ROOMY FOUR-DOUR HIGH WING DEBUTS AT SUN 'N FUN
Newly formed VX Aerospace make the trek to the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In Lakeland, Fla., this week to show off its four-seat FX-300 kitbuilt airplane. The new design -- which has roots in the former Four Winds FX-10 -- incorporates a composite fuselage, chrome-moly steel cage and a strut-less, high-performance composite high wing. According to VX Aerospace, the FX-300 is the only four-seat, four-door aircraft on the market. The kit price is $88,000, not including either a 260-hp Lycoming IO-540 or Continental IO-550 engine. Buyers can take advantage of the builder-assist program to complete their FX-300 in about 90 days. A production airplane started flying last month and has already logged about 35 hours. VX Aerospace President Raymond Jones said a certified version should be available in about 18 months, though pricing for this version has not yet been determined. More...

NAVY: BLUE ANGELS RTB AFTER FATAL CRASH
The U.S. Navy Sunday said it will be at least three weeks before it can release significant information on the fatal crash of Blue Angel No. 6 during an airshow at Beaufort, South Carolina on Saturday. Although the Navy didn’t officially identify the pilot, news reports identified him as Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Davis, 32, of Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The Angels were just completing a six-ship low-level maneuver when Davis’s F/A-18 Hornet apparently struck trees. The resulting crash showered debris across houses and mobile homes and cut a path through pine trees. Local resident Raymond Voegli told The Chronicle News that he witnessed the crash, saying the aircraft was "a big fireball coming at me ... taking pine trees and just clipping th em." The flame and debris doused his truck, Voegli told the newspaper. More...

AVWEB'S SUN 'N FUN PODCAST #6:
EMBRAER'S ERNEST EDWARDS
AVweb Editor-in-Chief Chad Trautvetter sat down with Embraer North America Vice President of Sales and Marketing Ernest Edwards at the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In in Lakeland, Florida to get more background on the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer and its growing line of business jets. More...

PILOT MY-CAST ADDS FLIGHT PLANNING FEATURE
Garmin subsidiary Digital Cyclone this week at the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In in Lakeland, Fla., unveiled a new version of its Pilot My-Cast cellphone application that allows pilots to file a flight plan using a mobile phone. Pilot My-Cast is a subscription-based ($12.95 per month) cellphone service that gives pilots personalized flight planning and weather information in the palm of their hand. "Pilot My-Cast is a wonderful flight planning tool because it offers pilots precise, personalized weather reports," said Garmin Vice President of Marketing Gary Kelley. "Now that you can also file a flight plan directly from Pilot My-Cast, pilots will be able to use the weather information they see on their phone to make informed route planning decisions before they file." The first time a pilot uses the Pilot My-Cast service, they are asked to input all required data for the FAA flight plan such as the pilot’s name, address, aircraft identification, aircraft type, departure point, cruising altitude, route of flight, fuel on board and estimated time en route. When the pilot is ready to submit the plan, a few keystrokes will automatically send the information to the DUATS provider. More...

THESE WINDOWS PASS WITH FLYING COLORS
"You can turn a plain window into a plane window," Flying Colors Glass owner and artisan Gary Elshoff told AVweb this week at the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In in Lakeland, Fla. The Grafton, Wis.-based company allows Elshoff to combine his love of aviation with his skills to create custom-designed stained glass to replace an existing window or even hang on a wall. The result is one-of-a-kind original works of aviation art that showcases your airplane, or any airplane for that matter. At the show, Elshoff said he recently hired a glass carver to expand Flying Colors Glass' offerings of aviation-themed windows. An approximately 18-inch square, custom-made stained glass window made by Elshoff and crew costs about $400. More...

XM SATELLITE WEATHER SERVICES EXPAND
XM Satellite Weather announced at the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In this week in Lakeland, Fla., that it will enhance its popular Aviator package, adding more features at no additional charge. "We're excited to announce the expansion of coverage to Canada and Puerto Rico," said XM spokesman Roderick MacKenzie. The package also will include Canadian weather products such as Weather Warnings, Outlooks, METARs, SIGMETs, and winds aloft. XM also said it will offer subscribers an "End of Season" package that allows them to put their payments on hold during the off-season when they don't need the service. More...

LSA GYROPLANE HAS JANUARY EXPIRATION DATE
"We can sell this aircraft, factory-built, as an E-LSA until the end of January 2008," Chuck Roberg of Xenon Gyroplanes said this week at the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In in Lakeland, Fla. "After that, is a big question mark." The uncertainty is due to the evolving status of gyrocopters in the FAA's light sport aircraft rules. "The ASTM standard for gyrocopters is complete and ready to go," Roberg said. "But the Sport Pilot rule itself excludes gyros. We're working with the FAA to either get a waiver or get the rule to allow for gyros, so we can sell the Xenon as a ready-to-fly S-LSA after next January." The aircraft are built in Poland from a French design, and 24 copies already are flying. The heated, enclosed cabin has a roll cage for crash-safety, with two side-by-side seats, wide shoulder room and luggage space. Models are delivered ready to fly at $61,000 to $72,000. More...

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