AIR FORCE: FOGGING CAUSED F-16 OSH OVERRUN
The F-16 that ran off the end of Runway 36 at Wittman Regional Airport after landing during the 2011 EAA Oshkosh AirVenture gathering did so because the cockpit got foggy, according to the Air Force. The Air Force accident investigation board report says that the jet's environmental control system caused extreme fogging that completely obscured the pilot's vision. Contributing factors were a fast touchdown speed and inadequate aerobraking by the pilot, which increased the landing distance. More...

FAA: DITCH THE 3RD CLASS MEDICAL PETITION, DENIED
AOPA and EAA are expected to advance their own petition, soon, but an earlier submission from Potomac Airfield's David Wartofsky has received an official FAA response: denied. Wartofsky's petition was posted as a public docket and generated more than 1000 comments. The petition sought to allow pilots flying aircraft under 6,000 pounds max gross weight to operate their aircraft with medical authorization provided by a valid driver's license, only, with no third class medical required. In its clear denial, the wording of the FAA's response may allow some wiggle room for future efforts. More...

CANADA HOSTS MEETING OF F-35 PARTNERS
Canada is hosting a meeting of fellow partners in the development of the F-35 in Washington next week to discuss the mounting problems with the jet. Senior government officials from Britain, Norway, Denmark, Holland, Italy, Turkey and Australia will meet at the Canadian Embassy in Washington for two days of talks about the aircraft program. The F-35 is an international effort and while the U.S. is the lead partner, the other allied countries have chipped in and their aerospace industries got some work as part of the international deal. Attendance by U.S. representatives at the meeting is not mentioned in Canadian media reports. The meeting precedes a gathering with Lockheed Martin officials set for late March. Most of the partner countries are in political hot water at home over the specter of rising costs and development problems with the aircraft. Meanwhile, analysts keep working the numbers on the program and some of the results are truly staggering. More...

SOLAR IMPULSE TESTS PILOT ENDURANCE
The pilot of Solar Impulse spent 72 hours pretending to fly an electric airplane around the world last week and it appears human frailties can be accommodated through good management during the real event. Andre Borschberg was in a faithful mockup of the cabin of the aircraft that will make the circumnavigation attempt and after three days and three nights of flying the delicate craft alone he pronounced the test a success. "The simulation demonstrated that our concept of flying single-handed for several days in a row is viable," he said in a statement. "The techniques of relaxation and multi-phase sleep worked very well, exceeding my expectations by far. Thanks to a careful management of the rest periods I was able to maintain optimum vigilance throughout the flight." More...

HELICOPTER MIDAIR KILLS SEVEN MARINES
An AH-1W Super Cobra and a UH-1Y Huey operating as part of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing made contact Wednesday night near the southern California and Arizona border, killing all seven Marines on both aircraft. Weather was reportedly mild at the time of the midair collision. The crash took place near a portion of the Yuma Training Range Complex. Early reports placed the location of the accident on the California side of the Chocolate Mountains, but few details had been confirmed by Thursday morning. More...

CONTROLLER ERRORS MAY NOT AFFECT SAFETY?
Errors attributed to air traffic controllers have dramatically risen in recent years and a report due soon is expected to show they've remained relatively unchanged from 2010 to 2011, but what that means could be complicated. According to the FAA and the controllers union (NATCA), much of the increase could be the result of changes made in how errors are reported. A spike in reported controller errors is expected to be recorded in 2012 for similar reasons. Increases in training may have also contributed to the rise in reported errors. Meanwhile, there is evidence to suggest that in spite of the figures airline safety hasn't been affected. More...

PODCAST: IN THE ATC TRENCHES WITH AUTHOR ROBERT MISIC
Robert Misic, a former air traffic controller who spent 20 years on the job, speaks to Glenn Pew about the experiences that led him to write his book Crash & Burn: The Bureaupathology of the Federal Aviation Administration.

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

FREQUENT FLIERS TAKE SPECIAL FLIGHT
While many of us view airline travel as a necessary evil, there are some people who actually like it and even consider it a hobby. A planeload of them gathered for a semi-regular event for passionate frequent fliers last week in which they flew around the U.S. in their own airliner and got to go behind the scenes at the American Airlines' ops center and training facility along with a plant tour at Boeing's 737 factory. According to the Associated Press story, pretending to be a ticket agent and using the slide in a simulated water evacuation were only parts of the attraction for the $1,700 ticket (the flight sold out in 17 minutes). More...

VIDEO: HELICOPTER SHAKES SELF APART
Some observers speculate that a bad episode of ground resonance may be to blame for the violent self-destruction of a medevac helicopter as it landed in a field in Para, Brazil. Few details are available about the incident, which reportedly took place Wednesday -- the same day video of the accident began spreading, online. The helicopter appears to be a Eurocopter A-Star AS350BA. Some reports state that there were four aboard -- two pilots, a doctor, and a nurse -- and all escaped serious injury in spite of the helicopter engaging full-flail mode. Several accounts repeat that the aircraft suffered excessive vibration while airborne and that vibration developed into destructive ground resonance after the aircraft landed. Generally, ground resonance will resolve itself if the pilot is able to respond quickly by returning the aircraft to hover. Click through to watch. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: USER FEES -- THE USUAL BLATHER FROM BOTH SIDES
The administration's proposal to charge $100 per flight for all but piston aircraft is meeting expected -- and deserved -- opposition from all segments of aviation. On the AVweb Insider, Paul Bertorelli opines that it's less the principle than the practicality. Why is the government coming at us for more money without demonstrating that it's not wasting what we already give it? Read more and join the conversation. More...

AVWEB INSIDER BLOG: OF SPITFIRES AND MARTIAL MUSIC
For the AVweb Insider blog, Paul Bertorelli wasted his entire afternoon chasing YouTube links, so you don't have to. Fair warning, though: If you click some of the links in today's blog, don't blame him if you don't come up for air for four hours. Who knew you could watch the entire Battle of Britain on YouTube? Read more and join the conversation. More...

AVMAIL: FEBRUARY 27, 2012

Letter of the Week: Gas Pains

Regarding the most recent "Question of the Week": I live in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso (West Africa). Avgas per gallon here varies from $13 (tax-free for international flights) to $17 when flying within national borders. This is triple the price for cars in Burkina. My hope for the future is locally produced bio-avgas like Swift is developing.

Jan Van Der Horst

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

AVIATION CONSUMER ENGINE CYLINDER SURVEY
Cylinders are the big-ticket item during an engine overhaul, and the market has changed substantially during the last five years. Our sister publication, Aviation Consumer, is surveying owner experiences on engine cylinders. If you'd like to participate, 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...

FBO OF THE WEEK: CHANDLER AVIATION (KCNM, CARLSBAD, NEW MEXICO)

AVweb's latest "FBO of the Week" is Chandler Aviation at Cavern City Air Terminal (KCNM) in Carlsbad, New Mexico.

AVweb reader Jack Feiden told us how Chandler measured up against other FBOs he and his wife have visited in the past:

My wife and I stopped in Carlsbad on a recent trip from Wichita to Tucson to visit the caverns. KCNM is an easy field to use, and the facility and service at Chandler Aviation are outstanding. We have been flying flying for several decades, and this is the first time my wife ever took pictures of the ladies' restroom to show her friends. The folks working there were friendly and helpful.

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

Conversation that took place while a student pilot was in the traffic pattern at KSAV:

Control Tower:
"Cessna 12345, how much time do you have?"

Cessna 12345:
"I have the plane until 5:30."

Control Tower:
"I meant, 'How many hours do you have?'"

12345:
"About twenty."

Michael Calarruda
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.

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Publisher
Tom Bliss

Editorial Director, Aviation Publications
Paul Bertorelli

Editor-in-Chief
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Contributing Editors
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Glenn Pew

Webmaster
Scott Simmons

Contributors
Kevin Lane-Cummings
Jeff Van West

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