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September 24, 2011
By The AVweb Editorial Staff
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Lightspeed Aviation Foundation
Join us today either live or via webcast for the Lightspeed Aviation Foundation Pilot's Choice Awards. The awards ceremony, webcast on AOPALive.org, is the culmination of months of
voting by you, the pilot community, to determine which five aviation charities will receive checks for $10,000.
Learn more at
LightspeedAviationFoundation.org.
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Safety, Training in the Spotlight at AOPA
Summit |
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At AOPA Summit on Friday, FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt announced that he signed off this week on creating a new Aviation Rulemaking Committee that will review the current flight-training rules.
"The ARC will make recommendations as to how to improve testing and instruction," he said. "This effort is part of a five-year plan for transforming GA safety." After his presentation, Babbitt spoke
with AVweb's Mary Grady in more detail about the FAA plan. "We're going to look at the curriculum, the materials, and what are we testing," he said. "Everything is on the table." Training at all
levels will be included in the review. Click here for the full podcast.
The committee is expected to review what is important for pilots to know, as well as how to work more closely with the industry to develop FAA handbooks and test materials and keep them up to date.
The ARC aims to ensure that the requirements for aeronautical knowledge are sharply defined and current, and to remove outdated questions from the test banks. Recommendations from the ARC are expected
sometime next year.
The day before AOPA Aviation Summit opened this week in Hartford, Conn., the association hosted its second Flight Training Summit, for about 100 participants. During that event, AOPA introduced a
demo of MyFlightTraining, an online personalized support system that aims to help student pilots achieve their goal of earning a pilot certificate. The program, which has not yet launched online,
breaks the training process into six milestones -- introductory flight, first solo, student pilot certificate, solo cross-country, FAA knowledge test, and FAA practical test. Participants also will be
entered into a sweepstakes that awards $1,000 for flight training every month.
"We want to help students over any hurdles they may encounter by providing timely, relevant information based on their training progress," said Jennifer Storm, AOPA's director of flight training
initiatives. "And the sweepstakes is a nice added bonus to help defray some flight training expenses." Participants also can win $100 gift certificates for training products from vendors. At the
flight-training event, participants also discussed strategies to help flight schools succeed as small businesses. "Flight schools know how to train; they're asking for support on the business side,"
said Storm. Other GA groups such as EAA, GAMA, and instructor associations also took part in the event.
File Size 4.2 MB / Running Time 4:34
Podcast Index
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How to Listen
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Subscribe Via RSS
FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt told AOPA on Friday that a review of flight training is part of a five-year plan to improve GA safety. He fleshed out the details with AVweb's Mary
Grady.
This podcast is brought to you by Bose
Corporation.
Click here to listen. (4.2 MB, 4:34)
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As Vital As Vision
Never fly blind again when you sign up today for one of XM WX Satellite Weather's Aviator LT, Aviator, or Aviator Pro data packages. Enhance your situational awareness
with products like Radar, Lightning, Winds, and more when you make XM WX a permanent part of your cockpit today. Come see the latest from XM WX Satellite Weather at booth #303 during AOPA
Aviation Summit or
visit us
online. 
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Bose® A20® Aviation Headset
The Best We've Ever Made
Bose was the first to introduce active noise reducing headsets to aviation more than 20 years ago, forever changing the way pilots fly. Today, we continue to set the standard with the Bose A20
Aviation Headset. The headset provides acclaimed noise reduction, with a comfortable fit and the clear audio you expect from Bose. It also features Bluetooth® connectivity, an auxiliary audio input and priority switching.
Learn more.
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Wait 'Til You Get Your Hands on Avidyne's
IFD540 |
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There's Nothing Light About This Jet
Meet the latest and greatest member of the world's most successful family of light jets, the Citation CJ4. It delivers more speed and greater range while retaining the pilot-friendly
— and single-pilot-certified — operations of the CJ family. The CJ4's cabin is larger, more comfortable, and outfitted with new entertainment and communication systems. All this equals an
aircraft that is flexible enough to meet the requirements of many mid-sized aircraft at light jet costs, plus the service reputation of Cessna to back up your decision. It's what every light jet
aspires to be.
Visit
Cessna.com.
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Experience Trade-A-Plane in a Greater Way!
Our all-new web site is better than ever. Advanced searches, more detailed results, expanded content. Clean, fresh design and easier navigation, too. Exclusive premium benefits for
subscribers! Selling? Affordable, online-only listings are now available in many categories, and it's quick and easy to place one. Try it now to reach aviation's active buyers!
Visit us today at
Trade-A-Plane.com for everything that keeps you flying
or call (800) 337‑5263.
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Authorities in Canada's Northwest Territories are saying it's a miracle more people were not killed and injured when an Arctic Sunwest Airlines Twin Otter floatplane crashed on a busy downtown
street in the Territories' capital city of Yellowknife just after the noon hour on Thursday. The two pilots aboard the big turboprop twin died in the crash and all seven passengers were hurt, some
seriously. An unknown number of bystanders were hit by debris but none was believed to be seriously hurt. The aircraft was making its second attempt to land at a seaplane base on Great Slave lake when
the crash occurred about 1:15 p.m. local time.
Witnesses told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation the aircraft came down between two
buildings, clipping one of them and spinning 360 degrees before ending up in a parking lot, destroying at least one car. People rushed from adjacent homes and businesses to help the injured.
Friday, the NTSB released its preliminary report on the September 16 crash of Jimmy Leeward and
his Unlimited Reno Racer, Galloping Ghost. The crash has so far been responsible for the death of Leeward and 10 of the spectators in attendance at the Reno Air Races where Leeward was flying in an
Unlimited heat, that Friday. Aside from the deaths, the incident left 74 injured. According to the NTSB "some" of the eight people still hospitalized remained in critical condition at the time of
their report. The report is factual in nature and does not attempt to identify causal factors. The NTSB does note that witness and photographic evidence "indicates that a piece of the airframe
separated" from the aircraft after it turned away from the race course and before its final descent.
The agency is working with numerous spectator still and video captures of the event, and has acquired telemetry data recorded by Leeward's crew. It has also working with "multiple detached memory
cards from the airplane's onboard camera" that were found in the debris field. Telemetry data retained by the ground crew includes engine parameters and GPS data. The preliminary report says the
modified P-51 Mustang had flown a steep left turn toward the home pylon when it suddenly banked left and then turned right, away from the course. It then pitched into "a steep nose-high attitude." The
NTSB says evidence indicates that the airframe's separated piece was lost during those maneuvers. The airplane then descended "in an extremely nose-low attitude" and impacted the ground "in the box
seat area."
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Starting an Airline? What you Need to Know
A new seminar is introduced by Aeropodium and Airline Visions this October in London, UK. The event is hosted by Gates and Partners. A great opportunity to learn about airline business plan
development. Themes include: Introduction to the Airline Industry, Generic vs. Airline Business Plan, Common Business Plan Mistakes, Non-Disclosure Agreement, Elements of the Airline Business Plan,
Implementation Plan, Management and Support Team, Risk Factors, Capitalization Plan, Certification, Success Strategies.
Click here to learn
more and register.
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Beyond the Summit: The High Cost of
Business |
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An arm of Canada's federal government has served a six-month eviction notice on a major aviation museum in the country's largest city. Workers at the Canadian Air and Space Museum in Toronto got to work last Tuesday to find the locks changed and an eviction notice on the door. The museum is on former Canadian Forces Base
Downsview, which was closed decades ago. The airfield remains active as a private facility for Bombardier. The company builds Q400 airliners and business jets there but several hundred acres were
designated as a park by the government and the museum occupies a sliver of those lands. The government-owned corporation that runs the park has struck a deal for the site with a developer who will put
up a hockey and skating arena with four sheets of ice. The announcement stunned the local aviation community and prompted owners of some of the museum's artifacts to collect them.
The museum, which is run by a non-profit foundation, was behind in its rent and suffering financial difficulties but had recently made rent payments and was attempting to get back in the black,
said a statement from the museum board Thursday. Among the artifacts in the museum is a full-scale model of the CF-105 Arrow, a sophisticated fighter/interceptor developed by the Avro company in the
1950s. The program was cancelled before the fighter went into production, a decision that remains controversial in Canadian aviation circles. The building that houses the museum is a museum piece
itself. It's the original de Havilland Canada factory that saw development of famous designs like the Chipmunk, Beaver, and Otter.
The FAA Thursday proposed a $2.4 million fine for Cessna due to the company's failure to follow quality control measures in production of specific Corvalis parts built in Mexico. According to the
FAA, on December 6, 2010, a high-performance four-seat composite fixed-gear Corvalis flown by an FAA test pilot experienced separation of a seven foot section of wing skin from the forward spar. That
separation damaged the wing tank but the pilot was able to land safely. The flight led the FAA to ground 13 Corvalis aircraft and led to the discovery of other problems with production that all had
one thing in common.
All affected Corvalis aircraft had wings produced at Cessna's plant in Chihuahua, Mexico. The FAA also found problems with scores (82) of other parts manufactured at that factory. FAA investigators
determined that excessive humidity at the Chihuahua facility had prevented bonds from curing properly. Cessna says it has since addressed the issues at the plant and the problems remain isolated to
the 13 aircraft already addressed by the FAA's emergency AD. The FAA's Randy Babbitt said in a statement, that "quality control is a critical part of the aircraft manufacturing process and has to
detect problems before planes leave the factory."
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Finally! Professional Maintenance Management
For Your Piston Aircraft ... Like Bizjets Get.
Don't You Deserve the Best?
Mike Busch and his team of world-class maintenance professionals provide the kind of professional maintenance management for hundreds of owner-flown piston singles and twins that used to be
available only for corporate jets. No stress, no hassle, no wasting your time — and you'll save money to boot!
Learn how they do
it.
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Hey, You — We'd Like to Hear About Your
Engine! |
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Our sister publication, Aviation Consumer, would like to know. We're doing a survey on owner experiences with factory-new, factory-reman and factory-overhauled engines. (No field overhauls
this time.)
The survey will take about five minutes, and you can take it merely by cliking this link.
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Fly More for Less
Visit the AVbuys page for discounts, rebates, incentives, bargains, special offers, bonus depreciation, or tax benefits to help stretch your budget. We're helping you to locate and view
current offers instantly, with a direct link to sponsors' web sites for details.
Click for the
resource page.
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The Top Reporter on Our Crack Staff ... Is
You! |
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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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Looking for Low-Cost, Yet Effective, Marketing Options?
Let AVweb assist your company in creating effective direct-response marketing campaigns to generate leads. No other digital aviation news media reaches more qualified subscribers more
often. Text messages in newsletters combined with online banners reach over 255,000 readers monthly and deliver more new users to sponsor sites weekly than most print publications do monthly.
Click now for
details. 
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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.
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and 
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