FRIENDS WORRIED, YET OPTIMISTIC, AS FOSSETT SEARCH CONTINUES
Sir Richard Branson, who financed many of Steve Fossett's adventures, told CNN on Wednesday that he is "obviously worried" about his friend, but remains optimistic. "If he's landed and he's not too badly hurt, he's the one person in the world who will be mentally and physically equipped to get out of it," Branson said. But he added that Fossett was wearing a Breitling watch capable of emitting an emergency distress signal when manually activated, and he's concerned that no signal has been sent. Meanwhile, as of Wednesday afternoon, the search continues across 600 square miles of desert south of the private airstrip where Fossett launched Monday morning in a Citabria Super Decathtlon, planning to fly for a few hours to scout locations for a land speed record attempt. More...

GAO ON VLJS: IMPACT OF SMALL JETS IS UNCERTAIN
The Government Accountability Office made a concerted effort this summer to figure out what's up with very light jets -- will swarms of them overwhelm the National Airspace System? Will they rain from the sky, ineptly piloted by untrained amateurs? Does the FAA have a plan to handle the costs of dealing with them? And what they found out is what we could have told them -- for the most part, we'll have to wait and see. The GAO report (PDF) did determine, however, that safety issues are unlikely to arise, since the aircraft and pilots must be FAA certified and insurance companies are keeping a close watch on proficiency requirements. Also, the report concludes that the FAA and the airspace system are prepared to integrate the jets, and that since they will mainly use smaller airports, they shouldn't add to congestion problems. More...

THREE BAD LANDINGS IN ONE DAY
A passenger taking her first ride in a 1959 Piper TriPacer jumped from the cockpit as it bounced down the runway during the third emergency landing of the day, the Modesto (Calif.) Bee reported on Monday. Witnesses told the Bee that pilot William Supan, 57, landed at Modesto Airport on Saturday afternoon with smoke curling from beneath the cowling, and fire trucks responded. Supan reportedly went to Wal-Mart to buy a clamp, installed it on the airplane, and took off. Smoke now poured from the cowling, and he immediately came around and landed again. The fire trucks returned, Supan replaced part of the exhaust hose, and launched yet again. When he landed for the third time, hard, the wings were wobbling, smoke trailed from the bouncing fuselage, and passenger Jinhua Lin, 43, alarmed by the intensity of heat radiating through the floorboards, jumped. The airplane ran off the runway, the pilot escaped, the fuselage caught fire, and the flames were put out by firefighters. More...

FAA OKS DAYJET TO FLY ECLIPSE JETS
The FAA has authorized DayJet to use Eclipse 500TM very light jets in its operations, the company announced on Wednesday. DayJet is preparing to use its fleet of VLJs to launch "Per-Seat, On-Demand" jet service. "This milestone is the culmination of more than five years of dedicated work to develop the world's first fully automated fleet operations system," said Ed Iacobucci, DayJet president and CEO. In the coming weeks, DayJet says it will begin taking online reservations. More...

FOUR SWISS CONTROLLERS CONVICTED OF MANSLAUGHTER
In the continuing fallout from a 2002 midair collision in Swiss-controlled airspace in which 71 people died, four air traffic control managers on Wednesday were convicted of manslaughter, Reuters reported. The judge said the managers were responsible for ensuring that at least two controllers were on duty at all times, and the collision could have been averted if any one of them had acted to prevent the second controller on duty from taking a coffee break. That left just one controller working at the time of the collision. The lone controller was later killed by a Russian man who lost his wife and two children in the crash. More...

NEW MEXICO SPACEPORT DESIGN "OUT OF THIS WORLD"
The design for New Mexico's Spaceport America, unveiled on Tuesday, will incorporate the natural landscape, with a low-profile, 100,000-square-foot building that mimics a sand dune. A rolling concrete shell will act as a roof, with massive windows that open to a view of the runway and spacecraft, the designers said. A team of U.S. and British architects and designers, along with officials from the New Mexico Spaceport Authority and Virgin Galactic, are working on the project, which they billed the "world's first space terminal." The terminal and hangar are projected to cost about $31 million, and will include space for Virgin Galactic's pre-flight and post-flight training facilities and lounges, as well as the maintenance hangar for two White Knight Two and five SpaceShipTwo aircraft. Construction is scheduled to begin next year, with completion expected in late 2009 or early 2010. More...

CROP DUSTERS -- A DYING BREED?
There's no lack of demand for their services -- in fact, the need seems to be growing -- yet the crop-dusting profession is a graying one, and new pilots ready to enter the field are scarce, Forbes.com reports. The work is dangerous, and the bar to entry is high. Costs for equipment and insurance, and the hours required before pilots can start, have all risen over the years. Yet this summer in Iowa, crop-dusters were noticeably abundant, according to Radio Iowa News. It seems that Iowa farmers are battling soybean aphids and also are being very protective of their corn crops, which are attracting high prices created by the global demand for ethanol. More...

TAKE HOME AN LSA, FOR UNDER $50K
While the Light Sport Aircraft getting the most attention tend be those like Flight Design CT and Cessna, which are selling well in the $100,000 range, more models are coming online at lower costs. The latest is the Sport Hornet, a tandem fixed-wing airplane with full three-axis control, for sale as a Special-LSA at $49,995, reports LSA expert Dan Johnson. "With a 100 hp, four-cylinder Rotax, that's really quite a good deal," Johnson told AVweb on Wednesday. Other lower-cost models include the EuroFox, available with tricycle gear or as a taildragger for $59,950, and the Sky Arrow, an all-composite tandem pusher that goes for $66,000. More...

FRENCH COMPANY FLIES LAND-WATER-SNOW AMPHIB
LISA Airplanes, a French aircraft manufacturer, has successfully launched the first flight of its Akoya design, a two-seat amphibian that can land on the ground, the snow, and the water. Test pilot Gérald Ducoin flew the prototype for about 15 minutes on Aug. 22. "This maiden flight confirmed the very healthy general behavior of the Akoya," Ducoin said. The next tests will evaluate the various functions of the versatile aircraft -- skis, hydrofoils, flexible flaps, a swiveling wing for storage, a parachute, and more. The design phase for the airplane began in January 2006, and the company said first deliveries will take place within 16 months, at a price point of about 300,000 Euros. More...

NTSB WANTS BETTER ELTS IN AIRCRAFT
The FAA should require that all emergency locator transmitters in general aviation aircraft must be upgraded, the NTSB said (PDF) on Wednesday. The newer 406 MHz transmitters have significant advantages, the NTSB says, including longer range, better accuracy, and the ability to encode identification information, so rescuers know exactly what airplane is in distress. The safety board cites two accidents: In one airplane equipped with an older ELT, 16 hours elapsed before rescuers found the survivors, and when an airplane with a 406 MHz ELT crashed, the wreckage was located within an hour. The FAA should require an upgrade to the 406 MHz units before February 2009, when a change in satellite services will make the older units even less reliable, the NTSB says. More...

BRAINTEASERS QUIZ #124: THE BACK-TO-SCHOOL QUIZ

Shoes shined and hair slicked down, let's see what you remember after the long summer's break. Those who don't score well on this quiz will be forced to spend more time at the airport.

Take the quiz.

FBO OF THE WEEK: HENDERSON EXECUTIVE AIRPORT (HENDERSON, NV)

AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to the FBO at Henderson Executive Airport (HND) in Henderson, Nev.

AVweb reader Christopher Dean heaps praise on the service team in Henderson:

We spent eight days out there going up and coming back daily. The line crew simply rocks -- they are thorough, efficient, professional and safe. The customer service teams on all of the the shifts are friendly, and know how to take care of the customer. And the icing on the cake -- the fuel prices can't be beat! From the second we arrived to eight days later, everyone there at the FBO who dealt with us left us with a positive and warm impression. We will make this FBO our choice FBO for our trips to Las Vegas. Thank you to everyone who works there!

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!

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: IS IT TIME FOR A (MANDATORY) ELT UPGRADE?
The NTSB is recommending the FAA require newer 406Mz emergency locator transmitters in all aircraft, preferably by February 2009. This would require many upgrades, but according to the NTSB would greatly increase rescuers' ability to locate downed aircraft. This week, we want to know what you think about a mandatory upgrade to 406Mz ELTs. Plus: Where did AVweb readers fly this summer? Find out how your fellow readers answered last week's Question. More...

PICTURE OF THE WEEK: AVWEB'S FLYING PHOTOGRAPHY SHOWCASE
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." We may catch some grief for running another helicopter photo as our "Picture of the Week," but honestly — check out the color and contrast on this shot from Dianne Cooper of Tucson, Arizona and then tell us there's no room for a whirlybird or two in our weekly contest. More...

WANTED: AVIATION WRITER, EDITOR AND WEB PERSON
AVweb has an opening for an able and experienced aviation writer and editor with proven experience in both print and web publishing, although we're willing to train the right person in the finer points of massaging content for the web. This position requires relocation to our Sarasota, Florida office. If this description fits you, contact aviationeditorial@comcast.net. 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 aviation newsletter, AVwebBiz? Reporting on breaking news, Business AVflash focuses on the companies, the products and the industry leaders that make headlines in the business aviation industry. Business AVflash is a must read. Sign up today at http://www.avweb.com/profile/. More...

MEET THE AVWEBFLASH TEAM

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

The AVwebFlash team is:

Publisher
Timothy Cole

Editorial Director, Aviation Publications
Paul Bertorelli

Editor-in-Chief
Russ Niles (bio)

Contributing Editors
Mary Grady (bio)
Glenn Pew (bio)

Features Editor
Kevin Lane-Cummings (bio)

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