ANOTHER DIAMOND IN THE SKY
Diamond Aircraft celebrated the first flight of its DA50 Super Star on Wednesday from the manufacturer's headquarters in Wiener Neustadt, Austria, but the jaunt was only 15 minutes due to poor weather conditions, according to company CEO and owner Christian Dries. The five-place single-engine airplane took off at an mtow of 3,670 pounds with Dries and director of sales/chief pilot Soeren Pedersen at the controls. While the maiden flight was cut short, the pair logged two more hours in the all-composite airplane on the next day when weather was more cooperative, allowing for a more comprehensive shake out of the initial DA50. Dries told AVweb that on Thursday the Super Star's 350-hp, FADEC-controlled, turbocharged Teledyne Continental TSIOF-550J engine systems were checked out and the fixed-gear airplane was also taken to 10,000 feet. Diamond brought the airplane from the drawing board to the skies in only 11 months, which Dries attributes to lead engineer Manfred Zipper and his team. More...

MARTHA KING DUNKED IN ULTRALIGHT
Flight-training icon Martha King might have learned a thing or two about ultralights Wednesday when the aircraft she was aboard flipped over into Shasta Lake in northern California. King, 61, and pilot Dennis Chitwood, 54, were wet but virtually uninjured in the mishap, which occurred near Lakehead, Calif. According to the Redding Record Searchlight, King bruised a wrist but declined medical attention. More...

CESSNA MUSTANGS STILL IN STARTING GATE
Cessna says it hopes to resume deliveries of its Mustang entry-level jet soon after the schedule was stalled by a software glitch in the airplane's Garmin G1000 avionics suite. Cessna spokeswoman Pia Bergqvist told The Wichita Eagle the problem was discovered shortly after the first delivery of a Mustang (a company demo plane) last November and there haven’t been any customer deliveries. "It's just a minor software glitch that they had to correct," Bergqvist said. "It's already been fixed," she noted. Bergqvist did not specify the nature of the problem. More...

USER FEE PROPOSAL DEAD?
Rep. Todd Tiahrt, R-Kan., is close to declaring the FAA’s proposal to impose user fees on general aviation dead. "I think we’ve finally gotten the stake out and are about to drive it through user fees," he told The Wichita Eagle's editorial board last week. Tiahrt told the Eagle brass that he’s made fighting the funding proposal his top priority and enlisted the support of other members of Congress to defeat the plan. On the Eagle's editorial board's blog, Tiahrt’s tenacity was applauded but it appears that not everyone in aviation-centric Wichita thinks user fees are a bad idea. More...

LANDING FEES IMPOSED AT MONTREAL AIRPORTS
Flying to Montreal gets more expensive on June 1 but it’s not just pilots in La Belle Province who should be concerned, according to a Quebec aviation leader. Michel Charette, former vice president of Aviateurs et pilotes de brousse du Québec (Quebec Aviators and Bush Pilots Association), told AVweb that despite lobbying by his group and the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association (COPA), ADM, the administrator of Montreal’s airports, is slapping a $35 one-time landing fee ($1,000 for a yearly pass) on general aviation aircraft using the downtown Trudeau International Airport (Dorval) and a $15 fee ($400 annually) at Mirabel, about 30 miles from the city. The goal, says Charette, is to discourage GA traffic, but it’s destined to be a nuisance for trans-border traffic headed to the Montreal area. “Pierre-Elliott Trudeau Airport (Dorval) is a major stop for customs clearing upon returning from a flight into U.S. or for incoming general aviation traffic from the U.S., especially during the evening and at night,” he wrote. More...

SPACE WEATHER THREATENS GPS
As if we didn’t have enough weather to worry about here on Earth, scientists have confirmed what has long been anecdotally acknowledged -- that solar flares play havoc with GPS signals. And with the FAA moving steadily toward satellite-based technologies for the future of airspace management, the warnings from last week’s Space Weather Enterprise Forum take on increasing poignancy. “Society cannot become overly reliant on technology without an awareness and understanding of the effects of future space weather disruptions,'' Anthea Coster, Ph.D., MIT Haystack Observatory, told attendees at the conference, which was held in Washington, D.C. There is some good news, however. It appears WAAS signals, the cornerstone of most of the new navigation protocols, are somewhat less vulnerable to disruption. More...

GUARD WANTS LOW-LEVEL RANGE IN NEW ENGLAND
Opposition is mounting to a Massachusetts Air National Guard plan to conduct low-level (500 feet minimum) training over a 3,600-square-nautical-mile area of northwestern Maine and a sliver of eastern New Hampshire known as the Western Mountains. The sparsely populated resort area is already a military range, but only a small section is used for low-level flights. According to The Original Irregular (the real name of the newspaper in Kingsfield, Maine) the Guard claims buzzing the treetops in F-16s and F-15s shouldn’t really bother anyone. “The Proposed Action would have the potential to affect airspace management, biological resources, and safety, but would have no significant impacts on these resources,” the paper quotes the Guard’s draft environmental assessment as saying. Others aren’t so sure and are worried about wildlife, air quality and the undeniable impact of a fighter suddenly screaming overhead. AOPA is also involved, asking for, and getting, more time to study the impact on airspace. More...

VIETNAMESE HOMEBUILDERS CLOSE TO FIRST FLIGHT
Vietnam’s (future) flying farmers, Tran Quoc Hai and Le Van Danh, passed a critical step in their bid to become the country’s first homegrown aviators last week when government inspectors appear to have given their backyard-built helicopter a passing grade. “Specifically, within 30 minutes, the engine operated in a stable manner, the propeller ran at 180 circles per minute and other indexes met standards,” the VietNamNet Bridge reported. “Particularly, the aircraft met the standards for anti-shake on the ground, which was the biggest challenge in the testing period.” More...

GARUDA AIRLINER LANDED AT 230 KNOTS
Crash investigators in Indonesia say the Garuda Airlines Boeing 737-400 that overran a runway, resulting in 21 deaths on March 7, was going about 230 knots when it touched down, close to double the normal landing speed. The airliner caught fire after running off the end of Yogyakarta Airport's runway, but 119 people, including the flight crew, survived. According to the Australia Herald Sun, the report, which it says Indonesian officials are trying to suppress, conflicts sharply with the claims of the crew, Captain Marwoto Komar and his copilot Gagam Rohman, who could be facing charges. More...

FIVE AIRCRAFT, ONE PILOT
The British military is testing a system that would, essentially, allow a pilot to command his own pilotless wingmates. The system, developed by QinetiQ with funding from the British Ministry of Defense, enables the pilot of a fighter jet to simultaneously control up to four unmanned companion aerial vehicles. According to Technology News, it was tested for the first time last week with the pilot of a Tornado fighter also influencing the movements of a BAC 111, filling in for a UAV, and three simulated UAVs. Despite the absence of actual UAVs in the test, the government called the test a success and said the Tornado pilot was able to lead his simulated backup on a simulated ground attack. More...

CHINA RELEASES IMAGES OF FUTURE "JUMBO" JET
If the images portrayed by China’s Xinhua news agency are accurate, China’s jetliner for the 21st century looks suspiciously like a Russian military transport from the 1970s. The high-wing, high-tailed creation, with its multiple banks of landing gear trucks clustered under the fuselage, looks like the big Antonovs that still toil as chartered military cargo aircraft. It looks nothing like the sleek shape of the Boeing 787 that many consider the technology driver of the next generation of commercial airliners. Still, China seems pretty excited about its chances in the world market. "China's jumbo aircraft will initially target the domestic market. But the ultimate aim is to compete with Boeing and Airbus on the international market," said Jin Qiansheng, deputy director of the administrative committee of Xi'an Yanliang State Aviation High-tech Industry Base. More...

ON THE FLY
Charles Simonyi became fifth space tourist…
AOPA assembled Sun n' Fun safety package…
AOPA membership hits record 411,187…
Paul Poberezny on Wings To Adventure segment. More...

AVWEB'S NEWSTIPS ADDRESS ...
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 newstips@avweb.com. What have you heard? More...

AVWEBBIZ: AVWEB'S BUSINESS AVIATION NEWSLETTER
HAVE YOU SIGNED UP yet for AVweb's NO-COST weekly business newsletter, AVwebBiz? 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. Sign up today at http://www.avweb.com/profile/. More...

Columns | Features | What's New | Calendar | Brainteasers

CEO OF THE COCKPIT #69: SIZE MATTERS
Even in big airliners there's no room for decent-sized bathrooms, comfortable seats, or even flight-bag storage areas. Doesn't help that we're all getting bigger. More...

REPLACING ANCIENT AVIONICS
If you're flying a nav/comm museum, it may be time to stop pouring money into older boxes. Here are guidelines on what's serviceable and what's not. More...

AVMAIL: APR. 9, 2007
Reader mail this week about FSS closures, medical application fraud and Tuskegee Airmen and much more about user fees. More...

AVWEB AUDIO NEWS

AVweb posts audio news on Mondays, plus a new in-depth interview each Friday. In last Friday's podcast, you'll find part one of an interview with AOPA's Andrew Cebula on aviation user fees. And AVweb's podcast index includes interviews with Hawker Beechcraft's Avfuel's Craig Sincock; Comp Air's Ron Lueck; Expedition Aircraft's Jim Schuster; VistaNav's Jeff Simon; Andrew Hamblin; Eclipse Aviation's Vern Raburn; NBAA's Ed Bolen; Open Air's Michael Klein; Air Excursions' Cable Wells; Stephen Brown; NATCA's Paul Rinaldi; AOPA's Kathleen Vascouselos; Maule Air's Mikel Boorom; Professsional Aviation Maintenance Association president Brian Finnegan; and aviation forecaster Richard Aboulafia. In today's special podcast, hear part two of AOPA's Andrew Cebula discussion with AVweb about aviation user fees. Remember: In AVweb's podcasts, you'll hear things you won't find anywhere else.

More...

FBO OF THE WEEK: DILLON FLYING SERVICE

AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to Dillon Flying Service at KDLN in Dillon, Mont.

AVweb reader Benjamin Marsh liked the service so much at the FBO that he dreams of going back.

"Dennis and Jean, the owners, offer extremely personable service and genuinely care about their customers. Dennis, a high-time tailwheel pilot, welcomes everyone from cub pilots to jet jockey's at the FBO. Dillon's does get trainsient traffic; however, most is recreational due to its world-famous fishing and hunting. Yet prices are extremely low unlike other recreational airports. The FBO even offers a beautiful C172 for rental at only $82/hour wet. Overall, this FBO is a dream come true for any fisherman planning a trip this summer to the Beaverhead, Big Hole, Ruby or Madison Rivers, but still wants to stick to his budget. I can only dream of a flight back to Dillon."

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!

VIDEO OF THE WEEK: SEAN TUCKER AEROBATICS TO THE MUSIC OF STEVE MORSE
CFII (and AVweb reader) Nate Weinsaft tells us he's "a huge fan of Sean D. Tucker and the musician Steve Morse ... [who] recently purchased a Mac." We won't speculate on how long it took to match up Tucker's aerobatic feats to the swells and valleys of "Air on a 6 String," but it was long enough to earn Nate's video a spot as today's AVweb "Video of the Week." (For those who will ask, here's a link to buy the album. You're on your own when it comes to buying the Macintosh.) (Click through to watch.) More...

SHORT FINAL

Overheard in IFR Magazine's "On the Air"

I heard this somewhere out East while in the clag and trying to find an approach plate:

Piper: Center, Lance Six Two Eight One November, with you at 7,000 feet.

Center (sounding tired): Lance, Six Two Eight One November, roger. But two things: first you don't need to say "feet" because that's understood. And more importantly, you aren't "with me." I know everybody in this radar room, and you aren't here. More...

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