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| Winter Flying Dangers | back to top |  |
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Canadian Safety Board Urges Light-Icing Limit For Caravans
NTSB: Use Caution On Wet Runways
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"This Cessna [Caravan] should not take off into anything more than light icing -- period," said Wendy Tadros, chair of Canada's
Transportation Safety Board (TSB), at a 
The FAA's rulemaking process takes a long time, and NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker says airlines shouldn't wait for a rule to be
finalized before they adopt more conservative stopping-distance estimates for contaminated runways. "We think airlines should voluntarily adopt the procedures contained in the FAA's OpSpec (operations
specification) now, as we are entering another winter flying season," Rosenker said
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| Eclipse Chimes In On Performance And Deliveries | back to top | |
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Eclipse To Modify All Model 500s To Boost Performance
Eclipse Offers Partial Rebate For Late Delivery
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When it became clear during development of the Eclipse 500 very light jet that it wouldn't quite be able to meet its projected
speed and range targets, the depositors were offered refunds. But the company also said it would continue working on aerodynamic improvements. On Tuesday, Eclipse CEO Vern Raburn said a series of
modifications have improved performance to 370 ktas and an NBAA IFR range of 1,125 nm (with 100-nm alternate). And, despite an earlier announcement that the first 100 Eclipse 500s would meet a lower
standard -- 360 knots and 1,055 nm -- all of those twinjets now will be upgraded to meet the new performance numbers, Raburn said. A handful of changes, from bigger tip tanks to slicker aerodynamics,
have resulted in the improvements. The new tip tanks will add 25 gallons of fuel. Changes to reduce drag on the airframe include a new tail fairing, main landing-gear fairings and covers over the
control-surface hinges. The elevator and rudders have been extended to eliminate gurney tabs that added significant drag. This change also improved the control forces, Eclipse said in a letter to
customers. The Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) software will be changed to improve thrust at cruise altitudes from 25,000 feet through the certified max altitude of 41,000 feet. This
won't increase the 900-pound-thrust rating of the Pratt & Whitney PW610F turbofans, but results in more thrust at typical jet cruise altitudes, the letter said.
After some customers balked recently at being asked for a "six-month" deposit -- expressing concern that delivery
of their jets appears to be more than six months away -- Eclipse CEO Vern Raburn this week announced a rebate plan for late deliveries. "For customers with a scheduled delivery date on or before
September 30, 2007, we will reduce your final payment due at delivery by 0.5 percent per month (a 6-percent annual interest rate) of the additional payment we are asking you to pay now," Raburn said
in a letter to customers. The six-month deposit will bring each customer's cumulative deposit up to 60 percent of the full aircraft purchase price. Eclipse has a one-month grace period before the
rebate kicks in. Thus, if the scheduled delivery month is April 2007 and the actual delivery is June 3, 2007, the buyer will be entitled to one month of the 0.5 percent offset deducted from the final
payment amount.
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| News Briefs | back to top | |
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Brazil Allowing U.S. Pilots To Return Home
NTSB Investigating First Frax Cirrus Accident
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The two U.S. pilots who have been held in Rio de Janeiro since a fatal midair collision in September will be allowed to go
home, a Brazilian court said on Tuesday. The pilots -- Joseph Lepore and Jan Paladino, both of New York -- will have their passports returned to them and can leave the country in 72 hours, after being
further debriefed by police, the court said. The two must agree to return to Brazil for any further inquiry and judicial action. "Restricting the freedom of movement for foreigners is not backed by
the domestic legal system," the court's statement said, according to Reuters. Brazil is still investigating the crash, which was the worst in the country's history. The pilots were flying an Embraer
Legacy jet above the Amazon on Sept. 29 when it collided with a Gol Airlines Boeing 737-800. All 154 people on board the 737 were killed. The Legacy made a safe emergency landing with all seven people
aboard unharmed. Public opinion in Brazil seems to be shifting away from blaming the pilots to focus on concerns with air traffic control, Reuters said.
The NTSB has finished its on-scene investigation of a Cirrus SR22 that crashed Thursday night while on approach to Runway
18R at Charlotte Douglas International Airport. Killed in the crash of N665CD was George Vrana, the sole-occupant pilot and a partner with accounting firm Ernst & Young. Notably, the event marks the
first accident at AirShares Elite, which managed the airplane under its fractional program. According to the NTSB, the Cirrus's recovery parachute and rocket separated from the aircraft, most likely
during the impact sequence, yielding no early clue as to whether the pilot tried to deploy the emergency system before the single-engine airplane crashed seven miles from the airport. The Safety Board
has examined the airplane's engine and is still interviewing witnesses and gathering ATC communications and radar data. A preliminary report is expected to be issued later this week. "First and
foremost, we lost a fellow pilot, a friend and a member of our AirShares family," AirShares Elite said in a statement. "Our sincerest condolences are with the friends and family of the pilot. The FAA
and NTSB are investigating the accident, and...we are fully cooperating with them in their investigation." An AirShares Elite spokeswoman further added that safety and training are the company's top
priorities, with all existing customers required to undergo annual recurrent pilot training. New customers are subject to the company's recently approved FAA/Industry Training Standard (FITS) program.
AirShares Elite said there are 50 Cirrus airplanes and 240 owners in its fractional aircraft program.
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| News Briefs | back to top | |
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Stunning Number Of TFR Violations Since 9/11
More Than Just Runway Repaired At Venice Municipal
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According to data obtained from the FAA by AOPA, there have been 6,658 Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) violations between Sept. 11,
2001, and the end of last month. Broken down even further, 1,632 of these infringements are presidential TFR busts and another 3,254 are due to "Washington, D.C. security-related" breaches, AOPA said.
Some 2,672 of the Washington violations are related to pilots straying into the Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) surrounding the nation's capital. The good news is that Washington ADIZ busts are
trending downward, an AOPA spokesman told AVweb. Late last year, the FAA introduced a 
"This doesn't happen that often," AOPA President Phil Boyer said Tuesday morning at the ribbon-cutting ceremony to reopen a
refurbished Runway 13/31 at Venice (Fla.) Municipal Airport. According to FAA Regional Administrator Doug Murphy, the FAA picked up all but $200,000 of the $4 million tab to repair the 5,000-foot
runway. "The runway refurb was done with complete cooperation between local, state and federal officials, as well as the airport users," Boyer added. But just a decade ago this cordial relationship
between airport and community was nowhere to be found. In fact, the FAA twice cut off federal funding due to spats with previous local leaders. Now Venice Mayor R. Fred Hammett calls the Gulf Coast
airport "a lifeline for our community." The FAA's Murphy said the project is "a shining example" of people working together at all levels. Next year, the FAA is expected to chip in another $2.5
million to resurface Runway 4/22 and enable other airport upgrades, including construction of more T-hangars. There are currently long waiting lists for T-hangars at the uncontrolled airport, which
sees about 164,000 operations per year.
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| News Briefs | back to top | |
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UND Flight Students Crash In Minnesota
Helicopter Departs For Flight Across North And South Poles
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Two teenage freshmen students attending the University of North Dakota (UND) were killed Friday in the crash of a 1971 Cessna 172L not
owned by the school. The aircraft departed Crookston Municipal Airport (Minn.) at roughly 5:30 p.m. for the purpose of closed pattern work, which was expected to last an hour, according to a friend
(and fellow student) who spoke with the students before the flight. The plane's wreckage was discovered at 1:40 a.m. in a field about one mile southwest of the airport. Lowell Miller, manager of the
Crookston airport, told The Associated Press that high winds and sporadic snowfall were present at the time of the flight. Jacob Rueth, 18, was the flight's pilot and a pre-commercial aviation major
at UND. FAA records indicate he had been a certificated private pilot since July. Jacob Sunblad, 19, was a pre-flight education major at UND. Sunblad was in pilot training but did not yet hold a
private certificate. The aircraft was owned by Crookston Aviation Service. The FAA, the NTSB and Cessna have sent representatives to participate in the investigation.
Two helicopter pilots, Jennifer Murray and Colin Bodill, took off from Fort Worth, Texas, on Tuesday on the first leg of a flight that
will take them to both the North and South Poles. If they succeed, it will be a first. The two will fly their Bell 407 helicopter through 34 countries and cover more than 36,000 miles in about six
months. From Texas, they will head south to Mexico and South America, and are scheduled to reach the South Pole on Jan. 9. They head back across South America and along the U.S. West Coast to Alaska
and Canada, reaching the North Pole on April 13. They plan to return via Russia, Europe and across the North Atlantic, reaching Fort Worth on May 23. You can follow their flight at their Web site,
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| News Briefs | back to top | |
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Virgin Atlantic To Test Clean-Air Strategy
AVweb Now Has Daily GA News CoverageYou can now get the latest general aviation news from AVweb -- the world's premier independent aviation news source -- as it happens at AVweb.com. Or sign up for our news feed and have the most recent headlines pushed directly to your RSS-based news reader. Either way, you'll be able to read the same concise, but comprehensive, news stories that you've come to expect from AVweb. And for major breaking general aviation news, AVweb will send out news alerts via e-mail to keep subscribers informed. Don’t worry -- you'll also continue to receive AVwebFlash every Monday and Thursday.
AVweb's Business AVflash
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Virgin Atlantic is making good on recent promises from CEO Richard Branson to cut emissions of carbon dioxide. Driven by intense
consumer concern about global warming in the U.K. and the rest of Europe, Branson has committed billions to research for new biofuels, but also said he'd work to cut consumption right away by reducing
waste. The airline will carry out tests with its Boeing 747s throughout December at London Gatwick and Heathrow Airports. The idea is to create a holding area for airliners close to the runway that
they can be towed to, so they don't use so much fuel taxiing from the gate and then holding on the taxiway. A longer, more detailed trial is then expected to take place in the first quarter of 2007.
Teams from Virgin Atlantic are holding talks with airport officials at San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York JFK about similar trials. The changes should also reduce noise levels and result in
"dramatically cleaner air on the ground," 
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
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| News In Brief | back to top | |
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On The FlyAdam Aircraft has hired two new executives to manage flight test and engineering programs...A computer system at Miami Center was down for about an hour on Wednesday, and four aircraft in the flight levels "almost" violated FAA separation rules, The Associated Press reported... Brazil shut down three major airports on Tuesday when an air traffic control communications system failed; many travelers were stranded in terminals overnight... Leonard Greene, inventor of the stall-warning device and founder of the Corporate Angel Network, died last week at age 88 in New York… The EAA is holding a ceremony today at the AirVenture Museum in Oshkosh to observe the 65th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The observance -- which starts at 7:55 a.m., the same time the attacks began on Dec. 7, 1941 -- is sponsored by the Military Veterans Museum of Oshkosh.
AVweb's Newstips Address...
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Our best stories start with you. If you've heard something that 130,000 pilots might want to know about, tell us. Submit news
tips via email to
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| New On AVweb | back to top | |
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New Articles and Features on AVweb
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AVweb posts audio news on Mondays, plus a new in-depth interview each Friday. In 
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| Question Of The Week | back to top | |
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Question of the Week: Local Governments and Local AirportsThis Week's Question | Last Week's Results
PREVIOUS RESULTS *** Last week, we asked if you were planning to add WAAS to your Garmin IFR GPS receiver(s) when the upgrade becomes available. Being the tech-savvy group you are, a large chunk of AVweb readers (42% of those who responded) said yes without hesitation. At the other end of the spectrum, 24% of AVweb readers don't (yet) have an upgradeable GPS but are willing to consider WAAS when they get one. What about the rest of the readers who participated in last week's
poll?
THIS WEEK'S QUESTION *** How do your local government officials view the airport in your community? Have an idea for a new QOTW? Send your suggestions to qotw@avweb.com. NOTE: |
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| FBO Of The Week | back to top | |
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FBO Of The Week: TAC Air KTYS
Nominate an FBO | Rules | Tips | Questions | Winning FBOs
AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to TAC Air at KTYS in Knoxville, Tenn.
AVweb reader David Stone said he literally got a warm reception from the facility's staff upon his departure. "I showed up Wednesday before Thanksgiving with my wife and two sons. TAC Air had crew waiting with a luggage cart and even unloaded the plane. What wins my nomination, though, is TAC Air employees pulling the plane into a heated hanger Saturday morning after I called to have the plane pulled out front. The plane was covered in frost, and they saved me an hour and did not charge me a dime."
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! |
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| Picture Of The Week | back to top | |
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Picture of the WeekSubmit a Photo | Rules | Tips | Questions | Past Winners
Each week, we go through dozens (and sometimes hundreds) of reader-submitted photos and pick the very best to share with you on Thursday mornings. The top photos are featured on AVweb's home page, and one photo that stands above the others is awarded an AVweb baseball cap as our "Picture of the Week." Want to see your photos featured? Submit them here! *** THIS WEEK'S WINNERS ***
Hankering for more reader-submitted photos? Watch the home page at AVweb.com this week, and keep your eyes peeled for photos that you didn't see here! To enter next week's contest, click here. A Reminder About Copyrights: Please take a moment to consider the source of your image before submitting to our "Picture of the Week" contest. If you did not take the photo yourself, ask yourself if you are indeed authorized to release publication rights to AVweb. If you're uncertain, consult the POTW Rules or send us an e-mail. |
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| Names Behind the News | back to top | |
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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 Contributing Editors Mary Grady (bio) and Glenn Pew (bio) and Editor In Chief Chad Trautvetter. Click here to send a letter to the editor. (Please let us know if your letter is not intended for publication.) Comments or questions about the news should be sent here. Have a product or service to advertise on AVweb? A question on marketing? Send it to AVweb's sales team. If you're having trouble reading this newsletter in its HTML-rich format (or if you'd prefer a lighter, simpler format for your PDA or handheld device), there's also a text-only version of AVwebFlash. For complete instructions on making the switch, click here. Aviate, navigate, communicate. |
