie "Up." "It is certainly the strangest aircraft I have flown," Trappe told AVweb Friday. "But, more than that, it may be one of the strangest aircraft to have ever flown." The roughly 4,400-pound aircraft flew under 282 eight-foot-diameter (at ground level) helium-filled balloons. Trappe says he calculated gross lift for the craft at close to 5,400 pounds. The "house" took off from a private ranch east of Los Angeles, flew for one hour and ten minutes, reached an altitude of 10,500 MSL, and due to variable winds, landed about 10 miles from where it started. Of course, Trappe envisions grander possibilities. The aircraft was very well-equipped, Trappe said, adding "This had the capability to fly across the country on a multi-day flight."
When Trappe flew from AirVenture Oshkosh in 2010 -- click for video -- he and his minimalist rig (basically a paragliding harness and eight bags of ballast) were suspended under 50 balloons. This time, he carried 68 bags of ballast worth about 1,700 pounds, a co-pilot, plus batteries, a Mode-S transponder, radios, rigging and even life vests. Hence, the 282 balloons and roughly 83,000 cubic feet of helium. The National Geographic special called "How Hard Can It Be?" suggests the project was completed, start to finish, in two weeks, which is true if you ignore the planning Trappe began in June of last year. The mission was to prove it could be done and that became crystal-clear at 10,500 feet, so Trappe and his co-pilot came back down. Trappe says the flight from Brian Ranch (CL13) first encountered winds from the south, then from the east, then west. The house landed 10 miles total east of where it launched near western Mojave. The area is well-suited for experimental flight and, as Trappe said, "We're a little more experimental than most."
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| Opinion & Commentary | back to top | |
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AVweb Insider Blog: Engine Design — No Talent
If there's a single motorhead bone in your body, you've heard this complaint before. Have Lycoming and Continental, through a lack of innovation, put us in this mess we're in over avgas? Or should fickle buyers share the blame instead of decrying the death of engine innovation? AVweb's Paul Bertorelli has met with enough engineers, policy-makers and complainers to have an opinion on the subject — and he's happy to share it in the latest installment of our AVweb Insider blog.
Read more and join the conversation.
AVweb Insider Blog: Should Wrecks Be Recovered?
We've all stood in museums and gone slack-jawed at the site of a historic airplane — but in the latest installment of the AVweb Insider blog, Mary Grady wonders if dragging all these wrecks from their final resting places and restoring them (at great expense) is the best way to connect with history.
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| The Top Reporter on Our Crack Staff ... Is You! | back to top | |
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Associate Editor Opening
One of our sister aviation publications is looking for an associate editor. If you are a savvy, motivated layout master and wordsmith, they would love to hear from you. (There's a link to contact them beneath the following job description.)
Job Description: Associate Editor
Associate Editor will provide primary editorial support to Editor of consumer aviation magazine, which may include rewriting press releases for publication, web postings, copy and substantive editing of articles, departments and columns, preparation of galleys for review, writing articles, sizing and color correction of photos, enterprise reporting, proofreading and packaging of layouts for offsite production staff.
Qualifications
Desirable Skills
This is a telecommute position. To apply, submit a cover letter, resume and three clips to BelvoirJobOpportunity@avweb.com. (Resume and cover letter should be Microsoft Word attachments; please attach clips as PDFs.)
AVmail: March 14, 2011
Each week, we run a sampling of the letters received to our editorial inbox here in AVmail. One letter that's particularly relevant, informative, or otherwise compelling will headline this section as
our "Letter of the Week," and we'll send the author an official AVweb baseball cap as a "thank you" for interacting with us (and the rest of our readership). Send us your comments and
questions using this form. Please include your mailing address in your e-mail (just in case your letter is our "Letter of the Week"); by the same token,
please let us know if your message is not intended for publication.
Letter of the Week: Better Testing Applauded
Regarding the story about changes to FAA test questions, I recently took a practice knowledge exam for the CFI as an initial study guide, without doing any preparatory study. I passed in the mid-80s.
As a professional educator, I would posit that if the FAA knowledge exams are legitimate testing tools, then any current, certificated pilot who has passed a thorough BFR within the past year should be able to achieve a passing score on the knowledge exam appropriate to that pilot's rating. After all, we use this material every time we fly, either explicitly or implicitly. To the extent that a current, active pilot population misses a certain bank of questions, those questions are simply not legitimate tests of the knowledge pertinent to being a skilled pilot.
I'm sure we all have our favorite candidate questions in this category, like those about the obsolete analog instruments you've never flown behind or the E6B calculations rendered obsolete by calculators and GPS. Those are the questions that applicants usually memorize by rote, for the simple reason that they are not relevant to modern flight regimes.
I would further posit that the test bank questions that resulted in increased failure rates were specifically those irrelevant questions that were passed simply by memorization.
I applaud the FAA for attempting to modernize the knowledge test. If indeed the current questions are more relevant to the way we actually execute our flights in the 21st century, it will be a very good thing. Ideally, the revisions will now emphasize questions that demonstrate a fundamental understanding of basic principles, and thus there will be no further need for memorization of arcane information and cram courses that "teach the test."
Karin Roland
Know the Subject, Not the Questions
The article about pilots failing exams simply proves that training schools were teaching people to pass exams, not to know the subject.
I did a PT6 course where we were taught to pass, not to understand. We had so many problems, Pratt and Whitney sent the field service rep to teach us how to look after the engine.
I say upgrade the training, don't simply teach the exam. The tougher the training, the better the product. The candidates' knowledge should be such as to allow them to "fly" through any exam.
Arnold Long
Test Surprise
I did find the wording and context of information asked about on the questions on the test to be quite different than the Gleim material I was studying. Twice I had to calm myself down and really concentrate hard on what they were asking, because the context of the question was unusual. I bet my IFR test on Feb. 23rd had some changes to it, too.
Mark Alan Stotesbery
Instructors Should Know Better
The test that they are complaining about is for instructors. If they are failing, then they do not know all the information, which they should know so that they can instruct new pilots.
The system is flawed if the instructors fail their test when a different set of questions is used. What I see is that they are learning the exam, not all [the] content. Do you want instructors who can pass the same old test, or do you want an instructor who can answer all of the questions?
Michael Hope
Hit the Books, Pilots
Why all the brouhaha about the FAA changing test questions? This means only that applicants will have to demonstrate a knowledge of the material being tested, not just memorize all questions and answers.
There is no requirement for the FAA to release the test banks. I took all my writtens before the test questions were public and scored in the high 90s on all but one.
The FAA gathers statistics that show that students are obtaining 100% on knowledge tests in little more than 15 minutes. That's obviously memorization of answers and not a show on knowledge. If instructors take the time to ensure their students know the knowledge required in 14CFR Part 61, there should be no trouble getting the correct answers on the test.
The privilege of obtaining a pilot certificate and being able to pilot an aircraft just about anywhere in this country, carrying passengers without permission, should not be based in part on a test that is not valid because the answers are freely available.
If you want to play in the club, you have to pay the dues. Study. It does wonders for your test scores and general knowledge.
Linda D. Pendleton
Going It Alone
Yes to Joe Bradock [of SouthEast Aerospace] for going it alone. I went into aircraft sales about 30 years ago as a one-man army and could not even get a bank to look at me. I put up my house and got a home equity loan and sold planes until 2010. Never had a hand-out or any help from the government. It was great to know I did it without them.
I like people that work for success. I'm sick of seeing U.S. aviation being sold to foreign countries. We will all pay for that down the road.
Don MacGregor
Stupid Laser Law
I think making laser pointing at aircraft a federal felony is ridiculous. Is pointing a laser now a more heinous crime than murder?
How many aircraft have crashed due to laser pointing? How many pilots or passengers have been maimed or injured? It seems the feds are being heavy-handed over nothing.
Assuming a laser is attached to a rifle is absurd. Lasers are more likely attached to a key ring or pen. A shooter would use quality optics to aim a rifle, not a cheap laser. If someone wanted to shoot an airplane down, I doubt a stupid law like this would prevent them. And that is what this is: Stupid people writing stupid laws.
Jim Dunn
FCC Blows It Again
One has to wonder what is going on at the FCC. From prohibition of 121.5 MHz ELTs to allocating a frequency band that jeopardizes NextGen, there seems to be a serious lack of aviation knowledge and understanding by those who are making such decisions.
Gord Hippern
Cirrus Deal
Regarding the sale of Cirrus: Unless China moves Cirrus lock, stock and barrel to China, the plane will be predominantly a U.S.-made plane. Unless the plane engineering is taken over by Chinese engineers, the plane will still be predominantly a U.S.-made plane.
If production, design and engineering policies become Chinese functions as a result of the Chinese purchase of Cirrus, then the plane might be considered part Chinese, part American — and that pretty much goes for any plane coming out of or purchased by any other country. It's going to be a percentage thing, based on who does what in achieving the final product.
Sure wish it was 100 percent U.S., however.
Ray Mansfield
Boeing won a major case against Airbus charging unfair competition because of French government subsidies of Airbus. What's the difference for other U.S. aircraft manufacturers when state-owned Chinese corporations buy U.S. companies?
The U.S. should insist that China convert to fully privately capitalized corporations to allow private corporations to exist in China before approving the sale of U.S corporations.
George Horn
This is a catastrophe of the first order. Wal-Mart has already mandated the end of U.S. manufacturing of almost everything else. Aerospace has been the one area where the U.S. has remained competitive. Now, with Cirrus and Continental disappearing to China, the end of American manufacturing is complete. Our fat, complacent, "entitled" population no longer produces anything. In 50 years, we will be Belgium, home only to bureaucrats and beancounters. Maybe we'll even speak Flemish.
Steve Leonard
I think the purchase of Continental and Cirrus by AVIC is great news for GA pilots.
Imagine being told that a large entity had come to realize the value of general aviation. Most pilots would say this is a good thing. Then you find out this large entity has deep financial pockets and a long-term outlook on development and is not looking for quick quarterly profits. You might think things are looking even better. Then you find out they are investing in great GA companies located in the U.S. that are otherwise unable to find financing. What a great day for general aviation.
It is only when people find out AVIC is owned by China that their political beliefs start to take over and they criticize the deal.
Ryan Turner
The lack of available investment capital to a company like Cirrus is a telling sign that businesses producing products for GA are in for a rough ride no matter what the vision of the future is. I believe it is a very telling sign that the 19-year product liability, the lack of progress on engine systems such as electronic ignition and more modern engine design, is a crippling noose around the GA Industry.
I'm looking at a turbine just to get away from the unreliable engine systems, yet I'm scared of a catastrophic failure of a turbine engine that involves the price of a good used aircraft just to repair the engine!
I fly 300 hours per year and plan on engine work every second year, even though I know how to handle the temps properly! That's not a very appealing scenario for an investment of over $300,000 in an engine/airframe combination that has been around for 25-plus years.
Don Shapansky
Where's Amelia?
Regarding the latest on the hunt for Amelia Earhart: I have a silly question that has been "floating" around in my mind. Isn't it possible that the plane floated on empty wing tanks, air trapped in the fuselage, etc., for days or even weeks? What were the ocean currents at the time?
It never ceases to amaze me when they find some poor sap standing on the bottom of his sailboat. He's sunburned, hungry and dying of thirst — and been out there for days.
Who's to say that Amelia's plane didn't just float around for a long time, like 40 years, and then ended up on the reef. For all we know, it might have been a beautiful water landing due to fuel exhaustion, and the crash didn't happen until it hit the reef!
Peter James
Read AVmail from other weeks here, and submit your own Letter to the Editor with this form.
AVweb's Newstips Address ...
Our best stories start with you. If you've heard something 255,000 pilots might want to know about, tell us. Submit news tips via email to newstips@avweb.com. You're a part of our team ... often, the best part. |
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| Your Favorite FBOs | back to top | |
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FBO of the Week: Rider Jet Center (KHGR, Hagerstown, Maryland)
Nominate an FBO | Rules | Tips | Questions | Winning FBOs
AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to Rider Jet Center at Hagerstown Regional Airport/Richard A. Henson Field (KHGR) in Hagerstown, Maryland.
AVweb reader John Keller uses RJC on a regular basis and vouches for their dedication, year-in and year-out:
We have been a frequent customer of this fabulous FBO for several years, and their high quality service has never waivered! When the snow was three feet deep and the winds blowing 35 MPH and the temperature 10 degrees, the line and staff personnel were performing at the 110% level. We return on a regular basis because their attitude towards the customer is outstanding.
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! |
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| AVweb Audio — Are You Listening? | back to top | |
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ATC Errors Up — But That's Not a Bad ThingFile Size 6.6 MB / Running Time 7:10
Reportable errors by air traffic controllers have almost doubled in the last four years, but that doesn't mean the skies are any less safe. Steve Hansen of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association spoke with AVweb's Russ Niles to explain why.
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| AVweb Media: Look, Listen, Laugh and Learn | back to top | |
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Video: A Look Inside the Cessna FactoryOriginal, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos Facing ever-growing global competition, Cessna has to find way to make airplanes more efficiently. In this video, Terry Clark explains how the company has done that at the company's Independence, Kansas plant.
Video: Bell 407AH Helicopter UnveiledOriginal, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos Bell Helicopters bypassed the usual military procurement procedure and adapted a 407 for "law enforcement and paramilitary" use. With a 3,000-round-per-minute machine gun, a rocket launcher and FLIR, it's a potent adaptation of a proven airframe that's already attracting attention.
Video: World's Fastest Helicopter PilotOriginal, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos Kevin Bredenbeck took the Sikorsky X2 technology demonstrator to 250 knots and beyond last September. He spoke with AVweb about the aircraft, the program, and what it's like to go that fast in a helicopter in this interview at the 2011 HAI Heli-Expo in Orlando, Florida.
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| The Lighter Side of Flight | back to top | |
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Short FinalMemphis Center:
Cessna 1234:
Memphis Center:
Cessna 1234 (laughing) :
Charles Lloyd
Heard Anything Funny on the Radio?
Heard anything funny, unusual, or downright shocking on the radio lately? If you've been flying any length of time, you're sure to have eavesdropped on a few memorable exchanges. The ones that gave you a chuckle may do the same for your fellow AVweb readers. Share your radio funny with us, and, if we use it in a future "Short Final," we'll send you a sharp-looking AVweb hat to sport around your local airport. No joke.
Click here to submit your original, true, and previously unpublished story. |
| Names Behind the News | back to top | |
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Meet the AVwebFlash TeamAVwebFlash 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:
Click here to send a letter to the editor. (Please let us know if your letter is not intended for publication.)
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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.
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