Petro-Pump Hydraulic System Tester Available at Aircraft Spruce
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AVflash! When a "No Trespassing" Sign Won't
Cut It
The Navy has asked the FAA to close down a small airport close to the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in Georgia, after a pair of skydivers inadvertently landed on their property last month. Rear Adm. John C. Scorby, commander of the Navy's Southeast Region, sent a letter on Tuesday to
the FAA's district office, outlining the Navy's concerns. Seven skydivers from St. Mary's Airport have landed on the base in the last three years, including the two on Aug. 12, Scorby said. He said
such landings could potentially cause "needlessly dangerous reactive responses." The skydiving operator, The Jumping Place, has already moved to another airport while it looks for a new permanent
base.
City councilman Jim Gant told the Florida
Times-Union that that city would like to relocate the airport, and land is available, but there is no money to make it happen. The airport, which should be an asset to the city, instead has become
a "spear in the city's side and somebody twists it every week," he said. He added that since the Navy base brings in $600 million a year, and the airport is home to "maybe a dozen planes," if it comes
to a choice between the airport and the Navy, he expects the Navy will win.
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The Red Bull Stratos team, which is working toward breaking the longstanding highest-ever parachute jump record, has delayed its final record attempt because the capsule, which carries skydiver
Felix Baumgartner aloft beneath a helium balloon, was damaged in a test jump last month. Baumgartner landed safely after jumping from 97,145 feet above the New Mexico desert -- the second-highest
jump, ever -- and the capsule was released from the balloon and parachuted back to the surface. However, the capsule landed on rocks and was thrown onto its side, according to the Stratos team blog,
damaging its outer shell, framework, and other key components. The flight that will attempt to set a new record is now expected to take place during the first two weeks of October.
Art Thompson, technical project director, said over the weekend that the capsule had performed perfectly during the August test flight. However, the rough landing cracked some of the interior
panels, and the instrument panel had to be rebuilt. All the interior systems have been checked and verified, he said, and will undergo a final test in an altitude chamber later this month. The weather
in New Mexico is expected to be good for the flight attempt in October. "Early fall in New Mexico is one of the best times of year to launch stratospheric balloons," according to Don Day, the project
meteorologist. Baumgartner aims to ascend to above 102,800 feet before jumping, to break Joe Kittinger's record, set in 1960. Kittinger was an Air Force test pilot working with the space program. He's
an advisor on the Stratos project, which began in 2005.
Those who fly on commercial airplanes seem to have mixed feelings about cellphone use in the cabin -- it's convenient when you want to call someone, but annoying when the person crammed in next to
you talks too loud or too long. This week, the FAA released a draft report (PDF) addressing whether
more cellphone use should be allowed aboard the air carriers. The study, which was mandated by the FAA Modernization and Reform Act enacted earlier this year, looked at safety-of-flight issues, the
effect on the passenger experience, and the impact on cabin crew.
The study reviewed whether aviation authorities in other countries where cellphones are allowed in the cabin had reported any cases of air rage or cabin crew interference related to passengers
using cellphones on aircraft, but no such incidents were reported. The study also found no documented occurrences of cellphones affecting flight safety on aircraft with on-board cellular telephone
base stations. The report is open for public comment until Nov. 5. The FAA is not required to act on this study, but any future rulemaking related to airborne cellphone use must take the study into
consideration.
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Kestrel Aircraft will receive $30 million in federal tax credits, the state of Wisconsin announced on Tuesday, to help the company create new jobs. Alan Klapmeier, CEO of Kestrel and co-founder of
Cirrus Aircraft, said the credits will provide $7.5 million in new cash for the company, which is working to produce a single-engine turboprop. The state has also provided Kestrel with a $2 million
loan and created an enterprise zone that will provide up to $18 million more in tax credits. The city of Superior has added $6.5 million to help with the start-up, including land for two manufacturing
sites.
"Attracting this visionary entrepreneur to relocate with the potential to create 600 new jobs is incredible news for the city of Superior and the entire state of Wisconsin," said Gov. Scott Walker.
"In putting together an aggressive package, Wisconsin has decisively demonstrated its commitment to job creation and boosting our state economy." Klapmeier said the company will break ground this fall
for its first industrial facility in Superior, according to the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal-Sentinel. Kestrel currently employs about 55 people in Wisconsin and 30 in Maine. AVweb's Mary Grady
spoke with Klapmeier about the airplane and production plans in June; click here for that podcast.
Citing 12 accident investigations since 1993, the NTSB has issued a Safety Recommendation to the FAA for installation of anti-collision aids, like onboard camera systems, to help pilots with
clearance issues during taxi. The Board says preliminary information collected in its investigations show that pilots of large aircraft cannot easily see the aircraft's wingtips from the cockpit. It
found that in aircraft like the 747, 757, 767, 777 and the Airbus A380 pilots must literally stick their heads out of the window to see the airplane's wingtips, noting that this "is often
impractical." The recommendation notes that the Airbus A380 superjumbo is already equipped with an external camera system, and why that system is insufficient in addressing the Board's concerns.
According to the NTSB each of 12 accidents referenced by the letter involved situations in which pilots "were either unable to determine or had difficulty determining the separation" between their
aircraft's wingtips and another object while taxiing. The recommendation states that the accidents "highlight the need" for aids that to help pilots with the problem of sometimes moving obstacles they
may encounter on the ground. The A380 is equipped with an External Taxi Aid Camera System consisting of two cameras -- one on the belly and one on the vertical fin. The intent of the belly camera is
to display the position of the landing gear before and during taxi and to provide "an external landscape." The vertical fin camera displays a field of view that does not extend to the aircraft's
wingtips but shows most of the fuselage, and the jet's wings from outboard engine to outboard engine. The NTSB recommends that a system that displays wingtips and wingtip paths -- not unlike the
backup camera in some modern cars -- be installed on all newly manufactured large airplanes where the wingtips are not easily visible from the cockpit. See the full recommendation here (PDF).
Reletex, the New Version of the Highly Effective ReliefBand
... is the most effective method to treat nausea and vomiting due to motion sickness and other problems. Worn on the wrist (acupuncture's P-6 meridian), the Reletex produces a small
neuromodulating current which stops peristaltic waves in the stomach, ceasing nausea and vomiting without drugs or side effects. Reletex is available in 60- and 150-hour versions. FAA-O.K. for
pilots doing aerobatic flight as well as everyday passengers.
A viral video has people questioning if they can believe what they see: a Sukhoi Su-24 buzzing a car (and its dash-cam) as both drive down a civilian Russian road in opposite
directions and different, but not too different, altitudes. The drama begins about 20 seconds in.
Don't see a video screen?
Try disabling ad blockers and refreshing this page.
If that doesn't work, click here to download the video directly.
Don't forget to send us links to any interesting videos you find out there. If you're impressed by it,
there's a good chance other AVweb readers will be too. And if we use a video you recommend on AVweb, we'll send out an official AVweb baseball cap as a "thank you."
Russian president Vladimir Putin Wednesday took flight with a pilot who flew with him in a two-seat trike aircraft as part of a project that would lead rare Siberian white cranes on a migration
route. Pilot Igor Nikitin flew with Putin and said the Russian president has logged 17 hours in the air. Russian regulations would allow Putin to earn a pilot certificate for the craft in a minimum of
25 hours flight time, according to Nikitin. Putin's flights were successful, but not particularly good at leading cranes.
As the aircraft flew its first flight with the cranes, Wednesday, only one joined with it in formation. On a second flight, five of the birds joined in formation with the Russian president, but
after two circuits around the field, three of the birds had dropped out of formation. For his part, Putin told RiaNovosti that his interest in the program led him to purchase his own motorized hang
glider. He says he will later hand the aircraft over to researchers involved in the crane relocation project.
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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.
AOPA and NBAA have hit the political convention circuit, buttonholing movers and shakers and their supporters at events in
Tampa and Charlotte. What should they have been talking about?
Have an idea for a new "Question of the Week"?
Send your suggestions to
.
NOTE: This address is only for suggested "QOTW" questions, and not for "QOTW" answers or comments. (Use this form to send "QOTW" comments to our AVmail Editor.)
Bend Up a Rental Plane and You Could Go Broke
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The bizjet sector is the bright spot for Chinese civil aviation but (relatively) tough times are ahead as China continues to cope with lessened demand for its products. Reporting from the Beijing
International Business Aviation Show, China Daily reported that a senior government official was
praising the importance of business aviation to the overall industry. "The growth of business aviation is faster than that of other civil aviation sectors, including passenger and freight transport,"
said Li Jiaxiang, head of the Civil Aviation Administration of China. Companies interviewed by the newspaper said they expect the growth of their businesses to be cut in half in the coming year but
they're still expecting upward of 20 percent growth. The regulatory structure needed to accommodate meaningful growth, particularly for more grassroots aviation, is lagging, however.
At the same event, the newspaper reported that low-altitude airspace reform is at least three years away in some areas and won't be adopted country-wide until 2020. Airspace in China is tightly
controlled by the military, and non-scheduled civil aviation activity is a time-consuming bureaucratic exercise. It was previously reported that airspace liberalization for privately owned aircraft
was imminent and the comments at the convention by Du Qiang, deputy secretary of the National Air Management Traffic Committee, appear to signal a delay in that initiative.
AOPA and NBAA (no mention of EAA) have taken the unprecedented step of setting up at both the Republican and Democratic National Conventions to press issues of concern to general aviation. The
Hill covered the joint schmoozefest at the
Liberty in Charlotte on Tuesday. Among those attending were senior Democratic congressmen and senators along with delegates. There was socialization and some networking going on and it appears the
spirit of political conventioneering was upheld. The party with the Dems came a week after a similar event in Tampa with aviation-minded delegates attending the Republican convention.
In Tampa, the groups hosted a similar cross-section of delegates and politicians and in each case the receptions were promoted with ads reminding politicians (some of the most avid users of GA)
that they're fighting to protect the freedom of flight. AOPA announced the parties in July and invited delegates to sign up online to take part.
Have you signed up yet for AVweb's no-cost weekly business aviation newsletter, AVwebBiz?
Delivered every Wednesday morning, AVwebBiz focuses on the companies, the products and the industry leaders that make headlines in the business aviation industry, making it a must-read.
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Cost is a big reason that many owners have reduced their flying hours. But so is lack of time. No surprise there, either, says Paul Bertorelli on the AVweb Insider blog. You probably
don't know anyone who's working fewer hours than they did a decade ago, and neither do we. Modern life puts so many demands on the 24-hour day that flying gets bumped to the bottom of the to-do list.
Plus, some additional thoughts on the passing of Neil Armstrong.
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"For of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these:" Back to School! (With apologies to John Greenleaf Whittier's "Maud Muller," 1854). Break's over, kids; time to review what you
might've forgotten over the summer. This quiz will count toward your final grade.
That was the question we posed last month. Is it nobler in the minds of pilots to fly on multiple engines or forsake one throttle and -- by opposing the multi-engine fetish --
declare, "One sound power source is good enough for me!" Here now are the results of our single v. multi-engine poll. Here now are the
results of our single v. multi-engine poll.
In the Soup?
Whether you fly in the system daily or just IPC check rides, IFR magazine helps you be the best instrument pilot you can be.
AVweb's newest "FBO of the Week" is Gill Aviation at David Wayne Hooks Memorial Airport (KDWH) in Houston, Texas.
AVweb reader J.C. Hyde visit there recently and experienced their first-rate service first hand:
Flew into Houston last week. I had arranged for a rental car to be available upon our arrival. What I hadn't planned for was the lost of my primary vacuum pump. When we arrived, [the] rental car
was ready; when I asked about fixing the vacuum, the FBO instantly put me into contact with Rite-Way Aviation, whose owner, John Davis, met me at the aircraft. We hadn't even finished unloading
before he was hooking the aircraft up to his tug, ready to tow it to their maintenance facility. [He got it] fixed that day and ready for departure. Between Gill Aviation and Rite-Way Aviation, a
two-day planned stop did not end up in a long downtime waiting for repairs. And even the cookies were great!
AVweb is actively seeking out the best FBOs in the country and another one, submitted by you, will be spotlighted here next Monday!
Peter Drucker Says, "The Best Way to Predict the Future Is to Create It"
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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
Webmaster Scott Simmons
Contributing Editors Mary Grady Glenn Pew
Contributors Kevin Lane-Cummings Jeff Van West
Ad Coordinator Karen Lund
Have a product or service to advertise on AVweb? Your advertising can reach over 225,000 loyal AVwebFlash, AVwebBiz, and AVweb home page readers every
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