Volume 10, Number 30a -- July 19, 2004

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The Top Headlines From AVweb's Expanded, Illustrated News Coverage At AVweb's NewsWire.

SPORT PILOT RULE GETS ON THE STEP
On Friday, the federal Office of Management and Budget signed off on the Sport Pilot/Light Sport Aircraft proposed rule, sending it off to the FAA for its final prep before publication in the Federal Register, expected later this week. The OMB approval was the final hurdle for the rule, more than 10 years in the making. "We are extremely pleased," said Tom Poberezny, EAA president. "It has long been a goal of the aviation community and provides the first rulemaking package specifically written for recreational flying." Officials from EAA , the FAA and other groups will host briefings and distribute information about the rule during AirVenture Oshkosh, starting next week. A large sport pilot pavilion will be located at the center of the AirVenture grounds. More...

HONDA ENTERS U.S. AVIATION MARKET
Honda Motor Co. announced on Thursday that it has established a new U.S. subsidiary, Honda Aero Inc., to focus on the aviation engine business. Early this year, a Japanese newspaper reported that Honda and Teledyne Continental Motors were close to a deal to produce piston engines for light aircraft, and all eyes turned to the 225-hp, gas- and 100LL-burning engine the companies have shown at air shows for the past year. But Honda apparently sees more immediate promise in the new-designs-laden, engine-hungry, very-light-jet market and its forged-in-February alliance with General Electric Co.. Honda and GE are now jointly pursuing commercialization of Honda's HF118 jet engine. More...

...AND ANNOUNCES ENGINE-RESEARCH INITIATIVE...
In addition, Honda said Thursday that it has established the Wako Nishi R&D Center in Japan, dedicated to the research and development of aviation engines. Honda said it will accelerate research and development efforts at the new center, in anticipation of mass production of the HF118 engine. The new center will also take over the development of piston aircraft engines, currently conducted at other Honda research centers. The Wako Research Center, also in Japan, will continue research and development efforts for the HondaJet, an experimental prototype aircraft currently undergoing test flights in North Carolina. More...

...AS HONDA SEEKS PROPERTY, LEARJET FALLS INTO QUESTION
Honda said it does not have a site yet for the new company in the U.S. but plans to be up and running by the end of this year. Where the new company will go is sure to be a subject of intense speculation. Last Friday, the rumor mill was already churning, as The Montreal Gazette reported that Bombardier is ready to sell its Learjet division, in Wichita, and Honda was interested in the property. Bombardier officials said the Learjet division is not for sale. More...

TIGER PULLS OUT OF COMMANDER DEAL
A deal that was put together earlier this year to save Commander Aircraft Co. from bankruptcy has fallen through, the Oklahoman reported last week. "Our company's future is uncertain, and new aircraft production will continue to be suspended indefinitely," Commander CEO Wirt Walker said in a news release. On Thursday, Tiger Aircraft, of West Virginia, withdrew its $2.8 million offer to buy out 80 percent of Aviation General, Commander's parent company. Walker said Tiger's "default" was a shock and will prompt "a big lawsuit." Tiger President Gene Criss told the Oklahoman his company didn't default on anything. More...

...AS NEW INVESTORS SOUGHT
Walker said Commander will try to line up new investors, according to the Oklahoman. Commander filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December 2002. Walker told AVweb in January 2003 that the company owed about $3.7 million to investors, but operations were "pretty neat and tidy ... [the company] is not overburdened by debt, we just got caught in a cash crunch." He said two years of a weak economy had taken a toll. Tiger and Aviation General struck a deal in February of this year, in which Tiger was to pay about $2.8 million in exchange for 80-percent ownership of Aviation General, which has been the parent company of Commander since 1998. More...

CHANGES AT TSA
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) last week scrapped its plan to initiate its Computer-Assisted Passenger Prescreening System, known as CAPPS II ... after spending more than $100 million to plan for it (ah, the power of taxation). The system was widely criticized for trampling on the rights of ordinary citizens while being easily circumvented by anyone with a terrorist agenda (which may sound familiar to GA pilots frustrated by proliferating TFRs). The TSA also announced last week that Deputy Administrator Stephen McHale will step down from his post later this month. McHale served as deputy of the agency since January 2002 and was in charge of the transfer of the TSA from the Department of Transportation to the Department of Homeland Security in March 2003. More...

CELLPHONES TESTED ALOFT
The days of "turn off your cellphones" while flying commercial seem to be numbered, but that doesn't mean the big "OK" is right around the corner for cellphone use in your airborne GA cockpit. Last month, ARINC and Telenor ASA said they would soon have a system ready that would safely link cellphones to airliners' satellite-based phone systems. And last week, Qualcomm tested a similar system aloft in an American Airlines jet, with members of the media invited on board to give it a try. Reporters were given phones with code division multiple access, or CDMA, technology. Connections from the plane were generally good, the Associated Press reported, although some calls were dropped. (Madness, who would stand for such a thing?) Sound quality was about the same as a cell call on the ground, but with a one-second delay that made conversation awkward. Text messaging is also available with the system. The technology will take a couple of years to mature, Qualcomm said. More...

TEENAGE PILOTS FLYING VINTAGE LUSCOMBES TO OSHKOSH
Two 17-year-old pilots from Boulder, Colo., are en route to Oshkosh, Wisc., this week, taking their time getting there in their 1946 and 1947 Luscombes, and giving lots of rides to kids along the way. Scooter Mainero and Heather McRoberts left home on July 11, equipped for camping out under the wing, and they're eager to offer lots of free flights to children along the way. "I really wanted to see more kids in aviation," McRoberts told the Columbus Telegram last week, as the pair passed through Ohio. "It's one the best feelings we could have, and we're having a lot of fun doing it," Mainero said, about the chance to get others involved in flying. More...

FAA PAPERWORK GLITCH COULD TRIP UP WARBIRD PILOTS
A bottleneck in processing paperwork at the FAA could affect pilots who fly warbirds and some turbine-powered experimental aircraft. Pilots are required to carry papers from the FAA to show they're qualified to fly and instruct in the airplanes, which have no standard type ratings. A program due to expire July 31 allows pilots to exchange those papers, called Letters of Authorization (LOA) and Letters of Operational Authority (LOOA), for new airman certificates that list Authorized Experimental Aircraft Ratings just like any other rating. But the FAA has gotten behind on the processing, so not all pilots who have applied will have their new certificates by the deadline. The FAA says it won't extend the deadline, but will add a 90-day grace period when it's OK for the pilots to fly as long as they have applied. More...

TOWER BUGGED AT PALM BEACH
First it was the pigeons, cooing and roosting and making a smelly mess of the tower at Palm Beach International Airport. But when the pigeons were banished, the tiny mites that feed on them got hungry, and discovered 38 warm-blooded controllers right downstairs. "When they're crawling on you, and you can't see them, it kind of gives you the heebie-jeebies," controller Douglas Faucher told the Sun-Sentinel. "We don't need the distraction when we're trying to perform our duties." The tiny mites, as wide as the period at the end of this sentence, are practically invisible, but they bite ... and then there's the pesticides. More...

FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW OPENS TODAY
The biennial Farnborough Air Show opens outside London today, with Airbus and Boeing competing to show off their latest designs and to battle for orders. A record number of U.S. companies will be there, including a healthy contingent from the U.S. government and the military, who spurned last year's Paris Air Show over political differences with the French. Bell will be pushing its revamped V-22 Osprey tiltrotor, and Raytheon Aircraft Co. will unveil a new version of its T-6 military trainer. Bombardier will have five aircraft on display, and is expected to announce that it will start building bigger airplanes, with 120 and more seats. Drones are also expected to attract a lot of attention this year, with an announcement expected for a British government contract worth $1.5 billion to build a fleet of unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. More...

ON THE FLY...
Southwest CEO James Parker resigned unexpectedly on Thursday... Prince Charles' plane may have come close to a midair in March... A proposed AD requires aileron inspections for some Cessna models... Three small airplanes met F-16s in TFR near Milwaukee last week... Air Force says C-5A Galaxies good for another 25 years of service... Boeing to hire 3,000 aviation workers by the end of the year. More...

AVWEB'S NEWSTIPS ADDRESS ...
Drop us a line. Heard something that 130,000 pilots might want to know about? If it caught your eye, it will probably interest someone else, too. Submit news tips via email tonewstips@avweb.com. More...

NEW ARTICLES AND FEATURES ON AVWEB
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COLUMNS
Motor Head #1: GA Engine Technology -- Are We Getting the Shaft?
It's easy to be embarrassed by the state of the general aviation technology when we have to admit to our non-pilot friends that our engines use such quaint items as magnetos and (gasp!) carburetors. Many pilots and aircraft owners wish they could, for instance, take their bleeding-edge-tech motorcycle engine and strap it into the airframe. Farfetched? AVweb's newest columnist, Marc Cook, has some thoughts about this kind of thing, and he'll share them each month in his Motor Head column.

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REVIEWS
King Schools Online RVSM Course
In preparation for next year's implementation of reduced vertical separation minimums (RVSM) in the flight levels, King Schools offers a new online course for pilot training. AVweb's Linda Pendleton has spent many years training pilots in that airspace, and has our candid review of this new course.

More...

BUSINESS AVFLASH
HAVE YOU SIGNED UP yet for AVweb’s NO-COST twice monthly Business AVflash? Reporting on breaking news, Business AVflash also focuses on the companies, the products and the industry leaders that make headlines in the Business of Aviation. Business AVflash is a must read. Watch for a Business AVflash regular feature, TSA WATCH: GA IN THE "SPOTLIGHT". Sign up today at http://www.avweb.com/profile/ More...

READER FEEDBACK ON AVWEB'S NEWS COVERAGE AND FEATURE ARTICLES:
http://www.avweb.com/avmail/

Reader mail this week about the DC ADIZ incident, protection for maintenance employees, GA presidential candidates and much more.

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SHORT FINAL...
Climbing through 800' past the departure end in my Cherokee, I heard the tower clear a Cheyenne for takeoff. As I waited for tower to call me out to the Cheyenne for the inevitible pass, I craned my neck around hoping to get a visual. When neither occured, I voiced my concern...

Me: Exec tower, Cherokee 123, what can you tell me about the Cheyenne at my six?

Tower: Oh it's a BIG, PRETTY plane; with wings and wheels, and it looks like a big Tylenol... More...

AVflash is a twice-weekly summary of the latest aviation news, articles, products, features and events featured on AVweb, the Internet's Aviation Magazine and News Service. http://www.avweb.com

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Today's issue written by News Writer Mary Grady:
http://www.avweb.com/contact/authors.html#mgrady
AVweb's editorial team: http://avweb.com/contact/authors.html.

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