ANTIQUE AIRCRAFT RECORDS PRESERVED
The detailed historical record of the dawn of U.S. civil aviation will remain intact and accessible by the public thanks to a 15-year effort by a Minnesota antique aircraft enthusiast. The Herrick Amendment, named for Aviation Foundation of America President Greg Herrick, is part of the FAA reauthorization bill that is expected to be signed into law shortly. It orders the FAA to maintain the records of more than 1,200 aircraft that received an "Approved Type Certificate" between 1927 and 1939. Those records include technical drawings, test data and other information about the construction of the aircraft. In a podcast interview, Herrick said data was in danger of being destroyed by the FAA and was difficult to obtain by those who owned the aircraft because the agency invoked a ban on distribution of the material on the premise that it would violate the "trade secrets" of the current holders of those type certificates. Almost none of the aircraft are still in production and few of the original manufacturers are still around. The new law invalidates the trade secret claim for aircraft from that era. It's naturally of great importance to those who own or are restoring aircraft from those times but Herrick said it's important for other reasons, too. More...

CEH: NEGOTIATIONS BEGIN FOR CA LEADED AVGAS SETTLEMENT
Center for Environmental Health (CEH) director of research Caroline Cox told AVweb Thursday that aviation interests and CEH have started negotiations that could lead to an out-of-court settlement regarding the use of leaded avgas in California. According to Cox, "virtually all" the cases CEH has pursued in its 15 years have ended in settlements. Legally, CEH is entitled to 25 percent of any civil penalties imposed as the result of a settlement or court judgment. At issue is California legislation aimed to protect residents from toxins, which CEH says applies to leaded aviation fuel. Cox says she's not aware of any studies performed specifically in California that show elevated levels of lead in children living near airports, but referenced a North Carolina study. More...

PODCAST: CEH'S CAROLINE COX ON THE CALIFORNIA AVGAS LAWSUITS
AVweb's Glenn Pew speaks with director of research for the Center for Environmental Health Caroline Cox about developments in the case that has targeted more than a dozen companies at 25 California airports over the use of leaded aviation fuels in the state.

This podcast is brought to you by Bose Corporation. More...

UNIVERSITY DEVELOPS SWARMING DRONES (WITH VIDEO)
A research team at the University of Pennsylvania has successfully demonstrated close formation work among large networked groups of autonomous vehicles, and the results are visually captivating. The SWARMS project (Scalable sWarms of Autonomous Robots and Mobile Sensors) involves a team from the university's general robotics, automation, sensing and perception lab. Work there on autonomous multicopters has led to demonstrations of the vehicles performing obstacle navigation and precise maneuvering while flying in large formations and operating as a group of networked autonomous vehicles. In plain English, you'll want to watch all 16 of them autonomously fly a cross-over figure eight pattern at 1:22 in the video. More...

INPUT ERROR TRIGGERS STALL WARNING ON REGIONAL JET
Investigators have found that the crew of a QantasLink Boeing 717 with roughly 100 passengers experienced stick shaker activation during a 2010 flight on two of three approaches, because of pilot error prior to takeoff. The flight was out of Perth for Kalgoorlie and on the first approach, the stick shaker activated as the jet descended through 1,100 feet. The crew elected to go around and experienced the stick shaker again on a second approach as the aircraft passed through 350 feet. The third landing attempt was successful but not without difficulty. According to investigators, the captain had entered improper data that resulted in a weight calculation that was off by more than 21,000 pounds. More...

RUNWAYFINDER CLOSING
RunwayFinder, the chart and airport information website that was embroiled in legal action with FlightPrep a year ago, is closing. In a statement, owner Dave Parsons said the decision was made partly because of the FAA's intention to charge fees for chart downloads through its online charting division AeroNav. "While I understand AeroNav's need to re-capture costs, the new chart fees along with other licensing fees will put RunwayFinder firmly into the red," Parsons wrote. He said the money issues might have been overcome but there is also a lot of work that needs to be done to update the service. "I've had many people suggest alternatives, but unfortunately there is no way to keep it going (for reasons I can't disclose)," he wrote. The non-disclosure is likely a reference to an agreement he signed with FlightPrep last March that settled a well-publicized lawsuit over alleged patent infringement by RunwayFinder. More...

787 COMPLETES EPIC FLIGHTAWARE PATTERN
There's only one way to prove that an airplane will fly for a long time but the thought of spending 19 hours flying aimlessly got Boeing engineers channeling their artistic sides through FlightAware. The mission was to test a GE-equipped 787 for extended operations (ETOPS) so those involved decided to make it interesting. In 19 hours from Thursday afternoon to Friday morning, the Dreamliner carved its initials across a swath of the Northwest before flying an intricate rendition of the company logo over the Dakotas, Nebraska and into Iowa. More...

HELI-EXPO UNDER WAY IN DALLAS
A clean-sheet design from Bell Helicopter is the highlight announcement so far at Heli-Expo in Dallas. The annual show got under way in Dallas on Saturday and on Sunday Bell unveiled the mockup of its much-anticipated 525 Relentless, a 16-passenger aircraft the company hopes will define the "super medium" category. As with business jets, bigger is generally selling better on the helicopter side and the Relentless will top out at about 18,000 pounds with a 400 mile range and a Garmin 500H panel. First flight is expected in 2014. Not all the success is in the big aircraft, though and Robinson Helicopters had plenty to talk about. More...

FLIGHT 93 CO-PILOT'S WIDOW PENS BOOK
Melodie Homer, widow of Flight 93 co-pilot LeRoy W. Homer Jr., has released the book "From Where I Stand: Flight 93 Pilot's Widow Sets the Record Straight" and is donating all proceeds. The book honors the deceased pilot and his role on September 11, 2001, when United Flight 93, a Boeing 757-222, was hijacked. The book also includes how the widow and her two children coped with their tragedy. Flight 93 was the only one of four hijacked aircraft not to impact a strategic target, crashing instead in a field at Shanksville, Penn. All proceeds earned from the sale of the book will be donated to support young adults seeking careers as professional pilots through the LeRoy W. Homer Jr. Foundation. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: DRONE TECH GETS CREEPY
Drones are much in the news lately, and it seems that each new story we publish describes remarkable progress, some of it a little on the creepy side. On the AVweb Insider blog, Paul Bertorelli examines two developments that could just as easily tip toward the dark side. Read more and join the conversation. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: WHAT'S EAA UP TO?
Building out its base, that's what. And the only way to go is toward a broader, more general interest aviation audience that's not interested only in homebuilding. But on the AVweb Insider blog, Paul Bertorelli asks if that doesn't make it look just like AOPA? And do we need to belong to both? Read more and join the conversation. More...

AVMAIL: FEBRUARY 13, 2012

Letter of the Week: Where's Our Trophy?

Regarding the "Question of the Week": How about a trophy for the average aviator? You know, the guys who drive 20-year-old cars so they can afford a 40-year-old airplane; who put up with ridiculous security regulations, crippling fuel prices, a progressively dumber society that doesn't understand aviation, and a President who castigates them for being "elite."

These are the guys who give Young Eagles rides, take cancer patients to distant cities for life-saving treatments, and fly supplies into storm-ravaged Caribbean islands. They are the lifeblood of American general aviation. Where is their trophy?

Glenn Juber

Click through to read the rest of this week's letters.

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: WHERE'S MY FLYING CAR?
A practical flying car with everyman usability has so far eluded the public, but we may have already been introduced to a design that could lead to a breakthrough. Some of the major challenges of producing a point-to-point simple and safe to operate vehicle are technological in nature. Autonomous navigation (enter the destination, press a button, and allow the vehicle to navigate, communicate with, and autonomously avoid other aircraft) may be one key to safely organizing masses of flying vehicles in the same airspace. And as society progresses, the gap between the dream and reality may be shrinking. More...

VIDEO: FLYING THE RENEGADE FALCON LS
The Renegade Falcon LS is one of the first airplanes to have Lycoming's new IO-233 light sport engine. AVweb's Paul Bertorelli took the airplane for a flight trial recently. More...

FBO OF THE WEEK: SHELBY COUNTY AIRPORT (ALABASTER, ALABAMA)

Our latest "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to the FBO at Shelby County Airport (KEET) in Alabaster, Alabama.

AVweb reader Joe Barnhart shared his recent experience there:

My daughter and grandkids recently moved to Birmingham, Alabama. On our first trip to visit, I chose Shelby County Airport because of the low fuel price and the relative proximity to my daughter's home. Upon arrival, not only did I find the best fuel price in the Birmingham area but a first-class airport and FBO facility. On top of that, everyone was as friendly as I've ever encountered. Not only did the FBO bring a tug to park my Bellanca Viking; they put it under a covered tie-down at absolutley no charge! I'll definitely be back.

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!

SHORT FINAL

Long time ago!

Army Caribou:
"Raleigh Durham Tower, Army 73080 in position, runway 23, ready for take-off. Wait a minute, Tower — there is a turtle crossing the runway!"

Tower:
"Army 080, hold for crossing turtle; advise when clear."

Army 080 (several minutes later) :
"Raleigh Tower, turtle has cleared runway!"

Tower:
"Army 080, winds 240 at 6; cleared for take-off, runway 23. Use caution. Wake turbulence from departing terrapin."

Scott McMillan
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 twice-weekly summary of the latest news, articles, products, features, and events featured on AVweb, the world's premier independent aviation news resource.

The AVwebFlash team is:

Publisher
Tom Bliss

Editorial Director, Aviation Publications
Paul Bertorelli

Editor-in-Chief
Russ Niles

Contributing Editors
Mary Grady
Glenn Pew

Webmaster
Scott Simmons

Contributors
Kevin Lane-Cummings
Jeff Van West

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