DAYJET ATTRACTS ATTENTION TO VLJS
DayJet Corp., expected to be the first new on-demand air taxi service to fly VLJs, got lots of attention from the mainstream press at its launch announcement, held without VLJs on Monday. A news conference in Delray Beach, Fla., included Gov. Jeb Bush and Eclipse CEO Vern Raburn. DayJet CEO Ed Iacobucci said he plans to start service later this year flying Eclipse 500 jets between five small cities in Florida, bypassing the airlines' hub-and-spoke system. "You don't have to go through Atlanta to get to Gainesville, okay? That's a promise," he said. Despite that example, though, the five cities to be served haven't yet been named. Fares are expected to range from $1 to $3 per mile. DayJet is expected to get the first Eclipse jets off the production line. Much More...

TAKING THE VLJ OVERSEAS
With flocks of very light jets readying to arrive in the U.S. market (Spectrum, the VLJ performance leader hopeful, is expected to announce its European strategy in Geneva early next month) Europe is taking notice and wondering if the concept will work for them. "Within Europe's business aircraft operating community," says Kate Sarsfield, writing for Flight International, "the VLJ is being greeted with a mixture of excitement, curiosity, apprehension and skepticism." The Eclipse 500 and Cessna Mustang are expected to earn European certification by late next year, though deliveries may not start until 2008. Critics say the VLJs will likely replace piston twins used for charter, but the cabins are too small to compete with the amenities of larger corporate bizjets now in service. More...

WITH SUPERSONICS IN THE WORKS
While VLJs are the next big thing on the horizon, there is always something new just beyond. For aviators, that next next thing could be the comeback of supersonic passenger airplanes. Yesterday, Aerion Corp. announced that it has secured funding for its supersonic jet through program launch -- the point at which production design and prototype development would begin. "All of our activities to this point have shown that the aircraft is technically and economically viable," Aerion Vice Chairman Brian Barents said in a news release. More public definitions for those variables will likely develop along with the aircraft. "This has given us the confidence to enter into discussions with OEMs and first-tier suppliers who would become consortium partners." More...

NATCA'S MASS RETIREMENTS, FAA'S PLAN
With contract negotiations stalled, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association is saying that under the last offer from the FAA, many controllers would find it in their best interest to retire before the end of next year ... leaving gaps too big for the FAA to fill with new trainees. "The safety and efficiency of the air traffic system will be dismal if this contract is imposed," Brad Rosenthal, president of NATCA's St. Louis office, told The Associated Press on Monday. If nothing changes, about one-quarter of current controllers could retire next year, the union said. The percentage could be even higher in some facilities. For its part, the FAA has this year hired more controllers than have retired and estimates more than 12,000 (the workforce is currently near 15,000 strong) will have to be hired and trained through 2014, according a column this week in The Washington Post. More...

FAA TIRED OF TALKING WITH ATC
Meanwhile, the last version of the NATCA-FAA contract awaits congressional action, and with the clock ticking down to a 60-day deadline on that, the union continues to insist that it's not done talking ... and has been led to believe that the FAA isn't, either. At its Web site, NATCA prez John Carr quotes FAA chief Marion Blakey: "If there were an opportunity to go back to the table ... we'd certainly like to sit down and talk," from a C-SPAN National telecast on April 11. Impasse was declared on April 5. The FAA last week, however, said it's done talking and intends to let Congress deal with it from here. A letter that Blakey faxed to Carr on Monday reiterates that stance. "At this late date, resuming collective bargaining makes little sense," she wrote. "Our two sides are like 'ships passing in the night.'" More...

NEW V-6S MOVING CLOSER TO MARKET
Aircraft Engine Services (AES) said this week it will market the V220 and V300T aircraft engines under the trademarked REV brand, and officially unveil them at EAA AirVenture in July. The all-aluminum, FADEC-controlled (the REV 220 and REV 300T are not limited to leaded aviation fuels) geared V-6s first made a splash at Oshkosh in 2003, when they were introduced by Bombardier. The engines reappeared last year with the AES label. The company says the engines are now on track for certification in the third quarter of this year, and are currently undergoing testing at OEM manufacturers of certified piston aircraft. "These launch partners will be instrumental in ensuring the product support organization is in place to support the REV V220 and V300T engines," said Luc de Gaspe Beaubien, director of operations for AES. More...

FAA PROPOSES LIMITS ON AIRLINER LIFE
A new rule proposed by the FAA would begin a process to set what are essentially life limits for transport-category aircraft. The new rule would require manufacturers to develop an operational limit and substantiate that widespread fatigue damage will not occur prior to airplanes' reaching that limit. Once the operational limit is set, airplanes cannot be flown beyond that point unless an extension is approved. The FAA says the program would have a total cost over 20 years of $360 million, of which about 10 percent will be faced by manufacturers and the rest by operators. The rule has no affect on GA aircraft, and AOPA would like to keep it that way. "A review by the AOPA Air Safety Foundation shows that the problem of mechanical or maintenance failure due to age is actually declining," said Andy Cebula, AOPA executive vice president of government affairs, last week. More...

HOMES VS. AIRPORTS, FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA
Conflict over GA airports is one of those recurring issues that just won't go away, but with real-estate markets around the country at record highs -- pushing builders farther into urban outskirts, where the small airports are -- and with more and more GA aircraft being built and sold and flown, the outlook is for more of the same, only worse. That forecast is coming true right now in Southern California, where officials in Bakersfield and Rialto recently moved to shut down their airports. In the 1930s, the Los Angeles basin had 56 active municipal airports and only nine remain, the Los Angeles Times reported this week. Further, Santa Monica may turn into an aviation environmental research center of sorts. But across the country in Florida one airport is buying homeowners out of their homes for more space. More...

COMMERCIAL SPACE BIZ UPDATE
It's been a year and a half since Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne took civilian astronauts into space -- and since then, nobody else has tried it. But a group of entrepreneurs who met last week in Phoenix, Ariz., hope to change that soon. At the Space Access '06 conference, company execs reported on their efforts. Besides trying to serve a space tourism market, several are competing for a half-billion-dollar NASA contract to provide commercial services to the International Space Station. According to a report in The Space Review, Space Systems/Loral says it can provide low-cost cargo transport. PanAero proposes a two-stage "space van" that could also carry tourists or satellites into orbit, at $1.3 million per launch. More...

TSA TRAINING CD OFFERED BY NAFI
The Transportation Security Administration said in 2004 that all flight instructors must complete recurrent annual security training -- but left it up to the aviation industry to develop its own materials. The National Association of Flight Instructors (NAFI) has stepped in to that role, with a new CD-ROM. Required training, now available for $10. The course complies with TSA guidelines, NAFI says. Instructors must complete the material on the CD plus have a discussion with a local flight school owner or the manager of an FBO or airport. NAFI recommends that independent instructors get together as a group with the owner or manager to save time and create a more dynamic discussion. More...

FIVE DEAD IN ALASKA MIDAIR
Two professional well-regarded pilots -- one with his three children on board -- were at the controls on Sunday when their two airplanes collided in midair, about 20 miles northeast of Anchorage, Alaska. All five people were killed. David Beauregard, 45, an Alaska Airlines pilot, was flying a Cessna 170B with his three children, Ryan, 16; Conner, 13; and Remi, 9. They had just lifted off from Birchwood Airport at about noontime in clear weather, headed for Talkeetna. William Smoke, 55, a pilot for the Fish and Wildlife Service, was flying a 172. He had apparently just taken off from the same field but was returning for a landing when the two aircraft collided. "According to flight investigators, Smoke in the 172 probably saw the 170 and attempted to gain altitude to avoid the other plane but somehow he ended up crashing into the other plane's belly," a local CBS news affiliate reported. More...

ON THE FLY...
Video showing Air Force One spray-painted with graffiti was a hoax...
Tongue-technology interface helps pilots "see" in the dark…
Two F-16s followed a United A320 into Denver after a bomb report...
The wreck of a Bell JetRanger found seven years after it crashed...
VIT Engineering offers a glass-cockpit-in-a-briefcase...
King Schools new online mini-course on cockpit radar...
New helicopter shuttle Manhattan to airport, eight minutes, $139...
Dan Johnson reports online about his pre-Sun 'n Fun accident. More...

PODCASTS
Online Now: Exclusive interviews featuring Scott Crossfield, Cirrus Design's Alan Klapmeier, FAA administrator Marion Blakey, Monday's news, and more... Find AVweb's Podcast index, here, or subscribe free to AVweb's podcasts and receive them automatically for listening on your computer, iPod, or while traveling with any MP3 player. You'll hear things you won't find anywhere else. More...

AVWEB'S NEWSTIPS ADDRESS ...
What have you heard? There might be something to it. If you've heard something that 130,000 pilots might want to know about, don't be shy. Submit news tips via email to newstips@avweb.com. Our best stories start with you. More...

NEW ARTICLES AND FEATURES ON AVWEB
COLUMNS
Say Again? #62: Too Close for Comfort
We can learn a lot from accidents, but wouldn't it be great to learn from near accidents -- those that don't actually have to be reported? AVweb's Don Brown recently saw some dangerous situations that point out the problems with GPS, and he recounts them in this month's Say Again column. More...

FBO OF THE WEEK: FALCON TRUST AIR
AVweb's "FBO of the Week" contest is sponsored by Aviation Safety magazine, the monthly journal of risk management and accident prevention.

Thanks to all the pilots and AVweb readers who took time to nominate their favorite FBOs in our "FBO of the Week" contest. Today's ribbon finds its target in Florida.

AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to FALCON TRUST AIR at KTMB, Kendall-Tamiami executive airport, Miami, Florida.

LILLIAN LEBLANC filed direct, "THIS FBO IS TRULY THE TAJ MAHAL OF GENERAL AVIATION. THE BRAND NEW, MULTIMILLION DOLLAR FACILITY, OPENED IN JUNE 2005, RAISES THE BAR FOR THE ENTIRE INDUSTRY. THIS FBO IS WORTH A TRIP JUST TO TOUR THE FACILITY - BELIEVE ME, THERE IS NOTHING LIKE IT ANYWHERE."

Keep those nominations coming.

Click here to nominate your favorite FBO and here for complete contest rules

AVWEB'S 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...

QUESTION OF THE WEEK
Last week, we took orders for you favorite VLJs. One significant contender -- the first to fly with its production engines -- was mistakenly left out. We're curious to see the votes when it's included as an option, so we're going back to the drawing board and giving you the revised list of contenders this week. If you've already answered, please take a few moments to chime in on this new, revised poll. More...

PICTURE OF THE WEEK {UNFINISHED}
Two weeks out from Sun 'n Fun, the photos are starting to roll in. Pictures from the Florida fly-in dominate our current batch of "POTW" entries. As it turns out, many AVweb readers attended the show this year and had their cameras on hand. (Good thing, too, since you folks saw some things we missed!) Of all the Sun 'n Fun pics — and a few stunning non-air show pictures — our favorite this week came from Rich Spolar of Orlando, Florida. Rich submitted several photos from the show, but (alas!) we had to choose only one. More...

AVwebFlash is a twice-weekly summary of the latest news, articles, products, features, and events featured on AVweb, the internet's aviation magazine and news service.

Today's issue was written by news writer Mary Grady (bio).

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