AIRSPACE REDESIGN FACTOR IN CRASH?
he Thanksgiving Eve crash of a Turbo Commander near Phoenix could reignite debate over a controversial 2007 airspace redesign that substantially changed procedures for VFR aircraft flying in the area of the crash. To make more room for airliners approaching Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, the FAA lowered the floor of the Class B airspace east of Phoenix from 8,000 feet to 5,000 feet and extended it to 25 miles from the airport. The edge of that zone is within two miles of the Superstition Mountains where the Turbo Commander hit a cliff on a mountain that rises to about 5,000 feet Wednesday, killing all six people aboard, including three children. Although the NTSB is nowhere near to establishing a cause for Wednesday's crash, the airspace changes were called "overly complex" and the area of the Superstition Mountains was specifically mentioned in a 2006 letter from AOPA (PDF) to the FAA recommending major changes to the proposed airspace redesign. More...

THANKSGIVING EVE CRASH CLAIMS SIX
The pilot of a Turbo Commander that hit a cliff near Phoenix Thursday was an acknowledged expert on the type and familiar with the area. Shawn Perry, his three children Morgan, 9, Logan, 8 and Luke, 6, and Perry's colleagues at Ponderosa Aviation, Russell Hardy, 31 and Joseph Hardwick, 22, died when their AC690 aircraft hit a cliff about 400 feet below a ridge in the Superstition Mountains Wednesday evening. Local media report that Perry picked up the children in Mesa from his ex-wife and was taking them to his home in Safford, in the southeastern part of the state, for Thanksgiving. The aircraft exploded on impact and started a brush fire. More...

MORE ON ADS-B MANDATE
The FAA requires that you fly with ADS-B Out by 2020, but one member of a rulemaking committee last week told AVweb he expects many pilots and operators will opt to also equip with ADS-B In (which is not mandated) within the next few years. FreeFlight Systems' president and CEO, Tim Taylor, confirmed that the aviation rulemaking committee (formed by the FAA to examine all aspects of ADS-B In) found that the FAA had not yet made a valid business case to mandate ADS-B In. But Taylor believes benefits provided by ADS-B In, its availability and the mandate for ADS-B Out will drive roughly 40 percent of the flying community to equip for both parts of the system as early as 2014. More...

PODCAST: TALKING ADS-B WITH FREEFLIGHT SYSTEMS' TIM TAYLOR
AVweb's Glenn Pew speaks with FreeFlight Systems' Tim Taylor about the current state of ADS-B in general aviation. More...

YVES ROSSY MEETS TED AND FORMS UP WITH JET TEAM (VIDEO)
TED, a nonprofit "devoted to ideas worth spreading," has released a video interview of JetMan Yves Rossy, and Rossy himself has generated yet another flight video after joining with two Breitling Jet Team L-39C Albatros jets for a formation flight. Where the new formation video showcases Rossy's in-flight control, the TED video helps to explain it. Rossy flies strapped to a two-meter wing powered by four microturbines. The engines together generate roughly 200 pounds of thrust and burn their entire fuel supply in less than ten minutes. The wing has no control surfaces. The TED video also provides candid insight into Rossy's failed attempt to cross the Strait of Gibraltar. The 52-year-old pilot has successfully flown his rig cross the English Channel and a section of the Grand Canyon. More...

PROPOSED BAGGAGE LEGISLATION FACES BLOWBACK
Senator Mary Landrieu, D-La., appears to be taking some heat from online commenters after introducing legislation that would prohibit airlines from charging a fee for a passenger's first checked bag. The proposed legislation is called the Airline Passenger BASICS, or Basic Airline Standards to Improve Customer Satisfaction Act. Among other things, it would require airlines to tell passengers -- prior to their arrival at the airport -- about potential fees and any restrictions on weight size and number of bags. It would also prohibit fees for carry-on bags below a certain size. DOT statistics show that baggage fees account for about $7.7 billion in net earnings for airlines. Subtracting that figure would have amounted to a multibillion loss for airlines through most of the past three years. While there are some practical arguments for the legislation, some people have responded negatively. More...

NEW LIFE FOR OLD TWIN OTTERS
There is new life available for old Twin Otters in the form of an STC obtained by a California aircraft modification company. IKHANA Aircraft Services at Van Nuys has received FAA approval to remanufacture the fuselages of timed-out DHC-6-100, 200 and 300 aircraft. Twin Otters, which were built in Toronto from 1965 to 1988, are among the hardest-working types in their category, and many have reached or are getting close to the 66,000-hour/132,000-cycle life limit. IKHANA's program zero times an existing fuselage and gives it another full life limit. "This is not a standard aircraft refurbishment but an option for re-creating value by remanufacturing a previously timed out asset," the company said in a news release. As we reported in 2008, demand for Twin Otters is such that Viking Air, of Victoria, B.C., has resumed production under the original type certificate. More...

MSB ADDRESSES TCM TURBO ENGINE PROBLEMS
Owners of certain new and rebuilt turbocharger-equipped Continental 520 and 550 series engines should be aware of a mandatory service bulletin (PDF) issued last week that will ground some airplanes immediately. There have been five instances where the starter adapter on engines produced since the beginning of 2011 have failed due to misalignment of parts within the adapter. Failure of the part causes the engine to ship all its oil overboard followed by catastrophic engine failure. More...

TURKEY DROP ABORTED, "PILOT" VOWS RETURN
Thanksgiving feels like the right time to confirm that the town of Yellville, Arkansas, this year did break with tradition and did not punctuate its October Turkey Trot Festival by dropping live turkeys from an airplane ... though it may next year. According to the Arkansas Times blog, the drop was effectively discouraged when the FAA promised to send observers and to enforce FAR 91.15. (The regulation prohibits pilots from dropping any object from an aircraft that "creates a hazard to persons or property.") An effort by PETA also offered a $5,000 reward for the identity of the "phantom pilot" responsible for the drop flight. And so, the 2011 Yellville Turkey Trot Festival turkey drop didn't happen. Other popular festival events, the Miss Drumsticks Competition, for example, went on without a hitch. And the phantom pilot, or someone posing as that pilot, has vowed to return, according to the Arkansas Times. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: CESSNA'S SKYCATCHER PRICE HIKE
This one will cause ripples in the industry because it puts the Skycatcher near the top of the price tier, which is bound to cause some erosion in the company's order book. But in his latest post to the AVweb Insider blog, Paul Bertorelli notes that Cessna's price hike should come as no surprise. Cessna did essentially the same thing when sales hit the skids 30 years ago, which explains, more than anything else, why Cessna has remained a profitable aircraft company. Read more and join the conversation. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: D. B. COOPER REDUX
Does anybody really care what happened to D.B. Cooper? Probably not, but today's 40th anniversary of the hijacking and jump finds continuing speculation. Paul Bertorelli thought he's chime in, too -- especially given the video reconstruction pilot skydiver Dan Gryder put together this week. (If you've ever wondered what $200,000 in small bills looks like, Gryder's will give you an idea.) Read more and join the conversation. More...

FBO OF THE WEEK: LANDMARK AVIATION (KAVL, ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA)

AVweb's latest "FBO of the Week" is one that held that honor back in 2010 -- Landmark Aviation at Asheville Regional Airport (KAVL) in Asheville, North Carolina.

AVweb reader Edwin Nass recommended the FBO this time:

The desk and line staff were very friendly and helpful and attentive to our needs. They offered assistance in the return of our rental car, getting our luggage to the aircraft, and [in] securing the aircraft for the duration of our stay.

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!

SURVEY: HOW'S THAT GLASS PANEL WORKING OUT?
Our sister publication, Aviation Consumer, is conducting a survey on owner experiences with early model EFIS systems such as the Garmin G1000 and Avidyne Entegra installed in OEM aircraft no newer that 2007. The magazine is interested in finding out how these systems have held up in the field. For this survey, we're interested only in OEM aircraft, not experimentals or LSAs and not aftermarket glass. Click here to take the survey. 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...

VIDEO: JEPPESEN'S MOBILE FLITEDECK (PART 1)
Last summer, Jeppesen rolled out its iPad-based Mobile FliteDeck, a complete chart manager system for owners who already subscribe to Jeppesen's electronic charting products. In this video, AVweb launches the first of three Product Minutes to review the new app. More...

VIDEO: JEPPESEN'S MOBILE FLITEDECK (PART 2)
Jeppesen's new Mobile FliteDeck is a route-based app that compiles approach plates and procedures from Jeppesen's charting materials. In this video, part two of three, Paul Bertorelli takes a look at how its route functions work. More...

SHORT FINAL

While working local Control (tower) as a newly minted Air Force controller in the '60s, I often got requests from local pilots for practice DF steers, [our location] having one of the last DFs in the area. The DF console was located on the opposite side of the tower from Local, and I had a number of T-33s trying to land when the following exchange occurred:

T-33:
"Laughlin Tower, AF123. Request practice DF steer."

Me:
"AF123, unable on account of traffic."

[long pause]

T-33:
"Then how about a real one?"

Of course, I issued the steer.

Ray Laughinghouse
via e-mail

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. 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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