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| AVflash! Thunderstorm on Final Approach | back to top |  |
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Brief Storm Blows Through AirVenture
Weather is instantly changeable at AirVenture Oshkosh and the widespread knowledge of that fact that could be why there was little aviation-related damage from a significant but short-lived storm that blew through AirVenture Oshkosh on Thursday. There were reports of upturned portable toilets, and lots of tents went down in the five-minute deluge and wind storm but it would appear almost all aircraft were properly tied down and able to withstand the gusts that accompanied the cell. A homebuilt biplane near the forums area flipped but it appears to have been tied down.
It's not clear what might have gone wrong with the strap that held the left wing of the biplane but the result wasn't pretty. The aircraft flipped onto a Thunder Mustang that suffered a broken canopy but no more visible damage. The biplane was extensively damaged. No one was hurt. |
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| Three Quarters of a Century of the Cub | back to top | |
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Piper Celebrates 75-Year History
Piper CEO Simon Caldecott visited EAA AirVenture on Monday and provided an update on the state of his company. "We've made 76 deliveries so far this year," he said. "We're being cautiously optimistic." The balance sheet has shown improvement for 10 quarters in a row, he said, with about half of aircraft sales being delivered overseas. He's launching a demo tour from Oshkosh for the Seneca V light twin, which he said at a price of $935,000 offers a "great value proposition" compared to similar aircraft. He also said the company is looking at "additional product improvements" across its line, but he's not yet ready to make any announcements.
Caldecott added that his company is celebrating the 75th year of the Cub, and he was glad to see more than 125 Cubs here on the field at Oshkosh. Piper hosted a reception with birthday cake at their exhibit on Tuesday, which was decreed "Cub Day" for the show. Caldecott said Piper also will host a celebration on Nov. 10 at its Vero Beach factory, with a fly-in for Cubs. |
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| Flying Goes Social | back to top | |
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"SocialFlight" App Aims To Bring Pilots Together
A new free app and website called "SocialFlight" makes it easy for pilots to find events taking place in their area by collecting aviation events on an easy-to-use map. The site was created "to promote GA flying," the creators said. "We believe that by providing pilots with a great resource to see all the wonderful events going on around them, they will fly more and strengthen general aviation." The site just launched a few weeks ago, and the developers said this week at EAA AirVenture they already have registered thousands of users and have posted about 2,000 events. SocialFlight is available for iPad/iPhone, Android, and on the web at SocialFlight.com.
The events posted on the site include airshows, pancake breakfasts, fly-ins, safety seminars and more. The creators say the idea is that when a GA pilot wants to go flying, the app makes it easy for them to come up with an interesting destination, creating a stronger motivation to get to the airport, enjoy their aircraft, and build stronger ties among the aviation community. Registered users can access chat features, upload photos, email event notices to their friends, and update their calendar. The site also can be used without registering. Those who register by Sept. 30 will be entered into a drawing to win a free iPad, the creators said. |
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| New Features for JeppFD | back to top | |
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Video: Jeppesen Kicks It Up a NotchOriginal, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos
The next version of Jeppesen's iPad app, JeppFD, is pegged for release this September. The new version has an improved user interface better organized around phases of flight. It also includes new tools, such as a night mode and highlighter. The latter version allows you to highlight your assigned taxi route right on an airport diagram, as well as make notes. It will also include much-awaited datalink weather. Jeppesen will also introduce a new pricing structure that will allow for multiple installs of the JeppFD for less money than in the past.
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| Keeping an Eye on the Tank | back to top | |
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Fuel Sensor Retrofit In The Works
A new-technology digital fuel sensor that has been adopted for Cirrus aircraft soon will be available as a retrofit for other GA aircraft, the manufacturer said this week at EAA AirVenture. "Even in turbulence I have found the system to be extremely accurate," says Scott Philiben, CEO of CIES, headquartered in Redmond, Ore. "When it says I have half a tank, I do have half a tank." The sensor technology provides a steady data stream to the multi-function display in the cockpit, Philiben said. There is no need to amplify or condition the signal to compensate for long wiring runs or corroded connections. "The end result is precise and reliable fuel level reporting in all conditions and with all fuel types," according to the company.
Philiben said he has patented the technology and is working with manufacturers to complete factory installations. He also is considering getting STC approvals to offer the sensor as a retrofit. The company also is exploring other markets, Philiben said, such as the automotive, trucking, rail, and propane industries. |
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| FAA Administrator Fields Questions | back to top | |
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Huerta's First Oshkosh Forum
At his first open forum with the GA public at EAA AirVenture, held on Thursday morning, acting FAA Administrator Michael Huerta faced a wide range of questions, and unlike in some recent years, he took them direct from the audience instead of from EAA officials. Huerta and his staff handled the usual questions about user fees -- "There's not a lot of support for the president's proposal," Huerta said -- and NextGen -- "This is the biggest infrastructure project in the nation," he said. NextGen has a lot of moving parts, but Huerta said he's hopeful that it will continue to be implemented and GA will see benefits from it. But the last question of the session, from a young pilot, perhaps raised the most concerns about the future of aviation.
"I'm a professional pilot," said Shannon Buckley, "and because of the new rule that requires first officers to have 1,500 hours, I'm going to lose my job next June." Huerta said the FAA had to propose a rule to comply with a mandate from Congress to change the rule by next summer, but they tried to create more flexibility by allowing pilots to get credit for university training and military service. "I don't qualify for any of that," said Buckley, "and neither do a lot of other guys, who have families, and are going to be out of work." After the session, Buckley told AVweb the change will make it difficult to recruit new pilots into airline careers. "It's a terrible, terrible rule," he said. "In my current job, I can only log about 30 or 40 hours a month. There's no way I'm going to have 1,500 hours by next June. The industry is going to lose a lot of good aviators." |
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| Portable EFIS Units Are All the Rage | back to top | |
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Is That an EFIS in Your Pocket?
In addition to being the summer of the portable ADS-B receiver, it seems to be the summer of portable and backup EFIS. Sagetech develops avionics for military drones, but made a debut appearance at Oshkosh with their Clarity portable ADS-B receivers including built-in AHRS (digital gyros). The Clarity SV systems cost about $1000. When paired with an iPad running WingX Pro, the Clarity provides weather, traffic and synthetic vision.
While it won't do weather and traffic, Dynon's $1425 D1 Pocket Panel is a complete EFIS systems showing attitude, turn and bank using an internal AHRS and speed, altitude and track using internal GPS. The display can be attached to the panel or live in a suction cup mount. The internal battery powers it for four hours. Vertical Power also unveiled their VP-400 backup EFIS. The $8000 unit does a lot more that show attitude, including a truly unique emergency function.
Vertical Power teamed with aircraft simulator programmer Austin Myers (X-Plane) to guide an engine-out aircraft on a power-off glide to the best airport in range. It takes into account winds, runway length, obstructions and aircraft configuration. It can fly the path automatically and even raise and lower flaps and gear to adjust drag. Lined up with the runway, it will but the plane into a shallow descent for the pilot to take over or to let the airplane settle onto the runway if the pilot is also incapacitated.
Video: Portable and Backup EFIS Solutions Debut at OshkoshOriginal, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos
Hey, buddy, is that an EFIS in your pocket? If you went to Oshkosh this year, it might be. Aviation Consumer's Jeff Van West took a look at three backup and portable electronic flight displays that offer new capabilities in tiny packages.
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| Staying Proficient | back to top | |
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IMC Club Update At AirVenture
The IMC Club, a nonprofit project based in Norwood, Mass., to help instrument pilots maintain their efficiency, continues to grow and develop, co-founder Radek Wyrzykowski told AVweb at EAA AirVenture this week. "Our motto is essentially that currency is not enough," said Wyrzykowski. "You might be legal, but that doesn't mean you're proficient." The clubs bring instrument pilots together to share their experiences and learn from each other. Local chapters are found across the country, and each group can decide for itself how often it wants to meet and in what format, Wyrzykowski said. A side benefit of these groups is that they help to create friendships and grow more powerful local aviation communities.
The club has recently updated its website to help new members enroll, but the main goal of the group is to bring pilots together in person, Wyrzykowski said. There are about 30 chapters across the U.S. and one in Botswana. The Club provides support to anyone who wants to start a new group. AVweb's Mary Grady spoke with Wyrzykowski at EAA AirVenture this week; click here for the podcast.
Podcast: IMC Clubs UpdateFile Size 7.1 MB / Running Time 7:46Podcast Index | How to Listen | Subscribe Via RSS
Radek Wyrzykowski, one of the co-founders of IMC Clubs, talks with AVweb's Mary Grady at EAA AirVenture about the expansion of the group's efforts to help instrument pilots maintain proficiency and explains how pilots can start a chapter at their airport.
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| Visiting with Build A Plane | back to top | |
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Build A Plane Hosts Teachers At AirVenture
Build A Plane, a nonprofit group based in California that helps school groups to build their own aircraft, held its fourth annual Teachers Day at EAA AirVenture this week in Oshkosh. The program, which ran on Tuesday in the EAA Museum, provided a free day at AirVenture for about 150 teachers from around the country, along with a series of forums about how to incorporate aviation into their classrooms to help teach kids about science, technology, engineering and math. "We are amazed by how many great opportunities are out there to use aviation to engage and motivate kids to learn," said Lyn Freeman, Build A Plane president. "Today's students respond to real-world applications, and aviation really captures their attention." The Teachers Day program was co-sponsored by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association and EAA.
Build A Plane also runs Kids Across America, which helps kids to raise money for the program and compete to win prizes, including free training for a private pilot certificate. The program also is always looking for more aircraft donations, because there is a long waiting list of schools that would like to have one. AVweb's Mary Grady spoke with Freeman on the field at AirVenture; click here to listen to the podcast.
Podcast: Build A Plane Works to Inspire EducationFile Size 6.3 MB / Running Time 6:50Podcast Index | How to Listen | Subscribe Via RSS
Lyn Freeman, president of the nonprofit Build A Plane organization, talks with AVweb's Mary Grady at EAA AirVenture about BAP's projects, including hosting a forum for dozens of teachers at Oshkosh and finding airplane projects for school kids to build.
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| RIP Microsoft Flight | back to top | |
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Microsoft Flight Dead, Market Has Spoken
The team responsible for the development of Microsoft Flight has been laid off and plans for adding future content have been scuttled, but the free download version of the flight sim will remain available, for now. Critics complained that the flight simulation program lacked extensive terrain and aircraft options and fell short in its support for third-party add-ons. The development team included about 35 programmers and staffers. Microsoft said the decision was part of "the natural ebb and flow" of its portfolio management, but there may have been other factors.
Microsoft Flight provides a less authentic flight experience than its earlier more popular flight simulation programs. Competition in the market includes X-Plane, which offers advanced features for in-program aircraft design and flight testing, wide-ranging parameters for controlling the flight environment, and highly realistic scenery and global real-world terrain mapping. That program has a free limited trial version and is otherwise available for about $70. Microsoft Flight focuses its terrain mapping on Hawaii and provides an interface that allows computer pilots to fly easily with a mouse and keyboard. The free version of Flight offers two aircraft, the Icon A5 and a Stearman. The program also offers scripted missions, some of which are offered up via voice prompts, that direct pilots into flying adventures around a virtual Hawaii. |
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| Hands-On with Sennheiser's Passive Version of the S1 | back to top | |
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Video: Sennheiser Introduces S1 Headset Without the ANROriginal, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos
Headset manufacturer Sennheiser introduced the little brother to their top-of-line S1 digital ANR headset. The S1 passive sports many of the same fit-and-feel improvements such as adjustable pressure on the headband and has a control box for volume and music input with auto-muting. It lacks the active noise reduction, but it also only costs $369.
This video is brought to you by Avidyne |
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| We Ask, You Answer | back to top | |
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Survey: Have You Had Your Aircraft Interior Refurbished?
Have you had your aircraft interior redone in the past five years? If so, our sister publication, Aviation Consumer, wants to hear about it. Please take a moment to answer this completely confidential survey and help your fellow aircraft owners find the best shop to replace their 1970s Royalite-and-velour with something less embarrassing.
Click here to take the survey.
The results will appear in a future issue of Aviation Consumer. For subscription information, click here. |
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| The Top Reporter on Our Crack Staff ... Is You! | back to top | |
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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. You're a part of our team ... often, the best part. |
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| Names Behind the News | back to top | |
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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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