ALL TEN BODIES RECOVERED FROM CARAVAN CRASH
The Seattle Times has identified Philip Kibler, of Troy, N.Y., as the pilot of a Cessna Grand Caravan that went down in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State Sunday, killing him and nine skydivers. Searchers have recovered all ten bodies after initially locating seven. The Times also identifies seven of nine members of the Snohomish Skydive Club, all but one in their 20s, as Andy Smith, 20; Casey Craig, 30; Hollie Rasberry, 24; Michelle Barker, 22; Landon Atkin, 20; Cecil Elsner, 20; and Jeff Ross, 28, all of Washington State. More...

CESSNA TO OFFER BRS PARACHUTES IN SKYCATCHER, ALL PISTON SINGLES
The folks at Ballistic Recovery Systems have been hinting since this summer, when Cessna introduced its Skycatcher Light Sport Aircraft at EAA AirVenture, that the new airplane would be equipped with a BRS parachute. This week, Cessna finally made it official. The BRS system will be offered as a factory-installed option not only for the Skycatcher, but for all of Cessna's piston singles. "We've been working with Cessna since the beginning on their remarkable new design and we are pleased that they see the value in having leading-edge safety features like the BRS system on board," said BRS CEO Larry Williams. The Skycatcher parachute will sit aft of the seats, similar to the current installations available for the Cessna Skyhawk and Skylane models. More...

MOLD AND FUNGUS FOUND IN ATLANTA CENTER
At Atlanta's Air Route Traffic Control Center, the busiest air traffic control facility in the country, officials have confirmed that various kinds of fungus and mold have been found growing in the building. About half of the 300 staffers have complained of headaches and recurring sinus infections. A fungus called Scopulariopsis has been found in the control room, under the floor, and in ductwork, and spores are being dispersed through the air. "The FAA is trying to minimize the damages and rush a cleanup," said Calvin Phillips, the facility's representative to the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. "We are deeply troubled to learn that we are basically surrounded by this highly toxic fungus. For several years, we have been complaining of health issues and have long suspected that our sick building was to blame." More...

ORGANIC-FOOD ADVOCATES CONSIDER BAN ON AIR FREIGHT
A British group that certifies most of the organic produce that is sold in the U.K. may change its rules to deny an "organic" label to food that is flown into the country via air freight, FoodProductionDaily.com reported on Wednesday. The measure is meant to reduce carbon emissions. However, a recent report from the International Trade Centre says if the ban were imposed, it would harm poor farmers in Africa, who produce most of the exports. The demand for organic fruits and vegetables has been an economic boon to more than 20,000 farmers in Egypt, Kenya, Ghana, Zambia and Morocco. The ITC report points out that the proposed ban is meant to encourage local production of food to avert carbon emissions during transport, but African farmers, who would be most harmed by the change, use hardly any fossil fuels. More...

ANTIQUE AIRCRAFT INTERCEPTED IN TFR
The FAA says 12 aircraft on their way to an antique aircraft fly-in in Hagerstown, Md., violated a temporary flight restriction (TFR) and at least four were escorted out by F-16s. FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown told The Washington Post the lack of radios on some of the aircraft led to the interceptions. The Post said those attending the fly-in witnessed an F-16 circling a single-engine plane. The TFR was put in place in its final form on Friday to make way for President Bush's attendance at a memorial service nearby. Brown said it's up to pilots to ensure they know where they can fly. More...

NEW TECHNOLOGY COULD DETECT AND FIX CRACKS IN COMPOSITES
A simple new technique could help to identify and repair small, potentially dangerous cracks in high-performance aircraft wings made of composite materials, researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, in Troy, N.Y., have reported. The scientists added a small amount of carbon nanotubes to the mix when forming composite materials from epoxy resin and carbon fiber. The tubes can electronically detect even the tiniest cracks and then release materials that will repair the problem, with a 70-percent recovery in strength. The process would improve the life span, integrity and safety of composites, the researchers said. "What's novel about this application is that we're using carbon nanotubes not just to detect the crack, but also to heal the crack," said principal scientist Nikhil Koratkar. "We use the nanotubes to create localized heat, which melts the healing agent, and that's what cures the crack." More...

GIANT ADS AIMED AT PASSENGERS ALOFT
If part of what you enjoy about flying is the view out the window, prepare for that small pleasure to be infringed upon by the marketing mavens. A company called Ad-Air, based in London, is creating what it calls the "first global aerial advertising network," selling five-acre inflatable ads that lie across the landscape like giant billboards, strategically placed beneath flight paths into major airports. "What an incredible marketing opportunity - all these passengers with nothing else to do, staring down at the ground below," Paul Jenkins, managing director of Ad-Air, told the International Herald-Tribune. Ad-Air said it has official okays to set up the ads near more than a dozen major airports in the U.K., France, Asia, and several in the U.S., including Atlanta, Denver, and Los Angeles International. More...

EUROPE'S AIRLINE PAX PROTEST CELLPHONES ALOFT
Forget security and safety-of-flight concerns -- airline passengers in the U.K. are worried about their sanity if cellphones are allowed in the cabin in flight. "It would drive me absolutely mad if the person next to me was using his phone," Gwyneth Dunwoody told the London Telegraph. The newspaper has been spearheading a campaign to keep cellphones out of airline cabins. So far, over 3,000 people have signed an online petition to protest the proposal. In the U.S., the FAA has dropped any plans to consider allowing cellphone use aloft. But the European Aviation Safety Agency has given the OK to new in-flight mobile technology that allows devices to operate with less power and avoid possible interference. More...

AVWEB VIDEO MAKES TOP 10 LIST — YOU CAN VOTE!
Those of us who love to fly might be fascinated by a video of air show pilot Mike Goulian explaining what it takes to fly a Red Bull air race -- but it turns out that the wide-open masses of people enjoy it, too. The interview, shot by AVweb videographer Glenn Pew in San Diego a few weeks ago, has risen to No. 3 in the WeShow sports-video rankings. Visitors to the site vote for their favorite video-casts from thousands of choices all over the Internet, and to reach No. 3, Goulian had to compete with the likes of the Dallas Cowboys, the New York Knicks, the Tour de France doping scandal, and a spectacular race-car crash. You can help move Goulian even higher in the rankings, by visiting the site and voting for your favorite. 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...

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

ACROSS THE POND #9: CRISES AND PROMISES IN EUROPE
AVweb's Liz Moscrop has the latest aero news from Europe including challenges for U.K. PPL pilots, microlights and more. More...

AOPA EXPO 2007 PODCAST ROUND-UP: COMPLETE AUDIO COVERAGE FROM HARTFORD, CT
Last week, we managed to record a bumper crop of podcasts with the aviation industry's leading figures — covering topics that ranged from inside the cockpit (synthetic vision) to new airplanes (from Diamond and Cessna) to Lockheed Martin's embattled perspective on the newly-privatized AFSS system. In case you missed any, here's a complete recap of our exclusive audio coverge from the show. More...

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: CELL PHONES ON AIRLINERS
We've probably asked this before, but it's come up again, and we're wondering if you've changed your mind on it: This time, there's actually a petition against allowing cell phone use on airliners.  What do you think?  Should their use be allowed on commercial flight? Plus: How much did AVweb readers say they'd be willing to spend on avionics upgrades for ADS-B in answer to last week's question? More...

FBO OF THE WEEK: ZENITH FLIGHT SUPPORT (KRAL, RIVERSIDE, CA)

AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to Zenith Flight Support at KRAL in Riverside, California.

AVweb reader Bob Spidell quot;didn't know a thing about local FBOs ... [and] picked one out of Pilot's Guide," but he was surprised at how well he'd picked when he arrived at Riverside:

[T]he young lady who took my reservation had my rental car parked out front, running, with the air conditioner on as it was a hot day. ... Friendly staff, efficient and well-run outfit--a credit to the business.

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!

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." Lee Hogan of Addison, Wisconsin scores the winning field goal by combining two great tastes that go great together — at least during autumn in the U.S. Lee tells us this was part of a 3-plane fly-over of T-34s from Lima Lima during the halftime show at Marmion Academy's homecoming game. Now that's what we call a show! 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

Contributing Editors
Mary Grady
Glenn Pew

Features Editor
Kevin Lane-Cummings

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