CORY LIDLE NY CIRRUS CRASH TRIAL BEGINS
Lawyers put forth opening arguments Wednesday in a $50 million wrongful death suit against Cirrus Design over the October 2006 crash that killed Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle and his instructor Tyler Stanger. The two men were flying a Cirrus SR20 north along what was then the New York East River Class B exclusion area on the east side of Manhattan. The aircraft initiated a turn to the west to reverse course, drifted over Manhattan, descended, and impacted the face of a 520-foot apartment building at 333 feet above the ground. Lawyers arguing on behalf of Lidle's widow, who brought the suit, said that the aircraft's control system failed to provide adequate control throughout the maneuver. "If you can't control the airplane, you can't be at fault," said prosecuting attorney Todd Macaluso. Lawyers for Cirrus offered a different point of view, as has the NTSB. And a 2007 Cirrus mandatory Service Bulletin, and other issues, may complicate the court case. More...

SAFETY ISSUES MAY AFFECT FAA FUNDING
With the FAA reauthorization bill still tied up in Congress, ongoing uproars over the safety of the aviation system may affect the final version, according to a recent Reuters report. Republicans see an opportunity to push proposals to privatize more towers, consolidate facilities, and give FAA management more control over running the air traffic system, Reuters said. "Sleeping on the job, near misses -- those give me more ammunition when I go into negotiations," U.S. Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., the chairman of the House Transportation Committee, told Reuters in an interview. Mica believes NATCA is too powerful, Reuters said, and he might now try to add new provisions to the bill that would make it easier to fire controllers who make mistakes. More...

FRENCH CONTROLLER KILLED IN TOWER
The head air traffic controller at EuroAirport, in Mulhouse, France, was found at 8 a.m., Wednesday, stabbed to death on the 11th floor of the tower, outside of the control room itself. The airport is located in northeastern France, near the borders of Switzerland and Germany, and operates 70 flights daily, with 20 different airlines. It saw 4.3 million passengers in 2007. The control tower is located in a "secure" area of the airport, where access is restricted. The controller's body was found between the elevator and a staircase that leads to the control room. Police say the victim, a 34-year-old father of one, had worked at the airport since 1998 and that evidence suggests the attack may have been personal. More...

NEW BILL MAY PROTECT CALIFORNIA FLIGHT SCHOOLS
A California law passed in 2009 that aimed to protect students from losing their tuition if a school closes down now may exempt flight-training facilities that don't collect up-front tuitions, NATA said this week. A bill providing the exemption was passed on Monday by a state senate committee. "This, however, is only the first step in getting relief for flight training into law," NATA said. The 2009 law imposed "burdensome requirements" on all providers of flight training, NATA said, including annual fees and numerous administrative chores, including a requirement to allow annual audits. An extension was passed last year to allow flight-training providers until July 2011 to comply, giving GA advocacy groups more time to try to work out a long-term solution. More...

COURT OVERTURNS MAINE USE TAX ASSESSMENT
The Supreme Judicial Court of Maine has ordered the state to repay a Massachusetts aircraft owner about $26,000 after overturning a lower court ruling to do with the state's controversial use tax. As we first reported in 2007, Steve Kahn bought a Cirrus SR22 in 2003 and registered it in his home state. He used it to visit property he owns in Maine and for Angel Flight volunteer missions. After noting his tail number in Maine, state authorities invoked the use tax, which essentially levies sales tax on goods brought from outside the state and used within it. In a split ruling, the majority of court panelists ruled Kahn gets his money back, but that might not be the case for others testing the use tax. More...

ALASKA KIDS BUILD A PLANE
A group of students at Chevak High School, located on the remote Alaskan tundra, worked together over the winter to build a Rans S-6s Coyote II experimental aircraft from a kit, and flew it for the first time on March 24. "The aircraft was beautifully built and was obviously the pride of the aeronautics class at the school," John Davis, a Designated Airworthiness Representative who flew in from Anchorage to inspect the airplane, told the Alaska Dispatch. Ryan Walker, a teacher at the school who is a CFI and A&P, bought the kit and guided the class as they built the aircraft. The project, which was sponsored by Build A Plane, AvSTEM, Rans, and others, was inspired by a similar project in nearby Hooper Bay, a Yu'pik Eskimo village. More...

AVIATION SUMMIT IN WICHITA
Kansas state officials, including Gov. Sam Brownback, heard from about 160 aviation industry officials that governments must play an active role in fostering aerospace. The forum, held in Wichita on Monday, brought together most of the power players in the Wichita-based businesses and the message was relatively consistent. "We are not looking for a handout, but tax policies are important to our business," David Coleal, the general manager of Bombardier Learjet in Wichita, is quoted by The Associated Press as saying. Cessna CEO Jack Pelton went a step further and suggested eliminating the corporate income tax on money aircraft companies spend buying supplies and services from other Kansas companies. More...

PRICES ON SMALLER BIZJETS CONTINUE SLIDE
Some aircraft brokers say the price of used light and midsized jets has hit an all-time low and despite whispers of a recovery are staying stubbornly in the basement. "Basically, there are no buyers," Anne-Bart Tieleman, managing director of GA Finance in Amsterdam, told the Financial Times. "You can buy an almost brand new aircraft for 25-35 percent less than what you had to pay two or three years ago." 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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QUESTION OF THE WEEK: WHAT CAN (OR SHOULD) GOVERNMENT DO TO BOLSTER AEROSPACE?
A meeting of 160 aerospace executives and Kansas state officials was held Monday, and the role of government in the industry was discussed. How do you think the industry should be treated by government?

Plus: Last week, we asked AVweb readers if government is overreacting to the recent reports of controller lapses; click through to see how they answered. More...

SURVEY: HAVE YOU HAD A RECENT PROP OVERHAUL OR BOUGHT A NEW PROP?
If so, our sister publication, Aviation Consumer, would like to hear from you. To take part in our propellor overhaul and purchase survey, just click here. More...

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. What have you heard? More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: NO GOOD DEED — CIRRUS DODGES A LEGAL BULLET
A Minnesota appeals court recently sided with Cirrus in rejecting the claim of survivors of a pilot and passenger who said the company was negligent in not training the pilot to recover from inadvertent IMC encounters. But a dissenting judge disagreed, saying that the plaintiffs had made the case. On the AVweb Insider blog, Paul Bertorelli analyzes the case, which clearly shows how manufacturers face liability exposure even when they try to do the right thing. Read more and join the conversation. More...

VIDEO: PRACTICING SLAM-DUNK APPROACHES WITH 'IFR' MAGAZINE
Eventually, every instrument pilot gets a slam-dunk approach. IFR magazine's Jeff Van West explains how to practice for the slam to remove the guesswork and even add the high-speed technique to your instrument flying toolbox. More...

FBO OF THE WEEK: AMERICA JET AT SLN (SALINA, KS)

AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to America Jet at SLN. As you've probably deduced, you can find them at Salina Municipal Airport (KSLN) in Salina, Kansas.

AVweb reader Jeremy Phillips recommended the FBO after his visit a couple of weeks back, when "the line and maintenance crew went out of their way to make our trip the best one we ever had. ... They went out of their way to make things really easy for us."

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 winning photo comes from Allen Macbean of Orem, UT. Click here for the rest of this week's submissions. 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

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Scott Simmons

Contributors
Jeff van West
Mariano Rosales

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